Who wins the MVP in the NBA this year? There are really 3 main candidates and they are not hard to figure out.
LeBron James
Dwyane Wade
Kobe Bryant
So who wins it? Kenny Smith, writing for Yahoo.com has some definite opinions.

Dwyane Wade brings the excitement

Kenny likes DWade, because he is so exciting and has very little help. He has to do it all. Kenny eliminates DWade by insisting that he play for one of the top four teams. He believes that the MVP should carry your team to the playoffs.

LeBron is another story. Is there any other player with this much talent? How can this guy be so big and still play the small man’s game as well as the big man’s game? Need speed? LeBron has it. Need jumping ability? LeBron has it. And if your team wants to play great just put players where they like to shoot, because other teams will double and triple LeBron leaving guy’s wide open to shoot.

Finally there is Kobe. The one that reminds you of the One, the Michael, the Jordan. Kobe will not just beat you, he will destroy you.

Which player is deadliest with the game on the line? Kobe. He not only lives to win, he enjoys demoralizing opponents. That edge is what separates him from LeBron and D-Wade. He’s the guy who kicked sand on your face at the beach.

Kobe almost has a Jordan-like aura among NBA players, and for good reason. He has more offensive skill then anyone in basketball. If Jordan is No. 1, Kobe is 1A. He isn’t Jordan to my generation, but Kobe is tops to the now generation. Believe that.

Kobe actually has more offensive moves than Jordan and shoots the 3-pointer slightly better. And who scored 81 points in a game? Not MJ.

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So who does Kenny pick? Well, you will just have to read the article and find out for yourself.

Photo source Newscom

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Terry Porter was fired by the Suns and replaced by Alvin Gentry.

GM Steve Kerr has no clue. He took the very successful running offense that could not get it done in the playoffs and fired its architect in Mike D’Antoni.

Then Steve hired Terry Porter to bring in the Detroit Pistons defensive style of play. Huh? Same players completely opposite styles? Won’t work and it didn’t.

Porter was in the first year of a three-year, $6 million deal to replace Mike D’Antoni, who left after four highly successful seasons to coach the New York Knicks.

D’Antoni is a coach who lets his players run and shoot, and maybe play defense once in a while. It was Kerr’s insistence on emphasizing defense that led, in large part, to D’Antoni’s departure. Porter wanted a defense-oriented team in the tough mold of the Pistons.

It was a bad fit.

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Now Steve brings in Alvin Gentry, always the coach to replace the fired coach, because the players like him. Gentry says he will bring back the racehorse style, only D’Antoni won’t be there, and Steve Nash is 2 years older, and All Star MVP Shaq is 37 and can’t run.

Good Luck with that.

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Kobe about to be fouled

Image details: Utah Jazz v Los Angeles Lakers, Game 1 served by picapp.com

Kobe is expected to be presented with the NBA MVP award, but he got in a hurry and put on an MVP performance for the LA crowd in defeating the Utah Jazz.

Los Angeles 109 Utah 98

Kobe set a foul shooting franchise record.

Bryant, celebrating what’s expected to be his first NBA MVP award, converted six of his franchise playoff-record 21 foul shots in the fourth quarter, and the Los Angeles Lakers held off the Utah Jazz 109-98 Sunday to begin the second round of the playoffs.

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So just how good are the Lakers?

The Lakers were outrebounded by the Utah Jazz 58-41 on Sunday afternoon. The disparity in offensive rebounds was even more pronounced, 25-8. No surprise then that the Jazz also posted a significant edge in second-chance points, 26-12.

I don’t offer these numbers as mere arithmetic, but as statistical anomalies in evidence of just how good the Lakers really are. The team that controls the boards — especially the offensive boards, especially come playoff time — is almost always the winning team. But these Lakers do so many things so well — a more diversely talented team than any in the game — they can actually overcome an ass-kicking on the glass.

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Mehmet Okur had 21 points and 19 rebounds in the losing cause.

Kobe had 38 points 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Not a bad night for the MVP.

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Kobe Bryant gives the ‘Who me for MVP?’ look

Image details: Los Angeles Lakers v Denver Nuggets, Game 4 served by picapp.com

The NBA has not made an official announcement, but sources are saying that Kobe has won the MVP award.

Your intrepid author has mentioned this possibility before.

Kobe Bryant for MVP

Kobe has had a fabulous season in leading the Los Angeles Lakers to the second round of the playoffs.

