31.4 points per game, 7.0 rebounds per game, and 6.6 assists per game while leading a team to 50 wins and the third best record in the conference would warrant some serious consideration for a Most Valuable Player award in any other season, except one that witnesses the all time scoring record for a guard obliterated on the same day the Pittsburgh Steelers advance to the Super Bowl. No, this is about being more than the MVP of the 2005-2006 season; this is about being more than just the best player at your position (although this man clearly is head and shoulders above the crowd of small forwards.) No, this is about the player who deserves to bestow the dubious distinction of simply "The Best." How about becoming the youngest player to earn All-NBA honors, in his second season, and an All Star Game MVP to go along with a Rookie of The Year, along with the youngest triple double in the playoffs since Showtime was no-looking the entire league into submission. All the statistics fall on the surface; if you need more evidence, if you yearn for substance, then let's go a little bit deeper. How about the 30, 7, and 7 he dropped on the reigning Bad Boys from the D on New Years Eve that had every sports analyst and so-called "expert" telling the Pistons to look in their rearview mirror because HE was gaining on them. Detroit won the division by 10+ games, but you get the feeling that if Larry Hughes, the Pippen to his Jordan, was healthy, then the two 12 point losses on back to back nights in February wouldn't have happened. Then again, that's all speculation. In hindsight, no one knows what wouldve happened just like nobody knew that this would take place. Out of the first five picks on the 2004 NBA draft, Dwyane Wade has gone to the playoffs his first three seasons, as has Carmelo Anthony, while Darko Milicic has been to the NBA Finals twice with one championship ring to show for it. Only Chris Bosh has missed the playoffs altogether, while HE is upon us now. He was called scared for not participating in the Slam Dunk Contest, and he was crucified for not taking the "big shot" in clutch situations by those same "experts" that said Detroit should be wary of HIM. How did HE respond? 18 in the 4th against the Nets, 24 against Miami, and game winners against Milwaukee, Charlotte, and New Orleans that go hand in hand with game winning assists againts Toronto and Boston. And, during All Star weekend, he flew amongst stars and he was crowned Most Valuable. See, because when he was drafted first over the aforementioned young guns, they didn't just give him the key to the most famous city in Ohio; they gave him the paint to redesign the silhoutte of the NBA logo, and to erase a rape charge and the failed experiment in Washington. When HE was announced as the top pick in the '03 Draft, David Stern didn't hand him a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey; he handed him the NBA in a jet pack and told him to go fly. And, fly he has all the way to a probable runner up spot in the MVP voting this year along with a probable second round exit in the playoffs against the probable NBA Champion Detroit Pistons. But, that's all speculation. When he came out, we, as fans, yearned him for him to be "The Next." Now, we're content with acknowledging that he is simply "The Best."
At the moment LeBron, Kobe D-Wade are the pre-eminent players within the League. However, when looking to determine who's the best, what are we really looking at ? It's hard to determine. Kobe brings a lot of intensity to his game that is unquestioned. He despises losing and the same can be said for LeBron and Dwayne. But the real determining factor for me is what they do make their teammates around them better. I can't say that I'm impressed with Kobe in this area. It's all about him when it comes to the offense. Defensively he's not a liablity and Wade has been known to have his lapses here. LeBron's shown that he doesn't have a weakness there and if anything can be counted on to play both ends of the floor effectively. Wade and LeBron have the advantage here when it comes to making those around them exceed their expectations. Records asides, I'd have to pick LeBron if only for the unexpected reason of seeing the Cavaliers make the play-offs and continuing to play better as the season has progressed. It'll be fun to see if they can make it beyond the first round of the play-offs.
My name is Dalbin Osorio, and I am currently a college student attending Ashworth College, a distance education center. I am majoring in Early Childhood Education, and will graduate in June with an Associate of the Arts in Early Childhood Education. After that, I will attend Lehman College for about a yera and obtain my Bachelors of the Arts in English. I have written poetry, short stories, and plays. I currently live in the Bronx with my mother and two younger siblings.
