Column: Kobe for MVP
Published April 22, 2008
As the NBA Playoffs are getting into full gear, what better distraction than to hand out some hardware and accolades? San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili kicked off the award season by earning the best sixth man award. Now, a look at who else should be drafting an acceptance speech.
As always, the most heated and sure-to-be controversial award is Most Valuable Player. In the running is Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard. While leading his team and the league in rebounds, Howard also averaged 20 points and 60 percent from the field. He elevated his squad from Eastern Conference joke to contender by leading the Magic to a 52-30 record, 12 more wins than last year.
Just ahead of Howard is LeBron James, who also carried his team on his back. James won his first scoring title and led the Cavaliers in assists and steals. But unlike Howard, James saw his team fall from Eastern Conference supremacy, as the Cavs have become just another good team.
We have, therefore, a two-man race for MVP, and fittingly, these two led their teams to the two best records in the Western Conference. Chris Paul will lose to Kobe Bryant due to intangibles, not statistics or leadership. Although only in his third season, Paul took his game to another level, averaging 21 points and leading the league with 11 assists. More importantly, Paul took the embattled New Orleans Hornets from the 10-seed last year to within one game of first place this year. He helped his team generate 17 more wins and gave the city of New Orleans some much-needed success.
But despite the great Cinderella story, this year’s MVP rightfully belongs to Kobe Bryant. While averaging typical Kobe numbers, 28 points per game, he did it in atypical fashion. Bryant averaged less than 26 percent of his team’s points for the first time in four years, allowing teammates like Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom to contribute. He also led the Lakers to its first No. 1 seed since the days of Shaquille O’Neal. The most talented player in the league finally became the most valuable.
The Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year awards will both find their way to Boston, as Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge, respectively, brought basketball pride to New England for the first time in decades. The Celtics’ choice to give up more than half its roster for Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett proved to be the right one, as Boston produced the best record and turnaround in the NBA. After owning the second-worst record in the NBA last season, the Celtics won 42 more this year en route to a 66-16 record. The Celtics will look to win its first championship since 1986, and with Garnett, Pierce and Allen leading the way, anything is possible.
The Rookie of the Year award is also a no-brainer, with Seattle sensation Kevin Durant leading all rookies and most veterans in scoring with more than 20 points per game. Not since LeBron James in 2004 has a rookie averaged more than 20 points per game. With some more help coming via this year’s draft, look for Durant to be even more explosive in the future.
Finally, the NBA first team will offer some new faces this year. Joining Bryant, James and Garnett, Paul and Howard will make this elusive team for the first time. Each player has led his team emotionally and statistically and, more importantly, has a chance to lead his team to the NBA title.