Apr 25, 2013; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Miami Heat forward LeBron James passes off the ball against the Milwaukee Bucks during game three of the first round of the 2013 NBA playoffs at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

LeBron James is not your unanimous MVP everybody. Some idiot gave Carmelo Anthony a vote.

LeBron ended up with 120 of a possible 121 first-place votes to win his fourth MVP. Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell and Michael Jordan have won at least four MVP’s in their career.

Kevin Durant finished second in the MVP voting while Anthony came in third-place.

Durant received 93 second-place votes, 21 third-place votes, two fourth-place votes and three fifth-place votes. Anthony finished with 16 second-place votes, 51 third-place votes, 27 fourth-place votes and 17 fifth-place.

Chris Paul finished fourth in the MVP voting and Kobe Bryant finished fifth. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan came in sixth and seventh place followed by James Harden in eighth place.

Russell Westbrook came in ninth place receiving just one fourth-place vote and six for fifth-place.

Obviously, LeBron winning the award was an easy choice. It’s very surprising that it wasn’t unanimous and if anyone should have received any first-place votes, it’s Durant and not Anthony.

Durant had one of the best seasons in NBA history as well. He nearly led the league in scoring for the fourth straight season while also shooting 50-40-90 and becoming just the seventh player in NBA history to do so.

Apr 28, 2013; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Miami Heat forward LeBron James (6) drives for the basket during the second quarter of game four of the first round of the 2013 NBA playoffs against the Milwaukee Bucks at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

I hope you’re sitting down.

LeBron James of the Miami Heat has reportedly won the 2013 NBA MVP award and will be awarded the trophy before Game 1 of the Miami Heat’s second round series.

This will be LeBron’s fourth MVP award which puts him in rare company. Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6), Michael Jordan (5), Bill Russell (5) and Wilt Chamberlain (4) have won at least four MVP’s. LeBron also won the award in 2009, 2010 and 2012.

LeBron averaged 26.8 points, 7.3 assists and 8.0 rebounds per game this season while shooting 56.5 percent from the field and 40.6 percent from behind the three-point line.

LeBron had the best PER in the league for the sixth straight season at 31.6.

Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder is expected to finish second in the voting. Many believed the MVP race this year to be a two-man race between Durant and LeBron.

Durant was the early favorite this season but then LeBron and the Heat went on historic tears. LeBron had that stretch where he was shooting 70 percent from the field for like two weeks and then the Heat reeled off 27 wins in a row.

Meanwhile all Durant did was nearly lead the league in scoring while becoming just the seventh player in NBA history to have shooting percentages of 50-40-90. It was one of the best years in NBA history only that it coincided with an even better one.

Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul and James Harden will probably round out the top five vote-getters for the MVP in some order.

LeBron is the deserving winner without a doubt.

We’re seeing a different Kevin Durant this season. Yes, KD is not nice anymore. The new, mean KD is the league’s MVP so far too by the way.

Durant just carried the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 3-0 record on the road and averaged 38.7 points per game in those three games. You know, exactly what an MVP does when his team goes on the road at this point in the season while a few of his starters are banged up missing games.

Durant has elevated his game to new heights this season. He’s got the Kobe glare with the mentality to take over like LeBron. We saw the LeBron-like game from him on the road vs. Portland Sunday night and then he closed out the Suns a la Kobe last night, staring down the Phoenix bench after every dagger he hit.

Durant is ultra talented right now and he knows it. He knows what he can do and he plays within himself perfectly. He’s been with the same teammates for a few years now and he knows what they can do, when they can do it and how to use them.

The Thunder have the best record in the NBA right now and look no further than Durant as to why. Sure, Russell Westbrook gives this team a lot too but he’s been struggling for a large part of this season so far. It’s Durant that has every single game been playing almost flawlessly.

The MVP often goes to a new player every year and one who is on a team with one of the best records in the league. That’s why it is Durant and not LeBron so far this season.

LeBron still has the edge over Durant in PER but Durant made a jump this season from last while LeBron didn’t. That means something to the voters and combine that with the Thunder having the best record in the league right now in a tougher conference than the one Miami is playing in and Durant is the easy choice.

Durant also has something that LeBron or just about anyone ever can’t touch. He’s looking to become just the seventh player in NBA history to shoot at least 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from three and 90 percent from the line for a season. And he’s doing it while nearly leading the league in scoring again too which makes this type of shooting/scoring run unheard of.

If it’s Durant who is hoisting the MVP trophy at the end of this season, it won’t be like when Derrick Rose won it. It’s not just a nice story and the voters trying to find someone other than LeBron to give the award to.

