LeBron, Not Kawhi, Could Make History as Finals MVP on Third Team

by Ryan Mercier

Much was made this season about Kawhi Leonard having a chance to win MVP honors in the NBA Finals with his third team. Leonard could have become the first player in history to do so and put pressure on the All-Important Talk Show Collective to rank him as a top-5 NBA player of all-time. Instead, the combined DNA of Playoff Paul George and the Clippers was too strong for Kawhi as Denver eliminated LAC on Tuesday night.

As it turns out, there is still one player remaining in the playoffs with a chance to accomplish this feat. His name is LeBron James.

So why did this storyline seem to only be attached to Kawhi? For one, he’s an absolutely incredible player deserving of all the praise and attention on both sides of the court. The real answer, though, lies in Leonard’s path to this point vs. LeBron’s.

Kawhi began his career as a defense-only role player and was an absolute surprise Finals MVP at the time in a series involving LeBron, Tim Duncan, Dwyane Wade, Tony Parker, Chris Bosh, and Manu Ginobili. Then, as a recognized superstar, he carried the Toronto Raptors to their first ever championship over the vaunted Golden State Warriors. This story centered around Leonard because no one would have expected this when he was picked 15th in the 2011 NBA draft.

We want to call Giannis Antetokounmpo the best player in the league. We want to call Kevin Durant the best player in the league. We want to call Kawhi Leonard the best player in the league. Yet, here’s LeBron still alive in the postseason. Here’s LeBron with a chance to win a championship and Finals MVP on his third team.