Post All-Star Break Award Predictions

Writer: Caleb Akpan

All-Star Weekend is officially over and the second “half” of the NBA season is upon us. The playoffs will be here in less than two months and that means it’s time for media voters to start taking a hard look at who is most deserving of the league’s end of season awards. Some have obvious leaders, while others are extremely tight races, here are some names you should expect to see nominated at the NBA Awards on June 23rd.

Coach of the Year:

Coach of the Year seems like it will come out of the East this year. Mike D’Antoni of the Rockets won the award in 2017 after unexpectedly coaching Houston to 55-27 record, good for third in the West. D’Antoni’s squad is doing even better this year, but they’ve also added future Hall of Famer Chris Paul to the roster, and we all know NBA voters seem to hate giving the same award to a person in back-to-back years, usually cited as “voter fatigue”.

A likely winner for the award is Dwayne Casey of the Toronto Raptors. Casey’s team currently sits at first in the East 41-16. Many are saying this is the best iteration of the Demar DeRozan-Kyle Lowry Raptors, but this 2018 team will likely finish with the greatest regular season record in Toronto franchise history period. The team is doing so well that many are beginning to take them seriously as a possible Eastern Conference championship.

It would be Toronto’s first Finals appearance if it happened, but even if it didn’t, Casey has done an excellent job. The Raptors seem deeper and more cohesive than they ever been and a lot of the credit for that should go to Casey. There’s been a lot of bumps in the road since he was hired in 2011, but everything seems to be reaching its peak now.

 

Brad Stevens could challenge Casey for the win, but with the Celtics recent struggles, it seems that Stevens may be falling out f the race. Tom Thibodeau of the Timberwolves could also be a candidate as Minnesota appears to be headed towards its first playoff appearance in fourteen years.

Sixth Man of The Year:

Coach of the Year wasn’t the only award the Houston Rockets went home with last year. Shooting guard Eric Gordon also took home the Sixth Man of the Year, and did so without much disagreement from fans and analysts. This year, a former teammate of Gordon’s will likely do the same.

Traded from the Rockets to the Clippers in the Chris Paul megatrade, Lou Williams is currently having the best season of his career. Once the inspiration for a Drake hit, Williams is now living even more of the superstar life playing in LA averaging 23.1 points per game along with a career high 37.6% from three. Likely to hold, this will be the first time Williams will average over 20 points in a season.

This career-best play is the main reason why the Clippers are still in the western conference playoff race despite a pile of injuries and the trade of Blake Griffin. Williams is playing like an All-Star and deserves to be recognized in some way for it. He wasn’t selected to the All-Star team this season, a surprising omission to many including himself, so the Sixth Man of the Year award will have to do.

Defensive Player of the Year:

 

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors won his first Defensive Player of the Year award last season, one that many feel he deserved earlier. This year, Green is once again a candidate, but not a clear favorite, with a crowded field of pretty equal defenders where no one player stands out.

Al Horford could get his first major award in his eleven-year career as he leads the Celtics league best defense. Horford’s raw defensive stats don’t jump off the page, but he’s not alone in that regard, and when you see that he ranks tenth in defensive win shares while Boston ranks first in defensive efficiency, it could be easy for media voters to award the center anchoring a more team-oriented defense.

If Horford isn’t enticing enough for voters, there’s another candidate that voters will likely consider. Though unhealthy at times, it seems more likely the award would go to Utah’s Rudy Gobert. He’s only played in 32 games, but Gobert ranks third in defensive win shares for a Utah team that ranks fifth in defensive efficiency. It also helps that Gobert was the runner-up for the award last year. If voters can get past him only playing in around 50 games this season, he should be able to squeeze out a win with no clear favorite in sight.

Most Improved Player:

Giannis Antetokounmpo took the league by storm last season on his way to the 2017 Most Improved Player Award. He truly became an NBA superstar and to start this year, he seemed like a legitimate candidate for MVP. This year’s winner likely won’t be a superstar or MVP, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t made a tremendous jump in their play.

