Kobe Bryant's Consecutive 40 Pointers Show NBA He Is Front-Runner for MVP

If someone asks you who the MVP of the NBA is and you answer with someone other than Kobe Bryant, you haven't been paying attention. Just look at the last two games and the case is closed.

Kobe scored 48 on Tuesday against the Suns, and followed it up with 40 on Wednesday against the Jazz. Those numbers alone are staggering for a player who's been in the league as long as Kobe. That's a pretty good foundation for an MVP argument. Fortunately for Kobe, it doesn't stop there. 

The Lakers are a team with little else on offense and absolutely no depth. If Kobe doesn't have a great game, they don't beat most NBA teams. It's not hard to prove that. Look at Bryant's best five scoring games of the year. 

Opponent	Bryant's points	Lakers' points
Phoenix Suns	48	99
Utah Jazz	40	90
Golden State Warriors	39	97
Houston Rockets	37	108
Portland Trailblazers	30	96

Those numbers are telling. Through the first 12 games, the Rockets game was the only time the Lakers have scored 100 points. The Trailblazers were the only team to beat the Lakers in one of Bryant's top five scoring nights. 

Overall, Bryant has averaged better than 30 points a game for a team that's averaged fewer than 95 a night. As you can see above, he can score nearly 50 points, and still the team can't crack triple-digits. 

And these points aren't coming in vain. The Lakers' 8-4 record has them leading the Pacific Division. Portland has played fewer games and has a better winning percentage, but the Lakers have more wins than any team in the West other than the Oklahoma City Thunder. 

The man most responsible for that is Kobe Bryant. No player in the league is more responsible for the success of a good team. 

The last two nights have been the perfect representation of Bryant's season. The players around him aren't getting the ball in the basket with any kind of consistency, yet the Lakers are still winning games. They're still one of the NBA's best teams despite not having a great roster of talent around him. 

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have each other in Oklahoma City. The Big Three dominate in Miami. Derrick Rose has a strong collection of talent around him. Bryant hasn't had that this year, but the team hasn't suffered. That is what defines an MVP.

Follow @mdixon1985