I absolutely cannot wait for this NBA season to start up. There are plenty of studs out there who will be fighting for All-Star bids, but how many are actually in the race for MVP? I’ll tell you right now; it’s all up to LeBron to take it home, or let it slide to Giannis.
With LeBron now on the Lakers roster, there are many questions as to what both the East and West are going to look like when Playoff time rolls around. The East is more open than ever now with LeBron in the West, which leaves the opportunity for guys like Giannis to really explode. There is no question the Celtics are now the top dog team in the East, but Giannis is the clear cut best player in the Conference now. Feel free to argue that with me.
With the Celtics expected to take down the 1-seed in the East, followed by the likes of Philly, you can expect a huge season out of the Bucks finishing with a home court playoff spot. Last season Giannis was top 5 in PPG at 26.9, while also leading the entire league in PPG in the paint. That’s right. No big man like Ant, or an attacking guard like Westbrook, but rather Giannis was the leader in the paint. And for my DFS players out there, Giannis was top 5 in Fantasy PPG and also Usage Rate.
LeBron on the other hand has a lot to prove this season. But he doesn’t need to prove anything to us fans. He has a lot to prove for himself. You just know that LeBron is on a mission, and really taking all his “haters” head-on. Looking to eliminate all of the, “the East is weak” scrutiny he’s faced all his career, he plans to make his mark out in L.A. Should I mention that he hasn’t taken home an MVP award since Miami in the 2012-13 season. Think about that. LeBron James hasn’t won an MVP since ‘12-’13.
With a very unpredictable roster on the Lakers, it may take some time for a rhythm to arise. This may lead LeBron to just doing “LeBron things” to get his new team to gel and actually get going. But like I said, it’s been a little while now since the league awarded James an MVP, and he’s definitely been more than deserving during his dry spell. I think it’s his time again. It’s his to lose.
After coming off an unreal 15th season, playing all 82 regular season games and finishing 3rd in PPG with 27.5/game, there is no sign of LeBron slowing down for year 16. But….if he does slow down…we can expect Giannis to take home his first MVP award.
-For3