Durant is deserving and it’s not a nice story anymore, it’s a mean one.

Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

We are a little more than a quarter of the way finished with the NBA season now. The Oklahoma City Thunder are currently the hottest team in the league with the best record and on an 11-game win streak.

The New York Knicks still hold the top spot in the Eastern Conference just a game and a half ahead of the Miami Heat. The Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs are two games back each of the Thunder.

A few disappointments so far have been the Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets who each would barely make the playoffs if they started today. But no team has been more disappointing than the Los Angeles Lakers so far.

Team success has a lot to do with MVP candidacy. Now let’s look at the players who are in the running for the award so far this year.

1. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder

Durant still deserves the top spot here with the Thunder rolling the way that they are. Durant is putting up career numbers in terms of PER and true shooting percentage as he has a shot at joining the 50-40-90 club. His improvement from last season will be a big reason why he is considered the MVP so far this season especially with James Harden’s departure.

2. Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks

The Knicks just keep winning while Anthony is playing the best basketball of his career. He really seems to have carried over his Olympic play to the NBA season and it has been perfect for this Knicks team. The veterans surrounding Anthony are only helping to lift him to another level this season too.

3. LeBron James, Miami Heat

You can’t drop LeBron too far down the MVP ladder. He’s still leading the league in PER and putting up better all-around numbers than anyone. The Heat just haven’t been winning quite as much as you’d expect. All it’s going to take is a big month or two from LeBron and the Heat for him to get back in poll position of this race.

4. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers

What Kobe is doing at this age and leading the league in scoring as efficiently as he’s ever been is remarkable. The issue is the Lakers aren’t winning, at all. Once they do and most people still believe they will eventually get their act together, Kobe will be right up there in the MVP discussion.

5. Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers are quietly on a winning streak just as impressive as the Thunder’s. Paul is 5th in the NBA in PER behind only the four players ahead of him in these Power Rankings. The Clippers look much better than a season ago, more prepared to make a deep run in the playoffs. Their depth has been a big reason for their success though so it’s not all Paul which is why he ranks only 5th.

6. Zach Randolph, Memphis Grizzlies

The Grizzlies have gotten off to a great start this season thanks mostly to Randolph. Randolph isn’t near the top of the league in PER but his averages of 17.2 points and 12.7 rebounds per game will not go unnoticed by MVP voters. Memphis has shown that they are as tough as anyone in the league to match up with and Randolph being their power forward is the biggest reason why.

7. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors

Curry has led the Warriors to the fifth best record in the Western Conference so far this season. The key has simply been his health. He’s averaging 19.7 points, 6.5 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game. His shooting numbers have not been their best either so expect those to rise as the season goes on. The Warriors have been one of the biggest surprises of the year playing this well so early. If they can keep it up, Curry will deserve some MVP attention.

8. Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks

Smith and the Hawks have also surprised the NBA in their first season after Joe Johnson currently holding the third best record in the Eastern Conference. They have many impressive wins including against the Thunder in OKC. Smith is averaging 16.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game to lead the Hawks.

9. Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics

Rondo is still leading the league in assists by far and if the Celtics can get their act together and move up the standings in the Eastern Confernce, he will keep moving up in the MVP Power Rankings. He’s averaging 12.9 points, 12.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game this year as he looks to be playing the best ball of his career.

10. Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder

Westbrook will never win the NBA because he is on the same team as Kevin Durant but he still deserves to be ahead of others in the MVP Power Rankings. Like Durant, Westbrook is also having a career year passing the ball better than ever and playing defense at the highest level we’ve ever seen from him. The Thunder needed Durant and Westbrook to step up and fill the Harden void this year and both have done exactly that.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

It’s no surprise that LeBron James will enter the 2012-13 NBA season as the heavy favorite to win the MVP.

LeBron captured his third MVP in four years last season and appears to be at the peak of his powers. His PER of 30.74 last season was by far the best in the league while Chris Paul came in second with a PER of 27.04.

The Sports Book Bovada currently has LeBron winning the MVP at 9/5 odds. Kevin Durant is second at 15/4. Kobe Bryant is third at 12/1. Russell Westbrook, Dwight Howard and Steve Nash are all 16/1.

Five of the top six players in terms of these odds are either on the Thunder or the Lakers. The Heat, Thunder and Lakers are considered to be slightly in a class by themselves to compete for an NBA title this season and combined with their star power it’s no surprise that the odds look like this.

The odds say that it will be closer to a 2-man race than anything else between LeBron and Durant, just like it was last season. Durant will have a lot of ground to make up if he is going to legitimately take the award from LeBron. Voters are always looking for fresh faces with the MVP though and if the Thunder have a better regular season record and Durant has a career-year, maybe he can pull it off.

