Another factor working against LeBron:
the media’s (offensive!) bias against defense. The focus tends is on box-score offense stats and W-L record.

LeBron is obviously much better defensively than the other major MVP candidates (Paul, Carmelo, Durant), but he doesn’t seem to get many (enough) MVP points for that.

Any fan of the game, not just Mia/OKC fans, have to savor this while we have it. Their rivalry is one they’re going to make documentaries about. And we get to enjoy it now as its playing out.

it is only December, 2013 hasn’t even come in.

maybe the Heat and Thunder don’t even make the finals

“Like the protagonist in an action movie, the Heat are going to have to play at a new level to beat the Heat in a series.”

So Kurt “Helen” let me get this straight. The Heat are going to have to play at a new level to beat (the Heat) themselves in a series??? Please PBT. Fire this guy and stop embarressing NBC, and stop contributing to the mental delinquency of all the kids who read his grammatically problematic, and often inaccurate, factually challenged posts. (who can forget the FIVE championships the Bulls won…It’s SIX Kurt in case you haven’t looked that one up yet!)

vs

Having one dude always trying to “Take Over” a game by throwing up a bunch of bricks.

1. Durant and Carmelo are playing great, period, and are having arguably the best seasons in their careers.
Durant is averaging 28-8-4, with 52 FG -43 3PT-90 FT shooting
Carmelo is averaging 28-6-2, with 47 FG-44 3PT-83 FT shooting

2. LeBron’s numbers are good but “normal” for him, so people aren’t as wowed by him averaging 25-9-7, with a career-high 54% FG, as they would from other players.

3. The Heat’s win-loss record is slightly worse than OKC’s and the Knicks. Also, while LeBron’s team beat Durant’s team tonight, the Heat have lost twice to the Carmelo’s Knicks (though one time Carmelo didn’t play). That factors into MVP decisions.

4. MVP-voter fatigue. I’ve seen multiple journalists in interviews admit that some years they didn’t vote for Michael Jordan for MVP in the 1990′s simply because they were tired of voting for him. In other words, if LeBron and an MVP candidate who has never won an MVP are “tied” at the end of this season, expect people to vote against LeBron since he has already won 3 MVPs. He only wins MVP this year if he has a conclusively better season than the other guys. This trend is nothing new or unique to LeBron, but it works against him.

All the people here who complain about LeBron and Durant training together during the offseason because they think that means these guys are “too friendly” with each other should watch this game. There’s no evidence *on the court* that these guys aren’t competing at 100%, and so long as that’s the case, I don’t care what they do off the court.

Durant regularly drops 30+ points against the Heat, and LeBron regularly comes close to a triple-double against the Thunder, so it’s *impossible* argue that either guy is cutting the other some slack due to their friendship. They’re not friends on the basketball court.

yea im rantin..