According to numerous published reports, it appears that Kobe Bryant will soon be named the NBA's MVP.

While there is no denying that Kobe had a fantastic season, he wasn't the league's most valuable player.  Unfortunately, he may get a number of votes as a sort of 'lifetime achievement award.'  That's unfair if that is the case.  Voters should base their votes on each candidate's play during the 2007-2008 NBA regular season, not each player's career.

And if you look at the stats each candidate complied this season, the award belongs on Chris Paul's trophy case.  

Yes, LeBron was unstoppable at times, KG spearheaded the greatest turnaround in NBA history, and Kobe's season was unquestionably superb.  But no one was more valuable than Chris Paul.  Period. 

His superlative personal statistics aside, Paul's impact on his teammates has been phenomenal.  The main cogs on the Hornets roster are relatively young and inexperienced, but CP3 carried them to 56-26 record, good enough for the second seed in the ultra-competitive Western Conference.

And the numbers shouldn't be the sole deciding factor, but if you look closely at the stats CP3 put up this season, they are truly staggering.  While intangibles such as leadership and nebulous concepts such as "making your teammates better" are difficult to measure, the one thing we can clearly quantify is the statistical bottom line.  And looking at Paul's end of the season numbers is awe-inspiring.

So that is what we are going to do in this article - take an in-depth look at some of the remarkable stats Chris Paul authored over the last six months. 

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Chris Paul finished the 2007-2008 NBA season averaging 21.1 points, 11.6 assists, 4 rebounds, 2.7 steals, and 1.2 made three-pointers per game.  He shot 48.8% from the field and 85% from the free-throw line. 

Now, let's put those numbers in perspective:

* In the 61-year history of the league, there have only been seven players to finish a season with averages of at least 20 points and 10 assists.  The other members of this prestigious 20/10 club are Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Kevin Johnson, Tim Hardaway, Nate "Tiny" Archibald, and, surprisingly, Michael Adams (26.5 and 10.5 in '90-'91).

* No player has accomplished this impressive 20/10 feat in over 15 years.  Timmy Hardaway was the last to do so back in 1992-1993.

* CP3 also led the league in steals.  As if the points, assists, rebounds, solid FG% and FT% weren't enough, Paul helped control the game on the defensive end as well. 

Since the NBA began tracking steals as an official statistic back in 1972, no player in history has ever averaged 20 and 10 while also leading the league in thefts.  The last player to lead the NBA in steals and assists was John Stockton back '91-'92. 

* The only true point guard to win the MVP since Magic Johnson in his prime was Steve Nash, who took home the honors in both the '04-'05 and '05-'06 seasons.  Compared with Nash's best seasons, including his back-to-back MVP campaigns, Paul averaged more points, equal to or greater assists, more rebounds, far more steals, and fewer turnovers.  Basically, CP3's stats are like Steve Nash's numbers on steroids.  In addition, Paul doesn't have nearly as talented a supporting cast as Nash, nor does he play in the same fantasy-friendly offense. 

* Speaking of Nash, CP3 played some of his best basketball against some of the best point guards in the league.  Here is a stat to help illustrate this point:  In four head-to-head meetings with the Suns this season, Paul (44) had one more assist than Nash (43) while outscoring him by an average of more than 10 points per game (29.0 to 18.8).

* Paul recorded 30 games this season with 20 or more points and 10 or more assists. That's the most 20/10 games in a season since Tim Hardaway did it 34 times for the 1991-92 Warriors.

* In a win over the Warriors back on April 5th, Chris Paul racked up 16 points, 10 rebounds, 13 assists and five steals.  Per the Elias Sports Bureau: "It was the third game of Paul's brief NBA career in which he reached those levels in all four categories. The only other active player to have such a game is Jason Kidd, and he's done it only once (Nets vs. Magic, Feb. 23, 2003).  Paul's three games meeting those minimums (16 PTS, 10 REB, 13 AST, 5 STL) match the most for any NBA player since the league began keeping track of steals in 1973-74. Magic Johnson and Micheal Ray Richardson are the only other players with three such games."
 
* Paul became the first player in over 25 years to lead the league in assists while still averaging fewer than 3 turnovers per game. (The last player to accomplish that feat was Johnny Moore back in 1981-1982.) 

* Following up on the previous entry, Johnny Moore averaged 9.65 assists.  No player, other than Paul, has averaged double-digit assists and just 2.5 turnovers or less.  

* CP3 played in six games this season in which he dished out at least 15 assists with no more than one turnover. That equals the total of such individual performances by the rest of the league combined. Paul's six games of that type are the most in a season for any NBA player since the league began officially recording turnovers in 1977.

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Of course all MVP votes are cast at the end of the regular season, and before the playoffs begin, but Paul has only gone on to further prove his worth this postseason.  Here are a few more 'bonus' playoff-edition stat notes courtesy of the good folks at the Elias Sports Bureau:

* Chris Paul scored 35 points and handed out 10 assists in his first NBA playoff game, a 104-92 victory over Dallas in round one.  Paul is the first player in league history to record at least 35 points and at least 10 assists in his first NBA playoff game.  Only three other players in NBA history scored 35 or more points in their playoff debut and won the game: Wilt Chamberlain with the Philadelphia Warriors in 1960 (35 points), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with the Bucks in 1970 (36 points), and Gary Brokaw with the 1976 Bucks (36 points).

* Chris Paul had 32 points and 17 assists in Game 2 of the Mavericks series.  It was Paul's second career postseason game.  He's the first player in NBA history with at least 30 points and 10 assists in each of his first two career playoff games and he's also the first to total as many as 67 points and 27 assists in his first two career playoff games.

* Chris Paul capped a historic playoff debut series with a triple-double in the Hornets' 99-94 win in Game 5, eliminating the Mavericks from the NBA's postseason tournament.  Over the last 20 years, the only other players to post a triple-double in their first playoff series were LeBron James (2006) and Steve Francis (2004).  Paul averaged 12.0 assists in the five-game series, the second-highest mark in NBA history by a player in his first postseason series. The record is 13.0, by Kevin Johnson in 1989.

And CP3 is at it again in the second-round.  Facing the defending champs, Paul has dominated Tony Parker and powered the Hornets to a surprising 2-0 series lead.  Sharing the same floor with the likes of Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili, Paul has clearly been the best player over Games 1 and 2.

One final stat to leave you with: After another magical performance in the Hornets Game 2 victory over San Antonio, Paul is now averaging over 24 points per game and sporting an inconceivable 85:9 assist-to-turnover ratio through the first seven playoff games of his career!

The numbers speak for themselves.  Since Kobe Bryant has reportedly won the MVP award, he should show up to the ceremony with a mask and gloves on, because he robbed Chris Paul.

Check out the 2008 Playoff Weekly Stats Leaders Here