Around major-league baseball circles, it's an age-old debate. Should the Most Valuable Player award go to the best player, period? Or the best player on the best team? Or the player who is most valuable to his team?
The writers who cover Mountain West Conference basketball will face similar questions when they decide year-end awards prior to the conference tournament in March.
There are a host of MVP candidates from which to choose.
Let's start with New Mexico guard Ruben Douglas, who leads the conference — and the nation — in scoring. While his numbers speak for themselves (he is averaging 28.5 points per game overall and 33.5 points in league games), his Lobos are mired near the bottom of the MWC standings with a dismal 3-8 record.
Despite his team's struggles, Douglas continues to score at a relentless pace. He poured in 43 points (tying a career-best) in UNM's loss at San Diego State on Monday. He's scored against every kind of defense imaginable.
Douglas has a great shot at winning the national scoring title, but the only winning he's concerned about right now involves his team. "I just have to go out there and give it my all," Douglas told the Albuquerque Tribune.
It could be argued that if Douglas were removed from the Lobos, they'd still be a bad team. Only worse.
Of the other MVP candidates, there are a few from first-place Utah. And rightly so, since the Utes (9-1 in conference play, 21-4 overall) have separated themselves from the rest of the MWC pack, thanks to a victory over second-place BYU on Monday.
First, there's the most unlikely candidate of all when conference play opened in January — Marc Jackson. The sophomore point guard doesn't even start, but he has emerged as perhaps the top sixth-man in the country.
In league games only, Jackson is No. 10 in the MWC in scoring (14.8 points), No. 4 in field goal percentage (55 percent), No. 3 in assists (3.6), No. 3 in free throw percentage (87 percent), No. 1 in 3-point field goal percentage (59 percent) and No. 11 in steals (1.1). He's also No. 4 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.50). Jackson's spark off the bench has helped win several conference games for Utah. In crunch time, he's played like a senior.
Then there's Ute center Tim Frost, who averages 14.5 points and is No. 2 in field goal percentage (57 percent) in MWC games. He has done a great job both inside and outside. Frost is shooting 52 percent from 3-point range.
And what about last year's league MVP, Britton Johnsen? Despite playing much of the season with a torn ligament in his right (shooting) thumb, the 6-foot-9 forward has averaged 12.3 points and seven rebounds per outing. Those aren't eye-popping numbers, but he is the senior leader of this team, a guy who has a lot of big-game experience. The Utes will lean on him even more during the postseason.
Take one of those three players away from Utah this season, where would the Utes be?
Of course, there are other players around the conference who merit MVP consideration. BYU's Travis Hansen has been consistently good as both a scorer and defender. Wyoming's Donta Richardson has filled in a lot of the scoring void left by the injured Marcus Bailey. UNLV's Marcus Banks and San Diego State's Tony Bland are also among the MWC's top scorers.
So who is the MVP? Is it the best player, period? The best player on the best team? Or the player who is most valuable to his team?
Depends on your definition.
E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com