Rockets: How LeBron illustrated a double standard against James Harden

LeBron voices frustration with MVP finish

The 2019-20 season saw LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers finish with the top seed in the Western Conference, while Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks finished with the seed in the East. Antetokounmpo led the Bucks in points, rebounds, and assists, and his Bucks finished with the most wins in the NBA.

LeBron finished with 25.3 points, a league-leading and career-best 10.2 assists, and 7.8 rebounds. But Antetokounmpo took home the MVP award, in addition to the Defensive Player of the Year award, putting him in rare territory.

Antetokounmpo became just the third player in league history behind only Michael Jordan and Houston Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon to take home both awards in the same season, and LeBron made it known that he wasn’t pleased with missing out on the MVP award after Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.

“It pissed me off. That’s my true answer. It pissed me off because out of 101 first place votes I got 16 votes. Not saying the winner wasn’t deserving but that pissed me off. I’ve finished second alot in my career, either from a championship and now four times as an MVP.”

The interesting thing is that LeBron isn’t facing any backlash, although his comments sound strikingly similar to what Harden said around this time one year ago.

Next: Outlining the double standard