'Melo makes case for MVP award

Talk of the league's MVP will be dominated by LeBron James and Kobe Bryant in the second half of the season, but with teams nearing the halfway point in the schedule, there is another name that needs to be included: Carmelo Anthony.

Playing in a tougher conference than James and with considerably less talent than Bryant, Anthony has had a dominant first half. He leads the NBA in scoring (30.0 points), has more 30-point games than eight teams combined and has helped mold Denver into strong finishers (the Nuggets are 21-2 when leading after three quarters).

Even his peers are starting to give Anthony props.

"I tell my friends all the time if I had to chose between LeBron, Kobe and Carmelo, I'm [going to] choose Carmelo," Dwight Howard said on 104.3 The Fan in Denver. "He can really score. I had the opportunity to play with him in the Olympics and he scores in bunches. You look up and he'll have 15 points in the first quarter. He's just that talented."

With Anthony -- who has the Nuggets up to No. 4 in this week's Power Rankings -- now squarely in the mix, the MVP race should be a fight to the finish.

(All stats and records are through Jan. 17.)

NBA Power Rankings

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