Top 10 MVP Candidates Week 1: Giving Thanks

Lebron is off to a quick start. But remember, he was off to a fast start last season and didn't bring home any hardware to show for it.

Weekly MVP Rankings 1st Edition

Were a little over a month into the season and just days removed from Thanksgiving – and it seems like everyone is already done giving thanks. Why stop when there is so much to be thankful for?

I give thanks everyday for family and friends, the opportunity to continue my education and the fact that I’m not an Oklahoma City Thunder fan (or a Detroit Lions fan, yikes!). I’m definitely giving thanks to the wonderful job that Kobe Bryant and the Lakers have done and to LeBron James (yes, Lebron James) for his endless highlights this season.

I continue to give thanks to the Portland Trailblazers for the few times that I’ve gotten to see Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Rodriguez on the floor together. Is there a more exciting Spaniard in sports outside of Rafael Nadal? Absolutely not, and that is why I give thanks.

I give thanks to Michael Curry for holding a practice on Thanksgiving morning, supplying the basketball world with another shipment of what already seemed like an endless supply of Allen Iverson “practice” jokes. Not a game, not a game, not a game. We’re talking about Thanksgiving practice.

I have to give thanks to guys like Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Baron Davis, Jose Calderon, Devin Harris, Derrick Rose, Chauncey Billups and Ramon Sessons (!) for giving us one of the deepest collections of pure point guards since the mid 90s. It’s been amazing watching all of these guys, especially Rose, who has been as good as any rookie point guard I’ve seen in a while, during the course of this first month of NBA basketball.

I’m definitely still giving thanks for signing up for Khlid El Amin’s mailing list so I can get coupons to the El Amin Fish House out in Minnesota. I swear, when I get the time I’m going to get out of California and get to that fish house so I can get the Special #7 – 50 catfish steaks for $64.99. You just can’t beat that.

I give thanks for my seven-month old nephew who cried when Celtics highlights were being shown on Sports Center and when a Boys II Men song was played. Not that I have anything against Boys II Men, I just think it’s hilarious that he has something against them – but best believe that I can’t stand the Celtics.

I give thanks for Dwyane Wade’s return as one of the leagues elite, for Dwight Howard being a man and for Tracy McGrady exclaiming, “Welcome to Houston, BABY!” in one of those Addidas Brother hood commercials, it gets me every time.

(Side note: McGrady and Tim Duncan pick teams between the kids for what I’m assuming is going to be a pick up game and T-Mac says, “My team’s going to win and if you’re not on my team you’re going to wish you’re on my team.” Every time I watch that commercial I think, “there’s no way a McGrady led team is going to beat a Timmy led team.” I’m right, right. I mean, I don’t know if anyone else has noticed, but McGrady is looking ridiculously old. He isn’t the guy he was three years ago. Injuries have ruined his career, and I wouldn’t be surprised, even with Ron Artest and a healthy Yao Ming, if the Rockets still couldn’t make it out of the first round of the playoffs. His window is closing very fast, and could be closed by the time his contract expires after the 2010 season. There will be a lot of stars on the market that off season, and so will McGrady. By 2010, he will not be a superstar anymore. In fact, I feel like I can argue that he isn’t a superstar now, but I digress).

Last but not least, I give thanks just because I have basketball. I don’t have a lot of things in life that I’d like to have, but I have what I want right now, and it’s basketball. I could fail my History final (which I might have done), I might not remember the last time I got a full night’s worth of sleep and my relationships with some friends may have faltered during the course of this last year, yet, none of that matters, at least not right now because it’s basketball season (and the new Kanye West album just dropped). I’m definitely thankful for that.

Without further ado, here are your 2009 MVP candidates after one month:

1. Lebron James (12-3) 27.9ppg 7.2rpg 6.3apg
Just because I gave thanks to James and have him at the top of this list don’t get the idea that I’m becoming a fan of his. His jump shot is still abysmal (24.6 3P%) and I’m still waiting for him to completely take over the league by developing a post game. However, James has been great this season. The Cavaliers have the second best record in the Eastern Conference and have the third best record in the league – and that credit is not going to Mo Williams. James has been nothing short of spectacular this season and has the funniest shoe commercial out right now.

