Chris CrockettTop 10 Most Valuable Players
February 20th 2012 00:12
If there is one thing that really grinds my gears, it's player comparisons. Do I think LeBron is better than Kobe? I think it's unfair to both of them to compare them, because they're two different types of players. I will say this, Kobe will never be LeBron and LeBron will never be Kobe.
Did I lose you?
Kobe and LeBron both have their strengths; LeBron is much more physically imposing, while Kobe is the more cold-blooded, clutch shooter. You can't go wrong with either one of these superstars.
Here I will rank the top 10 most valuable players to their team. This is not a comparison, this is not who is the better player. I rank these players based on their skill, but more importantly where would the teams these players play for be without them?
Let's get into it:
10. Paul Pierce, SF, BOS: This guy might not be a prolific scorer anymore, he might not have the finesse of a LeBron, the shooting ability of a Kobe Bryant, or the defensive prowess of a Dwyane Wade, but this guy makes the list because of a very rare gene that only exists in a handful of people. The clutch gene. The man is a cold-blooded shooter who is a top 3 clutch performer even with his skills diminishing due to his age. Boston is not getting any younger, and their window of opportunity is closing quickly. This team still has another year before father time catches up to them, but hey, that's what we say about the Spurs every year. Without Pierce, this team would be little more than first round fodder for a top team such as Miami or Chicago.
9. Steve Nash, PG, PHX: This guy can do it all. He's shooting at a ridiculous 55% this year, all while still averaging 11 assists and a respectable 14 points a game. However his most important asset is making everybody around him better. Where would the Suns without this guy? We may find out in the next year or so for sure, as he is certainly in the home stretch of his career (He just turned 38 two weeks ago). With the Suns struggling this year with a 12-19 record through the first half of the season, the Suns may be challenging the Bobcats for the worst record if Steve were not suiting up for Phoenix every night.
8. Dwyane Wade, SG, MIA: The Heat are the only team I even gave consideration to for having two players on this list, because Wade is simply too good to be left off of it. Wade can match LeBron punch for punch when it comes to scoring, but LeBron is the better overall player. Wade is the best defensive SG in the league, and can lock down anybody on any given night. Would Miami be as great as they are without Wade? Probably, as it would give LeBron more freedom to take the game over much like he did in Cleveland. He's been banged up so far this season, but watch out. I would not be surprised to see Wade named as the Finals MVP if the Heat make a run to the Finals again this year.
7. Dirk Nowitzki, PF, DAL: Mark Cuban would be nothing without this guy. Dirk surprised us all last year emulating the role of David in the Finals against Goliath, the Miami Heat. Even with torn ligaments in his finger, he got his revenge against Dwyane Wade winning his first ring. It seemed like the guy made every shot he took. He is one of the best shooting big-men to ever step foot on an NBA court, and is one of the most valuable to his team currently. Raise your hand if you think Dallas is even a good team without this guy in the lineup every night. Didn't think so.
6. Dwight Howard, C, ORL: Dwight would also appear on the top 10 most disgruntled players in the league had that list existed. Howard wants out of Orlando in the worst way, and everybody knows it. The Magic went through an absolutely horrific stretch earlier in the season, going 2-6 during an 8 game sample including a laughable 56 point performance in Boston. Even with this, they are still 4th in the Eastern conference as of today. Dwight is easily the most dominant big man in the game since Shaq in his prime, making him one of the most valuable players to his team.
5. Kevin Durant, SF, OKC: It's really a shame this guy doesn't play in a bigger market. In twenty years from now if you were to say 'Oklahoma City Thunder' an immediate thought would be 'Kevin Durant', much like Jordan with the Bulls. Russell Westbrook will always play second fiddle as long as he stays in OKC, because Durant is just a straight up baller. He may not defend as good as you'd like him to, but his scoring ability is almost unparalleled in today's NBA. Probably the most lethal scorer, he's got plenty of more scoring titles to be won in years to come. Oklahoma City is the sexy pick to come out of the West this year, but without K.D. they would be about as sexy as Khloe Kardashian. Sorry Lamar.
