Most Valuable Player: James Harden, Houston Rockets
James Harden is incredible. I don’t care what anybody says about how he’s boring to watch or he shoots too many free throws. I. Don’t. Care. The man is one of the greatest scorers of all time and is currently averaging 38.9 points per game!
One of the more amazing stats about James Harden is the fact that even though he shoots 24 field goals and 14 free throws per game he still averages 7.8 assists per game (7th in the NBA). This is obviously due to his league-leading usage rate of 39.2 but it is still impressive regardless.
Harden went off for his 4th career 60-point game the other night against the Hawks and he did so in only three quarters! He is having a Kobe Bryant/Michael Jordan type scoring season and if he keeps this up should be a shoo-in to win the MVP award. Especially if Harden is able to increase his scoring average to 40 points per game and maintain that for 82 games, there is no question he deserves to win.
Individual accomplishments aside, Harden is also leading the Houston Rockets to a respectable season so far. The Rockets have been plagued with injuries to start this season and their bench was already quite shallow, to begin with.
The Rockets have the 3rd best offensive rating in the NBA (thanks to James Harden) and a league-average defense which should put them in a good position to fight for a top-seed in the Western Conference. They’re currently sitting tied for 4th in the West and if they get healthy, they should be fighting for a top 3 seed.
All that being said, James Harden is one of the most prolific scorers in NBA history, having his best offensive season and leading the Houston Rockets to a really good record. This type of all-time production should not go unnoticed. Give the man his second MVP award.
Other candidates: Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, Luka Dončić