6B SPORTS
NBA
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, MAY 5, 2009
LeBron James claims league MVP in a landslide vote
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LeBron James tosses talcum powder in the air before the first half of a basketball game against the New York Knicks on Nov. 25, 2008, in New York. James claimed the league MVP on Monday, receiving 109 of a possible 121 first-place votes to easily outdistance Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers. James totaled 1,172 points in balloting by media members in the U.S. and Canada.
The Cavaliers player received 109 out of 121 possible votes
AKRON, Ohio — Unstoppable at both ends of the floor this season, LeBron James claimed the league MVP on Monday, receiving the award in the high school gym where he first made his name.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Cleveland Cavaliers star won what some expected to be a close vote in a slam dunk. He received 109 of a possible 121 first-place votes to easily outdistance Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers. James totaled 1,172 points in balloting by media members in the U.S. and Canada.
Bryant, last year's winner, got two first-place votes and finished with 698 points. Miami guard Dwyane Wade was third with 680 points and was named first
on seven ballots.
Orlando center
Dwight Howard
(328) was fourth
followed by New
Orleans guard
Chris Paul (192).
James is the first Cavaliers player to win the award. He
"Individual accolades come when teams success happens."
averaged 28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.2 assists this season, his sixth as a pro. He also finished second in voting for defensive player of the year, making him perhaps the league's most dominant two-way player since Michael Jordan.
"You look at the guys who have won this award — Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dr. J, Oscar Robertson. All these guys laid down the path for guys like myself and Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard and Dwyane Wade to name a few," James said in accepting the award at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School.
"Individual accolades come when team success happens," James said. "You look at those 14 guys over there, I got the award because of them. They put in the work."
James credited his teammates, who were present with coach Mike Brown to see him accept the award, for raising their games in the Cavaliers' best season ever.
At 24 years, 106 days on the final day of the regular season, James is the youngest player to win the award since Moses Malone (24 years, 16 days) in 1978-79. Wes Unseld was 23 when he won it in 1968-69.
"I'm 24 years old. To be up here and win this MVP award, I never thought it would happen this fast. I always dreamed about celebrating championships with teammates," James said.
LEBRON JAMES Cavaliers player
"It takes a lot of sweat," said Cleveland general manager Danny Ferry. "I'm sure he did a lot of sweating right here. I've been for-
janes vied all season for MVP honors with Bryant and Wade. The three played on the U.S. gold medalist Olympic team last summer and seemed to upstage each other nightly.
tunate enough to watch him sweat the past four years when no one else was around. I just want to acknowledge that and give it a round of applause."
James vied all sea-
"He deserved it." Wade said. "I said all year, I thought LeBron was the MVP of this league. He's a guy who every year is going to be in that conversation. ... He showed it all year, especially with his team's success."
He started a career-high 81 games and set personal bests in field-goal (49) and free-throw (79) percentages as well as blocks (93). James became the second player to post five straight seasons of at least 27 points, six rebounds
Focused right from the start, the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James sharpened his already formidable skills this season.
and six assists. The other is Oscar Robertson, whose extraordinarily versatile game is the one to which James' is most often compared.
James nearly averaged a triple-double — 32 points, 11.3 rebounds and 7.5 assists — as the top-seeded Cavaliers breezed through the first round of the playoffs, sweeping the Detroit Pistons in four games. Cleveland will host the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 on Tuesday.
It's no surprise James would select his high school for the ceremony. It's where he won three state basketball championships and where he burst onto the national scene, becoming a Sports Illustrated cover subject at just 17 years old. He announced plans to skip college in the Fighting Irish's quaint gym and recently filmed a "60 Minutes" interview there, where his retired No. 23 jersey hangs on a wall.
A few days after the Cavaliers were eliminated in last year's Eastern Conference semifinals, losing a Game 7 in Boston, James got back in the gym.
Despite scoring 45 points in the finale, James didn't feel he had done enough to get his team past the Celtics. So he went to work. He spent endless hours at the Cavaliers' training facility working on his jump shot, which has never looked better or been more accurate. He practiced finishing at the rim with his left hand, making him nearly impossible to stop inside.
James also began lifting weights like never before, adding muscle to his considerable frame. Then, once he began working out with the Olympic team, James set out to refine his defensive game and became an elite stopper, often guarding the other team's best player — regardless of position.
In a league of remarkable athletes, James, with his package of power and speed, may well stand alone.
HORSE RACING
Derby winner to run in Preakness
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BALTIMORE — Mine That Bird is headed to the Preakness.
"I've never been to Baltimore, but it looks like I won't be able to say that in a few days." trainer Bennie Woollev Jr. said Monday.
The trainer of the gelding who won the Kentucky Derby at 50-1 odds said his horse will run in the May 16 Preakness at Pimlico, the second leg of the Triple Crown.
Woolley said the horse will remain at Churchill Downs in Louisville at least until May 12 before shipping to Baltimore. He jogged a mile at Churchill on Monday morning and will have light jogs each of the next two days.
Woolley said there are no plans for the horse to have a full workout before the Preakness.
Mine That Bird, ridden by Calvin Borel, won the Derby by 6% lengths over Pioneerof the Nile — the largest margin of victory since Assault in 1946.
On Sunday, a day after the big upset, Woolley said there’s “no obligation” to go to the Prekness and added: "You've got to do what's best for the horse and the horse has got to come first."
And the horse has given every indication he came out of the race in good order.
"The Triple Crown is good for racing, and without the Derby winner, there is no chance to have one," he said.
The last Derby winner to skip
the Preakness was an injured Grindstone in 1996. The last healthy Derby winner to miss it was Spend A Buck in 1985.
Other Derby horses expected to take on Mine That Bird are fourth-place finisher Papa Clem and possibly Pioneerof the Nile, third-space Musket Man, Join in the Dance, which finished seventh, and General Quarters, which finished tenth.
Potential newcomers include Delta Jackpot winner Big Drama, Withers winner Mr. Fantasy, Take the Points and Miner's Escape.
The big question, of course, is whether Mine That Bird can win the Preakness and set up a Triple Crown attempt in the Belmont
The Preakness is limited to 14 starters.
Stakes on June 6. The last Triple Crown winner was Affirmed in 1978.
Borel said he'll be more than happy to take a shot at the historic milestone.
"He's plenty of horse," he said.
Pioneerof the Nile's trainer Bob Baffert had some advice for Woolley and owners Mark Allen and Leonard Blach on Sunday; if Mine That Bird is OK, go for it.
"This is a dream of a lifetime," Baffert said. "I hope he comes out of it well and they go and maybe he's for real. We're going to find out."
Last year, Big Brown won the Derby and the Preakness, but finished last in the Belmont after being pulled up on the turn for home.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Calvin Borel, riding Mine That Bird,
celebrates after winning the 135th Kentucky
Dorsey horse race at Churchill Downs Saturday
in Louisville, Ky. Borel and his horse were given
50-to-1 odds to win the Derby, and is slated to
run in The Preakness May 16.
You tried it for free and it rocked. Try it again.
- More than 30 flavors
- Ice cold smoothies
- Candy bar drinks
- Tropical blends
- Espresso blended drinks
- Chai tea
9th & Iowa drive thru at ZINCO
Check out our new deal in Kansan Coupons!
---