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Los Angeles Lakers: Josh Hart deserves MVP with win over Cavaliers

By Jason Renner

LAS VEAGS, NV - JULY 10: Josh Hart #5 of the Los Angeles Lakers talks with media after the game against the New York Knicks during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League on July 10, 2018 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
LAS VEAGS, NV - JULY 10: Josh Hart #5 of the Los Angeles Lakers talks with media after the game against the New York Knicks during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League on July 10, 2018 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Los Angeles Lakers guard, Josh Hart, deserves the Summer League MVP after his performance against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

At the beginning of Vegas Summer League, Los Angeles Lakers guard Josh Hart made it known to management that he wanted to play in the summer tournament. He even mentioned his desire to win Vegas MVP. After his performance in a semi-final win against the Cavs last night, Josh Hart may have ended the MVP discussion.

The fact that the Lakers were facing the Cavaliers at summer league was incredibly ironic. Since LeBron James shocked the NBA world by signing in L.A., the Cavaliers have been more pressed to find young talent to rebuild. Thus, their focus has been on their young squad.

Led by the eighth overall pick in this years draft, Collin Sexton, the Cavs have shown that their young players show some promise for the future.

Despite the strong play by the Cavaliers, Josh Hart led the Lakers squad to a resilient double-overtime victory. Hart got the better of Sexton in the tightly contested game, scoring 37 points.

According to NBA.com, he shot 46.5 percent, going 13 for 28. He continued to show off his stroke from deep too, shooting 40 percent on 6 for 15 shots.

Hart has proven he’s the best player in Vegas this year. Through six games, he’s averaged a tournament-best 24.2 points. Furthermore, he’s done just about everything else, such as collecting steals, pulling down rebounds, and dishing out dimes. He’s improved since last season ended and is also making a case for a starting role for this upcoming season.

After being apart or last years Summer League championship team, Hart is leading the Lakers to a back-to-back appearance in the Vegas Finals. While many people don’t put too much importance on Summer League, I believe it holds some value.

Summer League showcases the NBA’s new batch of incoming talent. It also gives other players a platform to develop further if they’re still not NBA ready after a season or two. While many players have played at Summer League this year, none have stood out like Hart.

Of all the other players, only a few even deserve a slight nod for MVP of the tournament. Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins was impressive, but only appeared in two games. Despite his strong production, he doesn’t have as large a sample size as Hart.

Another standout was New York Knicks rookie Kevin Knox. He was phenomenal for the Knicks, but their poor performance as a team hurt his chances (winning two of five games).

Because of this, Josh Hart has solidified his case for Summer League MVP. No player has played as well as him for as good of a team. If he wins the award, he’d follow teammate Lonzo Ball as Lakers to win the award.

https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1017612374579109888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Hart will look to lead the Lakers to a win in the Finals tonight against Portland. If the Lakers come out with a win and Hart continues his strong play, he could also take home the Finals MVP award. If so, he’d join teammate Kyle Kuzma as Lakers to win the award. You can be certain he won’t let his teammates forget about that. That’s a lot of hardware for a second-year player.

Next: 5 Lakers To Watch During Summer League Play

Tune into ESPN tonight at 10 p.m to watch the Summer League final. Expect another impressive performance from Hart.

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