Fantasy Football Indepth

[usrsportsfan]

So, do you want to create controversy? Just come up with a very important individual sports award and make it hard to know who really deserves the award. And then, do not always vote fairly (as far as I can tell) and logically for this award. I give you the MVP award. I never know for sure who deserves the MVP in a particular sport each year (and neither do you), because it is just a guess. (For a full discussion of this, see my article "Who Deserves the MVP Award in a Particular Sport" below).
Can you honestly tell me that if you swapped the NBA's 7 MVP candidates in the NBA this year with each other that you would know for sure what record each of the 7 teams that they play for would have?

I did not think so. The MVP is not about who is the best individual player is or who is the best player on the team with the 1st or 2nd best record in the league. No, logically it is this: If you could magically take each player off his(or her) team and make their team play their season all over again, which player's departure would cause that team to drop the most in the standings (i.e., incur the most additional losses). I am quite certain that is what is meant by an MVP in a team sport; I am equally certain not everyone uses this exact standard.

For example, I was listening to a NBA game recently and former NBA coach and current NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy did not seriously consider Lebron for his MVP candidacy (he listed only 4 players and Lebron was not among them), merely because of Cleveland’s record (currently 44-36, 4th in the east). While I just admitted the MVP award is just a guess, still, this is silly. Lebron has the best numbers in the league, carries his team, makes the players around him better (particularly with his great passing), is unselfish, is now a very good defender, and, along with Kobe Bryant, is the best player in the league. (Perhaps silly is too nice a word, but I like and respect Van Gundy, so I will leave it at that.) That being said, Kobe gets my MVP vote by a hair over Lebron. I know that Lebron’s numbers are better; but Kobe is just a good a player as Lebron, has finally learned to know when to be unselfish for the good of the team, is still the better defender, and has kept his team winning (currently 1st in the west) despite injuries to the Lakers' best players.

When I evaluate an MVP candidate I look at:
1) How good an individual player he is;
2) How good he is at making his teammates better players;
3) What intangibles he possesses that contribute to his team's victories;
4) How much did his team win this year;
I do not simply look at only number 1 or only number 4 (sportswriters tend to do the latter). Looking at just one factor or any one factor very heavily will not get you the answer to who is true MVP in the NBA this year (or any other team sport or any other year). I combined all 4 factors as best I could to come up with Kobe as this year's MVP winner. You can disagree if you like, but, of course, you would be wrong. (I am half kidding (and I guess, by default, half serious) since I started out the article by saying it is just a guess.)

One thing I learned from my father was that in any evaluations it is important to always do your best to be objective. With that in mind, I tried to not to be influenced by Lebron's more likable personality, or conversely, the fact that perhaps Kobe should have won the MVP award in past seasons. Kobe is the best player in the NBA since Jerry West not to have won a MVP award. (West, along with Elgin Baylor, had the misfortune of playing in the NBA at the same time as Wilt Chamberlain (4 MVP awards) and Bill Russell (5 MVP awards.) However, I do not believe in MVP lifetime achievement awards. Hence, I am voting for Kobe on his performance for this year alone and, of course, ignoring his not so charming personality. I also predict that he will win the NBA MVP Award this year.

The "Who is Better Question: Kobe or Lebron (?)" is the most interesting debate in sports right now and probably will be for the next couple of years -- I consider it a dead heat. As for the MVP award, maybe next year, Lebron (someone please get him some players). Here is my MVP Vote: Kobe 1st, Lebron 2nd, Chris Paul 3rd, Kevin Garnett 4th, Tracy McGrady 5th, and Honorable Mention: Steve Nash and Tim Duncan.