The NBA MVP of Every Age Group
Why have only one NBA MVP when we can have 20?
The actual MVP chase is both heating up and becoming tired at the same time. Although the potential field is bigger this season compared to most, it's the same names, the same faces, who duke it out for the league's most sought-after individual honor.
In the spirit of variety, we're going to spice things up.
Twenty different age groups are present this season, a tidy distribution that spans from 19-year-olds to 38-year-olds. The mission: identifying the MVP at every age.
Placement is simple. Age groups are determined by how old each player was as of Feb. 1. Anthony Davis is chilling and relaxing with the 21-year-olds, despite being 22, because his birthday was March 11.
Winners will be picked by looking at stats and situation-specific heroics as per usual. After that, it's time to think outside the box. This is not a comprehensive list of the best player at every age. Individual value will be established by subjectively and statistically figuring out how irreplaceable particular players are.
And on that housekeeping note, let's turn the concept of MVP honors upside down.
19-Year-Old Division: Andrew Wiggins, Minnesota Timberwolves
1 of 20
Field of: Eight
Andrew Wiggins, now 20, is having himself a rookie season.
The Minnesota Timberwolves' wunderkind already looks like a franchise cornerstone. He left his passive-aggressive offensive style (along with Toto) in Kansas, his long-range accuracy has been much better than expected, and he's surviving on the defensive end while drawing superstar counterparts.
Earning Rookie of the Year honors has become a formality. He's no longer chasing that distinction, because it's his. He's chasing history instead.
Assuming health, Wiggins is on pace to eclipse 1,200 points, 350 rebounds, 75 steals and 45 blocks for the season. Just one other player within this age division has ever done that before: LeBron James.
Rumor has it the four-time MVP turned out just fine. And so, we give Wiggins this award—an invented honor that, in all likelihood, precedes actual MVP candidacy in the years to come.
Runner-Up: Jabari Parker, Milwaukee Bucks (sample size be damned)
20-Year-Old Division: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
2 of 20
Field of: 12
Giannis Antetokounmpo's "I do it all" game is strong.
Concerns still linger about his ability to score consistently away from the rim, but they're scant. That's what happens when you get to the iron at will anyway. Antetokounmpo's offensive efficiency has skyrocketed overall, and he ranks second in win shares for a playoff-bound Milwaukee Bucks team.
Pit him against any of the remaining 20-year-olds, and it's not even a contest. He already flirts with defending all five positions and stands out not because of his ceiling, but because of how he's producing now.
Here's a look at his totals relative to the others:
| Totals | |||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
Antetokounmpo's future has never looked brighter—mostly because it's here now, bearing evidence of inevitable superstardom.
Runner-Up: Nerlens Noel, Philadelphia 76ers
21-Year-Old Division: Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans
3 of 20
Field of: 24
Some decisions are difficult and worth grappling over for hours at a time.
This is not one of them.
Davis, now 22, isn't just the MVP of this division and Planet Vulcan. He's an actual MVP candidate, competing against the likes of Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and LeBron James.
Now, he's probably not going to win. League MVPs traditionally play for exceptional teams, and his New Orleans Pelicans are fighting for their playoff life.
Still, it's impossible not to appreciate the supernatural wonder that is Davis. He is second in win shares per 48 minutes, and if his player efficiency rating holds, he'll join Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan and James as the fourth player to record one better than 31.
New Orleans also projects as not just a playoff outfit, but also a title contender when he's on the floor. The team's net rating with him in tow is better than that of the San Antonio Spurs overall.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled "Oh my god!" face-making.
Runner-Up: Andre Drummond, Detroit Pistons
22-Year-Old Division: Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
4 of 20
Field of: 31
All right, let's get real. Kyrie Irving could easily be the pick here, but we're not abiding by the same silent, albeit imprecise, rules normal MVP races typically follow.
Take Irving from the Cleveland Cavaliers, and LeBron James is still there. That doesn't make Irving unimportant. It simply limits his value—especially with the team outscoring its opponents by a comfortable margin when James is on the floor without him.
