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NBA Props - The Association's Most Valuable Player

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We are now about half-way through the NBA's regular season, and I thought it might be a good idea to take a look at the candidates for the league MVP award, as it relates to the odds that appear at BetUS sportsbook.

I think that my outlook on post-season MVP awards, or their equivalent, has changed in recent years. For example, I don't think the Heisman Trophy should even be voted on until after the bowl games are over, because (a) any team worth its salt is going to get into one, and (b) it seems foolish to ignore what is often the most important game of the season.

The same principle holds true for the NBA's MVP award, as far as I'm concerned. There are so many teams that get into the post-season in the NBA betting that it is highly unlikely that a player is going to win an MVP trophy for a team that doesn't get to the playoffs. So why not wait until the at least the first round is over before voting on the award? That's just my opinion. Unless and until that situation changes, we have to work with what we've got.

That having been said, here are the numbers as they are currently posted at BetUS Sportsbook:

BetUS Sportsbook Odds

To Win NBA Most Valuable Player

Allen Iverson +3500

Amare Stoudemire +3000

Brandon Roy +2000

Chauncey Billups +4000

Chris Bosh +2500

Chris Paul +400

Dirk Nowitzki +2000

Dwight Howard +500

Dwyane Wade +400

Joe Johnson +3500

Kevin Garnett +4000

Kobe Bryant +400

LeBron James -300

Paul Pierce +2000

Steve Nash +2500

Tim Duncan +1500

Yao Ming +3000

ALLEN IVERSON (+3500 at BetUS)

-- Yeah, he's scoring as usual (well, actually less than usual). I don't see anybody voting for him when the general perception is that his arrival has done something to the team chemistry on the Pistons that they are not going to get back.

AMARE STOUDEMIRE (+3000 at BetUS)

-- Stoudamire is a scoring and rebounding machine, but to what end? Phoenix is going to wind up having to fight hard for a playoff spot, and I don't know that guys who may or may not wind up in the playoffs are a good futures investment, simply because if they don’t get there they are not going to get votes.

BRANDON ROY (+2000 at BetUS)

-- Roy is the focal point for Portland, a team that is most likely going to complete a two-year transformation with a playoff berth. That is not enough to snag him an MVP award.

CHAUNCEY BILLUPS (+4000 at BetUS)

-- Billups came to Denver and actually became more of a scorer. What he has brought to the table that's more important, however, was a little more of a winning attitude (instead of a "stats" attitude) and a reminder that defense wins in the end. Because the Nuggets started to jell much more as a team after he arrived and continue to win their share of games, even with Carmelo Anthony out, Billups has a high "difference-maker" quotient.

CHRIS BOSH (+2500 at BetUS)

-- No way. If Toronto was winning any games, Bosh would get looked at as a solid, albeit fringe candidate, but they have been in disarray for much of the season. Bosh also has not been able to make an effective tandem with Jermaine O'Neal, and that is the kind of thing an MVP-level player should be able to make happen. If I was looking for someone having a great year for a bad team, I'd look to Danny Granger of Indiana first.

CHRIS PAUL (+400 at BetUS)

-- Paul was a legitimate candidate last season, and he was expected to use that as a springboard into candidacy this time around. Hey, he's got credentials; after all, he's the best assist man in the league (11 per game) and set that record this season for consecutive games with at least on steal. One thing that will count against him, whether fair or unfair, is that the Hornets are not playing as well as many expected them to.

DIRK NOWITZKI (+2000 at BetUS)

-- He's averaging 26 points and almost nine rebounds, and is a former MVP winner, so we know the voters have nothing against casting a ballot in his favor, but Nowitzki has the same problem a guy like Stoudamire has - the West is so damn competitive that who knows if his Mavs are even going to make it to the post-season?

DWIGHT HOWARD (+500 at BetUS)

-- Howard, a 20-point scorer, leads the league in both rebounds and blocked shots, and won't be overtaken in either category unless it's by Marcus Camby, who is on and off the trainer's table. Now he has put his team in position to be one of the true power clubs in the NBA. What's most impressive about Howard, in my opinion, is that he is virtually alone in banging down low, because his forwards (Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis) are basically finesse-types.

DWYANE WADE (+400 at BetUS)

-- Wade is the league scoring leader, which I didn't expect. He may have to carry more of a team on his shoulders than many of the other candidates, since he is operating alongside two rookies in the starting lineup and a forward (Shawn Marion) who hasn't worked out as well as expected. In the weaker East, the Heat has a damn good playoff chance, and that will bring him some votes. It should.

JOE JOHNSON (+3500 at BetUS)

-- Johnson's hitting for almost 22 points a game and has added six assists, but he shoots only 43%. Like Roy, he is leading a two-year transformation of his team, but how are you going to give him your vote ahead of LeBron James, Dwight Howard or Kobe Bryant? It's not going to happen.

KEVIN GARNETT (+4000 at BetUS)

-- I consider Garnett to be a possible darkhorse here. You know that his Celtic team is going to be right there at the end, competing for home court advantage throughout the playoffs, and I think most people are conditioned to the fact that Garnett is about much more than his statistics, which are not gaudy. The Celtics won an NBA title by playing defense, and Garnett is the one who brought a defensive culture to the team, because it wasn't going to come from Paul Pierce or Ray Allen. That's why I thought he should have won the MVP last season. Of course, not enough people saw it the same way I did.

KOBE BRYANT (+400 at BetUS)

-- Yes, the Lakers are the class of the West, and Kobe is among the scoring leaders again. In a way, though, he's had his turn. The hook last year was that he was more "unselfish." Are the voters going to see a fresh angle with him this time around?

LEBRON JAMES (-300 at BetUS)

-- Not much needs to be said here. This guy has taken his team to a new level, to where it could really compete for an NBA title. All he needed was a little more support, and he's gotten it from people like Mo Williams, at least on the scoring end. The perception is that James has become a much better defensive player. He fills up a stat sheet better than anyone, and that is the most important factor to some voters. LeBron is justifiably the favorite, although I don't know that I would make it as automatic as this number seems to suggest.

PAUL PIERCE (+2000 at BetUS)

-- I don't think that Pierce is nearly as "valuable" to the Boston team as Garnett is. I don't know that he is the type who can be the best player on a championship-level team.

STEVE NASH (+2500 at BetUS)

-- One can't help but be a fan of someone like Nash. But there's no more "fun n' gun" for him anymore, not as long as the Suns have to wait for Shaq to lumber down the floor. Also, I think the perception is that Nash has by this time been surpassed by Chris Paul, and maybe even Deron Williams, in the point guard category.

TIM DUNCAN (+1500 at BetUS)

-- Duncan may be too good, in his own way, for his own good. He is so consistent that he is almost taken for granted, even though he's got a couple of MVP awards on his mantle. This season is simply like nine others where he is a 20-10 guy, and has his Spurs in contention. If you don't call a lot attention to yourself, you can sometimes be overshadowed by the more "spectacular" guys.

YAO MING (+3000 at BetUS)

-- I suppose if someone wanted to vote for a Houston Rocket, the 7'6" center would be the guy. Looking at another side of it, though, you always have in the back of your mind that a guy with his size and gifts should be higher than 19.6 ppg, 9.5 rebounds, 54% shooting and 1.7 blocked shots. That MVP might come some day, but not right now, Yao.

(Charles Jay makes his share of shots from the top of the key as a contributor to the BetUS Locker Room)