4. Chris Paul, PG, LAC: The most prized player on the trade market during the lockout seemed to be heading to Los Angeles. He did indeed end up here, but he is wearing red instead of gold. A Chris Paul/Kobe Bryant marriage would have been a match made in heaven. However, a Chris Paul/Blake Griffin pairing is pretty close. The 'Lob City' title given to this team is well warranted, given their high flying offense style. They are easily the most entertaining team to watch, followed closely by the Miami Heat with all of their stardom. The Clippers were the little brothers to the Lakers for many years, and now the sibling rivalry is more heated than ever after the Pau Gasol/Chris Paul incident last game. A team led by Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Chauncey Billups (pre-Achilles injury) seemed formidable, but Paul/Griffin/Jordan gives the Clippers a legit shot at a championship not only this year, but for the foreseeable future.
3. LeBron James, SF, MIA: He rescued a franchise just to throw them back into the depths of the standings last year. He joined forces with D-Wade and Bosh to form the most lethal 'Big Three' in the league bar none. Many would argue that LeBron cannot win another MVP because of his supporting cast. I would be one of them. With Miami sitting atop the Eastern Conference at 25-7, it's safe to say they would still be a top of the conference team without LeBron, assuming Wade is healthy. Would they be a championship contender? Probably not, but we've seen what Wade can do back in 06-07.
2. Kobe Bryant, SG, LAL: The Black Mamba is showing no signs of slowing down. The man is averaging 29 points, 6 boards and 5 assists a night. He isn't having an extremely efficient season only shooting 44%, but I'd say that's pretty good for a guy playing with torn cartilage in his wrist. Bynum is as good of a center there is in the NBA, and that certainly doesn't help his case in these rankings. Kobe often looks frustrated at his teammates with his patented 'What are you doing?' expressions he gives all too often. Take Kobe away from this team and you have just another middle of the pack team clinging to a 7th or 8th seed in the already crowded Western conference.
1. Derrick Rose, PG, CHI: If it were up to me, this guy would win MVP every single year. Why? He single-handedly put Chicago on the brink of a championship berth last year, only to be shut down by LeBron and his Heat. Although the Heat stole the show when it came to preseason hype and predictions, the Bulls actually finished as the top seed in the East with a staggering 62 wins. Sixty-Two, the most wins the 98-99 season when Michael Jordan was still giving headaches to everybody he played against. Rose's supporting cast is good, not great. This would be a playoff team without Rose, but a championship, or even winning a playoff series would be a lot to ask of a team whose biggest offensive threat would be Carlos Boozer.
Did I lose you?
Kobe and LeBron both have their strengths; LeBron is much more physically imposing, while Kobe is the more cold-blooded, clutch shooter. You can't go wrong with either one of these superstars.
Here I will rank the top 10 most valuable players to their team. This is not a comparison, this is not who is the better player. I rank these players based on their skill, but more importantly where would the teams these players play for be without them?
Let's get into it:
10. Paul Pierce, SF, BOS: This guy might not be a prolific scorer anymore, he might not have the finesse of a LeBron, the shooting ability of a Kobe Bryant, or the defensive prowess of a Dwyane Wade, but this guy makes the list because of a very rare gene that only exists in a handful of people. The clutch gene. The man is a cold-blooded shooter who is a top 3 clutch performer even with his skills diminishing due to his age. Boston is not getting any younger, and their window of opportunity is closing quickly. This team still has another year before father time catches up to them, but hey, that's what we say about the Spurs every year. Without Pierce, this team would be little more than first round fodder for a top team such as Miami or Chicago.
9. Steve Nash, PG, PHX: This guy can do it all. He's shooting at a ridiculous 55% this year, all while still averaging 11 assists and a respectable 14 points a game. However his most important asset is making everybody around him better. Where would the Suns without this guy? We may find out in the next year or so for sure, as he is certainly in the home stretch of his career (He just turned 38 two weeks ago). With the Suns struggling this year with a 12-19 record through the first half of the season, the Suns may be challenging the Bobcats for the worst record if Steve were not suiting up for Phoenix every night.
8. Dwyane Wade, SG, MIA: The Heat are the only team I even gave consideration to for having two players on this list, because Wade is simply too good to be left off of it. Wade can match LeBron punch for punch when it comes to scoring, but LeBron is the better overall player. Wade is the best defensive SG in the league, and can lock down anybody on any given night. Would Miami be as great as they are without Wade? Probably, as it would give LeBron more freedom to take the game over much like he did in Cleveland. He's been banged up so far this season, but watch out. I would not be surprised to see Wade named as the Finals MVP if the Heat make a run to the Finals again this year.
