NBA MVP: LeBron, 4 Others Leading the Race Down the Stretch

It was only a month or so ago that many believed LeBron James would run away with the NBA MVP. Since then? A handful of players have made a strong push, led by Thunder F Kevin Durant. As the season winds down, every game becomes important for the players chasing the MVP trophy, especially in the eyes of the voters.

Where does the race stand? Between big game performances, teammates competing for the award and head-to-head match ups swaying peoples decisions, there is plenty to discuss when it comes to the current favorite. Let's rank the five who are making their case for the legendary trophy and break down what they are going to have to do to topple LeBron. 

5. Chris Paul

Honestly, there are a few players who deserve to be in this spot. Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker and Dwight Howard all deserve consideration, to name a few. However, I believe that Chris Paul has the best case and is in place to make a strong push as the season winds down. Last season, the Clippers finished 32-50, good for 13th place in the West. This season? They are neck and neck with the Lakers for the Pacific title. Paul is averaging just over 19 points per contest and just a shade under nine assists.

CP3 is going to have to play big to close out the season and look to score when the Clippers need baskets. They can't afford to lose many more games if they hope to win the Pacific. However, if the Clippers can take the Pacific crown away from Kobe and the Lakers, Paul will get serious consideration. 

4. Kevin Love

How great has Kevin Love been this season? Many thought his production would take a dip after Ricky Rubio suffered a season-ending injury, but Love actually increased his production. Love is now averaging over 26 points per game and brings in nearly 14 rebounds a night to go along with it. Perhaps the biggest factor in his MVP consideration is the fact that he has the Timberwolves only a few games away from the Western Conference playoffs.

If the T-Wolves were sitting in, say the fourth spot in the West, Love would be neck and neck with LeBron and Durant. If he can keep up this production down the stretch and Minnesota sneaks into the playoffs sans Rubio, look for him to receive a few votes. 

3. Kobe Bryant

It's pretty amazing that Kobe Bryant is still playing at the level he is. Consider this, in 2001 Kobe was 22 years old and named to Second Team All-NBA with averages of 28.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG and 5.0 APG. This season? Kobe is 33 years old and will be named to First Team All-NBA with averages of 28.2 PPG, 5.6 RPG and 4.6 APG. Not bad, huh? For a couple years now, everyone has kind of assumed Kobe would slow down and take a complementary role, well it hasn't happened.

I have no idea how much longer he can keep this up, but I'm enjoying it while I can. For Kobe to wrestle this award away from LeBron James or Kevin Durant, the Lakers will need to go on a tear down the stretch and probably grab the No. 2 spot in the West. He'll also need to finish with averages in the vicinity of 30, six and five. 

2. Kevin Durant

As I said earlier, a race that looked like a foregone conclusion roughly a month ago is now neck and neck thanks to the play of Kevin Durant. Durant (along with Russell Westbrook) have propelled the Thunder to a Western Conference best 39-12 record while averaging over 27 points and 8 rebounds per game. There will be plenty attention paid to the play of Durant and LeBron as the season winds down, as there should be, it's a very tight race. The emergence of Russell Westbrook does slow down Durant's MVP campaign a bit. That's in no way speaking negative of Kevin Durant, more so speaking to the phenomenal season Russell Westbrook is enjoying. 

The Thunder have games remaining against the Bulls, Heat, Clippers (twice) and the Lakers. If Durant can keep lighting up the scoreboard and carry the Thunder to the best record in the NBA, don't be surprised to see him named MVP in a couple months. 

1. LeBron James

With all that being said, I still have LeBron as my MVP. Consider this, if you took the ability to score away from Durant and James, what would be left? Durant would still be a very nice player, rebound a little bit, cause some problems with his length on defense and distribute from the perimeter and with his back to the basket. LeBron? Still a Top 20 player. Scoring aside, LeBron impacts each possession an inordinate amount. He's one of the best creators in the NBA, can rebound with any center and is an absolute menace defensively. LeBron has played with his back to basket much more this season, which has been a nightmares for opposing defenses. From there, you almost have to send a double team or he will just back you down and score. However, after the double is sent, he's the most gifted passer from the block, routinely finding his shooters wide open. He's shooting over 50% from the field, over 35% from three and over 75% from the line.He's also putting up these numbers while playing a career low in minutes.

Now I'm very aware, not everyone is a fan of PER, but the numbers don't lie. LeBron's PER sits at 30.5, easily the tops in the NBA, with second place coming in at 27.9. For comparison's sake, that's roughly the same difference between Kevin Durant and Al Jefferson. By the way, since 1964, the record for single season PER came from Michael Jordan in the 87-88 season, with a PER of 31.7. If LeBron can keep his averages where they are and the Heat challenge the Bulls for the best record in the league, I expect LeBron to bring home the hardware.