When he was traded from Oklahoma City to Indiana, no one expected anything amazing from guard Victor Oladipo. In Orlando and Oklahoma City, Oladipo seemed like the ultimate “good” NBA player, throwing in a couple of great games in a solid complimentary role year in and year out. Maybe it was being back in Indiana, where Oladipo went to college for three years, or having no one to try and compete with him for team leader, but Oladipo has played exceptionally for the Pacers, enough to gain an All-Star appearance last weekend that no one could argue.

Oladipo is currently averaging 24.4 points per game, ranking eleventh in the league. Indiana is also in the playoff hunt, something almost no one expected coming into the season, currently in fifth place in the East, three games above eighth place Miami. Along with his team, Oladipo has shocked the basketball world and should easily take home Most Improved because of that.

Rookie of The Year:

 

The good news for fans and analysts is that this year’s NBA draft class is clearly stacked with players that should be able to carry the league forward for decades to come. The bad news is that it creates a Rookie of The Year race that’s almost too close to call.

Jayson Tatum, Kyle Kuzma, and Dennis Smith Jr. have all played well, but they don’t even seem to be in the discussion this year, when in ost they would be frontrunners. Instead, this year’s race seems to be between two players who don’t look like rookies at all, two playing at a level some would consider to be All-Star worthy, for two teams in the hunt for the playoffs.

Donovan Mitchell and Ben Simmons are currently in about as tight of a race as you could have for Rookie of The Year. You can’t really go wrong with either choice, as Mitchell had the Jazz on an 11-game win streak prior to the All-Star game, becoming the first rookie to lead their team in scoring during that kind of stretch. Mitchell has averaged 23.3 points per game since December 1st.

Simmons has led the 76ers from day one along with Joel Embiid. The Australian native has drawn comparisons to LeBron James as he averages 16.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game in his first year. Those all-around averages and his performance from the start of the season may help Simmons edge out Mitchell for the award, but it’s definitely gonna be close. No matter who wins, both will likely be faces of the NBA in the near future.

Most Valuable Player:

 

Every year it seems like James Harden is in the MVP race, and every year it also seems like someone is just a little bit more deserving than he is for the award. 2018 seems a bit different, and for the better for The Beard, he is once again in the race, but this time, it seems like he is truly the most deserving candidate.

Harden leads the NBA in points per game at 31.3 points on a 44.8/38.4/86.5 shooting split. The scoring average is a career high for Harden and he also averages nine assists and five rebounds a game, while also leading the league in player efficiency rating and offensive win shares.

Harden’s had a plethora of stunning performances this season, including a 60-point triple double against the Orlando Magic, the first of its kind in the history of the NBA. Due to outings like that, Harden as the Rockets in first place in the West, holding the best record in the league at 44-13. It’s that league-leading record that helps to put Harden over the top of candidates like Stephen Curry and LeBron James, but even if the Rockets don’t keep the league’s best record, Harden’s personal statistics should finally be enough to win the league’s most coveted individual prize.

The 2018 NBA Awards will take place on Monday, June 25th at 9 PM EST on TNT. Will see how many of these predictions come true then or if any late-season surges have changed the biggest storylines in the league.

The NBA MVP Race

Writer: David Seastrunk

A little over midway through the 2017-18 NBA season there’s a battle among a few players as to whom the MVP will be crowned.

 Notable performers in the MVP race that aren’t in the top 3 include:

	Points	Rebounds	Assists
Russell Westbrook	25.5	9.4	10.1
Steph Curry	28.1	5.1	6.5
LeBron James	26.7	7.9	8.8
Kyrie Irving	24.9	3.7	5.0

 

3. Kevin Durant 25.8 Points, 7 Rebounds, 5.6 Assists, & 2 Blocks per game.

With 3 other all stars on his team and 2 time MVP Curry as his teammate Durant is still putting up great numbers and has also elevated his defensive effort to another level. This is Simply Kevin Durant being Kevin Durant. Another year of the warriors being dominate as the only hope for the rest of the league is for one of them to sustain an injury.

