With a little under a month before the conclusion of the NBA season, the question remains: Who is most deserving of NBA MVP.
Many players vie for the prestigious award, but it remains as elusive as ever for perhaps the best individual player in the game. Was Kobe snubbed in '05? '06? Maybe. But there is no looking past how Steve Nash redefined the point guard position.
Supporters of Kobe argue that he is as good as ever and his team remains atop the Western Conference standings. But is he really doing anything different?
Yes, he's shooting less, which gives his teammates more shots, and he does have an improved team. An improved Andrew Bynum along with the additions of Trevor Ariza and veteran guard Derek Fisher have made life much easier for the Lakers star. And although Bynum and Ariza went down mid season, with the addition of all-star Pau Gasol, the Lakers haven't missed a beat.
Gasol, too, was injured, and now this is Kobe's time to show the voters that he can carry the team on his back and lead the Lakers to a number one ranking with 12 games to go in the season.
Instead, they have lost four of their last seven including a humiliating home loss against the Rockets as they won their 22nd straight game. Not only did they lose, but it was how they lost. Shane Battier obviously did his homework as he held Kobe to 24 points on 31 shot attempts. Of those 24, Bryant scored about six on Battier and the rest came off switches, free throws, and when Shane was out the game.
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Kobe's stock was falling as fast as Tracy McGrady's stock was rising despite his mediocre performance. With Yao out for the season, critics and naysayers alike began hopping on the McGrady and the Rockets' bandwagon. Me included.
Although he wasn't my candidate for MVP, T-Mac rapidly moved up the list to a top three candidate with every victory. But with a treacherous remaining schedule, the Rockets have slipped back into reality and the Cinderella story is starting to fade.
This leaves one other candidate in the race for MVP. MVP stands for the Most Valuable Player and is a player that is a necessity for a team's success. And although it goes to a teams' superstar, that team must be in great standing.
Chris Paul is this years MVP. Chris Paul has exemplified the acronym all season long. He has been the most consistent and is getting better with every game as the season concludes.
So what makes him so special? Everything.
His game speaks for itself with all of the intangibles to go along with it. Most players have all stars or big time players that stand out. Besides Chris Paul, the Hornets other all-star is David West? Although he is an all-star this season, people still scratch their heads when they hear his name because he's not well known. He's just a pretty good player that probably won't make the all-star team too many more times. He's in the same category as Rashard Lewis.
Chris is the reason why New Orleans is currently the number one seed. I'll tell you what, here's how you choose between Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul. They're both in the competitive West and compete against the same teams. Take Chris Paul off of the Hornets, and take Kobe off of the Lakers. Which team will have the better record? The Lakers by far. With Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher and a returning Andrew Bynum, I'm not sure that the Lakers might even miss the playoffs.
But on the other hand, The Hornets would become the Western Conferences' Miami Heat. Chris Paul is obviously more valuable to the success of his team. Chris Paul for MVP.
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8 months ago
I loved the last part of this article especially, because that's where all the madness you are saying stops, sure the Hornets are a good team without Chris Paul, they just would not be as high a seed as they are now, but good, they'd definitely make the playoffs with the likes of Mo Pete, Peja Stojakovic, Tyson Chandler, Bonzi Wells and the new All-Star David West, dude he's been averaging 20ppg and 9.1rebs this season... the western conferences Heat, I think not, and if Kobe was not on the lakers I think that with all the injuries going on they would definitely be the Western Conferences Miami Heat. Who can really step up and win games for L.A. if Kobe is out? Lamar Odom? Ha!!! KB24 for MVP
8 months ago
Are you kidding me?? Chris Paul gets the whole offense running. He's had so many games this season with over 30 points and 15 assists. What have you been watching? Correction; What haven't you been watching? Have you seen the Hornets play without Chris Paul while he's on the bench. Most of them play like they haven't touched a basketball in their lives. And sure he has a few guys on his team who may know what they're doing without him on the floor from time to time, but you are name dropping like these guys are all studs. For the most part, they're just ok players which can be found on and said of every team in the league. And Morris Peterson? You actually mentioned Morris Peterson. I'm not opening that Pandora's box because obviously you don't watch basketball. Stick a fork in this guy, you're done.
8 months ago
Its funny how you went to great lengths about the Lakers loss to Houston but then conveniently failed to mention the next couple of wins especially the ones over Dallas and Utah. Nicely written but a little objectivity here would be good.
8 months ago
Why do people always insist on judging the MVP by what happens to their team when they are NOT on the floor? Why not judge them by what happens when they ARE on the floor?
