By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer
It hasn’t been announced yet, but it’s almost a foregone conclusion that Dirk Nowitzki takes home MVP honors this season. While that pick looks even poorer after the huge postseason let down, it’s not a catastrophically bad choice. But there are others who more deserving of the honors:
1. Steve Nash – After arguing against Nash winning the last two years, it’s ironic that he won’t win during the season he actually deserved it. It’s tough giving the trophy to someone that’s such a liability at one end of the floor, but Nash does more than enough on offense to make up for it. With the new rules in the NBA, the point guard is becoming more and more important (look around at the team’s still alive in the playoffs), and Nash is the class of the position. Averaging 18.6 points and a career-high 11.6 dimes, the most impressive feat by Nash might be the 53.2 percent shooting. He’s also at 89.9 percent from the line. Nash shouldn’t be punished because he plays with a great team, but instead applauded for seamlessly reincorporating Amare Soudemire back into the lineup. With so many mouths to feed, Nash keeps everyone happy but also knows when to take over games late. He might be the best ball handler, passer and shooter in the game today. Nash for MVP.
2. Tim Duncan – I’m not sure that I’ve heard Duncan’s name brought up once in MVP conversations, and it’s unclear why. The Spurs may not have won 67 games this year, but they are basketball’s best team. The 20 ppg is pretty low for an MVP candidate, and the fact he struggles at the free throw line has to be taken into account, but Duncan is the game’s best interior defender and shot 54.6 percent from the field. Add in 10.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 0.8 steals and 2.4 blocks, and you’re looking at one of the most important players in basketball. By no means was this one of Duncan’s best seasons, but in a year full of mediocre options, he’s worthy of MVP consideration.
3. Dirk Nowitzki – It’s a regular season award, so I’m not punishing Nowitzki because of his postseason performance. I had him ranked here before the Golden State series even started. Nowitzki looks like the proverbial best player on best team pick, which makes even more sense in this case, because Dallas’ roster isn’t all that impressive as a whole. Josh Howard can ball, but for a 67-win team, I’m not sure how they did it. Nowitzki is no doubt one of the toughest guys to defend in the league, and his off the ball, help defense has improved immensely over the years. Still, his numbers just don’t cut it. The 24.2 points on 50.2 percent shooting is nice, but the 8.9 rebounds as a seven-footer is actually a weak statistic. He’s also just minimally active in the hustle department (0.7 steals, 0.8 blocks). Nowitzki is no doubt a top-5 player in the league, but he just wasn’t the most valuable this year.
4. Kobe Bryant – Bryant is pretty much the consensus pick for best player in the NBA, but he’s yet to translate that into the wins column. The numbers are impressive, and in a game of pick up basketball, he’d be the unanimous first overall choice, but his ability to make his teammates around him better is questionable. It’s uncertain how much blame Bryant deserves for LA’s failure, but it’d be nice to watch him play with an improved squad.
5. LeBron James – The numbers are there, and he did lead a mediocre team to a No. 2 seed, but he’s penalized for playing in the minors, otherwise known as the Eastern Conference. He’s also still lacking the killer instinct quality that Dwyane Wade has.
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