I'm going with Westbrook right now. He could actually post a triple-double for the year. I realize that MVP voting tends to put a lot of weight on team W-L record. But if he keeps up this pace, the usual rules may go out the window. With all due respect to Oscar Robertson, averaging a triple-double in the modern NBA would be an unprecedented and near-unthinkable achievement.
I don't think the thunder will be high enough in the standings but the MVP of the league this year is westbrook, even if he won't get the award _________________ Kobe
It's a really, a lot of guys are off to a great start, and things could still go a lot of different ways.
Westbrook and Harden are in the mix if they keep up their simply enormous individual performance so I think ultimately they'll come down and their teams will keep them out of contention.
Durant is putting up great stats to, but the Warriors will probably end up with a worse record than last year so it's hard to see him getting the award.
So I'm going to go with LeBron followed closely by Leonard. Ask me in a few weeks in my opinion could be entirely different
I'm guessing Harden. He may lead the league in assists by the end of the season, and people are going to perceive the Rockets as having nothing outside of him, and OKC will have a worse record I think. GSW will have the cancellation effect with having Curry and Durant.
Harden and Westbrook are both putting up absolutely insane, historic numbers right now, so my money is on one of them. I think Westbrook might have the slight edge just because I think he has more help on his team, and they'll probably finish with a better record. That, and he might actually average a triple double on the year. I also don't know how sustainable Harden's assist numbers are.
I also think Giannis might be a dark horse candidate. He's at around 21/9/6/2/2 right now. He has a good shot at DPOY the way he's playing right now, and his offensive numbers are pretty incredible too. Problem is, his team isn't good enough.
Agreed. Not only are they playong out of their minds, but their teams would be much worse without them.
They aren't top 2 teams
I think this is one of this years that the award goes to someone who puts up insane stats on a team that isn't great, rather than the best player on the best team. You can't ignore guys putting up 30/10/9.6 and 28/12/8 on playoff level teams.
Westbrook and Harden at the top of the NBA.com MVP ladder. Looks like my prediction is holding up. Both teams should make the playoffs so that gives them a good shot.
Westbrook's individual pace will likely have it slightly in his favour, but if Houston finish 5+ games and a handful of positions ahead of OKC, it'll go to Harden. _________________ I believe everything the media tells me except for anything for which I have direct personal knowledge, which they always get wrong
If you look at his individual stats then Westbrook makes sense, but is he really more valuable than a guy like Lebron? If I was going to pick one guy to be on my team, it wouldn't be Westbrook. I'd still take Durant over him.
If you look at his individual stats then Westbrook makes sense, but is he really more valuable than a guy like Lebron? If I was going to pick one guy to be on my team, it wouldn't be Westbrook. I'd still take Durant over him.
Last year it was clear cut right answer, your answer. But this year... debatable
If MVP requirement of top 4 in conference as usual then WB or even Harden would be on the outside looking in but man, Westbrook is having a season of historical proportion
If you look at his individual stats then Westbrook makes sense, but is he really more valuable than a guy like Lebron? If I was going to pick one guy to be on my team, it wouldn't be Westbrook. I'd still take Durant over him.
Valuable and best are two different things.
Take Westbrook off OKC, they are last place in the West. Take LeBron off the Cava, they make the playoffs, heck they are still #1 seed in the East.
I'm going with Westbrook right now. He could actually post a triple-double for the year. I realize that MVP voting tends to put a lot of weight on team W-L record. But if he keeps up this pace, the usual rules may go out the window. With all due respect to Oscar Robertson, averaging a triple-double in the modern NBA would be an unprecedented and near-unthinkable achievement.
Averaging the triple double is going to be like the Triple Crown in baseball. Westbrook is going to win it imo. _________________ KOBE
If you look at his individual stats then Westbrook makes sense, but is he really more valuable than a guy like Lebron? If I was going to pick one guy to be on my team, it wouldn't be Westbrook. I'd still take Durant over him.
Valuable and best are two different things.
Take Westbrook off OKC, they are last place in the West. Take LeBron off the Cava, they make the playoffs, heck they are still #1 seed in the East.
The Cavs were never making the playoffs before Lebron came back. And I'm really skeptical about the idea that they would make the playoffs without Lebron. Irving and Love didn't win anything without him. Also without Lebron, those two would be forced to carry more of the load and would be at a higher risk of injuries (and they get injured a lot). And Lebron has won 60+ games with weak rosters before.
Lebron still looks like a more unselfish team player to me. I've seen video of Westbrook not running back on defense and he still is a chucker, but it's not nearly as bad because he isn't taking shots away from Durant anymore.
I'm being harsh here but it's hard for me to believe that Westbrook could be more valuable than a guy that repeatedly gets compared with MJ. This kind of reminds me of the times MJ would get overlooked and the award would keep going to someone else that was clearly less valuable.
I won't say it's a horrible pick though if Westbrook wins. His stats are amazing so people can use that to argue that he is doing more for his team based on that. But I certainly don't think he is the most valuable player in the league. Voters do sometimes have a tendency to give the award to someone new.
If you look at his individual stats then Westbrook makes sense, but is he really more valuable than a guy like Lebron? If I was going to pick one guy to be on my team, it wouldn't be Westbrook. I'd still take Durant over him.
Valuable and best are two different things.
Take Westbrook off OKC, they are last place in the West. Take LeBron off the Cava, they make the playoffs, heck they are still #1 seed in the East.
The Cavs were never making the playoffs before Lebron came back. And I'm really skeptical about the idea that they would make the playoffs without Lebron. Irving and Love didn't win anything without him. Also without Lebron, those two would be forced to carry more of the load and would be at a higher risk of injuries (and they get injured a lot). And Lebron has won 60+ games with weak rosters before.
Lebron still looks like a more unselfish team player to me. I've seen video of Westbrook not running back on defense and he still is a chucker, but it's not nearly as bad because he isn't taking shots away from Durant anymore.
I'm being harsh here but it's hard for me to believe that Westbrook could be more valuable than a guy that repeatedly gets compared with MJ. This kind of reminds me of the times MJ would get overlooked and the award would keep going to someone else that was clearly less valuable.
I won't say it's a horrible pick though if Westbrook wins. His stats are amazing so people can use that to argue that he is doing more for his team based on that. But I certainly don't think he is the most valuable player in the league. Voters do sometimes have a tendency to give the award to someone new.
I'd probably have to vote for Westbrook right now (trying very hard to overlook the shooting %ages and turnover rate), but the bolded above ... ?
Actual record in his absence:
The Cavaliers are 4 - 16 in the 20 games LeBron's missed since his return to Cleveland in 2014. The average margin of loss has been 10+ points. Extrapolated over an 82 game season, that success rate translates into a 16 - 66 record. During his first run in Cleveland, the results were similarly uninspiring.
Actual On/Off data:
In the 2014/2015 regular season, the Cavaliers were +10.8 points better than the competition over 100 possessions with LeBron on the Court, and -6.0 points worse with him off the court. In the postseason, it was +4.3 and +3.9, respectively. +16.8 and +0.4
In the 2015/2016 regular season, the Cavaliers were +11.7 points better than the competition over 100 possessions with LeBron on the Court, and -4.8 points worse with him off the court. In the postseason, it was +13.9 and -7.2, respectively. +16.5 and +21.1
Thus far in the 2016/2017 regular season, the Cavaliers have been +12.4 points better than the competition over 100 possessions with LeBron on the Court, and -7.4 points worse with him off the court. +19.8
The results are similar for his first run in Cleveland and his run in Miami (excl. 2011 and 2013 postseasons).
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