8 months ago
hahaha, okay maybe I was getting ahead of myself with Mo Pete... and please don't open that box up. But the point I am trying to get across is that if you put a derrick fisher on the Hornets that's a pretty good ball club, Andre Miller could have a breakout season in New Orleans, u got Peja on the wing and David West down low... drive and dump it off to the big fella or dish it off to my shooter... but he is a hell of a scorer I give you that one, Chris paul is really good, but to deny Kobe the MVP this year would be a crime... and his numbers are sub-par, dont throw the 30pt and 15 asst line at me when he's still only avg 21 pts a game... not to take away from his assist tally though, 11.2 asst is really good, but Kobe is a more balanced player averaging 28 pts 5 assts and 6 rebs
8 months ago
When MJ left the Bulls in 1994 the team only had 2 less wins than they had the previous season with Jordan. See how flawed the whole "take this player out and see what happens to his team" argument is?
8 months ago
that is a fact, BUT when his Airness left the Bulls were also champions and when the 93-94 season began after his departure, they were just another team that made it to the semi finals... so taking a marquee player away does tell the tale
8 months ago
Lakers didnt lose 4 of their last 7, 3 of their last 7 maybe or 4 of 8
8 months ago
"they were just another team that made it to the semi finals... so taking a marquee player away does tell the tale"
The article said "Take Chris Paul off of the Hornets, and take Kobe off of the Lakers. Which team will have the better record?"
There was no mention of the playoffs or whether they could win in the Finals. The authors argument was based on how their teams would do in the regular season. And based on that, the Bulls were only 2 games worse in the regular season.
8 months ago
Dont discount the Hornets roster. West, Chandler, Peja, Wells, Pargo and yes, even Peterson are a pretty decent bunch. Much has been said about all the talent the Lakers have but besides Kobe they only have one allstar appearance combined. Even without CP the Hornets have 2 allstars with 4 appearances combined
8 months ago
Sorry guys I'm back of hiatus. Just been busy with all this school work. But after reading all of these comments, I can't let some of these things slide. First off, in 1994 when MJ left the Bulls, they had a team who knew and understood how to win. They won for three years straight. So taking MJ off of the team didn't mean that the winning mindset also went with him. They still had that frame of mind to go along with the same players minus MJ. As a franchise, sure you would love to have Jordan, but being that he moved on, he's was just replaced with Pippen. Pippen is definitely no Jordan, but he is the next best player on that team, so he now becomes the teams' focal point in the triangle offense. Pippens stats increase because he now has more touches, and his former position is delegated to the next player who now tries to fill his role. And don't forget, Pippen had his finest season ever as a pro during this time. They had a good season, yes, but not having MJ was the reason why they couldn't get over the hump and back to the NBA finals. So now compare that to the Hornets. You're argument was that you can't make that assumption because of how the Bulls fared in '94 still winning without MJ. The Hornets have never won anything with or without Chris Paul. They have trouble even contending for the final playoff spot. There is no winning tradition and their nucleus has not been together through all of the trials, ups and downs, and other obstacles that the Bulls of the late 80's all the way to 1994 had to encounter. The Bulls' team were together for a while. We're talking about 7 years here. So you can't compare what the Bulls did to the Hornets of now. They were together for years, and they won 3 straight might i add. They had a feeling of invincibility. The Hornets don't have that and haven't had that same nucleus for years. So you see how flawed your "In 1994, the Bulls team only had 2 less wins than they had the previous season with Jordan" rebuttle was? haha. All in all I'm saying this. The Hornets have had Chris Paul and this is his 3rd year in the league, making a great leap from out of the playoffs last year to the 1st seed this year with outstanding numbers. You tell me why he doesn't deserve the MVP.
8 months ago
Okay the Hornets are atop the Western Conference true... but why does CP3 really desrve the MVP? It's obviously not because of his numbers, avg 21.6 and 11.5 asst per game is it? because if that's the case we can easily say that Deron Williams or Steve Nash should atleast be mentioned as a legit MVP candidate since they have similar numbers and their teams are also in the top 5 of the west... or is it because of the "monsterous month of march" he had, where he had a bunch of 30 and 15 games and they won? Well then if that we're the case I'd be screaming Lamar Odom for MVP then since he was averaging a bit under 25pts and 13rbs... I am taking nothing away fromCP3, but this is just Kobe's time, we all know Kobe can take over a ball game and score like no other... but he is playing the best basketball of his career and distributing the ball and getting other players involved, and he's been doing it with key players being injured and also playing through an injury himself... It is also safe to say that David West is a mentionable MVP candidate as well, since he is avg 20pts and just under 10rbs per game on this No. 1 western conference team... he went to the All-Star game as well you know, who else is an All-Star on the Lakers? O yea I almost forgot Ronny Turiaf... hahahaha, c'mon. KB24 for MVP
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