NBA Midseason MVP

 James Harden is the MVP of the NBA so far.

It’s not LeBron or Embiid, it’s Harden. I know I have said otherwise on various podcasts, but after thinking, and watching… and watching and thinking I’ve determined to go with Harden. As the All-Star Break approaches, the collective pans their focus to the second half of the season which means all anybody will care about is MVP and the playoffs. From the day after the All-Star Break there will be columns, podcasts, and videos trying to determine who the MVP is, what the All-NBA teams will look like, and who will be the last team standing at the end of June. Myself included. However, having a Midseason MVP is important for some years. This year it is because of the bizarre ending to last year, I think it’s important to grab the casual fan back into the swing of the season and give a “tangible” topic to bring people back to normalcy. The person that is doing that is James Harden.

The season that Harden has had up to this point is everything the casual fan has come to love from the NBA. There was a groundbreaking trade that saw of the top 5 players in the league switch teams, after that, the trade has impacted the outcome of all the games he has played in, and he’s playing at an MVP level. Would the Nets be a playoff team without Harden? Yes, they would. Would they still be at the top of the list of teams that could compete for a title? Again, yes. However, the way Harden has reinvented himself again is something I can’t get over. He’s been incredible, he’s been the leader for the Nets through all the roster turnover, the most consistent guy on the team only missing one game since the trade, and he’s been far and away their best player since he arrived (Durant hasn’t played that many games to take that title from Harden). James Harden 4.0 (or whatever version you want to call this Brooklyn version of him) is on a mission. I’m aware of the hate I’m going to receive when this column comes out from the people who love LeBron and the die-hard Philly fans who will shove Embiid stats down my throat.

I’m not disrespecting LeBron, he’s been great the entire year, which makes no sense because he had about 2 months off from a title run, and still is playing close to the peak of his powers (absolutely remarkable) he deserves to be in the conversation. As does Embiid. Embiid has been the best player on the best team in the East, and he’s having his best season of his career. Like Harden, Embiid is on a mission. The reason why I’m going with Harden is because the Nets season plays out similarly to how it is right now if Harden wasn’t here at all. Kyrie and KD would still play every other game, Durant missing more because Brooklyn wants to keep him fresh for the playoffs, and the group that they traded away can’t do what Harden is doing right now. I love all the players the Nets traded away in the Harden deal, but I don’t know if they are the 2nd best team in the East if one of the Super Two isn’t playing alongside. Harden plays like Houston Harden when both of the Super Two are off the floor, but when either of the two are on the floor with him, he goes to another planet to play basketball. Will Harden be the best player on the floor with a healthy Durant, no, but right now Harden is the best player on the floor every time he plays.

Look, right now, here’s my top five for MVP as two games before All-Star:

1.      James Harden

2.      LeBron James

3.      Joel Embiid

4.      Steph Curry

5.      Nikola Jokic

This group is probably the group that I will have until the end of the year, it’ll just come down to who is playing the best at the end of the year because the collective seasons from each of these guys will be worthy of an MVP.

Disagree with me all you want, bring up how Harden bitched his way out of Houston and got his way anyway (I still hate it for the record), or that LeBron is doing what he’s doing at 36, or Embiid completely eviscerating everybody who comes his way, or hell, how Steph is single handedly keeping Golden State afloat. Throw it all my way, I’ll listen, but right now my mind is already made. Give it time, it might change, or not…

   

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