I Can't Say I Won't Be Salty If... (mvp Talk!)

I'm thinking that the "best player on the best team" criteria is wrong. If you think about it, the best team is really the team that wins the championship that year. The Finals MVP is usually rewarded to that player, therefore, they are the best player on the best team. That being said, I think the MVP is really a discussion of the best player of the year, individually speaking. I do think that winning still plays into that though, because the ability to lead a team to success is an attribute of the best player.

 

winning matters, but only kind of. big time winning is discounted...because it's not in the playoffs and your teammates are good. so now we have to try to evaluate the relative impact of other players while trying to account for system, injuries, and other circumstances.

that kind of sounds like the gymnastics necessary to give harden the award, as opposed to more deserving/better players.

best player on best team is a cop out, but i see why they generally go to it. i certainly don't see giving it to a second-tier player on a second-tier team as the way to solve the problem, though. if the 8-game difference in the standings between houston and gs isn't enough to give the nod to curry, then the 8-game difference between houston and NOP or OKC isn't enough to give it to harden.

side note: the narrative about harden/howard also confuses me. the idea is that houston's record would be better than gs's if howard played, right? or at least would be super awesome. but they played nearly half a season with howard and won at a nearly identical rate (slightly worse). really, this is more an argument AGAINST howard than it is FOR harden.

in other words, i'm only annoyed if harden gets it. he's the least sensible of all the candidates.

 

We are on our way to the last month of the season.
The Race is very close. Curry lost some power with the preformances of Harden and Westbrook (and Lebron's Cavs winning alot of games).
Who do you think will take it at the end?

My prediction: Westbrook gets tired soon with the crazy stats, Lebron takes alot of rest, and it will be between Curry and Harden. Curry will deliver great show and will take the player of the month and the MVP at the end.

(BTW, Curry took the player of the month award in the last month of both 2013 and 2014. so he likes to finish good.

 

I'll be happy if anyone but Harden wins it.

 

curry last night was 13-22 from the floor for 33 points as his team romped yet again. fun note: that's one more made FG than harden's 50 point game on 5 fewer FGAs and 23 fewer FTAs. curry also had 10 assists to one turnover. no beard, though, so...wash?

 

I think it's Curry's to lose

 

Well, FT's and BS calls or not, he deserves it more than Bron does.

 

Here's the thing....

Take away the BS calls and flopping Harden is still a baller. The guy finishes with contact better than just about any in the league. He is option 1 on that team for sure. I won't take the guys "talent" away from him. That being said, if you took the special treatment away then his stats look just like what his talent level should be "star level." He is not a superstar level talent and he definitely isn't the MVP. I don't mind him being in the conversation but there is no way his stats can be the factor without scrutiny to the excessive help from the officials. The MVP is a 1-man race in my opinion which is Curry. I think Westbrook deserves a lot of talk and of course A Davis although I think he gets hurt too much. I do not think Bron deserves a lot of consideration at all and that isn't hate just a fact his team is underperforming and he has not lead them at all in my opinion.

 

i didn't say harden sucked without the refs, but he's certainly not in this conversation without all the gifts they bestow upon him. he's prime joe johnson, minus the defense plus 6 FTAs per game. or a more durable prime ginobili, minus the playoff fortitude.

lebron is most certainly better, and his team was TERRIBLE without him this year. i think westbrook is a better player, as are anthony davis and steph curry. the fact that curry's team has blown the league away should make this a no-brainer given the history of the award, but the media seems to be on a campaign to give it to harden...and the media is who picks the winner. sad.

 

^ exactly.

i'd probably have my board just like that one, with harden coming in 5th.

if the award is best player on great team, it's curry. if it's most outstanding individual play, it's westbrook.

 

A couple things. I do think Harden is talented, like I said he may be one of the best finishers with contact in the game right now, but he is a 2nd/1st tier star whose numbers would plummet if it weren't for the officiating helping him so much. Think about it without the freethrows he would be a straight chucker. If Dwight was half the player he was in Orlando people would kill Harden for not getting Howard the ball. Lucky for James that Howard has been injured. Getting all those free throws puts the other team in a big bind and really makes it hard to match up with late in games. Take away the early free throws and the foul trouble for the other teams then what would Harden have?

As far as you MVP Race I have to disagree on Westbrook being #1. I was def on that and I think the dude is playing pretty much crazy carrying that 2 horse team, which is missing a horse, the way he has since the break. He deserves a lot of looks for it but Curry, as I was reminded when I picked Westbrook, has been doing it for a year. He has been so good it has made it look easy. He is my by far front runner now without question.

Id go:

Curry
Westbrook
Davis (if they make the playoffs)

If I had to add the 4 and 5 I'd go Beard and then Bron. I don't think either really should be in the final conversation with those first 3.

 

the only way it can change is if another league darling is obviously and adversely affected by harden's ft parade. for example, if harden shoots 27 fts in a tight playoff game that ends up ousting, say, the clippers, there might finally be some blowback. but if it happens against dallas or portland or memphis...tree falling in forest...

 

The Warriors have more 20pts + wins ( 17) than losses (13) , the best points differential for 16 seasons + ( just saw the stats until the 99-2000 season).

Tough to ignore this in the WC .

More on the FTs parade :

Harden had 26 30pts+ games so far... He scored more FGs than FTs in only 9 of these games

Curry had 16 30+ games so far ... He scored more FGs than FTs in 15 of these games .