Race to the MVP.

[Woodsanity]

My current rankings

1) Lebron
2) Durant
3) Tim Duncan
4) CP3
5) Melo

[PCProductions]

I find it very interesting when you don't account for free throws is shooting it better than KD. I wonder what Lebron's problem with foul shooting is.

[osamu]

the guys who vote don't really use all these advanced stats. Last year Lebron won it after the OKC vs Miami game where he dropped 30 and cooled of durrant

[NYK_89]

the guys who vote don't really use all these advanced stats. Last year Lebron won it after the OKC vs Miami game where he dropped 30 and cooled of durrant

No single game won lebron the MVP last year... He was for all intensive purposes the wire to wire leader

[slick_watts]

The MVP award is a popularity contest. It's why Derrick Rose won. It's why Carmelo will have a shot even though there are two players at his position objectively better than him. If the Knicks win 55+ games, at their current pace, nobody is going to mention the fact that they have five players shooting 40%+ from three point range, Jason Kidd is having a career shooting year at age 39, or that Tyson Chandler is once again, improbably, above 70% TS. It'll be about how Carmelo Anthony, despite being objectively worse than either Durant or LeBron (let alone other candidates), is more 'valuable'.

If it wasn't for the fact that the Knicks offense is currently predicated on unsustainable long distance shooting, I'd already be steeling myself for this outcome.

[J0rdan4life42o]

the knicks were mocked by naysayers (and I mean most of the NBA community) for letting lin walk and replacing him with an overweight raymond felton... those naysayers howled when the knicks added veteran presence in kidd, camby, k. thomas and rasheed wallace. fact of the matter is there were hardly any expectations for the knicks coming into this season, especially with Amare going down in the first preseason game.

now the knicks are contending for the best record in the league with literally only one all-star on the roster. tell me... who on the knicks compares to bosh, wade, westbrook, parker, gasol, gay, griffin, etc? the knicks have felton shooting 3-19 FG one game, JR shooting 1-11 FG the next... there is no way to argue against Melo being a top 3 MVP candidate at this point.

Don't expect people to feel bad for the Knicks. They spend $80million on their team. Melo doesn't get any bonus points for bailing on Denver and winning even less. Are people suppose to feel sorry for him? If LBJ went to Heat and they were losing more than the Cavs overall (like losing in the first round), he shouldn't ask for sympathy.


There is definitely a way to argue Melo not being top-3 MVP: he simply isn't. KD, LBJ, and Duncan lead the league right now. LeBron was the only all-star on the Cavs and he was still efficient. Additionally, Amare's injury is not a legitimate argument for Melo's MVP race. Amare coming back might hurt the Knicks more than help. Because Melo will very likely finish the season with lower stats and efficiency than KD and LBJ, the Knicks would need more wins for him to be considered. It's just the reality of the situation.

Whatever the case, the Knicks haven't proven they can be a winning team. OKC, MIA, and SAS all get the benefit of the doubt in this category. Everyone can see the Knicks going on a 3-5 game losing streak more than the other teams.

Overall, Melo is a top-5 candidate but not 3. Even if he were top-3, there would still be a huge gap from #1 and 2.

I dont think Knick fans want anyone feeling bad for them. They're just stating facts. Fact is, Melo is having an MVP caliber statistical year thus far, as early as it is, and it has directly affected his teams 12-4 record. That doesn't mean he should be considered the favorite for MVP so far, but it most certainly puts him in th discussion. Anything less just sounds bitter and biased. And since we're talking about facts, heres another one for you...the Knicks haven't lost more than 2 regular season games in a row for 40 games now. Feel free to retract your last silly statement.

[Heats_Finest]

To those of you saying that Melo has improved his defense, if that's true then he must of sat in the offensive side of the court when they were playing defense because I'm not sure how you can get much worse than he is now. Look at this video for proof.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yscYEG_U1Nc[/youtube]

[NYK_89]

To those of you saying that Melo has improved his defense, if that's true then he must of sat in the offensive side of the court when they were playing defense because I'm not sure how you can get much worse than he is now. Look at this video for proof.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yscYEG_U1Nc[/youtube]

Yeah this was probably his worst game of the year defensively and although a large amount of this was in the 1st and 2nd he also basically played the whole game and it was a back to back the guy was tired

[NYK_89]

The MVP award is a popularity contest. It's why Derrick Rose won. It's why Carmelo will have a shot even though there are two players at his position objectively better than him. If the Knicks win 55+ games, at their current pace, nobody is going to mention the fact that they have five players shooting 40%+ from three point range, Jason Kidd is having a career shooting year at age 39, or that Tyson Chandler is once again, improbably, above 70% TS. It'll be about how Carmelo Anthony, despite being objectively worse than either Durant or LeBron (let alone other candidates), is more 'valuable'.

