‘LeBron James is the real NBA MVP’: Kevin Durant explains why Giannis Antetokounmpo is only the regular season MVP

Samir Mehdi | 23/09/2020
Kevin Durant on LeBron James MVP

Kevin Durant claims LeBron James is the NBA’s MVP as a whole for this 2019-20, while also explaining who will win the 2019/20 season.

The controversy over who should’ve won the regular season MVP for this season has been ripe ever since Giannis Antetokounmpo was honoured with it, over LeBron James.

LeBron James only received 16 first place votes which seemed to have ticked ‘the King’ off, claiming the voters were too distracted by the narrative surrounding Giannis. James also implied that he deserved the MVP just as much as Giannis did.

Also read: “It pissed me off”: LeBron James slams NBA MVP voting and takes dig at Giannis Antetokounmpo for MVP snub

Kevin Durant recently sat down with Joe Budden on his podcast to discuss this topic, among many others.

Kevin Durant tries to put an end to the 2019-20 MVP discussion

Kevin Durant believes the criteria for MVP should be altered as said, “The criteria is the regular season, I understand. They should evaluate the whole season, Playoffs included.”

Durant carried on with, “Bron is easily the MVP if you include the Playoffs.” Though it looks like Durant is taking LeBron’s side here, he does end his take by praising Giannis on an unbelievable season, calling his numbers, “crazy”.

Kevin Durant was also asked who he thought was going to win it all and Durant responded with, “the Lakers”

Moreover, the Nets superstar emphasised on how the ‘Bubble ring’ is going to go down as the toughest ring in NBA history.

Is there validity to Kevin Durant’s argument?

If you include the Playoffs in evaluating a season’s MVP, Kevin Durant is absolutely right and the obvious choice would be LeBron James, as Giannis suffered an embarrassing gentleman’s sweep in the 2nd round to the Heat.

Meanwhile LeBron James’s Lakers are just 2 wins away from reaching the NBA Finals.

However, since it is, at the moment, only a regular season award, Giannis did post near otherworldly averages of 29.5 points, 13.6 rebounds, and 5.6 assists. So this MVP is very much deserved by Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Post Edited By: Utkarsh Bhatla
Giannis Antetokounmpo Kevin Durant LeBron James MVP

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Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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