Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) drives against the defense of Philadelphia 76ers center Jahlil Okafor (8) during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) holds stands on the floor before inbounding the ball against the Dallas Mavericks in the fourth quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Mavericks 127-107. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports /
Most Valuable Player
Stephen Curry, PG Golden State Warriors – There are a number of ways to quantify Curry’s impact on the game this season, but let’s just outline a simple one. Curry leads the NBA in scoring (29.4 points per game), true shooting percentage (67.6%) and PER (31.9), which would be enough to virtually guarantee him the honor in any year. Then, throw in the fact that the Warriors are 44-4 with a +14.1 net rating, and the case is pretty simple. Yes, there are other tremendous players in the NBA right now, but Curry also leads the league in various other categories (including ESPN’s RPM metric) and he’s doing all of this while sitting out fourth quarters on a regular basis. We have never seen anything like what Stephen Curry is doing to the NBA right now, and his performance should simply be enjoyed.
Kawhi Leonard, SF San Antonio Spurs – Leonard is the best defensive player in the NBA right now and, for good measure, he has become devastating offensively. The now 24-year-old is averaging 20.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game on the year despite playing less than 33 minutes per game, and Leonard’s efficiency is off the charts. To put it in perspective, his 51/49/88 shooting splits are, well, flatly ridiculous, and the fact that Leonard is able to put up these numbers in the Spurs system makes his profile even more impressive. He’s a solid number two right now.
LeBron James, SF/PF Cleveland Cavaliers – If we’re being honest, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant are both having better individual seasons in terms of performance, but with the obvious splitting of votes between the two and the way the Cavs continue to perform, LeBron earns the third-place nod. He is clearly on cruise-control, but when that means he is averaging “only” 24.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game with a 57.6% true shooting, cruise-control is enough.
