The buzz around the NBA is that Kevin Garnett will be the 2003-04 NBA Most Valuable Player.  There is, ladies and gentleman, no doubt.

Almost every sportswriter is predicting that Kevin Garnett will be named the leagues MVP and Lebron James the Rookie of the Year in two of the most lopsided ballots ever.  While it is likely that Garnett's selection will not be unanimous he is expected to win in a landslide.  Not even Shaquille O'Neal managed a unanimous decision in 2000 when the Lakers' behemoth got 120 of 121 votes.

Garnett's closest challenger is reigning MVP Tim Duncan.  For the record, Garnett entered the last week of play averaging 24.3 points, an NBA-leading 13.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists. Duncan, clearly the man who makes the Spurs go, is close (22.3, 12.4, 3.1) and may get his opportunity to state his case on court if the teams meet in the playoffs. But the regular season has belonged to K.G.

With a revamped Wolves roster, Garnett was as responsible in the locker room for pulling together the diverse personalities and agendas as the coaching staff was outside of it. Don't overlook his decision to sign an extension on the eve of training camp, either; while it might be easy for anyone to accept a five-year, $100 million contract, Garnett could have played out this season as an impending free agent and made it all about him, creating a media clamor at every road game. Instead, he got his business out of the way, then focused on the Wolves'.

Other players slot in nicely behind Garnett without seriously challenging for the award. There is Duncan, still not 100 percent from the knee injury that cost him playing time and showed the Spurs to be tough even without him. Jermaine O'Neal has come of age in Indiana, helping the Pacers to the top record. New Jersey is lottery fodder without Jason Kidd, and Kobe Bryant has played great . . . for about half the season.

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