On the heels of his first visit to the second round of the NBA playoffs — after an unexpected sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers in Round 1 — and earning third place in both the MVP and Defensive Player of the Year Awards, Anthony Davis is more poised than ever to wrap his hands around the elusive Maurice Podoloff trophy.
Obviously, this confident feeling is due to the strongest of performances last year. Davis put the New Orleans Pelicans on his back after DeMarcus Cousins was lost for the season, and after playing back-to-back 75-game seasons, he has tempered those injury plagued accusations that have saddled him and the team over his four prior seasons.