Kyle Kuzma promotes LeBron James as MVP, says NBA messed up with Giannis' DPOY award

Giannis Antetokounmpo, who won the 2020 Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) award, was chosen over Los Angeles Lakers' Anthony Davis for the same. The Milwaukee Bucks star is also in contention for the NBA MVP award alongside Lakers icon LeBron James. However, just like the 2020 DPOY award, Giannis is most likely to take home the MVP trophy. 

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Kyle Kuzma calls out NBA for messing up DPOY award, wants LeBron James as NBA MVP

While his Lakers teammates and others have backed James to win the MVP award, Giannis has remained a favourite for the same, just like the DPOY. In a poll conducted early this year by ESPN, most chose Giannis as their MVP for the 2019-20 season, while LeBron James was a distant second choice. Even Anthony Davis, who was in line for the DPOY award, missed out by a 200-vote margin. 

On Thursday, Kyle Kuzma quoted a video featuring James' playoffs highlights on Twitter. "Yo media, imma tell y’all this. If y’all mess up this MVP like you did the DPOY. We gonna have issues fr," Kuzma wrote, indicating that the DPOY should have been awarded to Davis. A few days before Kuzma, Lakers head coach Frank Vogel had promoted James as the MVP during a press conference at the NBA bubble. As per Vogel, the three-time NBA champion is a leader on and off the court and deserves to win the award. 

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At the NBA bubble, James has been in dominating form during the playoffs. The Lakers could advance to the Western Conference Finals, while the Bucks have already been eliminated after a 4-1 series loss against the Miami Heat. The Lakers currently have a 2-1 lead against the Houston Rockets, winning two back-to-back games after a Game 1 upset.

Save for Game 2 during the first-round against the Portland Trail Blazers, James has scored 20 or more in every game. On the other hand, Giannis performed consistently during the first-round series against Orlando Magic but failed to score against the Heat. He injured his ankle, which affected his performance and had him sit out Game 5. 

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However, the NBA awards will be awarded on the basis of a player's regular-season performance. Giannis performed consistently during the regular season, leading the Bucks to the No. 1 seed with a 56-17 win-loss record. James and the Lakers followed with a 52-19 record, leading the Western Conference. Giannis averaged career-high 29.5 points, 13.6 rebounds while making 1.4 three-pointers per game, while James scored 25.3 points and career-high 10.2 assists per game. This applied to the DPOY award as well, which was given to Giannis as the reigning NBA MVP led the  Bucks to the league's best defensive rating, allowing only 101.6 points per 100 possessions. 

ESPN's Ramona Shelbourne had chosen James as her MVP looking at the Lakers' run, as James (and Davis) led them to their first postseason since six seasons. However, choosing James only on the basis of his journey over what Giannis has achieved could be controversial. James might have finished as the NBA's assist leader for the first time in his career but ranked below the Greek Freak in all other categories. 

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(Image credits: NBA website, Kyle Kuzma Instagram)