As we approach the final quarter of the season, the tight MVP race is in the final stretch. This year there are four players in the discussion: Steph Curry, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and LeBron James.

An MVP means different things to different voters. Is an MVP the best player on the best team, the player whose team depends on him most, or just the best player? While these may sound like subtle nuances, the difference changes who the accepted MVP would be.

The best player on the best team is generally thought to be Steph Curry. The Golden State Warriors currently sit atop a rough Western Conference and have put up an impressive season from the beginning. Steph Curry is the engine that drives the Warriors. His three point shooting and creation off the dribble are a nightmare for other teams, and he is also a deceptively effective defender.

The player whose team depends on him most is James Harden. Without Harden, the Rockets would have no offense to speak of. They rely on him throughout the game and in end-of-game situations to get much needed points. James Harden has the Rockets in the middle of the pack in the West as Dwight Howard has been out most of the season with injuries. Without James Harden, the Rockets are a lottery team.

LeBron James is still regarded as the best player on the planet. He started the season a little slow, and everyone quickly assumed his super powers were long gone. But in the middle of the season, James took a 2 week hiatus to Miami to recovery from lingering injuries. Since he’s been back, he returned the LeBron we are used to, and the Cavaliers are coming together late in the season.

Russell Westbrook is forcing himself into the conversation lately. In the absence of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook has been putting up crazy numbers. Most recently he strung together 4 triple doubles in a row. Since only Michael Jordan has accomplished this feat, this grabs the attention of voters.

While there a number of ways to define what the MVP is, there are also numerous ways to arrive at the question analytically. One approach is to look at the Plus Minus of a player over the course of the season. A plus minus metric accounts for the difference in points scored and points against while a player is on the court. This can be an interesting metric for MVP candidates since they influence the game so tremendously whenever they are on the court. However, there are problems with the metric since there are 9 other players on the court. That being said, it is interesting to see how the MVP candidates seasons have shaped over the course of the season. (LeBron and Westbrook have played less games due to injuries).

I found it interesting that only LeBron James Plus/Minus has been increasing throughout the year. Every other candidate has been on a downward trend. This is one of many ways to slice the analysis of MVP candidates.

-Ben