2. Kobe Bryant (12-1) 23.7ppg 5.0rpg 1.77spg
Kobe definitely isn’t second in the MVP voting because of his statistics. For almost anyone else in the league these would be great numbers, but this is a down season for Bryant, but you can’t argue with the results, a 12-1 record. The Lakers only loss this season came on the only night Bryant took over 30 shots, this is something you might want to monitor. Another thing you should definitely monitor is the number of unnecessary no-look passes (UNLPs) Bryant throws. My friend Davion pointed this out to me a few weeks ago and now I can’t watch a Lakers game without keeping track of his UNLPs. There have been countless times this season when it was strikingly obvious who Kobe was throwing his pass to, yet, he still looked the other way – but the worst part is he always looks the other way after the pass. Can we please get Kobe to stop trying to look cool can continue to play as one of the most fundamentally sound guards of all time? Thanks.

3. Dwight Howard (12-4) 21.2ppg 13.5rpg 3.9bpg
Dwight Howard has six games with at least 20 points and 15 rebounds – and I’m disappointed in this. Howard is A MAN (!), I don’t see why he couldn’t have 20 and 15 at the very least every other night. Outside of his lack of a killer instinct, I’ve loved watching the development of Howard’s game. I mean, just think of what he would be if he got angry every once in a while, it would be scary. I remember at one point in The Incredible Hulk when Tim Roth’s character, before he became the Abomination, was fighting the Hulk and asked him, “Is that all you got?” Immediately after asking the question the Hulk kicked the hell out of him and Roth went flying into a tree. I loved that. Why can’t Howard get that pissed and start kicking people – or at least dunking on them and yelling in their face and blocking their shots into the 47th row of arenas and pulling down rebounds with his elbows out? It has to happen at some point.

4. Chris Paul (9-5) 20.6ppg 12.0apg 52.4 FG%
The only reason Chris Paul isn’t higher on this list is because of the Hornets unexpected slow start. Despite starting off the season with seven straight games with at least 20 points and 10 assists, the Hornets were only able to manage to win four games, just imagine what their record would have been if he wasn’t playing out of his mind. Since the Hornets embarrassing loss to Sacramento, they have won four straight with Paul logging two triple doubles during that span. Also, his 52.4 field goal percentage is outstanding considering he and Tony Parker are the only two guards in the NBA shooting over 50 percent from the field with at least 10 field goal attempts per game. Sometimes I find myself wondering if there has been a better point guard in my basketball watching lifetime (from any season after the 1991-1992 season) and I can’t think of any. Not one.

5. Dwyane Wade (7-8) 27.4ppg 7.5apg 2.53spg
I understand that the Heat’s record is under .500 right now (and they were blown out 106-68 by Portland), but you have to understand what Dwyane Wade has done this season. With a rookie starting at both point guard and power forward, a starting center who is 6’8’’ with shoes on and Shawn Marion’s jump shot, Wade has almost single handedly made the Heat a competitive team while posting some ridiculous numbers. Wade has already had a stretch of four straight 30 point games and a four game stretch with ate least three or more steals. If the Heat had a legitimate center you’d be looking at a team that was three to four games over .500 instead of one under right now. I’m just glad Wade is back and healthy. He’s looked quicker this season that he has at any other point in his career, and that’s just scary.

Rounding out the rest of the Top 10
Tim Duncan
Duncan is the reason the Spurs are still a winning team despite injuries to both Manu Ginobli and Tony Parker. This is going to be a tough team when everyone’s healthy.

Chris Bosh
Bosh is second in scoring and fifth in rebounds. Even with those great numbers, the Raptors are just 7-7.

Paul Pierce
For some reason, he still thinks he’s the best basketball player in the world and for some reason, that’s still beyond me. He’d be higher, but his stats are down in scoring and assists this season – and he wasn’t an MVP last year (don’t forget he plays for the Celtics).

Chauncey Billups
The Nuggets are 9-3 since Billups has joined the team. Even though his numbers have been far from great, why are there still Nuggets fans mad about Iverson being traded?

Amar’e Stoudamire
Stoudamire’s numbers started out great, but he’s only had one multi-rebound game since his 49-point, 10-rebound game on November 5th. He needs to average more than eight boards a game.

Let me know who is too high or too low. Who got left off? Who shouldn't be on the list?