Ed and I rarely talk basketball these days. It's best that we don't if our friendship is as valuable as we both claim it is.
Sparing the masses a smorgasbord of details no one would care about nor is even that important, the main reasons are LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Or Kevin Durant and LeBron James. It's all about personal preference and/or MVP voting this season.
This year, all signs seem to favor Kevin Weezy (Wayne) Durant stepping out of his vehemently loathed second-place shadow and capturing his first LeBron James Excellence Award (also known as the MVP) this season. The body of work speaks for itself, too, including his still-in-progress streak of 36 games scoring 25 or more points.
The point being: KD and LBJ are widely accepted as the two best players in the solar system. The question which had the TSFJ e-offices in an uproar Wednesday afternoon, however, was, "So, who's the third best player?"
Not to disrespect the iconic sports figure that is Ricky Bobby — dissecting the NBA's best player behind "The Servant" and "The King" is fascinating and all. But who's got next?
1. Is it Paul "Catfish" George, who was the sexy pick for MVP in November and parts of December before the calendar changed and buddy plum forgot he was the face of the franchise and began ALLEGEDLY sending dick pics or whatnot?
2. Is it — dark horse candidate alert — Joakim Noah, who, whether he likes it or not, is the face and heart of the Chicago Bulls and an all-around pleasure to watch play and frustrate opponents like no one since Dennis Rodman?
3. Despite the Knicks being pillaged by Swaggy P (owner of the single greatest missed shot in the history of basketball, which is really not up for debate) and a Kobe-less, Nash-less and Gasol-less Lakers, is it the league's second leading scorer, Carmelo Anthony?
4. Is it Blake Griffin, who has pretty much appeared unstoppable since the clock struck New Year's?
5. Is it Anthony Davis? Because, let's be honest, if he stays healthy, what A.D. is gearing to do for the next decade of basketball could damn well be unprecedented.
Or is it someone not listed here? Let us know down below in the comments. The best answer will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the same place we sent a lucky individual last year (SPOILER: We didn't send anyone anywhere last year). Nevertheless, it's fun debating anyway. We're sports fans. Arguing and telling each other why the other person is wrong is what we do.
Don't fight tradition. Don't fight nature. Relax your mind, and let your conscience be free.
