Bryant named NBA's MVP
Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant has been named as the NBA's Most Valuable Player after leading his side to the best record in the Western Conference. Bryant has long been regarded as one of the best players in the NBA, but has never won the MVP award.
Bryant averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.84 steals while playing all 82 games despite tearing a ligament in his right pinkie in February. He put off surgery until after the Olympics.
In the past the 29-year-old had been accused of not making the players around him any better and that was one of the reasons he had never won the award, but that is not the case anymore.
Bryant received 82-first-place votes and 1,100 points in the media vote. He was followed by New Orleans' Chris Paul (28 and 894), Boston's Kevin Garnett (15 and 670) and Cleveland's LeBron James (1 and 438).
"It's Hollywood, it's a movie script. The perfect ending would be for us to hold a championship trophy at the end of it," Bryant said.
"This is an award I couldn't have won on my own. I can't thank these guys (his teammates) enough. These are my guys, these are my brothers."
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