SB Nation Reacts: Could a former Rocket win MVP?

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Each week, we send out questions to the most plugged in Houston Rockets fans, and fans across the country. Sign up here to join Reacts.

According to the most recent SB Nation Reacts survey, 77 percent of Rockets fans are confident the team is headed in the right direction. That’s up from 60 percent last week but down from 82 percent the week before.

Perhaps the 17 percent increase came from Kevin Porter Jr.’s 50-point performance against the Bucks, becoming the youngest Rocket to ever accomplish the feat. Christian Wood also managed to put up a subtle 31 points and also scored back-to-back games of 18+ rebounds recently.

The Rockets, like every other team in the league, are working through a non-stop schedule to end the season. With the end of the regular season scheduled to come May 16, the NBA is forcing teams to finish their schedule.

However, more than two-thirds of fans around the NBA think the league condensed the schedule too much.

The Rockets have definitely also been a victim of the league’s tight schedule. The injuries piled up for the Rockets early in the season but they have been unable to recover, floundering to the bottom of the league’s standings.

One major reason it’s believed the league was so adamant on finishing this early is because of the expected 2021 Olympics this summer. However, only 44 percent of fans believe that’s a worthy reason for playing games at this pace.

While the schedule is difficult for everyone, some teams are having more success than others. That’s in large part due to the success of star players around the league. This year’s MVP race has seen a changing group of players from start to finish.

As the season nears its end, though, one player has emerged as the front runner for the award. 61 percent of fans nationally think Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokić is the league’s MVP. Former Rockets and current Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul was the next closest with 17 percent.

While Jokić appears to be the clear MVP, that doesn’t mean he’s considered the best player in the game right now. That title, according to fans, still goes to Lakers superstar LeBron James.

I definitely wish there was a write-in option for this question, as I definitely would have written in Jae’Sean Tate without hesitation.

However, when it comes to biggest difference maker, there is certainly no surprise here. Former Rockets Chris Paul and James Harden rack up over 90 percent of the vote here, with CP3 a runaway for this vote as he has the Suns right where the Rockets were three years ago, towards the top of the Western Conference standings.

And without CP3 and Harden, it’s no coincidence that the Rockets are trending in the opposite direction.

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