Westbrook may be standing in Durant’s way as much as anything given the fourth best odds to win the MVP. That shows how valuable Westbrook is to the Thunder and will make it harder for Durant to really stand out as the MVP of his team and the league.

It’s interesting that Kobe has better odds than Howard. At this stage in his career Kobe is clearly on the decline while a new face in Howard in L.A. could make the Lakers an unstoppable force. If that is the case, often the voters will look to what changed from the year before to place the value and that will most likely be Howard’s impact.

And if you are really crazy, you can bet your money on James Harden to win the hardware at 350/1 odds.

It has been impressive. He looks to be in his absolute prime. But now come the overreactions made possible by the idiots that were considered “haters” before he had won anything.

“I’ve always thought Michael Jordan was the best player that I’ve ever seen,” USA Basketball assistant coach Jim Boeheim said on Colin Cowherd’s radio show yesterday. “I always have and I didn’t think it was close. I’m not so sure any more. And I love Michael Jordan. I’m not so sure anymore.

“This guy is 6-foot-9 and 260 pounds, and he’s getting better. He works on his game. His shooting is getting better. He’s a phenomenal, phenomenal basketball player. I love his game; I love the history of this game. I know we’ve had great, great players through the years. He’s like Magic Johnson with Michael Jordan-type skills as well.”

Where this gets really stupid is at the end and a lot of people have been doing this lately. It’s when you say LeBron is Magic-plus-M.J. Sure, LeBron is a willing passer who gets like half as many assists as Magic and he’s one of the best athletes in the NBA kind of like how M.J. was the best athlete of all-time.

The real problem here though is saying LeBron has the skills Jordan did. What are you defining as skills here? LeBron is very skilled for his size, no one is questioning that, but Jordan was one of the most skilled players in the history of the game. His handle, footwork, shot creativity and defensive fundamentals are all significantly better than what LeBron’s are.

Everything LeBron does is based on his size and speed or his high basketball IQ (probably the highest in the NBA). Those aren’t skills, they’re just physical ability. He’s so different than M.J. the way he gets stuff done on a basketball court.

“He’s a 6-9, 260-pound point guard-forward-center,” Boeheim went on to say. “He guarded the post guys. They always say a guy can guard five positions, I’ve never seen that. I’ve heard about it. This guy can guard five guys. He can guard your center, he can guard your small forward, big forward, point guard, two guard. You put him on anybody and he can guard them.”

People need to stop with this thing where you say LeBron can guard positions 1-5. I understand he is the most versatile defender in the league but it’s not like he’s shutting down Russell Westbrook or Dwight Howard. He can’t guard guys like that. He can guard 2-4 very well and at times can contend with 1’s and 5’s. There, that’s fair.

This is not a knock on LeBron though in any way. The player he is right now is fine which is obvious since he is winning everything right now (that’s part of why the MJ-comparison will always be unfair). The problem is with Boeheim and every person out there who is so obsessed with attaching themselves to greatness, making them feel warm and important inside I guess.

I get the thing where you go to London for two weeks and watch LeBron play the best he ever has and come away thinking he is the greatest thing ever. It’s like whenever you watch any documentary out there and then after think it’s the greatest thing ever. It reels you in and magnifies the importance of whatever it is.

The difference is smart people, or people who think before they talk, should be able to realize this, take a step back and assess the situation. Boeheim was not this when he joined Cowherd’s radio show.

No one should be able to watch LeBron up to this point in his career and say that he is going to become greater than Jordan, or even worse, Magic-plus-Jordan. It just doesn’t make sense to believe that.

I guess there is a scenario out there that is possible just like there is a scenario out there where the 2012 Olympic team “could” beat the 1992 Dream Team if they played. That doesn’t make them greater though.

For what it’s worth, here is how I assess LeBron so far and how I think his career will play out:

Statistically he is on a Wilt-like level so far in his career. He’s been the best player in the NBA for the last three years or so and he will probably continue to be the best for another three or so. A 6-year window of being the best player is pretty hard to do.

I would predict LeBron wins 3-4 championships in his career. That would just about meet expectations. Every time he wins, he should be the Finals MVP too, unless he gets a title or too very late in his career.

Ultimately he will be considered a top eight player of all-time at least. The players probably ahead of him will be: Jordan-Russell-Kareem-Magic-Bird-Wilt-Kobe-Duncan. He’ll be in front of Robertson-Olajuwon-West-Moses-Shaq. I think LeBron could get right around No. 5 best ever, next to Magic and Bird but I doubt we ever consider him top three.

If that makes me a hater then so be it.