2. Giannis Antetokounmpo

28.5 Points, 10.3 Rebounds, 4.7 Assists 1.5 Steal 1.7 Blocks

Although the Bucks are not one of the premiere teams in the NBA what The Greek Freak is doing is phenomenal. He is having a breakout year this year up 6 points per game from last seasons totals. Winning aside Giannis is carrying the Bucks to even where they are right now. Not many pieces around him and with the recent firing of Jason Kidd they are in need of a new Head coach. Some good potential hiring would be Mark Jackson who I believe doesn’t get enough credit of a lot of the Warriors success. Rick Pitino is another good candidate after everything that has happened with him and the NCAA violations. This will be a key component for Giannis and his growth moving forward in his career as well as the success of the Bucks.

1. James Harden 31.6 Points, 5 Rebounds, 9 Assists

Coming off the highest scoring triple double in NBA history with a 60-11-10 line, James Harden is putting his down in the MVP race. Carrying the load when Chris Paul is injured and being able to be off the ball more when Paul is there he is have his best season of his career. If Harden is able to continue to play at this level he is going to win the MVP and it shouldn’t even be close.

2018 NBA Midseason Awards

Writer: Jared White

Most Valuable Player: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

(nbapassion.com)

In year fifteen of LeBron James’ amazing career he is leading his team in every way imaginable as he always does. He is averaging a career high in assists (8.8 per game) while still managing to grab eight rebounds a game and sit in the top three in PPG (27.1). But LeBron has showed his longevity once again as he has not missed a single game this season while other major candidates, like James Harden, have missed significant time. So far this season it looks like LeBron will capture his fifth MVP trophy and match Michael Jordan and Bill Russell for second most regular season MVP awards (Only Kareem has more with 6).

Most Improved Player: Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers

After being traded with Domantas Sabonis from OKC to a now virtually wing talentless Indiana Pacers Victor Oladipo was given an opportunity to become the face of the team and he did not hesitate. He is putting up career numbers across the board and has helped the Indiana Pacers become a suprise playoff team. He is now in conversation for one of the best shooting guards in the NBA and is virtually a lock for the All-Star game.

Rookie of the Year: Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers

(billypenn.com)

Ben Simmons has proven to be one of the best all-around players in the entire NBA. He is a great inside scorer, passer, rebounder, defender, and young leader. If Simmons can get a good jump shot he may even be fighting for an MVP award in 3-4 years. Honorable mentions to Donovan Mitchell who has played great recently and is almost averaging 20 PPG.

Defensive Player of the Year: Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors

This award has no clear front runner as Kawhi Leonard, a usual fan favorite, has missed the majority of the season and players like Joel Embiid, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Giannis Antetokounmpo are all having great defensive seasons. But I have Draymond as the favorite now because out of these four players he has the most defensive win shares and highest defensive box plus/minus. Plus Draymond Green has been most known for his defense over the last several years. Hopefully we have a clear cut favorite jump out during the second half of the season.

Coach of the Year: Brad Stevens, Boston Celtics

Although Gregg Popovich and Mike D’Antoni have had great coaching season Brad Stevens gets the nod for a few reasons. First the Celtics have missed Gordon Hayward, who was going to be their second best player, for the entire season. Secondly they have virtually an entire new team and while it takes most teams over a full season to build chemistry it seems it only took this young group a few weeks. And Finally the Celtics have the second best record in the NBA only behind the defending champion Warriors. Stevens and his Celtics will more than likely not make the NBA Finals, but they have surely been the best team in the east this regular season.

