The 2013-14 NBA regular season is coming to an end as the playoffs are underway. Of course, the awards will also be presented and the main one, of course, is the MVP. Basically, it has been a two-man race between Kevin Durant and LeBron James, but who comes out on top?
James has made the case this season that he could win the MVP award for the third straight year, but many have said that Durant has done way too much this year that can keep him from losing it.
James said recently that Durant is currently the frontrunner. With only a few regular season games remaining, will that still be the case?
In my opinion, Durant is the 2014 NBA MVP. Here are five reasons why.
The Streak
As we all know, Durant recently surpassed Michael Jordan's streak of the most consecutive games of having 25 or more points. Though Jordan does not hold the record, it's rather amazing that Durant went over 40 straight games of having such a crazy streak.
It just ended recently, but this streak alone—something no other player has done this season or in a while—should be enough to validate Durant as the Most Valuable Player.
Statistics
The 25-year-old has averages of 32 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game. Durant leads the league in scoring, just like he always does, and his rebounding and assists averages are also rather stellar.
Let's compare that to LeBron, who is averaging 27 points, 6.9 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game. Those numbers are very close, but Durant's points per game average might be just enough to say his statistics were better.
Thunder's Record
The Thunder hold a 57-21 record, which is good enough for second place in the Western Conference. They are three games behind the San Antonio Spurs for the first overall see.
It's unlikely they'll be able to get the seed unless if San Antonio loses out in the regular season and OKC wins every game. Still, the Thunder's record is rather impressive.
Some may say LeBron should deserve MVP if the Heat get the East's No. 1 seed. Right now, they trail a half game behind the Indiana Pacers. Even if they beat Indiana on Friday night, it won't matter since Oklahoma City would still have a better win-loss record.
LeBron James MVP History
LeBron James could win the MVP award every year, but we all know the NBA won't let that happen. If that were the case, Michael Jordan would have had about 10 or 11 MVP awards.
With that said, James already has four to his name. Heck, he could've had five because many say he was robbed of the MVP award in 2011 when Derrick Rose won it.
Despite that, he already has won two in a row and three in the last four years. Winning three in a row would be rather repetitive and the NBA never really allows that to happen.
James has been coasting throughout this season until he cranked up the gears a few months ago. Though everything has been up-to-par on a typical MVP LeBron season, it just isn't enough to say he could be MVP over KD.
Plus, KD never has won MVP. It seems like it's time to have one now, no?
No Other Player Is Truly Deserving
Besides LeBron James, I don't think there is any true MVP candidate that can beat out Kevin Durant. Even with James, he's still behind KD in the race and will have to do a looooot in these final few regular season games to really get an edge on the Thunder forward.
So with James likely not to win it, there's really nobody else that can contend. I mean, come on, who else is out there. No way Blake Griffin or Joakim Noah will beat out KD, though they have been incredibly valuable to their teams.
Face it, no one has played as good as Kevin Durant has this season. Give the man his MVP award when it's all said and done.
