Any other year, Davis would be the MVP favorite. This season he may be nothing more than a headline and a highlight reel.
Going into the 2015-2016 season, Anthony Davis was a favorite for the NBA Most Valuable Player Award. He was supposed to take the reigns from LeBron James as the dominant force in basketball. He was the future face of the National Basketball Association.
A hip injury, a shoulder injury, and a concussion later, the 2015-2016 season proved to be a huge disappointment for Davis. He had a career low in games played (61), field goal percentage (49.3%), and both steals (1.7) and blocks (2.8) per 48 minutes on the defensive end. His bright future was quickly overshadowed by his injury battles as well as the emergence of fellow former Kentucky Wildcats big man Karl-Anthony Towns.
The Brow is Back.. and making an impact for the @PelicansNBA! @AntDavis23 #NBAMiniMix pic.twitter.com/HB2NxrQ1TM
— NBA (@NBA) December 5, 2016
Welcome to the 2016-2017 season, where Davis is putting on a “Forgot about Dre” show down in New Orleans to put the rest of the league on notice. Shouldering the load for the hapless Pelicans, he is leading the league in scoring (31.4 ppg), blocks (2.77 bpg), and PER (31.87). He has four 40-10 games already this year, including a 50-15 game to kick of the season.
Any other season, “The Brow” would be leading any and all talk about the league’s MVP. While he is a part of the discussion, it seems he picked a bad time to be such a bad man.
Alvin Gentry wouldn't trade Anthony Davis for LeBron, and I completely see why. https://t.co/qVBt6PWPSg
— Kristine Leahy (@KristineLeahy) December 1, 2016
Kevin Durant is second in the NBA in PER (29.38), leads the league in win shares (5.0), and plays for a Golden State Warriors team that may shatter every scoring record ever set. That team also has last year’s MVP, Steph Curry.
The defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers look to be even filthier than last season. Their success, in part, is due to LeBron James shifting his game to that of more of a distributor. He is averaging the fewest shots (17.6 shots per game) and the most assists (9.1) of his career. He appears to be more dangerous than ever.
Even James Harden could make a run at the award in his new role as the point guard for the Houston Rockets. While still scoring in bulk (28.2 ppg), he is sharing the ball in ways nobody expected and recording 11.4 assists per game.
Can You Imagine @AntDavis23 As A Monstar...?https://t.co/wTBdEAm7Qz pic.twitter.com/qvtoupbqwu
— Finish Line (@FinishLine) December 2, 2016
However, any discussion at this point about the NBA’s Most Valuable Player begins and ends with Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Without Kevin Durant there to slow him down, Westbrook has recorded 7 consecutive triple-doubles and is currently averaging one for the season.
He is second in the league in scoring (30.9 ppg) and assists (11.3 apg) and third in PER (29.21). Oscar Robertson is the only NBA player to ever average a triple-double for a season, but Westbrook is currently on pace to become the second member of that elite club. If he does, is there any way he does not win the MVP award? I just don’t see that happening.
Sure, Anthony Davis is still growing. I know he has been improving his ball handling.
Anthony Davis can do it all. https://t.co/MnGsiC8GW4
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 3, 2016
And of course he is putting up monster numbers. But history has shown that being a superstar on a poor team does not bode well for MVP candidates. The New Orleans Pelicans currently sit at 6-17, which is the 3rd worst record in the Western Conference.
Add to that the historic performances that are happening throughout the league and it seems very unlikely that Davis will get the recognition he probably deserves this season. Regardless, it seems he is determined to show everyone that he is destined to be the player we all hoped he would be.
If that is indeed the case, Anthony Davis should be in the MVP discussion every season for the next decade. Do you think he will ever win one?