Sixth Man of the Year: Lou Williams, Los Angeles Clippers

Lou Williams is having an unbelievably great scoring season for a bench player. He is averaging 23.1 PPG which is more than Lamarcus Aldridge, Klay Thompson, Kemba Walker, CJ McCollum, Jimmy Butler, Paul George, John Wall and any teammate of his on the Los Angeles Clippers. He is also scoring very efficiently as he is recording a career high in FG% (44.8) 3P% (41.4) and FT% (90.8). And finally he is also passing the ball better than ever with a career high 4.9 APG and is doing all of this in just over 30 minutes per game. But he will need to keep up his great effort off of the bench as there is other great candidates for this award including Tyreke Evans, Eric Gordon, Will Barton, and Dwyane Wade.

Giannis Anteokounmpo: NBA MVP?

 

By: Caleb Apkan

You should never jump to conclusions in sports, especially with basketball. The yearly 82 games played in the league are a marathon, not a sprint, and you can’t decide playoff teams, all-stars, or MVPs in October- most seasons. 2017-2018 is starting to feel a bit different, mainly when it comes to who will be this year’s Most Valuable Player, thanks to a certain 6’11 (maybe even taller) monster in Milwaukee with a last name many are still trying to figure out how to pronounce. You may say it’s too early to call, but three games in, is there any way Giannis Antetokounmpo will not be this year’s MVP?

Let’s look at Giannis’ (brief) resume for the year so far. To open up the season, he takes the Bucks into Boston for a matchup of two almost guaranteed Eastern Conference playoff teams, dueling a player in a situation almost identical to his own. He and Celtics point guard, Kyrie Irving, are two of the best players in the league, leading teams with solid talent around them. However, no one even comes close to their skillsets, leading to insanely high expectations for both’s seasons. Irving went 7-25 from the field to total just 17 points in the night, while Antetokounmpo shined with 37 and 13 on 13-22 (59%) shooting, 16 of those points coming in the fourth quarter. If the two were in a race for MVP, Giannis lapped Kyrie, maybe more than once, and cruised to the finish line.

Who was up next on the schedule? Another MVP candidate in LeBron James and the Eastern Conference Avengers, the Cleveland Cavaliers. Naturally, Giannis’ performance dips in the face of a better defense and generally more talented team, right? Wrong. Going toe-to-toe with James, Antetokounmpo scores 34 and nearly has a triple double, adding in eight of each in the rebounding and assists departments. LeBron gets the win, but in his first primetime game of the year, Giannis gets most of the conversation. The Greek Freak was clearly not afraid of the stage he was on, and in what felt like a one on four fight, you can’t blame him much for not being able to come up with the victory, especially with that statline, by outplaying the best player of this generation, aside from being on the receiving end of an excellent block by the King. After the game, Antetokounmpo said that he doesn’t see himself at James’ level yet, and with the three championships and four MVP trophies, that may be true for now, but Giannis is doing things that LeBron just simply was not able to do at 22 or any point in his career, and that’s a big part of why James, Kevin Durant, and others among the league’s best are saying Antetokounmpo has the potential to be not just the MVP, but an all-time great in this league.

Game three at home, Saturday night, Giannis takes a little off-day against the Blazers of course- or he plays arguably the best game of his career to follow up on two already dominant performances against some of the best teams in the league based on pre-season projections. For Portland and star point guard Damian Lillard, Antetokounmpo served up a career-high 44 (on an unfathomable 74% shooting), gets the game-winning steal, dunk, AND block (following missing two clutch free throws, just for some in-game facing of adversity), and throws in eight rebounds, four assists, two steals, and block, in what looked like an effortless display of dominance. He scored a fraction of his points on jumpers, the one area of Antetokounmpo’s game that seems to need work (104 of the 115 points scored in 3 games have come inside the paint). He then spent the rest of his night cruising to the basket, and not because the Blazers’ defense was particularly bad, Giannis just seems to be that unstoppable. A dribble from the half court line and he was at the rim, contact seemed non-existent, it was the type of performance that is replayed when a player receives an award as prestigious as Giannis seems to deserve.

