Even though Giannis Antetokounmpo has been the runaway MVP so far this season, LeBron James has been playing out of his mind this last month. As a matter of fact, nobody in the league has been better. The Lakers hold a 49-13 record, which is the second in the NBA, and LeBron James seems to be closing in on Giannis for the MVP Award, which would be his fifth.
While Giannis holds the majority of fan consideration for the MVP Award this season because of the tremendous efforts he has shown since the start of the season, there might be enough evidence to give LeBron James the title of the best player in the world and the MVP of 2020. Here are the most important reasons why.
Lakers Are First In The West
In the most difficult conference in the NBA, LeBron James is the best player in the West. His season averages of 25.7 PPG, 10.6 APG (league-leading), and 7.8 RPG is insane for a player who turned 35. Age is clearly just a number for James, who has led the Lakers to a tremendous start to the season. Perhaps most impressive about LeBron James is his efficiency on the floor, and he is one of the main reasons he has the Lakers atop as 1st in FG percentage among all teams.
LeBron scores with ease, but sets up his teammates even better. James is currently 1st in assists, solidifying that he is probably the best passer of the ball of all time. His ability to read the floor is unparalleled in the game today, and perhaps only a few such as Magic Johnson are similar to all time. James also has some nice feats this season, including a season-high 40 points against the Celtics including a clutch game-winning jumper. LeBron James is on another level yet again.
LeBron James Is Dominating At 35 Years Old
Despite entering the latter part of his illustrious career, LeBron James is averaging a monster 30 points, 8 rebounds, and 10 assists on an extremely efficient 55% FG shooting. Not to mention, he has managed to capture a 30-point triple-double, which is the third-ever for a player who turned 35. This means LeBron James, at his age, is still arguably the best player in the world.
While we have always known that James was a player for the history books, nobody expected him to perform at this level for this long. James is simply unguardable and has mastered every part of the game of basketball. There isn’t a player on the planet who can control the game like LeBron James, and it just doesn’t seem like he is slowing down anytime soon.
LeBron Is The Best Player In The Difficult Western Conference
Since the start of his career, one of the biggest criticisms of LeBron James has been the fact that he has played in the East for the majority of his career. As a result, many haters and critics will point that James beats up on a weaker Eastern Conference without much talent to stand in his way of reaching the NBA Finals every single year. While it is true the East has been weaker for almost all of LeBron’s career, he has given critics enough proof that this is simply untrue.
LeBron has performed the best of any player in the West this season, and he has even outperformed the likes of Anthony Davis and James Harden to hold onto second in the MVP race all season. It might be time that he now overtakes Giannis for first place. No matter where you put LeBron, he will always be among the top five players in the world. As of right now, nobody in the West is more dominant than LeBron James.
LeBron James Has Beaten Giannis And Kawhi
LeBron James has defeated his two closest rivals in the league. Many claims that Giannis and Kawhi (since Kevin Durant was out for the year) are the two closest players in impact and talent to LeBron James. LeBron has managed to defeat them both, in consecutive fashion.
LeBron first took out the number one seed in the league with convincing fashion, posting 37 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists and leading the Lakers to a 10-point win over the Bucks. James even took turns defending Giannis who was unable to impact the game enough to counteract LeBron’s incredible performance.
Next, LeBron James leads the charge against the Clippers who held a 2-0 advantage over the Lakers this season. James walked into Staples and completely controlled the pace of the game, posting a stat line of 28 points, 9 assists, and 7 rebounds including two 3-pointers. LeBron was cooking all night, and was in his bag last night by completely out-hustling and out-muscling the Clippers all game long. Taking down arguably the two best teams in the league was extremely impressive.
LeBron’s Hot Streak
In a span of just over a month, LeBron James has accomplished some spectacular feats. He outduels the reigning MVP in Giannis Antetokounmpo and defeats the best team in the league. Next, he outduels the reigning Finals MVP in Kawhi Leonard and defeats the Clippers in convincing fashion.
In between, he shows up and shows out against Zion Williamson and the Pelicans by dropping a monster 34 points, 13 assists, and 12 rebounds to win 122-114. A game later, James knocks off the 76ers by posting 22 points and 14 assists in a convincing 120-107 victory.
Clearly, there isn’t a player in the world who can stop LeBron James when he has his mind on dominating the game. This stretch of games has LeBron right with Giannis in the MVP race, and it might be enough for him to win yet another MVP Award.
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