{"id":61929,"date":"2018-03-31T09:59:56","date_gmt":"2018-03-31T09:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=61929"},"modified":"2018-03-31T09:59:56","modified_gmt":"2018-03-31T09:59:56","slug":"lebron-james-wont-win-award-but-hes-having-an-mvp-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/lebron-james-wont-win-award-but-hes-having-an-mvp-season.html","title":{"rendered":"LeBron James won’t win award, but he’s having an MVP season"},"content":{"rendered":"

LeBron James won’t win award, but he’s having an MVP season<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

The 2017-18 NBA MVP has been All-Star James Harden\u2019s for much of the season.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Houston guard leads the league in scoring at 30.7 points per game and is averaging 8.7 assists, 5.4 rebounds and shooting 44.8% from the field, 36.7% on three-pointers and 86.4% from the foul line, and he\u2019s doing that for the team with the best<\/span><\/p>\n

record at 61-14.<\/span><\/p>\n

Harden finished second in MVP voting last season and followed it up with another outstanding performance this season. In USA TODAY Sports\u2019 weekly MVP rankings, Harden has been No. 1 for all but two weeks.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s widely agreed it\u2019s Harden\u2019s MVP. He\u2019s deserving and likely will win.<\/span><\/p>\n

But then there is Cleveland star LeBron James and his push for the award.<\/span><\/p>\n

The argument for James as MVP can be made, or at the least for giving James a first-place vote. There has been just one unanimous MVP winner (Steph Curry in 2016). Someone other than Harden will receive first-place votes. James will get some of them as perhaps will another player or two such as Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant and Curry.<\/span><\/p>\n

At 33 years old, James \u2013 the winner of the MVP in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013 \u2013 is wrapping up another fabulous season: 27.6 points, career-high 9.1 assists and career-high 8.6 rebounds and 54.7% shooting, including 36.5% on three-pointers. He has also recorded career-bests in triple-doubles (16) and double-doubles (46).<\/span><\/p>\n

In the past 25 games, James is averaging 29.5 points, 10 rebounds, 9.8 assists and shooting 55.2% from the field and 39.4% on three-pointers.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 15 seasons, this is among his three best, and for a player with high mileage on that body, it looks like he\u2019s going to play in all 82 regular-season games for the first time in his career. If he received demerits for resting\/sitting out games in previous seasons, he gets credit for playing in every game.<\/span><\/p>\n

Also, consider the roster turmoil the Cavs have endured. They lost Kyrie Irving (while Houston gained future Hall of Famer Chris Paul), Isaiah Thomas\u2019 return was a disaster, Kevin Love (James\u2019 best teammate) has missed 22 games and they\u2019re working with a roster that was remade at the trade deadlin<\/span><\/p>\n

If team success is part of the MVP equation, James\u2019 Cavs will end up with at least the same number of victories Oklahoma City did last season when Thunder guard Russell Westbrook won the award, and it\u2019s possible the Cavs reach 50 victories.<\/span><\/p>\n

The stain on James\u2019 season is January, a month in which the Cavs went 6-8 and he had his worst stretch, shooting just 22% on three-pointers. His rebounds, assists, field goal percentage and foul shooting were the lowest of any full month of the season. It was also Cleveland\u2019s only full month in which it posted a negative net-efficiency rating.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Cavs had a messy January, and Harden and the Rockets do not have such a bad month on their resumes.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Cavs have also allowed 111.7 points per 100 possessions (also a difficult to stop 112.2 offensive rating) with James on the court. Take him to task for defense, but also consider he\u2019s trying to reach his eight consecutive NBA Finals. He knows better than any current player what\u2019s required to win in the playoffs vs. the regular season.<\/span><\/p>\n

And several voters will look at Houston\u2019s dominant season and Harden\u2019s excellence and conclude he\u2019s the MVP. That may be the best answer. Like Kobe Bryant\u2019s one MVP, James may end his career with four MVPs when he probably deserved one or two more.<\/span><\/p>\n

ESPN\u2019s Rachel Nichols has advocated for two awards \u2013 one for MVP and one for best player. It\u2019s a way of acknowledging a player who had a tremendous season while acknowledging the best player in the world, which James has been for the past decade. The NFL and Major League Baseball have multiple ways in which to honor top performers.<\/span><\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t a hot take saying James should be the MVP over Harden. It\u2019s a reasoned look at why James as MVP is not preposterous. James won\u2019t win, but that doesn\u2019t mean he isn\u2019t deserving.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/nba\/columnist\/jeff-zillgitt\/2018\/03\/30\/lebron-james-mvp-season-james-harden\/473188002\/<\/span><\/p>\n

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