Who’s really in Antetokounmpo’s way this season? LeBron, Steph, KD, and Russ are too busy playing with other All-Stars. Kawhi Leonard is walking onto planes like he’ll be out another month. Guys that could put up huge stat-lines like Kristaps Porzingis will probably do so on terrible teams. The one guy who seems to have things add up when it comes to team success, health, and individual performance is Giannis. Add in the fact that Antetokounmpo is honoring his late father with performances like this, writing on his latest game ball that the win was “for Daddy” and then seeming to tell his father of the performance he had in his writing after that, and there’s no way you can’t get behind the amazing progression this young man is making. NBA defenses aren’t going to figure out his game overnight, and if you described what he does in the simplest of terms, they already should have. Butt Giannis isn’t your average slasher- he takes attacking the basket to another level never seen before and adds excellent defense and court vision on top of that. Start carving his name into the trophy and get a KIA that can fit his insane dimensions, barring an injury, Giannis Antetokounmpo seems to have the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award in his (giant) hands already.

Kawhi Leonard will be the NBA MVP

Writer: Caleb Akpan

h/t Slam Online

The NBA’s MVP race is always interesting to look at. Whether it be stunning highlights stealing the show like Stephen Curry in 2016 or insane stats popping of the screen from Russell Westbrook and James Harden. There’s always at least few dominant players to consider for the award, and 2017-2018 will be no different. Russell Westbrook could repeat, James Harden could finally getting over the hump, or Kevin Durant could continue to dominate and get the award, but there’s one player that usually hangs back from the spotlight who has a chance to shine this upcoming season: San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard.

Leonard’s greatness is not in question at all. As one of the league’s best defenders, and a strong offensive force, he’s consistently spoken of, while rarely actually speaking for himself. That talking has been enough for Leonard to get second and third place finishes in the last two MVP races. Media fatigue could play a strong role in next year’s voting, and if anybody looks to benefit from it, it’s Kawhi. When talking about NBA stars, Leonard seems to get the least amount of coverage, simply due to his quiet, reserved nature. If the media looks past Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul, or Curry/Durant duo, it seems likely that Kawhi would be following right behind, or even possibly be racing ahead, at least due to the next bit of reasoning.

Super Teams are becoming more popular than ever in the NBA. Most teams who have a shot at winning the championship or even making it to the Finals have at least two or even three All-Star caliber players. Last season, it seemed as if voters stayed away from the most stacked squads when making their votes, and for good reason. Two players without star help in Russell Westbrook and James Harden truly carried their teams night in and night out, putting up numbers never seen before, but things have changed over the offseason. Russ now has Paul George waiting for him on the wing and James Harden has CP3 to do some of the heavy lifting as a ball handler and team leader.

Kawhi Leonard can’t say the same, as the Spurs made few changes to their roster from last season. Big men like LaMarcus Aldridge and Pau Gasol are only getting older and continuing to lose their once great talent. Manu Ginobili will likely be entering a retirement home following next season. Tony Parker seems to be out until at least the All-Star break, if not longer, and there’s stats that show signing Rudy Gay, their one significant off-season move, could actually put the team in a worse position. With all this, the Spurs usual team-oriented style might not be able to cut it to truly compete in a Western Conference that’s growing stronger. The Claw may have to start carrying a bigger load if the usual sixty wins are still in store, and if he improves on 25 points, 5 rebounds, and just about a steal and block per game, there’s no reason he shouldn’t at least be considered as the league’s best.

Leonard’s game might not be the flashiest, and he might not show the emotion of a LeBron James or Stephen Curry, but he definitely deserves to stand on the same stage as they have. He didn’t win Finals MVP in his third season for no reason, he’s extremely talented and has shown it in the last few seasons, the opportunity just seems even greater now. If Leonard takes advantage, stat lines and highlights worthy of MVP consideration are in store for San Antonio’s superstar.

