Maybe someone should tell the MVP voters that “car jumping ability” isn’t criteria that should garner Kobe some MVP votes. The LA Times posted on their website that Kobe Bryant will win the MVP award. The Lakers finished 1st in the ultra-competitive Western Conference and averaged over 28 points per game. I wonder if the addition of Pau Gasol made this possible? A big man that can pass out of the post, hmmm, sounds like that’s something that Shaq did.

In the Kobe/Shaq feud, I sided with Shaq. I think Kobe is a great player, but at that time in the league, a big man was important to win an NBA championship. Kobe would be without a ring if Shaq wasn’t on the Lakers. Look at the last few champions? Spurs, Lakers, Pistons, and Heat, they all had big men. I know the Pistons didn’t rely on Ben Wallace on the offensive end, but when you add him with Rasheed Wallace, combined you have a Tim Duncan.

I still think a big man is important, but the teams that are in the playoffs this year, minus the Lakers and Magic, rely on perimeter players. The Magic only uses Dwight Howard as a rebounding/dunk machine, they shoot the most 3-pointers in the league.

My pick for MVP would be Chris Paul. I love the way he plays. He is the battery for the New Orleans Hornets. He gets things going, he is a triple-double threat, and he gets his players involved in the game. If Paul wasn’t on the Hornets, they would be buried in the Western Conference and would be a lottery team. I would bet that Paul ends his career with more MVPs than Kobe.Now that Kobe has won an MVP, you can start the week-long celebration on ESPN and TNT. Kobe needs to be compared to Michael Jordan as much as possible. He already has his lexicon and speech tone down. If he acts enough like MJ, maybe we’ll forget that he likes to get freaky in Colorado.