Since 2000 there have been seven different MVP’s in the NBA, with Tim Duncan and Steve Nash both winning the award twice. But out of the seven how many of the winners of the award do you think have won a championship?

The answer is less than half. Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett are the only MVP’s in the past nine years to have won a championship ring. Of course not every player is going to win a ring but in the case of one individual the failure to secure a ring could rest upon his shoulders.

Allen Iverson, the 2000-2001 MVP, announced this week that he plans to retire because as he put it:

“I always thought that when I left the game, it would be because I couldn’t help my team the way that I was accustomed to. However, that is not the case.”

If he does retire he will, in five years, be eligible for the Hall of Fame, joining basketballs elite. Unfortunately for him Iverson will, like others in the Hall of Fame, have the unlucky distinction of never winning an NBA title. He would be on that list with the likes of John Stockton, Charles Barkley and Patrick Ewing, but for each of players it could be argued were unlucky not to have won a championship, certainly in the case of Stockton who twice came up against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in the Finals.

Iverson on the other hand, it could be argued, wasn’t unlucky and it was his style of play and mentality which cost him a real chance at a title. Yes, in his only Finals appearance he and his Philadelphia 76’ers had to face the Lakers’ Kobe and Shaq combo but he and the 76’ers never returned to the Finals for another shot at the title.

After he announced his retirement the debate about whether Iverson was a gamer or a winner raged around the basketball world. Some argued he was a gamer whilst others believed the shooting guard was a winner but not a champion.

The answer to the debate is probably the former. It is possible to be a winner without actually winning a championship, if you take the view point that some winners were on teams that were just not good enough. Take for instance Kevin Garnett, who is one of the fiercest competitors in the NBA and would have done anything and everything to help his Minnesota Timberwolves win. But when the Wolves decided to start rebuilding Garnett asked for a trade and after eventually being traded to Boston, he helped the Celtics win their first championship in 22 years.

Iverson it seems is not that kind of player. Yes he gives his all in games, but sometimes giving a little less is more. Trusting teammates, playing tough defence and leading by example are not characteristics associated with the former 76’ers star. Prolific scorer and 1-on-1 specialist are two things which come to mind when Iverson’s name is mentioned.

It is true he never had the team to really compete for a title in Philadelphia but that wasn’t just down to the franchise’s failure to provide help, Iverson’s ego and playing style prevented that from ever happening. The ball always had to be in his hands and he always had to take all the shots and even with age that never changed.  When the former MVP was traded to Denver and teamed up with Carmelo Anthony, “AI” couldn’t find a way to incorporate Anthony into his style of play. And then when he was traded to Detroit and used as a sixth man, Iverson couldn’t accept the role, eventually finishing the season inured after refusing to come off the bench. Next stop was Memphis for just three games before he once again could not accept a role coming from the bench. He has now decided to retire.

This mentality is precisely why Iverson is not a winner or a champion. Yes he has various personal accolades but that alone doesn’t constitute a winner. If you were to ask Kobe if he would swap his MVP award for a fifth ring he would trade it in instantly. Some argue Kobe had Shaq to help him win, but then again didn’t Jordan have a certain someone called Scottie Pippen?

To further add to the case that Iverson is not a winner he is now considering a return to Philadelphia who look set to offer him a one-year deal. The only reason why he would sign with the 76’ers is to get his minutes and his 20 points a game and that sums up Iverson perfectly, a selfish player but one of the greatest small guards to ever play the game.

So what does winning the MVP mean if it does not make you a winner? Well it gives a player the recognition of being the best performer that season, and it should not take into account if someone is a winner or not. So bearing that in mind here is this week’s top eight.

1- Kobe Bryant, 28.8 PPG, 4 assist, 5.3 rebounds, .292 3pt%, 2.29 steals

His points per game might have dropped but every other category has increased. The Lakers are now on a 7-game winning streak and Kobe delivered New Jersey’s 17th consecutive defeat by scoring 30 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists. It’s hard to imagine Kobe dropping out the top two in the race but one thing is for sure: there are more than a few players breathing down his neck for the top spot.

2- LeBron James, 29.2 PPG, 8 assists, 6.7 rebounds, .346 3pt%, 1.29 steals

LeBron cannot be ignored for MVP anymore. He is doing everything for his team and doing it well. 25 points and 12 assists against the Mavs was huge and he is shooting over 50% from the floor. The only thing keeping him from being number one? Kobe Bryant.

3- Steve Nash, 16.6 PPG, 11.8 assists, 2.7 rebounds, .347 3pt%, .529 FG%

Nash is just continuing his fine form and keeps handing out the assists. He already has six 16 game assists this season and has led the Suns to a 14-4 record. Consider that he is 35 and his numbers become even more impressive. If he averaged 20 points a game he would be top of the list.

4- Carmelo Anthony, 30.7 PPG, 3.6 assists, 6.1 rebounds, .340 3pt%, 1.5 steals

He still hasn’t scored less than 20 points in a game this season and still remains fourth in the race. The top four are extremely close together, which shows how good the candidates are this year, and dropping a 50 bomb on New York certainly pushed him even closer to the pack but he was then unable to lead the Nuggets past the Minnesota Timberwolves the following game. The Nuggets face Miami, San Antonio, Philadelphia and Charlotte this week and if Melo leads the team to 3-4 victories look for him to move up a place or two.

5- Dirk Nowitzki, 27.2 PPG, 2.8 assists, 8.5 rebounds, .347 3pt%, 1.5 blocks

Dirk is hunting down his friend in third place by continuing his immense form, scoring 25 or more in his last five games. He still hasn’t missed a free throw in the fourth quarter and is possibly playing better than he did when he was his MVP award back in 2007.  Despite his impressive start there have been four other players who have impressed more.

6- Josh Smith, 16.1 PPG, 3.9 assists, 9.2 rebounds, .535 FG%, 2.71 blocks

Atlanta’s great start to the season seems to be slowing down slightly losing three out of the last five games. While his team has struggled Smith has tried to pick up the slack scoring over 20 points in his last two games. In the loss against Detroit, Smith scored 23, claimed 7 rebounds and blocked five shots. Most other rankings have Joe Johnson instead of Smith but take Smith out of that team and what happens to the defence? Smith could be here to stay.

7- Dwyane Wade, 26.8 PPG, 5.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds, .261 3pt%, 2 steals

Wade hasn’t been able to find that consistent scoring touch he had last year and as a result is averaging nearly 4 points a game less than he did last year. He is assisting at a lower rate than his career average but he still manages to get the job done and help his team win. If he is 7th with no scoring consistency imagine how high he will be once he finds his stroke back.

8- Kevin Durant, 27.4 PPG, 3.4 assists, 7.2 rebounds, .242 3pt%, 1.59 steals

The last spot goes to Durant because Dwight Howard has had foul trouble this year and is only managing 32.9 minutes a game. Durant on the other hand is leading one of the league’s youngest teams to play-off contention. He has started to rebound the ball and is starting to score like Kobe and LeBron and that in my eyes deserves the final spot in this week’s race.  If his three point shooting gets better that 27 PPG could easily be at 30.