Five NFL MVP Candidates

Writer: Caleb Akpan

NFL football will be back on our TV screens very soon. Come Thursday, the best of best will take the field to try and eventually play on the biggest Sunday of the year. The night prior to Super Bowl 52, the 2018 NFL Honors will take place, recognizing the greatest performers of the season, including the Rookie of The Year, Defensive Player Of The Year, and of course, the MVP. Today we’ll look at five candidates for the most coveted award of the season, five players who have a chance to lead their teams to Super Bowl victory:

Sports Illustrated

. Le’Veon Bell, Running Back, Pittsburgh Steelers

If Bell didn’t sit out of training camp, he’d probably be higher on this list, but even though the star back just signed his franchise tender to officially join the team for 2017, he still has an opportunity to do great things. There’s almost no chance coach Mike Tomlin doesn’t immediately plug Bell back into the gameplan, seeing that he can do so much on the field. The Steelers will need Bell to once again contend for a championship, and with the perfect pieces around him, all Bell really has to do is keep on pace with his 2016 season (1884 yards from scrimmage, 9 touchdowns) and play a few more games (he only played 12 in 2016) to deserve MVP consideration.

4. Matt Ryan, Quarterback, Atlanta Falcons

Back-to-back MVPs aren’t completely out of the ordinary. Legend Joe Montana won back-to-back in the 80s. Peyton Manning did it twice for four of his five. Brett Favre three-peated from 1995 to 1997. Matt Ryan isn’t on the same level as those three Hall Of Famers, but he probably has more to prove than any of them did in their MVP winning seasons. The sting of Super Bowl 51 will probably never go away, but 2017 offers a chance for redemption and Ryan seems unlikely to regress with a great team still around him, even with offensive coordinator, Kyle Shanahan, gone to the 49ers. If Ryan decides to take his frustration for the historic loss out on the league, watch out for a quarterback who can do major damage.

3. Dak Prescott, Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys

Dak Prescott has done a lot of good things to start his NFL career. He successfully filled in and then fully replaced a Pro Bowl Quarterback in Tony Romo, essentially sending him into retirement. He brought the Dallas Cowboys back to (actual) relevancy, and relevancy that seems like it will stay for years to come. Prescott has his doubters heading into year number two, but he also has a great opportunity. There’s still a decent chance that his partner-in-crime (no pun intended) Ezekiel Elliott will be suspended to start the year, and that happening could shoulder a large amount of the Cowboys offensive load onto Prescott’s shoulders. If he handles that anything like the pressure he faced in 2016, Prescott will be more than just a great young prospect this year.

2. Aaron Rodgers, Quarterback, Green Bay Packers

After an already insane 2016 campaign, the sky’s the limit for Aaron Rodgers in 2017. Bad taste left in his mouth after the NFC championship game? Check. Coming off a career year in pass completions? Check. A healthier and likely better team around him? Check. Everything looks right on paper for Rodgers, he just has to execute, and if he’s shown the NFL’s viewing audience anything since he took the reigns on Green Bay in 2008, it’s that more often than not, he can get the job done.

1. Tom Brady, Quarterback, New England Patriots

The Patriots are going to run the table, be the greatest team ever, destroy everybody, blah blah blah. That’s an uncertainty at this point, if anybody knows how hard that is, it’s New England, and they already have a major setback with the injury to Julian Edelman. What can almost be called a guarantee is Tom Brady being really good at football. It rarely matters who lines up with Brady, but even with Edelman gone, Brady still has Rob Gronkowski (for now) and Brandin Cooks, whose already drawing comparisons to Randy Moss, who Brady threw 23 touchdowns to in the almost perfect season. If Brady can create a connection like that with Cooks and do what he always does with Gronkowski, few will be able to compete with him for the title of the NFL’s best player.

Arguments For Every MVP Candidate

Writer: Elliot Adway

The year is 2017. Kevin Durant has a championship, Derrick Rose teamed up with LeBron, and Kyrie Irving plays for the Boston Celtics. In other words, anything is possible in the NBA. The most explosive offseason of all time has resulted in the most anticipated MVP race in recent memory. Here’s a look as the cases for and against every potential MVP candidate.

