LeBron's MVP application
December 5, 2007
The Toronto Raptors have shown that they are capable of winning without Chris Bosh over the last two years - they went 6-6 last year when Bosh missed some time in December because of a knee injury, and are 1-1 without Bosh this year. The Cleveland Cavaliers, on the other hand, have shown that they are utterly incapable of being remotely competent without their superstar, LeBron James.
Cleveland has played its last three games without James, who has a sprained finger, and the results have been predictably awful.
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Nov. 30: Toronto 91 Cleveland 82. Cleveland shoots 39% from the floor.
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Dec. 2: Boston 80 Cleveland 70. Cleveland shoots 33% from the floor.
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Dec. 4: New Jersey 100 Cleveland 79. Cleveland shoots 35% from the floor.
And more to the point, look at how Cleveland's secondary players have performed without King James.
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Zydrunas Ilgauskas, shooting 48% for the year, has shot 7-for-23 (30%) from the floor without James.
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Daniel Gibson, shooting 47% for the year, has shot 16-for-43 (37%) over the last three games.
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Sasha Pavlovic, who has struggled mightily since coming back from a contract dispute, shooting just 36%, has gone 11-for-39 (28%) without James.
Even before he suffered the injury, James was being discussed as a top MVP candidate, thanks to his own gaudy numbers. He is currently averaging 30.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game.
But his teammates' failure to function without him might be a key point in James's favour if the MVP race is tight at the end of the year.
All of which is to say Cleveland would like to have James back as soon as possible. The Cavaliers are in Washington on Wednesday night, followed by a date in Charlotte on Saturday evening.
