Nevius: Warriors' Kevin Durant showing why he should be MVP

This is the time of year when we hold a voice vote for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player.

When Steph Curry takes a free throw, Oracle fans chant, “MVP! MVP!”

In Houston, they do the same with James Harden.

I’d like to bring a little clarity to the discussion.

It’s Kevin Durant.

First, his numbers in the playoffs have been otherworldly. (And yes, MVP is for the regular season, but check what he’s doing now.) He’s averaging 34 points a game and playing 38 minutes a night. Feel free to run the rest of the stats if you wish.

Because more importantly, he’s rising up and taking the big shot in the big moment. And time after head-shaking time he has forced a really difficult shot over a defender and knocked it down.

Realistically, Durant is not going to win MVP (Harden is the favorite). But there is an unmistakable sense that this is a moment - a time when he moves to an otherworldly level.

I noticed it a couple of weeks ago. Affable Andrew Bogut was doing a little press gaggle and I asked him if he’d watched the Warriors much after the team traded him in 2016. And if he had, if he’d noticed any difference.

“Yeah, they added one of the best players in the world,” he replied dryly.

And if you listen, you hear that again and again.

“He’s one of the most skilled players to ever play the game,” Steve Kerr said after Game 1 of this series. “There’s never been anyone like him.”

OK, Bogut is Durant’s teammate. Kerr is his coach. Did you think they were going to rip him? But you don’t hear many people pushing back, either.

“Right now,” tweeted 16-year NBA vet Kendrick Perkins last week, “Kevin Durant is the best player in the world.”

After years of LeBron James’ runaway locomotive charges to the basket and Harden’s tiresome tick-tock dribbling, the basketball world turns its lonely eyes to a seven-foot (c’mon, 6-11, who are we kidding?), graceful player who scores with a deft touch for 3s, a crossover move and an ability and eagerness to run the floor.

And suddenly the mythical Best Player in the World title is in play, with the crown hovering over Durant. Which must peeve the once and future BPITW, LeBron.

But it’s a funny thing about this game. It doesn’t have a great institutional memory.

We were reminded of that when a reporter asked Kerr if Durant’s performance put him in mind of anyone. It was such a great straight line for the former teammate of Michael Jordan that you wondered if it was a setup.

“There’s this guy named Michael something,” Kerr cracked. “Can’t remember his last name.”

Everybody laughed, but the game moves on.

Not that Durant doesn’t have his quirks. We are still waiting for an explanation of that weird Game 2 in the Clippers series, where he took only eight shots and slouched listlessly in the corner.

And yes, again, he’s touchy. He takes offense, sometimes when none was meant.

Some credit must be given to the wise soul of Steph Curry. He handles the flow on the court selflessly, and seems perfectly willing to let Durant go off if he’s having one of those nights. And he is not only the team spokesman; he is the voice of reason. All of that makes it easier for Durant, who can become exasperated at the constant attention.

But the strange thing is, now is the time when you’d expect Durant to go into his shell. The national media is all over the Warriors-Rockets. It is the buzz series of the playoffs. That means more East Coast questions about free agency and potential teams. More time under the microscope.

And Durant seems fine with it. Teams usually hold a shootaround on the day of a game. With the Warriors, reporters wait in the hall until practice ends. When summoned to the gym, we walk in and see who will show up in the interview chair. Could be anybody.

And on the eve of Game 2 with Houston, Durant was already in the chair when the door opened, waiting for questions. He couldn’t have looked more relaxed.

After the game, I asked him if he’d reached the point in his career (remember, this is his 12th NBA season) where he enjoyed the pressure?

He said he thought Portland’s Damian Lillard had a great quote about pressure.

Great, what is it?

“It’s a long quote,” Durant said. “Go look at it.”

Geez, now he’s assigning homework?

All right, Lillard’s quote (which is from 2017) is: “Pressure, nah. Fam, this is just playing ball. Pressure is the homeless man, who doesn’t know where his next meal is coming from. Pressure is the single mom, who is trying to scuffle and pay her rent.

“We get paid a lot of money to play a game. Don’t get me wrong - there are challenges. But to call it pressure is almost an insult to regular people.”

Or as Durant put it: “It’s just fun being out there. What’s the worst that can happen to either team? Once everybody looks at it in a more wider view of things, I don’t think it’s that much pressure.”

And with that calm, confident attitude, Durant could establish himself as the BPITW during these playoffs. And you can bet LeBron James is watching.

On TV.

Contact C.W. Nevius at cw.nevius@pressdemocrat.com. Twitter: @cwnevius