Last week, Kobe Bryant was on fire, putting up 40 points every night and having the Lakers looking like title contenders. A lot can happen in just one week, because neither of those is true anymore. As a result, there is a new, albeit familiar, face atop the MVP rankings, and two new ones in the top 10, replacing players that didn't live up to the hype this week. Here are my current top 10 MVP contenders, with rising players in green and falling players in red. Also, check out my 6th man rankings at the bottom of the post.
Most Valuable Player
1. LeBron James - MIA - 29.9 pts, 7.9 reb, 7.6 ast, 2.0 stl, .563 FG%, .474 3P%, .718 FT%
The week didn't start out well for the Heat, who lost three straight games and were not looking like a great team, and it didn't help that Dwyane Wade got hurt for the second time this season, but then King James took over and started playing like the superstar he is, putting up 3 straight 30-point games while shooting over 60% from long distance and pulling Miami up to #4 in the East standings. He's been the best player for years now, and now he's basically doing it alone again, like he did for all those years in Cleveland, with similar results.
2. Kevin Durant - OKC - 26.5 pts, 6.9 reb, 3.3 ast, 1.2 blk, 1.1 stl, .498 FG%, .841 FT%
Other than a head-scratching loss at last-place Washington on Wednesday, this was a solid week for the two-time defending scoring champ. He was perfect from the free throw line (24-24) and put up nearly 30 points per game while keeping the Thunder in the West's top spot, but he didn't do anything spectacular enough to warrant moving him up a spot, especially since his teammate, Russell Westbrook, had his best week of the season, which hurt Durant's chances of moving up.
3. Kobe Bryant - LAL - 30.4 pts, 5.5 reb, 5.7 ast, 1.4 stl, .454 FG%, .843 FT%
The Lakers went 1-3 this week. In the three losses, Kobe averaged 32 points per game. In their lone win, against the Mavericks, he put up only 14 points. So not only did his streak of 40-point games come to an end, the Lakers nearly dropped out of the playoffs and played better without his help this week. No matter what your MVP criteria are, there's no way Kobe can keep from falling this week.
4. Russell Westbrook - OKC - 20.5 pts, 5.0 reb, 5.5 ast, 1.7 stl, .452 FG%, .805 FT%
This week, Westbrook averaged 27-7-6, shot over 50% from the field and long distance, and hit nearly 90% of his free throws, by far his strongest week of the season. Last week he was barely even among my top 10 players, and I said that he was having a disappointing season, but that he might be turning a corner, and it looks like he did just that in the past 7 days, giving the Thunder the best 1-2 punch in the entire league, at least until Wade is back at full strength in Miami.
5. Dwight Howard - ORL - 20.2 pts, 16.1 reb, 2.4 ast, 2.3 blk, 1.4 stl, .575 FG%, .458 FT%
Howard was completely shut down by the defense of the New York Knicks on Monday (yes, you read that right), scoring 8 points on 3-6 shooting as his teammates took over and led the Magic to victory. Then he redeemed himself with two straight 20-20 performances against the Spurs and Lakers, which kept him from plummeting in the rankings. In fact, if Westbrook hadn't been so great this week, he might have been able to maintain his #4 spot, even after the New York debacle.
6. Kevin Love - MIN - 24.7 pts, 14.5 reb, 1.9 ast, 1.1 stl, .426 FG%, .809 FT%
Minnesota still hasn't crept into the playoff picture in the West, but if Love keeps playing like he has so far this season, it would be no surprise to find the Wolves among the top 8 teams in the conference within the next two weeks. Last night he had the highlight of the night as he hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give his team a road upset of the Los Angeles Clippers, who are currently among the top 4 seeds in the West.
7. LaMarcus Aldridge - POR - 23.2 pts, 9.1 reb, 2.6 ast, 1.4 stl, .491 FG%, .768 FT%
Aldridge earned this spot with his game last night in Toronto, Portland's fifth straight game on the road in 8 days, when he dominated the Raptor big men for 33 points and 23 rebounds, while still finding time to hand out 5 assists. With Brandon Roy's retirement just before the season began, Aldridge is the unquestioned leader of the Blazers, and he has taken them on his back and carried them just like he did in the second half of last season.
8. Carmelo Anthony - NYK - 25.7 pts, 6.6 reb, 4.1 ast, 1.4 stl, .412 FG%, .813 FT%
Carmelo had a very inconsistent week, sitting out one game and playing horribly in a loss to Phoenix on Wednesday, finishing 5-22 for 12 points as the Knicks continued to struggle. That game was sandwiched between two 30-point games, both of which were also losses, putting New York's losing streak at 5 games and dropping them nearly out of the current playoff picture.
