Houston's  James Harden is the odds-on favorite to win his second-consecutive NBA MVP award,  but there are plenty of excellent candidates this year. One such player is Oklahoma City's Paul George, who is having the best season of his career while leading the Thunder in the strong Western Conference, where they are currently the third seed. George may be a dark horse for the honor, but he is certainly deserving of it. Here are four reasons why.

4. Improved chemistry and leadership

The first season of the Paul George experiment didn't go so well for the Thunder. They had traded for George and Carmelo Anthony in an attempt to match up with the Golden State Warriors. Instead, Oklahoma City finished fourth in the conference with a 48-34 record and won only two games in the first round of the playoffs against the Utah Jazz. As soon as the buzzer sounded at the end of Game 6, speculation began that George would sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, a match that the media had been making for years. However, George surprised many by re-signing with the Thunder, and that decision is looking pretty good right now.

Paul George

OKC is currently 31-18, on a five-game winning streak, and possesses the third seed in the West. It may be all for nothing because the Golden State Warriors still exist, but there is no doubt that the Thunder are a much improved team this season, and much of that is due to George settling in and taking on a larger role in clutch situations.

3. Taking some of the load off of Russell Westbrook

While George deserves to be in the MVP discussion, is he even the best player on his own team? There is a legitimate discussion to be had, as Russell Westbrook is still an elite point guard, even if his offensive numbers are a bit down this year. Westbrook is averaging 10.8 rebounds, 10.7 assists, and 2.3 steals, all excellent numbers. He is scoring 21.6 points per game, down from the 25.4 he put up last season. His shooting percentage has dropped from 45% to 41%, and from three-point range, 30% to just 25%. Even though Westbrook isn't as efficient as he was in 2017-2018, the Thunder are winning, thanks to George's improvement covering for Westbrook's regression.

paul george

2. Career-high stats

With how ball-dominant Westbrook is, not many people expected George's numbers to actually improve from when he was the primary scorer with the Indiana Pacers, but that's exactly what is happening. Through 48 games, George is averaging 27.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.3 steals, while shooting 45% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc. He leads the league in steals and has exactly half as many turnovers as James Harden (127 to 254). His points, rebounds, and steals numbers are the highest of his career, with his assists just 0.1 shy of his career-best.

1. He's doing this without being the only threat on his team

The top three candidates for MVP, James Harden, Giannis Antetekounmpo, and LeBron James, all have something in common that does not apply to George; they are the undisputed leaders of their teams. Four Houston, Chris Paul just returned after missing 17 consecutive games.

Harden's field goal attempts are up four per game from last season when Paul played in 58 contests, so it remains to be seen how much the Point god's return will affect Harden's usage rate. Antetekounmpo don't have to worry about a second star returning from injury and taking the ball out of their hands.

George, however, must play along with Westbrook, who takes 20 shots per game and is the primary ball-handler for the Thunder's offense. George is not quite as efficient as Kevin Durant was during his stint in Oklahoma City, but George is having a similar impact. In an era where players are demanding the ball in their hands, it's impressive to see how well George and Westbrook are coexisting.

He has essentially zero chance at winning the award, but Paul George's play this season should make people at least consider him a serious contender for MVP.