If it wasn't for the fact that the Knicks offense is currently predicated on unsustainable long distance shooting, I'd already be steeling myself for this outcome.

Where do you think these open shots are coming from? Carmelo is even starting to get triple teamed here man, he is passing out of the post to a man who is swinging it to a open shooter again and again to get these shots. Durant and Lebron are better players, but due to this absurd most valuable part of the award i don't see how he couldn't be deemed the most valuable, the thunder and heat both have 2 options in WB/KM and Bosh/Wade that far surpass our 2nd options Felton/JR Now once stat comes back this may or may not change but at this moment he clearly is the most valuable to the team.

That being said the thunder and heat will probably end up 4-6 games at least ahead of the Knicks and the voters will do the right thing and vote the best player in. But at this moment Melo has to be right up there due to the knicks near equal record that is due almost entirely to melo's play.

[slick_watts]

Where do you think these open shots are coming from? Carmelo is even starting to get triple teamed here man, he is passing out of the post to a man who is swinging it to a open shooter again and again to get these shots.

Carmelo leads the NBA in usage, he's not passing it more than either LeBron or Durant. Is Jason Kidd getting more open looks than he got playing with Dirk? No. Assigning credit to Carmelo for the Knicks players shooting the lights out is as bad as assigning credit to Derrick Rose for the Bulls' league leading defense in 2009. I'm sure Carmelo has made strides with his shot selection, but not to the point where multiple players on his teams are shooting career high three point percentages just because of his presence.

Durant and Lebron are better players, but due to this absurd most valuable part of the award i don't see how he couldn't be deemed the most valuable, the thunder and heat both have 2 options in WB/KM and Bosh/Wade that far surpass our 2nd options Felton/JR Now once stat comes back this may or may not change but at this moment he clearly is the most valuable to the team.

The best player is always the Most Valuable. That's my opinion. Value, in most cases, should be assigned independent of teammates - otherwise, aren't you just evaluating the value of everyone else and not the players you are trying to compare? What's the point of that? Wouldn't Carmelo be Carmelo in Los Angeles as much as he is in New York? Why complicate everything with the "Player X has worse teammates" drivel that these threads ultimate devolve into? Blech.

[Hero]

Guys, cut the nonsense. This thread is too discuss the merits of who is an MVP candidate, not who your favorite player is.

Get this back on topic now, or you will be warned/suspended

This thread has become a bit of a joke. It's just each person pulling for a player and continuously posting as much stats as they can to try to back it up without being objective. Not to mention it's so early in the season.

[Tron Carter]

Where do you think these open shots are coming from? Carmelo is even starting to get triple teamed here man, he is passing out of the post to a man who is swinging it to a open shooter again and again to get these shots.

Carmelo leads the NBA in usage, he's not passing it more than either LeBron or Durant. Is Jason Kidd getting more open looks than he got playing with Dirk? No. Assigning credit to Carmelo for the Knicks players shooting the lights out is as bad as assigning credit to Derrick Rose for the Bulls' league leading defense in 2009. I'm sure Carmelo has made strides with his shot selection, but not to the point where multiple players on his teams are shooting career high three point percentages just because of his presence.

Felton: .412 from 3, career high
Kidd: .500 from 3, career high
Smith: .457 from 3, career high

Melo himself is shooting a career high at .435

Novak has been getting open looks but hasn't been knocking them down until recently. It's good to know a slump for Novak is shooting .411 from 3

[slick_watts]

Felton: .412 from 3, career high
Kidd: .500 from 3, career high
Smith: .457 from 3, career high

Melo himself is shooting a career high at .435

Which is my point. What's more likely:

A: The above Knicks players are hitting their shots to start the season because they have come back improved and are coming through for the team.

B: The above Knicks players have begun the season on a hot streak, but will eventually regress toward their career shooting numbers.