Bryant averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.84 steals while playing in all 82 games despite tearing a ligament in his right pinkie finger in February. A hand specialist recommended surgery, but Bryant decided to put it off until after the Olympics this summer.

He led the Lakers to the best record in the Western Conference and a sweep of Denver in the first round of the playoffs. The Lakers open the second round Sunday against Utah at Staples Center.

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Kobe will win the award over Chris Paul, Kevin Garnett (NBA Defensive player of the year), Dwight Howard (All Star Slam Dunk Champion), and LeBron James.

NBA Basketball special comment Kobe was overdue for the MVP award.

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Now all season your intrepid author has the MVP race as a two person dog fight.

Can we say dog fight anymore? That does not seem appropriate.

How about a two person race.

Person number 1 is LeBron James.

Other person number 1 is Kobe Bryant.

Kobe Bryant is a slam dunk for MVP of the NBA

Image details: Los Angeles Lakers v Portland Trail Blazers served by picapp.com

Oh, there are those of you out there that will say Kevin Garnett or Chris Paul, but it has to be the Kobe LeBron race to the finish. The stats they put up and how they carry their teams just stands out too much.

“You can’t just continue to take what Kobe is doing for granted,” Pistons president and Hall of Famer Joe Dumars said. “The guy is one of the truly great players and he should be recognized as such.”

No one needs historical context to make the case for Bryant this year. His season stands on its own. At 29, this isn’t a lifetime achievement award. Kobe is still the best of the best. MVPs, however, are never won overnight in the NBA. Mostly, it takes constructing credibility over the years. He’s been so great, for so long that Dumars is right: People do take him for granted.

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Voters have to running out of excuses.

Still, Bryant is an MVP. He’s been the best player, a three-time champion and voters must ask themselves: If I don’t vote for him this year, what will it ever take? His talent, his accomplishments, his place in history, command multiple MVPs. This has been a season when everything has come together to make his candidacy unimpeachable.

His time, his trophy.

The time for Kobe is now. Kobe for MVP.

NBA Basketball special comment If not Kobe this year, what more does he have to do?

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Kevin Garnett has to be one of the best players in the NBA.

Kevin puts up 30 in defeating the Phoenix Suns and the crowd in Boston is chanting “M.V.P.” over and over again. Kevin, always modest, said Paul Pierce should be MVP. Uhh, right. Got you on that one.

“Honestly, I’m trying to block it out to make the free throws, which is kind of sad,” said Garnett of the chants. “But my MVP [Pierce] is sitting next to me.”

Pierce then tapped Garnett on the back of his head and said, “You’re my MVP, too.”

Pierce is averaging a team-high 20.1 points along with 5.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. Garnett is averaging 19 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 3.5 assists.

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Ok, it turned into a sickening love fest for a while. There is no doubting the MVP value of Kevin Garnett or the close to MVP value of Paul Pierce, but they are not the clubhouse leaders, so to speak.

The leaders for MVP have to be Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.

Detroit or Boston

Lucky Phoenix got to play Detroit and Boston on the road. So who is better?

“It’s a toss-up,” Phoenix guard Steve Nash said Wednesday night after the Boston Celtics beat the Suns 117-97, two days after they lost to the Detroit Pistons. “Both terrific teams; two of the favorites, that’s for sure.” source

Evidently Steve is running for politics or just does not want to tick off the wrong team, in case Phoenix actually made the finals and played Boston or Detroit.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Who is your MVP?

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LeBron James All Star MVP – Time to get out of Dodge err Cleveland!

With David Stern happy to have NBA Marketing Icon LeBron James as the MVP of the 2008 All Star game, the world can move on.

If you had to lay odds, it had to be James as MVP.

The NBA is a marketing organization, not a sports organization. Right now the future of the NBA seems secure, with possible expansion out of the USA and many stars in the league, but it can change fast and David Stern knows that.

Don’t get me wrong, LeBron is so good he probably would win the MVP of the All Star game anyway, almost every year.

It wouldn’t be long until these pulsating final minutes of this fabulous All-Star Game ultimately belonged to the genius of its Most Valuable Player with 27 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. It wouldn’t be long until commissioner David Stern passed him his second trophy at 23 years old, and the world would see who the star of stars was again at New Orleans Arena.

“LeBron is a freight train when he goes to that basket,” West coach Byron Scott sighed. “He’s so big, and so strong – so quick and so powerful. It’s hard to stop him when he gets the momentum going like that.” source

Now it is time to plan for LeBron to leave Cleveland.