9. Blake Griffin - LAC - 21.2 pts, 11.7 reb, 2.9 ast, 1.0 stl, .509 FG%, .526 FT%
The Clippers had their busiest week of the season so far, and while Griffin was pulling down rebounds like normal, his shooting was just off, especially in LA's two losses, to Utah and Minnesota. His field goal percentage has nearly matched his free throw percentage, which is not a good thing, especially since he isn't the defensive beast that Dwight Howard is, which makes up for Howard's lack of shooting skill from the stripe.
10. Andre Iguodala - PHI - 14.3 pts, 6.5 reb, 4.3 ast, 2.1 stl, .460 FG%, .662 FT%
Iguodala is the only player on this list who isn't scoring over 20 points per game, and he isn't even close to reaching that plateau, but he is a better all-around player than anyone on this list other than LeBron, Kobe, and Westbrook, and he has the 76ers at #2 in the East and looking like a real challenger to the Bulls and Heat as the best team in the East. Philly's small forward is the first player with real MVP potential in the City of Brotherly Love since Iverson left over 5 years ago.
Dropping Out
Derrick Rose - CHI - 20.8 pts, 3.5 reb, 8.7 ast, .439 FG%, .877 FT%
Chicago is still holding onto the best record in the league, and Rose is their best player, but he has sat out the past three games, and the Bulls still managed to win two of them. In the game he did play he only scored 18 points on 35% shooting, so maybe a break to get healthy could help him get back onto this list again later this season.
Pau Gasol - LAL - 16.3 pts, 9.4 reb, 2.4 ast, 1.3 blk, .518 FG%, .783 FT%
Gasol's numbers were down across the board this week as the Lakers took a nosedive in the standings. I'm not sure whether Kobe is trying to do too much or Gasol is doing too little, but these two need to figure out their roles if they want to see an MVP, or even more importantly, a playoff berth.
Honorable Mention
Luol Deng - CHI
Chris Bosh - MIA
Derrick Rose - CHI
Danilo Gallinari - DEN
Paul Millsap - UTA
Carlos Boozer - CHI
Ryan Anderson - ORL
Sixth Man of the Year
1. James Harden - OKC - 16.3 pts, 3.9 reb, 3.1 ast, .450 FG%, .867 FT%
Harden has continued to improve every aspect of his game during his third season as a pro, increasing his average in every category but steals so far in this season despite the fact that he is still coming off the bench. His minutes have only increased by 3 per game, so there's more to his statistical jump than just being on the court more. He will be around for a while, and right now there's no doubt that this award is his if he doesn't become a starter.
2. Al Harrington - DEN - 14.9 pts, 5.4 reb, 0.9 ast, 1.4 stl, .554 FG%, .675 FT%
Who would have thought that the Nuggets would be #2 in the West at any point this season, with so many of their players stuck playing overseas? Al Harrington is taking advantage of the extra minutes that are available by shooting far better than he ever has before, 8% better than his career best and 11% better than his career average. If he can keep it up and keep Denver in the playoff hunt, he could have a shot to beat out Harden for Sixth Man.
3. Louis Williams - PHI - 15.1 pts, 2.4 reb, 3.5 ast, .411 FG%, .859 FT%
Williams has been riding the 76ers bench for over 6 years now, and he has steadily improved over the years, until today, at 25 years old, when he is having what looks like his best season yet. When he was playing 30 minutes per game two seasons ago, he still only averaged 14 points per game, and now he is over 15 per game with only 25 minutes of court time a night. It looks like he has finally matured into an NBA player.
4. Andre Miller - DEN - 9.9 pts, 3.6 reb, 6.3 ast, 1.3 stl, .438 FG%, .775 FT%
Miller continues to be a steady veteran player who has the potential to explode once in a while, which is exactly what happened on Wednesday, when he posted 28 points and 10 assists on the 76ers, one of his former teams. He followed it up with 0 points and 5 assists against Washington on Friday, but on the balance he is a very important part of a deep Nuggets bench.
5. Evan Turner - PHI - 10.4 pts, 6.3 reb, 2.9 ast, .468 FG%, .711 FT%
The #2 pick from one season ago has developed into a solid player off the bench for the surprising 76ers, and it can't be a coincidence that all five players on this list come from teams ranked in the top 2 in their conference. With the compacted season we're having, deep benches are going to be necessary to keep up momentum throughout the season and the playoffs.
Honorable Mention
Thaddeus Young - PHI
Predictions
Upset picks are in italics.
Sunday
Baltimore at New England - Patriots by 11
NY Giants at San Francisco - 49ers by 5
Prediction Results
NFL: 2-2 (.500) 173-91 overall (.655)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 26-23 overall (.531)
Odds of Winning the Super Bowl
1. New England - 46.5% (+9.4)
2. San Francisco - 30.4% (+21.5)
3. NY Giants - 15.6% (+14.3)
4. Baltimore - 7.4% (+2.9)
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