After 12 seasons, three championships, over 20,000 career points, two scoring titles and 10 All-Star appearances, Kobe Bryant finally got the the piece of hardware he has long deserved - league MVP.

In my mind, Bryant has been the NBA’s best player for years, and it’s about time he got the recognition he deserves. Bryant averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.8 steals, while leading the Lakers to a 57-25 record and No. 1 seed in the West. Only LeBron James, who finished fourth in the MVP voting, had a higher scoring average than Bryant this season.

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The thought of the league’s top two MVP candidates squaring off in the Western Conference finals is an intriguing one, and, judging by Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul’s performances over the weekend, it is looking more and more like a slam dunk.

Paul didn’t have astounding statistics in New Orleans’ 101-82 over San Antonio on Saturday night - a relative statement for Paul, who still finished with 17 points, 13 assists, just two turnovers and four steals. His quick, controlled aggression broke down the veteran Spurs’ defense and got all of his younger, more athletic teammates into the mix. Read more »

As the NBA season hits its most exciting point, we put another fantasy season in the books and hand out a little more hardware. It wasn’t an easy year for owners to navigate their way to a championship. Injuries, trades and ineffectiveness were rampant among the game’s best players, which put an added premium on an owner’s ability to find sleepers and pick through free agents.

Where it was inconvenient for Kevin Garnett’s production to be scaled back in Boston or for Yao Ming to suffer a season-ending foot injury, there were convenient arrivals of players like Rudy Gay, Danny Granger and Hedo Turkoglu. In 2008-09 more than ever, the middle of the player pool spurred owners’ championship runs, not necessarily their primetime draft picks. Read more »

By Andrew Bohardt

There may still be games left in the NBA’s regular season, but it’s never too early to hand out some end-of-season hardware. We take a look at the most deserving candidates for the Most Valuable Player, Coach of the Year, Rookie of the Year and other postseason awards.

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