7. Dirk Nowitzki, PF, DAL: Mark Cuban would be nothing without this guy. Dirk surprised us all last year emulating the role of David in the Finals against Goliath, the Miami Heat. Even with torn ligaments in his finger, he got his revenge against Dwyane Wade winning his first ring. It seemed like the guy made every shot he took. He is one of the best shooting big-men to ever step foot on an NBA court, and is one of the most valuable to his team currently. Raise your hand if you think Dallas is even a good team without this guy in the lineup every night. Didn't think so.
6. Dwight Howard, C, ORL: Dwight would also appear on the top 10 most disgruntled players in the league had that list existed. Howard wants out of Orlando in the worst way, and everybody knows it. The Magic went through an absolutely horrific stretch earlier in the season, going 2-6 during an 8 game sample including a laughable 56 point performance in Boston. Even with this, they are still 4th in the Eastern conference as of today. Dwight is easily the most dominant big man in the game since Shaq in his prime, making him one of the most valuable players to his team.
5. Kevin Durant, SF, OKC: It's really a shame this guy doesn't play in a bigger market. In twenty years from now if you were to say 'Oklahoma City Thunder' an immediate thought would be 'Kevin Durant', much like Jordan with the Bulls. Russell Westbrook will always play second fiddle as long as he stays in OKC, because Durant is just a straight up baller. He may not defend as good as you'd like him to, but his scoring ability is almost unparalleled in today's NBA. Probably the most lethal scorer, he's got plenty of more scoring titles to be won in years to come. Oklahoma City is the sexy pick to come out of the West this year, but without K.D. they would be about as sexy as Khloe Kardashian. Sorry Lamar.
4. Chris Paul, PG, LAC: The most prized player on the trade market during the lockout seemed to be heading to Los Angeles. He did indeed end up here, but he is wearing red instead of gold. A Chris Paul/Kobe Bryant marriage would have been a match made in heaven. However, a Chris Paul/Blake Griffin pairing is pretty close. The 'Lob City' title given to this team is well warranted, given their high flying offense style. They are easily the most entertaining team to watch, followed closely by the Miami Heat with all of their stardom. The Clippers were the little brothers to the Lakers for many years, and now the sibling rivalry is more heated than ever after the Pau Gasol/Chris Paul incident last game. A team led by Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Chauncey Billups (pre-Achilles injury) seemed formidable, but Paul/Griffin/Jordan gives the Clippers a legit shot at a championship not only this year, but for the foreseeable future.
3. LeBron James, SF, MIA: He rescued a franchise just to throw them back into the depths of the standings last year. He joined forces with D-Wade and Bosh to form the most lethal 'Big Three' in the league bar none. Many would argue that LeBron cannot win another MVP because of his supporting cast. I would be one of them. With Miami sitting atop the Eastern Conference at 25-7, it's safe to say they would still be a top of the conference team without LeBron, assuming Wade is healthy. Would they be a championship contender? Probably not, but we've seen what Wade can do back in 06-07.
2. Kobe Bryant, SG, LAL: The Black Mamba is showing no signs of slowing down. The man is averaging 29 points, 6 boards and 5 assists a night. He isn't having an extremely efficient season only shooting 44%, but I'd say that's pretty good for a guy playing with torn cartilage in his wrist. Bynum is as good of a center there is in the NBA, and that certainly doesn't help his case in these rankings. Kobe often looks frustrated at his teammates with his patented 'What are you doing?' expressions he gives all too often. Take Kobe away from this team and you have just another middle of the pack team clinging to a 7th or 8th seed in the already crowded Western conference.
1. Derrick Rose, PG, CHI: If it were up to me, this guy would win MVP every single year. Why? He single-handedly put Chicago on the brink of a championship berth last year, only to be shut down by LeBron and his Heat. Although the Heat stole the show when it came to preseason hype and predictions, the Bulls actually finished as the top seed in the East with a staggering 62 wins. Sixty-Two, the most wins the 98-99 season when Michael Jordan was still giving headaches to everybody he played against. Rose's supporting cast is good, not great. This would be a playoff team without Rose, but a championship, or even winning a playoff series would be a lot to ask of a team whose biggest offensive threat would be Carlos Boozer.
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