Who/What is the 2008 NBA MVP?

With the NBA season drawing to a close it's time for the inevitable question we ask this time each year, "Who is this year's MVP?" and more importantly, what the heck makes someone the MVP? The NBA MVP award is a bit of an enigma, for some reason people have a hard time agreeing what exactly the MVP should accomplish during the season. Is it the best player on the best team? As was the case the last three years with Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki? Is it the single most dominant player? Such as Shaq, Kobe and Lebron over the last few seasons? Or is it some combination of these factors along with additional intangibles? Whatever makes a player your MVP there is probably only a small pool of players left that satisfy any traditional criteria, so let's take a look and see what case each can make to win this year's award.

Kobe Bryant
The best player on a team that will probably finish in one of the top three seeds in the ultra competitive Western Conference, Kobe is widely regarded as, "the best" player in the NBA this year. He is a fan favorite and a clutch performer but with late season struggles and no one dominant statistical category it may be tough to make a case for Kobe. Despite this he'd probably win the award if it was given today.

Chris Paul
A dynamic young point guard, Paul has carried--along with David West--the Hornets to the top of the Western Conference and could very well secure home court throughout the Western Conference playoffs. Few other players have done so much with so little around them and if he wins no one will question the decision as long as the Hornets make noise in the playoffs.

LeBron James
If there is anyone who has elevated his team more than LeBron they don't play in the NBA. The Cavs are a terrible team without LeBron and a four seed with him so his impact is undeniable. He is the only player capable of challenging Kobe for the best player in the NBA title as well so he makes a strong case to be this year's MVP. The only pitfall is that he is only a four seed in the weak Eastern Conference and would be nothing more than an also ran in the West.

Kevin Garnett
The best player on the best team in the NBA, Garnett has turned the Celtics completely around in only one season with some help from Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. The Celtics success is Garnett's greatest asset in the race because his individual numbers are not fantastic. He is a long shot in the race but he has to be considered the strongest candidate outside of the previous three players.

The Field
Several other players have no chance of winning the award but have merited some mention in the discussion. Amare Stoudemire has been spectacular for most of the season for the Suns this year, helping turn the Shaq-periment into a success for the time being. Tracy McGrady has displayed his impact on the Rockets by helping them to 22 straight wins earlier this year. His early season struggles and late season fade, however, will keep him from hoisting the trophy. Kevin Garnett's Celtic teammate Paul Pierce has drawn praise for his pivotal contribution to the team's success but again he'll lose out because he's not even the best player on his own team.

However you define the MVP award, there are plenty of people who are voting on the award that disagree with you. This makes the NBA one of the most interesting, and yet, meaningless regular season awards in all of pro sports. Despite this, they are still going to give the award to someone in a few weeks so we might as well sit back and enjoy the show as the top contenders try to make their final pushes.

Boston Red Sox vs Oakland A's

Opening Day in Japan?

Many MLB fans probably never thought they would see the day that baseball opened the season outside of Cincinnati, let alone outside North America. Well, believe it or not that day is here as the Boston Red Sox and the Oakland Athletics kicked off the MLB season in Japan this week. The decision to have opening day in Japan has drawn the ire of many baseball fans, especially in Oakland where the opening pitch of the season was thrown at 3 a.m. Pacific time.

It is understandable that baseball would want to expand its borders beyond North America and bring the MLB to the rest of the World. After all, ratings and attendance has been sagging in recent years as football has blown by baseball as the real national pastime. Perhaps this was not the way to do it, though? Forget about American fans not being able to attend the opening ceremony or Oakland fans not being able to watch the game unless they are up for an all-nighter. The real head scratcher is why is Boston playing in two other countries before they get back to Boston, a trip which includes three more exhibition games!

The idea of putting major league game outside of North America is not a novel one, the NFL placed a game in England recently and the USA Basketball team has had a prominent international reputation for some time now. Major League Baseball dropped the ball, however, with this venture. The next time they try to expand their borders it shouldn't be on opening day at a time that fans can't stay up for. Hopefully Bud Selig will learn his lesson and the next time he tries something like this it will be before the All-Star break and feature two East Coast teams to better accommodate everyone involved.

Adam Pacman Jones

When will we learn? Adam "Pacman" Jones looks on the verge of getting another chance in the NFL in the upcoming months and nobody can really say they are surprised. Despite the best efforts of Roger Goodell to be the hardest nosed commissioner in pro sports there is really no reason to believe that Jones would have been banned for life.

Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with giving Pacman another chance, everyone needs a second--or in his case a 18th--chance. I also don't blame sports shows for continuing to make his future some of the hottest sports news on television. It is hard not to wonder what might happen if the apparently reformed and happy Pacman might do next if he doesn't get his wish of playing for the Dallas Cowboys.

At the moment Jones seems like he is going to tow the company line for the NFL and be a stand-up guy for the near future. What is going to happen, however, when something goes wrong for him? Have we seen the last of his off field antics? Will it even matter whether or not he winds up in Dallas? Perhaps he's just a powder keg whose fuse has been lengthened for the time being. Only time will tell but one thing is for sure, we will find out the answer to these questions.