If Kobe Bryant doesn’t win the NBA MVP this year, there is something wrong with the system. No, I’m not going to pull the race card (it would be justified if I did). My argument is plain and simple.
Bryant should get the MVP because he is the most valuable player to his team. No one else in the entire NBA carries a heavier load than Bryant, and nobody has responded to the pressure of being “The Man” like he has. He is the very definition of the award.
Now, some of my illegitimate colleagues would say that Bryant shouldn’t be considered because his team is currently seventh in the Western Conference.
Bulls***. Just go ahead and take Bryant off the Lakers and see how successful they are. As played out as this argument is, it makes a lot of sense. If you take Steve Nash off the Suns, there are still four players that average over 15 points a game. Phoenix would be a title contender with or without Nash and the fact that he has two MVP awards already makes me sick (he definitely deserves the Most Valuable Canadian award, though).
Similarly, Dirk Nowitzki is surrounded by some of the best athletes in the league. Jason Terry is quickly becoming a top-10 shooting guard, Josh Howard is averaging close to 20 points per game, Jerry Stackhouse is better than ever and Devin Harris is from Wisconsin (which automatically means he’s awesome). Nowitzki does carry a big role on the Mavericks and has been better than ever this year, but he still lacks the ability to hit clutch shots and therefore finishes behind Bryant in my book.
The other guys always have someone to shoulder the burden with them, but Bryant can only rely on one Laker — himself. Sure, Lamar Odom contributes?when he plays. The guy comes up limp more often than my?um?ankle.
Outside of him, the Lakers rock an all-star cast of Luke Walton, Smush Parker, Maurice Evans, Brian Cook and Andrew Bynum. Collectively, those five probably couldn’t beat Westminster’s women’s basketball team, let alone compete in the NBA.
Without Bryant, they’re nothing. He deserves the MVP this year more than ever. He’s unselfishly distributing the ball to his teammates (5.5 assists per game), getting plenty of rebounds (5.6 per game) and scoring more than any other player in the league (31.2 points per game).
Nowitzki and Nash have Bryant beat in two categories: Nowitzki has the edge on Bryant in rebounds, averaging 9.1 rebounds per game, and Nash has him beat in the assist column, averaging 11.5 assists per game.
I have a couple of things to say about that. First off, what kind of 7-foot basketball player doesn’t average more than nine rebounds per game? I’m kind of disappointed that he doesn’t average more. If Bryant were seven feet tall, he would probably average a baker’s dozen per game.
Second, Nash is nowhere near the point guard everybody thinks he is this year. Yes, he does lead the league in assists, but he also averages 3.87 turnovers per game (third in the NBA). Bryant only averages 3.4 turnovers per game.
If none of those fun little stats wet your whistle, then here’s something else: Bryant actually plays defense. He’s always trying to get a steal or a block.
Meanwhile, Nowitzki plays defense like a 13-year-old sissy who hasn’t ever played a contact sport and Nash is on the complete other end of the spectrum. In all honesty, Nash is one of the worst defenders in the league, and that’s a trait that no MVP should ever have.
Bryant is the consummate NBA player. He is the driving force behind the Lakers and the only reason they’re going to make the playoffs this year. And for all you naysayers, it’s called the Most Valuable Player award, not the Most Valuable Player On The Best Team award. There’s only so much one man can do.
