Why LeBron James Deserves MVP... Maybe?

For starters, I think it's only fair if I disclose the fact that I bet on LeBron to win MVP before the season started and I really want him to win it. But, I think that I have a few keys points as to why LeBron deserves this title over Giannis Antetokounmpo. Just a quick disclaimer- I am not here to discredit the outstanding season that Giannis had this year, but this is just to state my opinion as to why I think LeBron was the most valuable player to his team this season.

To start, we should define what the MVP title truly is. The MVP should be an award that goes to the most valuable player in the league and to his team. This means that when he is on the court, he dominates over the competition and for his team. When he is off the court, you can see a difference, and maybe the team isn't as productive or efficient with him off.

There is absolutely no need to look into the stats of Giannis because we all know how great he is but in this article I am going to focus on how the team does with that player off of the court. When Giannis is off of the court, the Milwaukee Bucks does have a lower efficiency rating, although they still are able to win games. Also, the main argument for Giannis was that they were at one point on pace for a 70 win season. The Bucks went into the shutdown with a 53-12 record meaning that they would need to win out their remaining 17 games to finish with 70 wins. Also, let it be known that they obtained this record in the less competitive Eastern Conference.

The Lakers went into the shutdown with a 49-14 record coming off of a huge win over the Bucks and then an ugly loss to the Brooklyn Nets (my team baby). In that Lakers/Bucks game, the Lakers won by 10 points led by LeBron's 37 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists. This is dominant LeBron and what we are all used to and we all can only hope that that kind of LeBron shows up for the restart. Had the season not get paused, I think we were about to see LeBron unleash on the rest of the NBA and dominant the rest of the season. The Lakers had 19 games left and had a chance to finish with the best record in the NBA, although unlikely.

I think it is an extremely fair assumption to say that had the season continued LeBron would have had a much better chance, and possibly even be the favorite, to win the MVP. Although, since the season was cut short and we will not be able to see the remaining almost 20 games from both LeBron and Giannis, it sadly is safe to say that Giannis will likely be winning this award.