The Cavaliers will have a hard time putting together consistent teams in Cleveland.

Over the summer, LeBron, Bryant and Jason Kidd were grumbling teammates with Team USA. Bryant wanted out of Los Angeles. Kidd wanted a trade to Cleveland. And James just wanted someone to share the burden with him. Well, the two point guards whom Cleveland GM Danny Ferry had tried to obtain for two years – Kidd and Mike Bibby – are on the way to Dallas and Atlanta.

The NBA needs to keep LeBron on the highest stage possible. That stage would be the NBA Playoffs and probably at least the Conference Finals. Hopefully the Championship series itself.

You can’t market Tim Duncan.

As much as it hurts your intrepid author (a huge Pistons fan), the League does not want anymore San Antonio Spurs vs. Detroit Pistons series. To fans outside of those teams, it is boring. They play defense.

Think of Kevin Garnett’s Boston Celtics vs. Kobe’s Lakers.

Think of Steve Nash and the Shaq bringing the Suns in to play LeBron James when he is on the Knicks (without Isiah).

It was fitting that the Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen all had great games as Boston won again.

Kevin had 20 points and 11 boards.

Paul had 18 points and Ray had 16 points.

With this victory the Celtics matched the 1959-60 Champion Celtics for best start in franchise history.

Final Score Boston 86 – New Jersey 77.

The New Jersey nets just seemed to wear down in the fourth quarter as the Celtics got a lot of help from their bench throughout the game.

“We got down on the road and our starters needed some rest,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “The bench was able to dig it out and get us the win. They were huge for us. Every game, we try to get our big guys rest because its a long season and were trying to give the bench more confidence.” source

The Celtics bench is often criticized, but will have to perform well if the Celtics have any chance of winning the NBA Championship, so Coach Doc Rivers was very pleased.

Maybe it was a battle of benches, because the starters for New Jersey did fine. Although, the team missed a ton of free throws going 9 of 24.

Richard Jefferson led the Nets with 17 points, Vince Carter had 16 and Josh Boone added 14 and a career-high 16 rebounds. Jason Kidd just missed another triple-double with 11 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists.

NBA Basketball Jason Kidd factoid - The assist by Kidd on Carter’s jumper with 8:07 remaining in the third was the 9,062 of his career, moving him past Isiah Thomas into fifth place on the all-time list.

So where do the Celtics go from here? Great defense, good coaching, solid bench play, almost unbeatable home and away…

It all comes back to the Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen.

Kevin Garnett, especially, is on track for an MVP season and the winning certainly will attract the votes.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Would you vote for Kevin to be MVP?

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The long and short of it

Dwyane Wade had 48 points. Unbelievable!

Dwight Howard had 29 points and 20 rebounds. Amazing!

The Magic won the game over the Heat 121 to 114.

But here is my story for the game. Shaq sat out the game. And so it begins.

Is there another player in the league that can create so much impact in a single game? The Shaq is still the Shaq. How you defend him determines how you will play the Heat. Do you double all the time? That leaves someone open on the perimeter or maybe Haslem is open. Do you double him after he begins to dribble? That often means the double is too late creating all kinds of havoc.

Wait you say, the game was the story, not Shaq? Oh, it was a fantastic game.

“It’s a little demoralizing to play my most complete game yet and to really have a feeling that we were going to win this ballgame,” Wade said. “To lose it in overtime, it hurts.”

Van Gundy ordered the Magic to trap Wade constantly in overtime, and it worked. Wade didn’t get a shot off in the extra 5 minutes.

“You can tell Pat and Dwyane, right off the bat next game, we’re trapping him the minute he walks out of the locker room,” Van Gundy said.

He was laughing when he said that.

The Heat found nothing worth laughing about. source

Yeah, Dwyane Wade and Dwight Howard may compete with Kevin Garnett for the MVP, but Shaq needs his rest. Hey, the sleeping bear will wake from hibernation in time for the playoffs and don’t tell me you don’t fear the Shaq.

Shaq better be careful with his middle of the season nap this year. Miami is in dead last of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. Shaq may actually have to play most of the season to get Miami into the playoffs.

Shaq has managed to sit large amounts of recent regular seasons as he has aged. It takes a lot to carry around all that size, to put it politely.

Yes, Wade may toil, but he will have to keep Shaq awake if the Heat are to challenge this year!

NBA Basketball Fan Question Are the Heat cooked?

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