Everybody wants a ring, some want to be recognized as the Most Valuable Player of the season, but none want to be recognized as the “Most Un-Valuable Player”. All this MVP talk made me think. Nearly half the season is down and it seems like there’s a certain group excelling above the rest: Carmello Anthony, Lebron James, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant. Sure, it could be any of those five. It’s all to cliché for me. It’s time the under-achievers were condemned. So who’s in my firing range for the top five candidates for my MUVP award?
#5. Deron WilliamsThis one is sure to rustle a few feathers. I, for one, was incredibly excited to see Williams in the new Brooklyn kit; my excitement was short lived. Deron has shot less than forty percent from the field this season and less than thirty percent from three point range. In fact, statistically speaking, the Nets are performing better without their superstar on the field (defensively anyway) allowing an average of ten less points in with Williams on the bench than when he is. His ball skills are one thing, but his attitude is another. He was responsible for the resignation of Jerry Sloan in Utah and now Avery Johnson has been fired from Brooklyn. In my opinion, it should have been Deron’s head on the chopping board.
#4. Amare Stoudemire
This one should not be a surprise to anybody. Stoudemise (see what I did there?) was literally offered to nearly every NBA this past summer for virtually nothing. Hell, even the Raptors didn’t want him, and that’s saying something. I get his health is declining, he probably can’t help that, but his ridiculous contract and diminished performance makes him unappealing to every team. New York is a rubbish dump and Amare happens to be that fly they just cannot get rid of. Besides from being a defensive liability, the Knicks (before dropping him to the D-League) performed significantly better with him warming the bench. Sorry Amare, I think your time has come mate.
#3. Klay Thompson
Man, I had high hopes for this kid. Last year, he was voted ‘most likely player to breakout’ by the league’s general managers but he has failed to do so, with his statistics significantly lower than his sensational rookie season. His struggles went under the radar slightly, due to Golden State’s great success this season (but they still lost to the Lakers J) thanks to Stephen Curry and David Lee. But I for one hoped Thompson would make more of an impact. It’s probably a bit unfair to put Klay Thompson in here, and don’t get me wrong, I am still impressed by his performance. It’s just, I expected more.
#2. Kevin Love
This one is a bit brutal. I, by no means, blame Love with the Wolves mediocre thirteen wins and thirteen losses record. But we are certainly watching a different Kevin Love than we are all accustomed to. Firstly, does anybody else get the feeling Love doesn’t want to be in Minnesota? Remember, he’s a California boy. I don’t doubt for a second that he would rather be playing for the Lakers, Clippers or even the Warriors. Love has been shooting only thirty one percent this season, compared to a career average of forty five percent. Not only that, in the game two days ago against the Rockets, Love, a respect three point scorer, missed two open threes in the fourth quarter, to add to his three of fourteen record for the night. Sorry Wolves fans, but I have no love for Love.
#1. Jeremy Lin
Call me crazy, a hater, maybe blind even but surely I’m not the only one who has noticed Linsanity’s absence from Jeremy Lin’s game. To be brutally honest, I never jumped on the Lin bandwagon. I can recognize talent and Lin definitely has that, but this season Lin is a significant step down from his performance with the Knicks last year. He is shooting a dismal twenty-nine percent from behind the arc, which means defenders can relax with him in that position. At the beginning of the season, I picked it early. Harden and Lin would not work well together. Although, their performance has improved as of late, Lin and Harden is far from the combination of Lin and Chandler last season. I’m afraid the huge hype of Jeremy Lin has led people to ignore his performance slump this season, in comparison to last. Give him time to click with Harden, and I’m sure he’ll improve. But for now, I’ve got a target on his head.
credit: Chris Devers via photopin cc
