NBA FEATS, FACTS AND FIGURES 8: JAMES HARDEN WINS NBA MVP, BEATS LEBRON JAMES AND ANTHONY DAVIS
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 27 Jun 2018
Houston Rockets main man James Harden won the NBA MVP award defeating Cleveland Cavaliers franchise player LeBron James and New Orleans Pelicans giant Anthony Davis in the race for the most coveted honor.
Harden won his first MVP award as he finished second to Oklahoma City Thunder triple-double specialist Russell Westbrook last year.
Harden led the NBA among scorers garnering 30.4 points per game and leading the Rockets to the league?s best regular-season record. The bearded sentinel likewise collected 8.8 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 1.8 steals and shooting 36.7 percent beyond the 3-point arc for the Rockets which established the NBA record for most 3-pointers converted in a single season.
The Rockets lost a well-contested seven-game Western Conference finals to the defending champions Golden State Warriors. With Harden as the cornerstone, the Rockets finished statistically as one of the best offenses in NBA history.
James, a four-time MVP awardee, was second in the voting behind Harden having a wonderful season playing in all 82 regular season games for the first time in his illustrious career. James averaged 27.5 points, 9.1 assists, 8.4 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 0.9 blocks with the Cavaliers that finished only fourth in the Eastern Conference but entered the NBA Finals.
Davis placed third in the race for the MVP award when he stirred the Pelicans to their first playoff games since 2015. Davis averaged 28.1 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, 1.5 steals and 2.3 assists. Teammate DeMarcus Cousins suffered an Achilles heel injury and Davis almost single-handedly brought the Pelicans to the postseason.
Philadelphia 76ers point guard Ben Simmons was awarded Rookie of the Year edging Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum who shone in the Eastern conference finals against James and the Cavs
Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo grabbed the Most Improved Player award beating Houston Rockets center Clint Capela and Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie.
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert was recogized as Defensive Player of the Year prevailing over 76ers centerJoel Embiid and New Orleans Pelicans center Anthony Davis.
Los Angeles Clippers guard Lou Williams won NBA Sixth Man plum over Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet and Houston Rockets guard Eric Gordon.
Former Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey triumphed over Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens and Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder for Coach of the Year honors. The Raptors fired Casey after Toronto was swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs even if they had the best regular-season record in the Eastern Conference. Casey was immediately hired to coach the Detroit Pistons.
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jamal Crawford was awarded as the NBA?s Teammate of the Year.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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