That brings us to Rudy Gobert, who, as Sports On Earth's Brett Koremenos explains, is fueling a Utah Jazz surge:
"he reason for such a massive turnaround is an equally gigantic human being and the reason the Jazz were OK with ditching Kanter in the first place: French center Rudy Gobert. Entering the season as a talented enigma, Gobert has blossomed into a defensive force. To call the young Jazz big man a shot blocker doesn't do him justice; he's more like a shot vaporizer.
"
Gobert ranks first in opponent field-goal percentage at the rim among the 79 players who are contesting at least five point-blank opportunities per game. The Jazz also have the league's best defense since Feb. 1, a far cry from the 27th-place standing they earned before then.
Most importantly, since permanently sliding the big man into the starting lineup, they have the NBA's third-highest net rating, as well as the second-best record. All the while, Gobert is on pace to exceed 0.195 win shares per 48 minutes, something only three 22-year-olds (minimum 1,500 total minutes) have done since 2009: Derrick Rose, Kevin Love and James Harden.
Nothing about this designation, then, is hyperbolic.
Runner-Up: Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers
23-Year-Old Division: Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio Spurs
5 of 20
Field of: 55
Look, folks, we asked Kawhi Leonard to smile for the camera. It didn't work out.
Long considered the Spurs' future, he is officially their most indispensable player. Not even Tony Parker supersedes him in status anymore.
Leonard is one of the NBA's most dominant two-way players, capable of locking down superstar wings while also carrying his team offensively. The Spurs' net rating actually plummets to that of a fringe postseason squad when he's on the bench.
Their record with and without him says it all. They win nearly 70 percent of the time when he plays; without him, they have been a .500 basketball team.
Not one other 23-year-old lays claim to similar importance. Leonard, unlike some of his peers, isn't merely a crucial cog on a good team. He is the difference between what the Spurs are now (contenders) and what they haven't been since 1997: lottery locks.
Runner-Up: Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks (yes, you're reading this right)
24-Year-Old Division: John Wall, Washington Wizards
6 of 20
Field of: 48
Where would the Washington Wizards be without the 24-year-old John Wall? To quote New Found Glory (when they were still good): I don't wanna know.
Underachieving seasons from Martell Webster and Paul Pierce, injuries to Bradley Beal and the most disappointing offensive scheme this side of Mark Jackson's unemployment have put the Wizards in quite the pickle.
Instead of contending for one of the Eastern Conference's top-two playoff seeds, they're trying to stave off the sixth-place Bucks and, to a lesser degree, the surfeit of low-end squads fighting for one of those final two postseason slots.
Wall himself is hurting...everywhere. Said the point guard following a loss to Milwaukee on March 7, per CSNWashington.com's J. Michael:
"I'm trying to find some time to (rest). I don't like to miss games. I like to play and compete and give my team a chance to win with me out there. I know how valued I am. Going down the stretch, trying figure out a time when I can take a break or two. Just trying to get us some wins and get in a spot where we know we can be safe because I don't want us to fall in a 6, 7 or 8 seed.
"
Rest isn't an imminent option. Not with the Wizards playing sub-.500 basketball since the All-Star break and devolving into a clumsy sludge fest while he's riding pine.
Wall is valuable to a fault—though not his own.
Runner-Up: DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento Kings
25-Year-Old Division: James Harden, Houston Rockets
7 of 20
Field of: 39
Gone are the heated debates, even if only for one slide, in which we're forced to argue in favor of Harden while slighting other equally deserving candidates. He has no competition here.
Context is everything. The 25-year-old leads the league in win shares and his futuristic, Daryl Morey-approved shot selection makes him an offensive dream. But it's the degree to which he's carrying the Houston Rockets that has him here, not to mention atop MVP ladders in places outside Texas.
Dwight Howard has been sidelined for nearly half of the season. By the time he returns, he'll have missed more games this year than his previous 10 combined (36).
Somehow, the Rockets haven't missed a beat. Their offense has regressed, and they're devoid of a proven two-way point guard, but they remain a defensive fortress. More importantly, they're still in play for the Western Conference's second-best record.
Other powerhouses—like the Portland Trail Blazers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers—have struggled to survive key absences. And to be fair, the Rockets aren't surviving with Harden as their lone superstar.
They're thriving.
