Odenized: dwight howard

I tend to agree that Paul is the MVP. You look at what he's done with his team this year, now that he's fully healthy, and you see the tremendous impact he's had. A huge win against the defending champions last night also is telling. The difference between Paul and Garnett is the caliber of team on which they play. The Cs have two other HOF players, the Hornets...none.

LBJ's stats are the best in the League, no doubt. But, yeah, somehow a team's record plays a immeasurable bias in the MVP voting. I totally agree with your assessment that the Cavs need to be first in their division (or at least a close second behind the Pistons) for LeBron to merit any sort of consideration for the award. It's just interesting to see how much record plays a part, especially when one's opinion about it can be so subjective.

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Garnett's production is still the same. He's just playing less minutes...which lowers his overall numbers. Yet, he's still deadly effective when on the court.

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Dirk and Mavs won 67 games. C'mon now...and Nowitzki was playing lights out all seasons long. He was thrown into an early season funk premeditated by his offseason sabbatical and lack of training.

The Celtics are on a similar pace this year. KG clearly is the difference maker and should win the award if the current trends continue. I think Paul's still too young to win the award. I know it's trite to say, but age also seems to play a role -- whether a cat's earned his stripes long enough.

The Cavs need to land a fourth or fifth seed this season, otherwise they have no hope of playing the Celtics for rights in the East. If the Cavs land a sixth of seventh spot (which they probably will), they've got no chance beating Orlando and Detroit to get to Boston in the Eastern conference finals. No chance whatsoever.

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I feel like you all are hating on some of the best players to ever play the game -- Kobe, KG, Dirk? Wow.

For one thing, I'd much rather put the ball in any of their hands than Paul or LeBron at the end of a game because of their massive experience. They all know how to get to the line in those situations and stop the clock. You need to look at their ability to lock it down and Odenize themselves at the times of extreme pressure.

LBJ and CP3 have not proved their ability to Odenize and make the right play when it really comes down to it. They haven't learned how to lead a team with their heart and sole.

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If the Lakers do NOT fade, and play over .500 ball, then there's no question Kobe's the League's most valuable, regardless of how many shots he puts up and how well he shoots. A team without key cogs Ariza and Bynum is nothing, and to carry that on your back for two months is Atlas-esque.

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The only thing the Lakers were predicted to do was trade Kobe to the Chi or trade Bynum to the Nets. Somehow they didn't do either, and overcame all the diversity to become an elite team. What a story. You have to recognize this with an award for Kobe, who was the key person in the 180 turnaround.

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The MVP this season may be the most debated selection in recent history. That said, there's still a half a season to consider after this. How players' team's perform will without doubt play a large role.

That said, here's who I project to be the top three MVP candidates at the season's end: 1) KG, 2) Kobe, 3) Paul

I'm not trying to diminish LeBron's game in any way. I'm just saying that playing .540 ball in the East is not good enough.

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Yes, I think the big three really play as a unit -- helping each other out and complimenting each other's game. Still, Garnett is the piece that makes it all work. There's no saying how good the team would be without Garnett (because they theoretically would still have Ryan Gomes and Al Jefferson...and Gerald Green...and Sebastian Telfair), but I'd wager it wouldn't be anywhere near 60-65 wins at the end of the season.

Garnett's the key to the Celtic's resurgent season. That's why he's the MVP.

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I'd totally disagree about the career achievement. Steve Nash, when he won his first MVP, was an All-Star, but certainly not deserving of the League's best player award in Dallas. He came into his own when he signed with Phoenix, and the NBA rewarded him for his spectacular performance during those seasons.

On the other hand, I do think a player needs to have played at least a couple years in the League before he wins the MVP. I can't think of an MVP in recent times who's won an the award in his first three seasons. Or am I wrong? I think you have to earn your stripes in the NBA before you can be seriously considered for the award. That's why Paul's not winning anything but an First Team selection this season...which is no chump change by any means.

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Not only are the starters in New Orleans playing more minutes than other teams, they're also young. There's two things going on here, in my mind: 1) They're young and they can handle the burn, and 2) They're young and don't have the experience to "pace" themselves for when it comes playoff time.

It's a long season and I definitely agree that the Hornets most likely will not make it to even the Western Conference Finals. However, if they do make it that far, I'll be leading the NOH bandwagon with the rest of Bayou.

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The younger a player is, the less likely he'll be given the reigns to a team. The only exceptions would be poor, rebuilding teams who have no other choice but to let their young guns play (I.e. Seattle this season).

However, in those instances, when a young player is a main option, only very rarely will that team also be also a factor in the playoff picture. Most of the time, these young teams don't even make the playoffs.

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If teams are blowing people out the majority of the time (Hornets recently, Celtics not so recently), there's no need to "close out" teams. I guess being a good closer implies that you're not doing enough during the first three quarters to be comfortable going into the final period.

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Howard and Paul are different. Paul's a small guard and very prone to injury. Whereas, Howard is about one of the League's biggest (most muscular) players in the NBA. Howard's never missed a game in his career. Not only that, but he's played one year longer.

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Sometimes I get caught up looking to the numbers for answers to these questions. Still, nothing substitutes for watching a player play the game to really assess how valuable he is.

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