The way they're playing, it's going to be hard for anyone to supplant Russell Westbrook and James Harden as front runners to win the NBA MVP award.
Harden has completely bought into coach Mike D'Antoni's system. He's transformed into an elite scoring point guard, going for 28.9 points and a league-high 11.3 assists a night. Westbrook, in his first season without former MVP Kevin Durant, is averaging a triple-double at 30.8 points, 10.2 assists and 10.6 rebounds per game.
But if anyone is worthy of consideration among the favorites, it's Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas. The 5-9 dynamo is walking the walk, posting 29.7 points per game, good enough for No. 2 in the league, and dominating fourth quarters like few before him to lead Boston to a No. 2 in the Eastern Conference standings.
Apparently, he's already an MVP trash talker. During the Celtics' 107-97 loss on the road against the Raptors, Toronto's DeMarre Carroll was whistled for a flagrant foul after shoving Thomas to the floor in transition. Following the game, Thomas gave Carroll a piece of his mind through the media.
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"It was intentional. Did you see it? Yeah, that's not a basketball play by any means, " Thomas said. "Guys who aren't factors in games do stuff like that. It is what it is. You can't do nothing in this league anymore. It's not like back in the day. You could put your hands up and fight. You can't do that. That was not a basketball play whatsoever, and it's not cool that he did that."
Thomas finished with 20 points, on 6-for-17 shooting. He connected on 3 of 10 3-point attempts. Noted for his 3-point shooting and defensive ability, Carroll, who signed a four-year, $60-million deal with the Raptors in 2015, added six points in 28 minutes of action.
Thomas might not be very tall, but he isn't taking any shorts.