Runner-Up: Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls
26-Year-Old Division: Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
8 of 20
Field of: 44
Clearly, this particular conversation comes down to two players. And clearly, a 26-year-old Curry is the top choice.
What Westbrook is doing without Kevin Durant is insane. But Durant is still there. Remove Westbrook from the equation, and perhaps he is back in action already. Mostly, though, there's a tendency to overrate Westbrook's stat-stuffing performance.
Take his recent four-game triple-double streak. Sure, it was impressive. Historically unique, even. But the Thunder were statistically much better without him on the floor during that stretch.
Meanwhile, Curry is a warlock—the most irreplaceable player the league-lording Golden State Warriors employ. Look at how he impacts the performance of his most important teammates:
| Without Curry | 6.0 | 10.9 | -1.6 | -5.9 | 4.8 | 0.1 | 4.0 |
| With Curry | 18.0 | 17.9 | 18.1 | 18.4 | 19.2 | 20.0 | 11.0 |
Small sample sizes and yada, yada, yada. There's no denying both Curry and Westbrook have been phenomenal this season.
Curry is just more valuable.
Runner-Up: Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder
27-Year-Old Division: Mike Conley, Memphis Grizzlies
9 of 20
Field of: 35
Moving right along, we have the 27-year-old Mike Conley, Mr. Wooden Bow Tie himself.
Relatively weak company boosts his stock here, but he is not undeserving. No point guard is more underrated than the Memphis Grizzlies floor general, who is, once again, having a quietly superb year.
Eight total players are averaging at least 16 points, five assists, three rebounds and one steal with a true shooting percentage north of 55. Six of them were All-Stars this season.
Conley was not one of the six.
Memphis' quirky offensive model is operating on borrowed time. It's productive, yet outdated in its floor spacing and shot selection. Having someone like Conley, who can play on or off the ball, makes it more likely the team's offensive luck doesn't run out.
Replace him with a more rock-dominant, high-motor point guard, and things would surely fall apart.
Runner-Up: Ty Lawson, Denver Nuggets
28-Year-Old Division: Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks
10 of 20
Field of: 37
Kyle Lowry's beliebers aren't going to like this. But while he's incredibly important to what the Toronto Raptors do, he mans a bottomless point guard position. That his team's offense and defense are statistically better without him is also equal parts misleading and not OK.
Under normal circumstances, the Atlanta Hawks have too much talent working as one to generate an MVP candidate. On the most fundamental level, though, the 28-year-old Al Horford is beyond irreplaceable.
Creating matchup problems helps keep the Hawks special. One-in, four-out lineups are the standard, while zero-in, five-out combinations frequent the hardwood.
Few centers can orbit the corners, stretching defenders beyond the three-point line, opening unimpeded lanes for Jeff Teague and Dennis Schroder. Horford isn't most centers. He's better. More versatile.
Beyond compare.
Runner-Up: Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors
29-Year-Old Division: Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers
11 of 20
Field of: 34
To steal a previous thought from, well, myself: Chris Paul is the LeBron James of floor generals.
Ten seasons into his career, the 29-year-old's greatness is assumed. He's piloting the league's best offense. No big deal. The Clippers are staying afloat in a barbarically built Western Conference without Blake Griffin, a superstar. Whatever.
Paul is on course to average 18 points, 10 assists and 1.5 steals for the fifth time in his career, something only Magic Johnson has ever done. Cool.
"It's easy to forget just how good CP3 has been because he's done it so well for so long," writes NBA.com's Sekou Smith. "His work this season was overshadowed early by Blake Griffin's stout production. But no more. Paul has shown just how indispensable he is to the Clippers' cause..."
Bringing home actual MVP honors—a distinction that has eluded Paul his entire career—is almost assuredly out of the question. But when you rank third in win shares and remain the NBA's most well-rounded point god after more than five years of being just that, some form of MVP dap is due.
This is Paul's.
Runner-Up: LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland Trail Blazers
30-Year-Old Division: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
12 of 20
Field of: 23
At the risk of offending the great J.J. Barea, we have this guy LeBron James. He's pretty good. Apparently.
Talk of the four-time MVP getting old has subsided in a big way. Yeah, he's 30, a mere two decades away from insuring his fleet of Kias through AARP. But he's still James, even without the headband—which, as it turns out, isn't the source of all his powers.
