Houston Rockets: James Harden is officially an MVP finalist

To the surprise of no one, the Houston Rockets have their best player in the MVP talks once again this year. He is now officially one of the three finalists for the award that will be given out in June.

The Houston Rockets may have fallen short of the goals and aspirations they had before the season, but the year of James Harden is one that will never be forgotten due to its historical nature.

The Beard averaged the most points per game since some guy named Michael Jordan and carried an injured Rockets team out of a hole and to a point where they nearly took the No. 2 seed in the loaded Western Conference. If not for Paul George’s game-winning 3 on the last day of the regular season for Houston, they would’ve had that spot.

Now, Harden will have a chance to repeat as the Most Valuable Player after winning the award in the 2017-18 season. He has better stats this year, but the team success is not  nearly the same. He is a finalist with the aforementioned George and the Greek Freak, Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The 2018-2019 NBA MVP candidates:

• Paul George
• James Harden
• Giannis Antetokounmpo pic.twitter.com/V2EuJ1VkVH

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 18, 2019

No offense to PG, but this has essentially been a two-man race for quite some time. Harden and Giannis will be the top-two finishing. Based on how it seems so far with the known votes, it’s looking like the Beard is sadly in for another second place finish.

Another second place finish?

Should the expected happen and Giannis wins the MVP award, this will be the third time Harden will finish third for it. He arguably deserved the other two against Westbrook and Curry and has a great case this year once again.

While I feel like the other two were robberies, I can totally understand the case for Giannis this year. He’s put up incredible numbers and the Bucks have been a phenomenal team. I really hope Harden wins, but, if he doesn’t, the Greek Freak has earned his first MVP.

Still, though, Harden put up 36 points a game on good efficiency while carrying the Rockets on his back. He continues to find new ways to score, this year perfecting his patented step back 3. What will he have in store for us next year as he continues through his prime?

The MVP award will be announced at the TNT NBA Awards Show on June 24. Be sure to tune in to officially see if Harden can pull off the upset!