C: Carmelo has developed basketball super powers this season that endow his teammates with long range shooting abilities they haven't approached during their careers.

[kamelion4291]

He clearly stated that multiple Knicks ARE shooting career highs. He just didn't think that it's because of Carmelo since we're talking about guys like Kidd who have been in the league for a billion years and had plenty of open looks on Dallas too.

[Tron Carter]

Felton: .412 from 3, career high
Kidd: .500 from 3, career high
Smith: .457 from 3, career high

Melo himself is shooting a career high at .435

Which is my point. What's more likely:

A: The above Knicks players are hitting their shots to start the season because they have come back improved and are coming through for the team.

B: The above Knicks players have begun the season on a hot streak, but will eventually regress toward their career shooting numbers.

C: Carmelo has developed basketball super powers this season that endow his teammates with long range shooting abilities they haven't approached during their careers.

I misread your original comment ... my mistake.

My point was it's probably a combination of A and Carmelo commanding the most attention on the floor by opposing teams.

I'd also probably add choice D, the hiring of Dave Hoopla.

[LeChosen1]

I find it very interesting when you don't account for free throws is shooting it better than KD. I wonder what Lebron's problem with foul shooting is.

He has 2 different motions when shooting free throws, Idk why he changed his form, its has no fluidity to it

[SideshowBob]

If you've followed Lebron's career, you'll know that he has 5-6 FT forms every season.

Also, November 2012 was the worst FT shooting month he's had since April 2008 (7 games). If that's not included, then its the worst since February 2007

[Knicker23]

Going by stats, James is clearly MVP thus far... 24/9/7 is damn near avg of triple double... And not a Rondo triple double either...

As for Melo, IF the Knicks are battling for first in East for a while, he needs to be up there...... Felton, Kidd and JR shooting well from 3 doesn't really mean much to me.... Kidd barely scores more than a few a game... JR is still sporadic.. and Felton has been solid, but nothing crazy overwhelming... The teams success is centered around Melo's play, that much is clear... He's made everyone forget that they're doing it without a player they're paying 100 mill bucks.

That's not to say Melo playing at some unsustainably high level is the reason they're winning, it's been very much a team effort... but with the changes he's made to his game, the improvements, and being the best player on a team that is perhaps one of the bigger unexpected stories thus far.. It warrants him being up there.

I wouldn't call it a popularity contest... However the unexpected I think is a little more interesting than the expected... The Heat and Spurs doing well is expected, regardless of how well they're actually doing... The Clippers, not as much which makes me look at Cp3 more... No one expected the Knicks to do well, which makes me look at Melo more...... It's way to early in the season to be talking about that type of stuff though, 1 month of average basketball and what happened in the first few weeks doesn't really matter.

[Protoss]

I dont think Knick fans want anyone feeling bad for them. They're just stating facts. Fact is, Melo is having an MVP caliber statistical year thus far, as early as it is, and it has directly affected his teams 12-4 record. That doesn't mean he should be considered the favorite for MVP so far, but it most certainly puts him in th discussion. Anything less just sounds bitter and biased. And since we're talking about facts, heres another one for you...the Knicks haven't lost more than 2 regular season games in a row for 40 games now. Feel free to retract your last silly statement.

This is sad -- people finding arbitrary or pointlessly technical ways to use stats.

Right before the said "40 regular season games", the Knicks were on a 6-game losing streak. And in the post-season, they were humiliated by Miami, including a 3-game losing streak and one of the most lopsided games in playoff history. These are also facts.

Here's another fact: LeBron has won MVP every year since 2009 except for the one season when he received backlash for leaving Cleveland. Facts, right?

[Heats_Finest]

To those of you saying that Melo has improved his defense, if that's true then he must of sat in the offensive side of the court when they were playing defense because I'm not sure how you can get much worse than he is now. Look at this video for proof.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yscYEG_U1Nc[/youtube]

Yeah this was probably his worst game of the year defensively and although a large amount of this was in the 1st and 2nd he also basically played the whole game and it was a back to back the guy was tired

Oh yeah that old chest nut. What does being tired have to with not knowing where your man is, or not making defensive rotations. That's just simple stuff that everyone in the league should be doing, it comes down to work ethic, has nothing to do with how tired you are.