NBA's East features MVP candidates even with LeBron in the West

With Christmas just around the corner, the NBA's decision to have Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid in its holiday lineup is more than just sides in another hoop smorgasbord.

It puts the spotlight on — and raises a question — about the MVP race, as in, who in the Eastern Conference is a legitimate contender. It's a question because the last East MVP, LeBron James going on six years ago, has moved West.

Of course, the conversation has to include the biggest name to go the opposite direction this past offseason: Toronto's Kawhi Leonard, who forced his way out of San Antonio in a trade after missing most of last season with a mysterious leg injury.

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"Oh yeah," first-year Atlanta coach Lloyd Pierce declared about the East's MVP hopes.

"We missed Kawhi last year and the people that coached against him didn't for a reason," said Pierce, who was an assistant with the 76ers for Embiid's first two seasons. "He's a dominant two-way player. Antetokounmpo is unbelievable and his growth continues to rise every game, every year."

The "Greek Freak" opens the Christmas lineup a week from Tuesday (Wednesday Manila time) with a visit to Madison Square Garden to face the Knicks, and Embiid will play at East rival Boston. Leonard and the Raptors don't play December 25.

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The 7-foot Embiid is sixth in scoring, third in rebounding and eighth in blocks with the Sixers sitting fourth in the East going into Sunday's games. Another West star, New Orleans' Anthony Davis, is the other player in the top eight in those three categories.

"It's a little tougher for those big guys to get in the mix, but I think Joel, he'll make his mark," Pierce said. "He's got to be if not an MVP, a defensive player of the year candidate, first-team all-defensive player this year."

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If Antetokounmpo can get his 26.6-point scoring average back to 27, he has a chance to be the first to average that many points along with at least 13 rebounds and six assists per game. The Bucks star is eighth in scoring and fifth in rebounding.

"He's doing things I think LeBron's doing," Indiana coach Nate McMillan said. "He's a forward playing the point. He's an excellent passer, a willing passer, he pushes the ball in transition. He can score. He's assisting, he's rebounding."

Leonard has missed games with foot and hip injuries, along with the occasional rest on the second night of a back-to-back after missing all but nine games of his final season with the Spurs because of the leg injury.

"Khawi is certainly an MVP-caliber player and I keep saying that because of how good he is at the defensive end makes him one of the most interesting candidates," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. "His dominance at times on that end of the floor, along with dropping in 25-30 points, makes him a two-way interesting candidate."

Surging Celts

Widely considered the preseason favorites in the East, the Celtics are finally playing like it. Boston won eight straight games before a loss to Detroit to surge to fifth in the East, even in the loss column with fourth-place Philadelphia.

Jayson Tatum shot better than 50 percent during the winning streak while scoring almost 18 points per game. Terry Rozier scored in double figures off the bench in six of the first seven games during the streak.