When it comes to choosing the L's MVP, I'm averse to choosing a player on the basis of his stats. Yes, statistics reveal much about how well he's performing. But numbers alone do not an MVP make. If that were the case, then Lebron James, the triple-double machine that he is, should probably win the award every year.
I've always been partial to winners and players you make their teams better, and usually judge the MVP-ness of a player by assessing his impact on the team he plays on. On this basis, I really felt that Jason Kidd should've won the award in 2002, when he brought the New Jersey Nets to the Finals. The Nets made a dramatic turnaround that year, with players like Kenyon Martin, Kerry Kittles, and yes, even Lucious Harris, suddenly looking like the great, solid players people knew they weren't.
Jason Kidd raised their games then, just as Kevin Garnett has raised the games of this year's Boston Celtics.
Yeah, his stats are underwhelming. He has, for the first time in years, failed to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds a game. He is no longer among the league leaders in double-doubles, a title he contested annually with the Tim Duncans and Shaqs of this world. That he has chosen to not give a f*ck about his stats, and pour his heart and soul into the NBA's best team should serve as an example of how to judge the L's MVP. In the end, the stat that matters the most is a team's win-loss record, and how big a part a player contributes to that record.
Boston is on track to make the biggest one-season turnaround in League history. It has what Houston Rockets superstar Trace McGrady called the best defense he had ever seen in his career, a statement bolstered by the fact that the Celtics established a record for the least number of field goals by an opponent in the shot-clock era when it held the Miami Heat to 17 field goals in a blowout win. The Boston Celtics are where they are because of a defensive intensity unmatched in recent history, and the success of this D can in a large part be attributed to Kevin Garnett, who anchors the defense and has inspired his team-mates––including fellow stars Paul Pierce and Ray Allen––to play the best defense in their lives.
Garnett has raised his team's play in a way that Lebron James and Kobe Bryant haven't. The Cavs are nine games shy of the 50 games expected from a serious contender. The Lakers, while doing very well, have not consistently played at the level of Boston, even with a roster that is as good––if not better––than the the Celtics'. Chris Paul, while without a doubt the only reason New Orleans is a real threat in the Western Conference, has carried his team as much as KG has, but not as successfully.
This year's MVP race will probably be very, very close, with most pundits already making it a tossup between Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. I say throw out the stat sheets and choose a guy whose play––not his stats––has made his team the best in the League: Kevin Garnett.
I've always been partial to winners and players you make their teams better, and usually judge the MVP-ness of a player by assessing his impact on the team he plays on. On this basis, I really felt that Jason Kidd should've won the award in 2002, when he brought the New Jersey Nets to the Finals. The Nets made a dramatic turnaround that year, with players like Kenyon Martin, Kerry Kittles, and yes, even Lucious Harris, suddenly looking like the great, solid players people knew they weren't.
Jason Kidd raised their games then, just as Kevin Garnett has raised the games of this year's Boston Celtics.
Yeah, his stats are underwhelming. He has, for the first time in years, failed to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds a game. He is no longer among the league leaders in double-doubles, a title he contested annually with the Tim Duncans and Shaqs of this world. That he has chosen to not give a f*ck about his stats, and pour his heart and soul into the NBA's best team should serve as an example of how to judge the L's MVP. In the end, the stat that matters the most is a team's win-loss record, and how big a part a player contributes to that record.
Boston is on track to make the biggest one-season turnaround in League history. It has what Houston Rockets superstar Trace McGrady called the best defense he had ever seen in his career, a statement bolstered by the fact that the Celtics established a record for the least number of field goals by an opponent in the shot-clock era when it held the Miami Heat to 17 field goals in a blowout win. The Boston Celtics are where they are because of a defensive intensity unmatched in recent history, and the success of this D can in a large part be attributed to Kevin Garnett, who anchors the defense and has inspired his team-mates––including fellow stars Paul Pierce and Ray Allen––to play the best defense in their lives.
Garnett has raised his team's play in a way that Lebron James and Kobe Bryant haven't. The Cavs are nine games shy of the 50 games expected from a serious contender. The Lakers, while doing very well, have not consistently played at the level of Boston, even with a roster that is as good––if not better––than the the Celtics'. Chris Paul, while without a doubt the only reason New Orleans is a real threat in the Western Conference, has carried his team as much as KG has, but not as successfully.
This year's MVP race will probably be very, very close, with most pundits already making it a tossup between Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. I say throw out the stat sheets and choose a guy whose play––not his stats––has made his team the best in the League: Kevin Garnett.
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