Who Is The Best Player In The NBA 2021?
We take a look at the top contenders for the coveted title of best player in the NBA for the 2021 season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Giannis Antetokounmpo is an Greek professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA. He is the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player and defensive player of the year.
His Awards
Giannis Antetokounmpo has had an incredible career thus far, and it seems like he’s only getting better. He’s already won two MVP awards, and he’s only 25 years old. His awards speak for themselves, but let’s take a look at some of his other accomplishments.
In addition to his two MVP awards, Giannis has also been named an All-Star six times, a First Team All-NBA selection four times, and a Second Team All-NBA selection twice. He’s also won Defensive Player of the Year once and Most Improved Player twice.
As of right now, Giannis is the only player in NBA history to win MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Most Improved Player. He’s also one of only four players to ever win multiple MVPs before the age of 25 (the others are LeBron James, Tim Duncan, and Steve Nash).
Giannis is clearly one of the best players in the NBA right now, and there’s a good chance he’ll go down as one of the greatest players ever when it’s all said and done.
His Regular Season Record
In the 2019-20 season, Giannis Antetokounmpo had the best season of his career. He averaged 29.5 points per game, 13.6 rebounds per game, and 5.6 assists per game. He was named the MVP of the regular season and led the Milwaukee Bucks to the best record in the NBA.
His Playoff Record
In the 2020 playoffs, Giannis Antetokounmpo averaged 27.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 1.0 steal in 31.8 minutes per game. He shot 55.3% from the field and 25.0% from three-point range. In the 2019 playoffs, he averaged 27.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1 steal in 32.8 minutes per game while shooting 57%.
LeBron James
Since 2004, LeBron James has been considered one of the best players in the NBA. He has been to ten NBA Finals, winning four of them. He is a three-time NBA champion, a four-time NBA MVP, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist. He is also the only player in NBA history to score over 30,000 points and win an NBA championship.
His Awards
LeBron James has won four NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, four NBA Finals MVP Awards, and two Olympic gold medals. He has also been selected to 13 NBA All-Star teams, 12 All-NBA teams, and six All-Defensive teams, and is the Cleveland Cavaliers’ all-time leading scorer.
His Regular Season Record
In his seventeen seasons in the NBA, LeBron James has established himself as one of the greatest players of all time. He has led his teams to nine NBA Finals appearances, winning four of them. In the process, he has amassed an impressive individual and team record.
Regular Season Record
LeBron James has played 1,247 regular season games in his career, winning 87.7% of them. He holds a career average of 27.1 points per game, 8.6 rebounds per game, and 7.4 assists per game. He is also a three-time NBA champion and a three-time NBA Finals MVP.
Individual Awards
LeBron James has won four MVP awards, three Finals MVP awards, and two Olympic gold medals. He is also a sixteen-time All-Star and a six-time All-Star MVP. In addition, he has been named to fifteen All-NBA teams and twelve All-Defensive teams.
His Playoff Record
LeBron James is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is widely considered to be one of the greatest basketball players in NBA history. Throughout his 17-year career, James has won four NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, four NBA Finals MVP Awards, and two Olympic gold medals. He has also been selected to 14 NBA All-Star teams, 12 All-NBA First Teams, and five All-Defensive First Teams.
James played basketball for St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, where he was heavily touted by the national media as a future NBA superstar. A prep-to-pro, he joined the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003 as the first overall draft pick. He won his first NBA championship with the Cavaliers in 2016, when he delivered the franchise’s long-awaited first title. In 2018, he signed with the Lakers.
Kawhi Leonard
Kawhi Leonard is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season with the San Diego State Aztecs, and was named a consensus second-team All-American as a freshman. He was selected in the first round of the 2011 NBA draft with the 15th overall pick by the Indiana Pacers, but was traded to the San Antonio Spurs on draft night. Leonard won an NBA championship with the Spurs in 2014 and was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP). He was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team in 2015 and 2016.
His Awards
Kawhi Leonard is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Leonard played college basketball for San Diego State University, where he was named a consensus second-team All-American and the Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Year. He was selected in the second round of the 2011 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers, but he was traded to the Spurs on draft night.
In his first season with San Antonio, Leonard was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. In each of his next three seasons with the Spurs, he increased his scoring average, culminating in a breakout campaign in 2013–14, when he averaged 12.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game while being named to his first NBA All-Star team and earning Defensive Player of the Year honors. The Spurs went on to defeat the Miami Heat in Game 7 of The Finals after Leonard hit a game-winning buzzer beater in overtime.
Leonard led Toronto to their maiden NBA Finals appearance in his second season with them after finishing second behind Giannis Antetokounmpo in MVP voting. He won his second consecutive Finals MVP award as Toronto defeated Golden State again in six games; this time without Kevin Durant, who had been injured during Game 5. Leonard became just one of four players to ever win consecutive Finals MVP awards on different teams, joining Magic Johnson, LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as he helped deliver Toronto’s maiden NBA championship.