 

Russell Westbrook

Bleacher Report

Case for:

When you are a threat to post a triple double night in and night out, how can you not be an MVP candidate? Russell accomplished a feat that only Oscar Robertson obtained in averaging a triple double for the whole entire season. He also did that while leading the association in scoring, his team in rebounds, and his team in assists. In other words, what the hell can’t he do?

Case against:

Most of Westbrook’s historic season was due to the lack of playmaking around him. More often than not, he was tasked with making all of the plays, which resulted in a very high usage rate. Add in All-Star forward Paul George and all of sudden his usage rating is more human like. That could very well cost him his scoring title, and maybe even cut his rebounding totals due to PG13’s ability to grab boards.

 

James Harden

Hollywood Life

Case for:

James Harden would be the reigning MVP if Westbrook didn’t average a triple double. Having averages of 29.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 11.2 assists while leading your team to the number 3 overall seed in the gladiator-type Western Conference would result in an MVP any other season. Look for Harden to be a frontrunner for this year’s race, hopefully captivating the award that has eluded him his entire career. (Also, shout out to James Harden for donating 1 million dollars in wake of Hurricane Harvey. Prayers out to Houston from The Drive.)

Case against:

Unfortunately, there is a team in the Bay area that scares the living hell out of GMs across the league. Due to their fear, teams are now vying to team up superstars in hopes to have a chance against the Warriors. Exhibit A? The Houston Rockets. Chris Paul is now in the H and will share the ball with James Harden. Odds are that will impact Harden’s numbers, and could very well cost him another MVP.

 

Kawhi Leonard

USA Today

Case for:

The sad fact that Kawhi Leonard’s greatness is often shadowed by the plays of other great superstars across the league should scare the NBA. He’s smiling in the off-season, which alone indicates that he’s about to go Super Saiyan on his opponents. His ability to dominate both sides of the ball is easily unmatched by any player in the association. Look for Leonard to average north of 25 points per game, while still bringing the once in a lifetime versatility back in full force.

Case against:

I mean let’s be honest, who can really imagine Kawhi Leonard as league MVP besides yours truly? He won’t put up the numbers like Westbrook, be as efficient while scoring as much as Harden, and definitely won’t be raining threes like Curry. Those factors alone can hinder his MVP chances, which is absolutely ridiculous in my opinion. The team first style that Gregg Popovich preaches will likely result in another Defensive Player of the Year award for The Claw instead of an MVP.

 

LeBron James

Sporting News

Case for:

Tell me a year LeBron James isn’t in the Most Valuable Player discussion, I’ll wait. The King rightfully gets all the respect from the voters due to his all-around greatness, and largely due to the fact that he’s in the Finals literally every year. Subtract Kyrie Irving and his shots, and now you have a motivated, and scary LeBron James. When you’re in the gym making Instagram videos lip syncing to Tee Grizzley, that is never a good sign for the opposition.

Case against:

The only thing that stops LeBron from having 9 MVPs is the competition around the league. Year in and year out, new superstars come from the shadows and assert themselves among the elite of the NBA. Voters are used to James being his dominant self, which results in them falling in love with the new “face of league”. Ultimately this hurts LeBron’s MVP chances, and might be the beginning of the passing of the torch.

 

Kevin Durant

Mercury News

Case for:

Snake, cupcake, traitor, NBA champion. Call him what you want, but you could very well be calling him MVP next season as well. The always efficient Durant will be looking to repeat and possibly better his numbers from last season while Golden State presumably continues its dominant play. With one year of chemistry to build in with his teammates, Durant will likely raise his 25 points per game, and improve his defensive numbers as he showed in the playoffs. KD was the difference maker in this year’s Finals, expect him to ride the momentum of this June into next season and beyond.

Case against:
With a team as loaded as the NBA champion Golden State Warriors, the question KD is probably asking himself at home is “Do I even have to be the MVP?” I mean come on, he already plays alongside 2 time MVP Steph Curry, Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson, the only mixed man I’ve ever seen with perfect waves. Kevin should definitely take some pointers from Klay about that, then he’d for sure be a runaway to secure his 2nd MVP award.