Largely supported by the Cavaliers' futility when he doesn't play, James is contending for his fifth MVP award. The team is 2-9 in his absence, and if not for Irving's 55-point outing against Portland on Jan. 28, it would be a (not-so-)cool 1-10.
James is turning the ball over with career-high frequency, and his shooting percentages are as low as they've been since he first left Cleveland, but both are symptoms of playing alongside new superstar teammates, within a starkly different offensive system.
Besides, he's on pace to average at least 26 points, 5.5 rebounds, seven assists and 1.5 steals for the seventh time of his career. No other player has accomplished this more than once, and only four others have done it at all.
Guess that means this James dude is good, and the Cavaliers will keep him around.
Runner-Up: Aaron Brooks, Chicago Bulls Marc Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies
31-Year-Old Division: Andre Iguodala, Golden State Warriors
13 of 20
Field of: 16
Who ordered the slim-pickings platter?
Talent within this division is scarce, which is no doubt evident through Andre Iguodala's appearance here. He is a somewhat key part of the superteam-shaming Warriors and remains an active defender, but this is the most, shall we say, underwhelming season of his career.
Nevertheless, Iguodala, 31, has graciously accepted a role as a reserve and embraced his function within Golden State's top-tier offense. He has been a ball-dominant attacker for most of his carer, and better players have struggled to carve out a semi-consistent shooting touch when being displaced from the rock.
But Iguodala is drilling more than 37 percent of his spot-up three-pointers, a success rate that cheapens his career clip (33.2 percent) from downtown. Next to Marreese Speights, he's also ensured the Warriors' second unit ranks within the top seven of offensive and defensive efficiency, per HoopsStats.com. And that's valuable.
Doubly so when headlining an age group thin on household names.
Runner-Up: Jarrett Jack, Brooklyn Nets
32-Year-Old Division: Tyson Chandler, Dallas Mavericks
14 of 20
Field of: 18
Tyson Chandler is healthy again and playing well. He is averaging a double-double and serving as one of the Dallas Mavericks' only two rim protectors. The other is fellow 32-year-old Amar'e Stoudemire. So, yeah.
Of course, Chandler is allowing opponents to convert more of their buckets at the iron than the Mavericks are overall, but it's by a slim margin, and he does so much more than just police the paint. He rotates over to salvage blown coverage, directs teammates to certain spots and tips out offensive rebounds with respectable frequency.
More impressive still, Chandler has amassed almost three times as many win shares as anyone else in his age group. In fact, he's collected more than anyone in the league aged 32 or older, topping a list that includes Pau Gasol, Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Zach Randolph and Kyle Korver, among others.
Eat your heart out, Phil Jackson.
Runner-Up: Tony Parker, San Antonio Spurs
33-Year-Old Division: Zach Randolph, Memphis Grizzlies
15 of 20
Field of: 14
Randolph just keeps gritting and grinding his way to double-doubles, with no regard for the fact that he's, you know, old.
Despite a noticeable downtick in playing time and usage rate, Memphis' 33-year-old bruiser is eclipsing 15 points and 10 rebounds per game for the third consecutive season. Here's a list of other players doing the same
- Dwight Howard
- Kevin Love
Rare is an aging behemoth this reliable. Randolph is forever pounding the rock and crashing the glass at a high level, making this a relatively easy decision.
For those wondering how he beats out the sweet-shooting and precise-passing Kyle Korver, the tiebreaker comes down to who has the better Twitter handle.* And @MacBo50 isn't just more creative than @KyleKorver; it's one of the best things in the history of everything.
Runner-Up: Kyle Korver, Atlanta Hawks (sorry, Dwyane Wade)
*Note: No, it didn't.
34-Year-Old Division: Pau Gasol, Chicago Bulls
16 of 20
Field of: 19
Singling out the 34-year-old Gasol is the no-brainer of all no-brainers. He has returned to All-Star form since joining the Chicago Bulls, acting as the combo scorer and passer Joakim Noah simply isn't, and Carlos Boozer never was.
People are quick to cite Gasol's addition as a reason why the typically stingy Bulls aren't defensive demons this season. But blaming him overlooks the uninspiring defense of Derrick Rose, a banged-up Noah and the presence of rookie Nikola Mirotic, whose on-ball stances are ineffective.
