Race for MVP!

NBA All-Star Week begins on March 7th, and we still have a whole lot of basketball left out of these players for this season.

Let’s talk about some players who are in the race to the MVP spot this year. Here we can take a closer look at the Polls below from the NBA All-Star 2021 official list.

Before we get into the list; first, how do you win an actual MVP award in the NBA? Well, actually, a panel of NBA sportswriters and broadcasters around the US and Canada vote on who the next MVP is going to be. That’s the technical answer, but the way they determine their votes is off of the player that helps their team win the most throughout the season. This doesn’t mean that they have to score the most point per game, but this means the contender’s points, rebounds, or assists all contributed to their team getting more wins overall! John Lorge, a writer for BleacherReport, did an article on what it takes to potentially win the MVP award. He explained that a person that can have their team win at least 70% of their games has a very high chance of winning the MVP award. With the season still going on, I used this list to serve as a great tool to see who the fans think the next MVP should be.

Starting with the frontcourts, we have Lebron James in the west at the 1st spot with 4.36M votes, and Kevin Durant at the 1st spot in the East with 4.23M votes.

Still “King James” at 36 years old, James is still dominating with ease! Averaging 25.6 ppg, 7.9 assists, and rebs; while leading the Lakers to a great record.

Durant is also having a fantastic season despite coming back from an Achilles injury last season, and missing games after testing positive for COVID. Durant is averaging 29.5 ppg while adding 7.4 rebs and 5.2 assists even after all those obstacles he had to face!

We all know that those two players can do amazing things, but I want to see if these other players in the race for MVP have what it takes to overthrow these dominant players!

The 2nd spot on the list for the Western Frontcourt is Nikola Jokić at 3.006M votes in the All-Star Poll 2021. Jokić, or “The Joker,” has been balling! Shooting 56.7% from the field goal, and 40% from the 3-point line; also, adding to his resume he is averaging about 26.9 ppg, 11.3 rebs, 8.6 assists as a big man!

As for the east, we have Giannis Antetokounmpo with 3.28M votes. The back-to-back reigning MVP is still getting things done! Averaging 28.1 ppg, 11.1 rebs, and 5.5 assists while shooting 59.6% from the field goal!

As for the leaders of the guards, starting in the west, Steph Curry, of the Golden State Warriors is averaging an absurd 30 ppg. Curry is definitely making a case for his third MVP award, especially with his “Splash Brother,” Klay Thompson, remaining out for the rest of this season with an Achilles injury.

In the east surprisingly enough Bradley Beal, of the Washington Wizards. Beal has been apart of the Wizard’s organization for 9 years now and some may say that he is wasting his young career in Washington, but Beal is averaging 32.8 ppg, which is a career-high for him.

It’s easy to see that once Russell Westbrook and Beal get that connection going on the court, Washington’s backcourt could become truly unstoppable.

This team can be special as long as their star players, Westbrook and Beal, keep producing and leading their team to get more wins, but I’m glad Beal is getting the recognition he deserves.

Unless you have been sleeping under a rock, then you would know that the NBA has been filled with so much excitement and crazy turns of events. With so many great players coming out of the draft we even have some young stars on the rise to participate in this year’s All-star weekend.

Young stars such as Luka Dončić, Ja Morant, Zion Williamson, Donovan Mitchell, and Jayson Tatum will all be making their second All-star appearance. These players have been helping their teams get as many wins as possible and they are also getting the recognition they deserve as well!

Do you see your favorite player on this list?

Comment below who you think should win the next MVP award!

Media by Justin Cross.