Russell Westbrook Falls to 4th in MVP Race Behind Harden, LeBron, Kawhi

Russell Westbrook scored a career-high 58 points Tuesday in a loss, and he didn’t get a triple double. His unbelievable triple double pace from earlier this season – heck, he had three in a row to end February – may be catching up with him. Westbrook doesn’t have a triple double in March (0-4) and worse yet, the healthy Thunder are losing to lottery-bound teams.

At 35-29, OKC has 18 games left, and to hit the 50-win plateau, they’d have to go 15-3. Why does 50 wins matter? Since 1982, every NBA MVP has won at least 50 games.

As such, I believe right now, the MVP race is as follows:

1 James Harden – #1 in assists, #3 in scoring, Rockets have 3rd most wins in the NBA despite having the weakest supporting cast of contenders
2 LeBron James – Best statistical season he’s ever had in a Cleveland jersey; career high in assists per game
3 Kawhi Leonard – Career-best 26.3 ppg; 1st-year post-Duncan, and with an aging core, the Spurs have the 2nd most wins in the NBA
4 Russell Westbrook – The triple doubles are impressive, but he’s also having a terrible shooting season, takes more shots than anyone in the league