It's also ridiculous to criticize Gasol at all. He's appeared in more games than Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson, Rose and Noah, each of whom is at least four years his junior. And aside from ranking second on the team in win shares, he's in line to become the first player aged 34 or older to average at least 18 points, 12 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 blocks.
Chew on that.
Runner-Up: David West, Indiana Pacers
35-Year-Old Division: Rasual Butler, Washington Wizards
17 of 20
Field of: Six
Look, I'm sorry, but we have to go through every age group.
Including this one.
As far as rolling with the 35-year-old Rasual Butler goes, here are the facts:
- No other player within this field of six is averaging even 15 minutes per game.
- Butler, at times, played decent basketball with Bradley Beal on the sidelines.
- He's averaging more win shares per 48 minutes than Beal.
- His competition is Hedo Turkoglu, Brendan Haywood, Jannero Pargo, John Salmons and Elton Brand.
The end.
(Distant) Runner-Up: Elton Brand, Atlanta Hawks
36-Year-Old Division: Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
18 of 20
Field of: Four
Too bad Kobe Bryant isn't healthy and playing good basketball. It would have been fun to see him duke it out with his 36-year-old peer.
Nowitzki doesn't have a semblance of competition without him. Chris Andersen and Shawn Marion are the only other players who qualify, neither of whom has ever been on Nowitzki's level. And while he's struggling right now, his value is still ridiculously high for someone his age.
He is second on Dallas in win shares, and though his three-point clip is the lowest it has been in 11 years, he's still scoring more than 17 points with a true shooting percentage north of 50. Just one other player aged 36 or older has done the same while putting in at least one three per game: Dominique Wilkins.
"There's never been a 7-foot guy in the history of this league who's played his position the way he's played it to his age," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said, per ESPN Dallas' Tim MacMahon. "And he's got a lot of good basketball left in him."
Good thing, too, because Rajon Rondo sure doesn't the Mavericks' slumping offense needs Father Time to remain bound and gagged in Nowitzki's basement if it's going to regain past potency.
Runner-Up: Chris Andersen, Miami Heat (No one tell Kobe)
37-Year-Old Division: Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs
19 of 20
No offense to Pierce, but he just hasn't lived up to expectations in Washington. The Wizards offense isn't much more effective with him on the floor, and he's failed to replace even half of the two-way worth Trevor Ariza held for 2013-14.
Manu Ginobili is being Manu Ginobili. Gregg Popovich clearly wants to strangle him at times, but when push comes to punch, his value is second to no other 37-year-old—or, for that matter, most players over 35.
San Antonio posts the equivalent of the league's second-highest net rating with him on the floor, improving on both the offensive and defensive end, more so than it does with Danny Green, Tiago Splitter, Tony Parker or Tim Duncan. Only Patty Mills and Kawhi Leonard have better net ratings.
If Ginobili's production holds steady, he'll be the oldest player in league history (minimum 1,000 total minutes logged) to average at least 17 points, 4.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists per 36 minutes. And for what it's worth, the record he would breaking is his own, which he set last season.
Runner-Up: Paul Pierce, Washington Wizards
38-Year-Old Division: Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
20 of 20
Field of: Four
Duncan might be human.
Emphasis on might be.
Greater emphasis on probably not.
Perusing this limited group is fun. You have future Hall of Famers in Vince Carter and Kevin Garnett, and the Teflon Andre Miller. None of them, though, have aged as well as Duncan. Then again, you can say just about the same for everyone ever.
Pushing 39, he is flirting with double-doubles nightly, blocking shots in volume and loosely inserting himself into the Defensive Player of the Year discussion. There's really no way of both concisely and accurately describing his value to the Spurs.
There is, however, this: Duncan is averaging 0.177 win shares per 48 minutes. Four other players aged 38 or older have ever matched the 0.17 benchmark while seeing at least 1,500 minutes of playing time: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, John Stockton, Reggie Miller and Karl Malone. Yeah.
Age isn't just a number to Duncan. It's his plaything.
Runner-Up: Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves (Intangibles, baby)
Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference and NBA.com and are accurate as of games played March 11.
