Winning is Everything, Part Deux

LeBron James is on pace to win another MVP this year. That elusive ring is dangling in his face but he needs to navigate through the postseason first, which he has yet to prove. The MVP, though, seems prime to return to him. Sure, there are contenders for the crown who will take away votes, but LeBron is a sure thing, as much as it pains me to say.

There's Amare Stoudemire, Kevin Durant and Derrick Rose. All would be worthy for the MVP award if LeBron weren't playing. Amare is the best Knickerbocker since Patrick Ewing. He is consistently scoring 20+ and has singlehandedly brought the Knicks back to relevance. They are sliding as of late and just barely playing over .500, but I thought they'd barely be able to sneak into the playoffs. If they can 'right the ship', the Garden will be an exciting place to be come playoff time.

That's not enough though. The Knicks would have to work their way past the Hawks, past the Magic and obtain home court advantage to give Amare a shot. That's not going to happen. Amare may get a couple East Coast voters, but that's it.

Kevin Durant is one of the three best players in the NBA, grouped in with Kobe and LeBron. The Thunder will probably win the division they're in. Sure, he is the most valuable player on his team but without Westbrook, this team is not winning their division, especially being that they play in the West. Durant and Westbrook are probably the best combo since Stockton and Malone. How many MVPs did Malone win?

Derrick Rose is probably the toughest competitor, both for the MVP and a Finals appearance this season. The Bulls are nothing without him and he carried the team through early injuries to Carlos Boozer (great name) and Joakim Noah. If Noah can somehow guide his squad to the number one seed in the East, the MVP is definitely his. I don't see the Bulls overcoming the Heat and Celtics in the regular season though, so he loses votes for the Bulls finishing below the Heat.

The easy answer is LeBron. The Heat didn't make the playoffs last year, and now they're battling the Celtics and Bulls for the top seed in the East. The Cavaliers were a number one seed last year and they're now the worst team in the NBA. LeBron was thought to be giving up on personal achievements by taking his talents to Miami. He has seen his numbers drop slightly, but not enough to lose votes. Assuming the Heat finish number one in the East, the MVP is his. The Heat will then need to do what they have been unable to do all season though. Beat Boston.

Winning the MVP won't hurt LeBron's image, obviously. Winning the championship is his main goal though and until that happens, he is the number one villain in the NBA. Because winning is everything.