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Durant: 'Of Course' Rose Should Be MVP

Derrick Rose is just a few games away from officially leading the Chicago Bulls to the best record in the Eastern Conference. And according to one NBA superstar, the MVP race can officially end and Rose can take his trophy.

"As of right now, I congratulate Derrick Rose for winning MVP," Kevin Durant said in a recent interview with HoopsHype.com. "Yeah, of course [Rose should be the MVP]. He's having a phenomenal season. They're No. 1 in the East now, especially with all the firepower that went to the East."

By no means is Durant the first person to endorse Rose as the league's MVP. Current and former players like Chris Bosh, Scottie Pippen and Steve Kerr have already done just that.

Durant emphasized what Rose has done for the Bulls as further reasoning for his endorsement.

"I think the MVP goes to a guy that their team is like us last year when we went from 23 wins to 50," Durant said. "That's a big difference. With guys like D. Rose, they went from 41 to like 50-something right now. So it's a big difference."

Rose has been the unquestioned leader of the Bulls all season long. He's carried the team through injuries and never let the team slow down as they made their surprising run to the top of the conference.

And he has the stats to back up his MVP candidacy as well. On the season, Rose is averaging 25.1 points and 7.9 assists per game, the only player in the league to rank in the top 10 in each category.

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