Getty Kevin Durant made his case for MVP in Game 3.
The Finals MVP race is one of the few interesting things left about the NBA Finals. The Warriors have a comfortable 3-0 lead, and are road favorites to sweep with a game at Oracle on Monday as a safety net. BetOnline is still taking odds on Finals MVP, and unlike the series, it isn’t already decided.
NBA Finals MVP Odds
Here are the latest odds from BetOnline posted before Game 4:
Durant -300
Curry +300
LeBron +700
Field +3300
Klay +5000
Green +5000
Despite being the favorite at the start of the series, a monster Game 3 has widened the gap between Durant and the rest of the options. Durant has scored at least 26 points in each of the first three games of the series, and could be just the 12th player in NBA history to win the honor multiple times.
Finals MVP Prediction
Game 1 clearly belonged to LeBron James. King James became an instant MVP candidate after starting the series with 51 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. If not for mental errors in the final seconds, James could’ve carried his team to a road victory in Game 1 and changed the tone of the series. Curry and Durant had 29 and 26 respectively, but Durant was a virtual non-factor in the final moments that led to Golden State stealing the game.
But he didn’t and Steph Curry took over in Game 2. Curry set an NBA Finals record with nine-three pointers in a game, breaking a record set by Ray Allen. From there it looked like Curry, who is seeking his first-ever Finals MVP, was destined to take the award for the first time. Curry finished with 33 and owned the headlines, but Durant quietly contributed with 26.
Then came Kevin Durant. KD took over Game 3, carrying his team with 43 points. Not only was Durant unstoppable, he led the Warriors to victory on a night when Steph Curry finished 1-10 from behind the arc. At this point, with LeBron down 3-0, it’s foolish to think of him as an MVP candidate.
And here we are now. With no serious basketball mind projecting this series to last beyond five games, Curry or Durant for MVP is pretty much the only thing worth watching. That, and watching LeBron for every nonverbal cue that he’s headed to Philadelphia in the offseason.
Prediction: Durant wins, just like we predicted last week