USA TODAY International Edition
Can Harden hold No. 1?
Rockets star James Harden, who has been No. 1 in the USA TODAY NBA MVP power rankings for the entire season, will be sidelined for at least two weeks with a Grade 2 hamstring strain he suffered in Sunday’s doubleovertime win over the Lakers.
As far as the MVP race is concerned, this could go a variety of ways.
On one hand, Harden could return as soon as Jan. 18 against the Timberwolves and he could pick up right where he left off, leaving voters to debate whether missing a handful of games was all that detrimental. On the other, this could be a lingering issue.
Once Harden returns, coach Mike D’Antoni will have to weigh his minutes (tied for 10th in the NBA), his MVP chances and whether any of that affects Houston’s spot in the Western Conference playoff race. It’s widely believed that exhaustion played a factor in last year’s second-round exit.
Harden might fall in the rankings while he’s sidelined, as we saw with Stephen Curry and the ankle injury that kept him out for 11 games. Or he might stay put thanks to his stellar résumé up to this point. The fact of the matter is this: We don’t know. So for now, Harden remains at the top.
USA TODAY’s weekly NBA MVP rankings, as voted on by Sam Amick, Jeff Zillgitt, Michael Singer and AJ Neuharth-Keusch (note: per-game statistics through Tuesday):
5 (last week, 5). Kyrie Irving, Celtics (24.8 points, 4.9 assists, 3.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 48.9% shooting): Irving faced his former team for the second time this season Wednesday, only this time he played host. He recorded 22 points, 10 assists, four rebounds and three steals in the first, a loss.
4 (3). Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (29.0 points, 10.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.7 steals, 54.5% shooting): In this week’s edition of Why We Love Antetokounmpo: After being benched by Jason Kidd for a chunk of the third quarter in last Thursday’s loss to the Timberwolves, the superstar forward lauded his coach for the decision. “If you’re not doing the right thing, you’ve got to sit your butt on the bench,” Antetokounmpo said. “I think Coach did a great job pulling guys out and teaching them a lesson. I was one of them. He pulled me out and he told me, ‘You’ve got to play harder.’ I came back in, played harder. I love that. (For) a coach to do that, that means he really wants to win and he really cares about his team.”
3 (4). Kevin Durant, Warriors (25.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.2 blocks, 50.2% shooting): Curry’s return will take some of the spotlight back off Durant, as was the case Saturday when the two-time MVP stole the show with 10 three-pointers and 38 points in 26 minutes. But Durant filled up the stat sheet: 20 points, nine assists, five rebounds, a block and a steal.
2 (2). LeBron James, Cavaliers (27.7 points, 9.2 assists, 8.1 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 56% shooting): The presence of Isaiah Thomas will make Cleveland’s high-powered offense all the more dangerous, and, as Kyle Korver told USA TODAY recently, James should reap the benefits of having another scorer for opposing defenses to focus on. “You know, sometimes when we get stagnant is when we start depending on ’Bron too much to create everything, and he can do it, but it’s hard every night for an 82game season,” Korver said. “To have someone else who can share that load of handling the ball and making plays for guys, I think that’ll help us out.”
1 (1). James Harden, Rockets (32.3 points, 9.1 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 steals, 45.1% shooting): Harden, who had 40 points and 11 assists before exiting Sunday’s game, ended 2017 with 2,490 points and 805 assists, which, according to Elias Sports Bureau, is the second most in a calendar year in NBA history behind Nate Archibald.