During his final season with Toronto in 2019–20 before becoming a free agent, Leonard averaged 26.6 points per game en route to leading them back to The Finals for a third consecutive year – this time against his former team San Antonio – where they lost in seven games despite Leonard averaging 27 points per game over the series; becoming one of only five players ever – joining Jerry West (1969), Elgin Baylor (1962), Rick Barry (1967) and Michael Jordan (1988) – to average at least 27 points per game over an entire playoff run while failing to win a ring . Over nine seasons from 2012 to 2020 inclusive, Kawhi Leonard averaged 16 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists per game while shooting 49 percent from 2-point range, 37 percent from 3-point range and 86 percent from the foul line; making him one of only four players ever alongside LeBron James , Kevin Durant and Chris Paulto average those figures over that span .
His Regular Season Record
In his seven seasons in the NBA, Kawhi Leonard has been named an All-Star twice, won Defensive Player of the Year once, and was named Finals MVP in both his championship seasons. He is a two-time champion, winning titles with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014 and the Toronto Raptors in 2019.
Kawhi Leonard’s Regular Season Records:
– Games Played: 486
– Games Started: 468
– Minutes Per Game: 32.6
– Field Goal Percentage: 49.1%
– 3-Point Field Goal Percentage: 38.3%
– Free Throw Percentage: 85.9%
– Rebounds Per Game: 6.3
– Assists Per Game: 2.5
– Steals Per Game: 1.8
– Blocks Per Game: 0.7
His Playoff Record
Kawhi Leonard has played 106 playoff games in his career, and his teams have gone 78-28 in those contests. That means Leonard’s teams have won 74% of their playoff games when he has been on the court. That is an incredible winning percentage, and it ranks Leonard as the 11th-best player in NBA history in terms of winning percentage in the playoffs.
Of the 10 players ahead of Leonard on that list, all but one are Hall of Famers, and the other is still active (LeBron James). In other words, playoff success is a pretty good indicator of greatness, and Leonard has certainly been great in the playoffs throughout his career.
Joel Embiid
Joel “The Process” Embiid is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Philadelphia ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Kansas Jayhawks before being drafted with the third overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the ers. He missed his first two professional seasons due to injuries, but since then, he has been one of the best players in the NBA. He was named to the All-Star team for the first time in 2018 and has been named an All-Star every year since. He was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2019 and 2020.
His Awards
Joel Hans Embiid is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Philadelphia
76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After one year of college basketball with the Kansas Jayhawks, he was drafted with the third overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the 76ers. However, he missed his first two seasons due to injuries. Embiid won Rookie of the Year for the 2016–17 season after averaging 20.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game that season. He is a two-time All-Star, winning All-Star MVP in 2018, and has been named to four All-NBA teams and three NBA All-Defensive teams.
His Regular Season Record
In his first full season, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. He later became a two-time All-Star and was named to the All-NBA Second Team in 2018. He has also led the league in blocks three times. Embiid played collegiate basketball for the Kansas Jayhawks from 2013 to 2014. In his lone college season, he was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, unanimously selected to the All-Big 12 first team and earned second-team All-American honors. He also set single-season school records for blocks (140) and defensive win shares (4.6).
His Playoff Record
In his four seasons, Embiid has only played in 31 total playoff games. That’s not a lot for a player who is considered to be one of the best in the NBA. In those 31 games, he has averaged 22.9 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.7 blocks per game. He has shot 46.6% from the field, 30.8% from three-point range, and 79.4% from the free-throw line.
Russell Westbrook
When it comes to the best player in the NBA, the answer is Russell Westbrook. Some people might argue that LeBron James is the best player, but Russell Westbrook is the best player for the 2021 season. He is an unbelievable athlete with a tremendous work ethic. He is also a great leader and role model for young players.
His Awards
In 2017, Westbrook became one of two players in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season, along with Oscar Robertson in 1961–62. He was the first player to do so since Robertson in 1967. Westbrook also set the record for most triple-doubles in a season, with 42. He was one of the ten finalists for the 2017–18 NBA Most Valuable Player Award, and finished second behind James Harden. For his efforts, he was named the 2017 NBA All-Star Game MVP after becoming the first player in All-Star history to record a triple-double.
Westbrook was named to his ninth consecutive All-Star team in 2019. He was also voted as a starter for the fifth straight year. In 2020, Westbrook was traded to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul, two protected first round picks (2024 and 2026) and two pick swaps (2021 and 2025).
His Regular Season Record
In the 2016-2017 season, Westbrook became only the second player in NBA history to average a triple double for the entire season, joining Oscar Robertson. He also set a record for the most triple doubles in a season with 42. The following season, he was named MVP after averaging a triple double for the second consecutive season. He then led the Thunder to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Golden State Warriors in five games.
In 2017-2018, Westbrook again averaged a triple double for the third consecutive season. He also set a new record for most triple doubles in a season with 42. The following season, he was named MVP after averaging a triple double for the fourth consecutive season.
His Playoff Record
In the 2016-17 playoffs, he averaged a triple-double of 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 10.4 assists, becoming the first player in NBA history to do so. He also set the record for most triple-doubles in a season with 42. In 2017-18, Westbrook became the first player since Oscar Robertson in 1961-62 to average a triple-double for an entire season. He averaged 25.4 points, 10.1 assists, and 10.3 rebounds per game that year. In 2018-19, he averaged a triple-double for the third consecutive season with 22.9 points, 11 assists, and 10.7 rebounds per game
