CLEVELAND, Ohio -- One more MVP award will give LeBron James five, elevating him into rare company with Michael Jordan, Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players to reach that total. A fifth award will also push him past NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain.
But the odds of James reaching that number aren't as high as they could be, at least according to online sportsbook Bovada.
In the odds released Monday, a little more than one month before Cleveland's first practice, James is listed as third most likely to take home the prestigious award, at 5/1.
The reigning NBA Finals MVP trails Oklahoma City point guard -- and favorite -- Russell Westbrook (2/1) as well as Golden State's back-to-back recipient Stephen Curry, who is listed at 4/1 despite the arrival of free agent Kevin Durant this off-season, which will likely lead to a decrease in production.
James, 31, finished third in voting this past season after averaging 25.3 points -- the second lowest of his career -- to go with 7.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists, a touch lower than his career average (6.9). He also led the Cavs to the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, racking up 57 wins, three more than the 2014-15 campaign.
But James couldn't stack up against Curry, who became the first ever unanimous MVP following a record-setting regular season.
A few months ago, James shared his thoughts about possibly redefining MVP.
"I think there's a lot of valuable guys in our league that adds value to their team," he said. "I think sometimes the word 'valuable' or best player of the year, you can have different results. When you talk about most 'valuable' then you can have a different conversation."
Kawhi Leonard, who finished a few points ahead of James for second place in the MVP race, is listed seventh this year, getting 16/1 odds. Durant, the newest Warrior, is fourth, at 12/1.
James hasn't won the award since 2012-13 and only nine players in league history have won an MVP after the age of 30, which is one of James' obstacles.
His numbers may not be able to match some of the league's best either, especially given the depth and balance of the reigning NBA champs as well as the Cavs' overall view on the regular season.
James' best chance at a fifth MVP is having voters remember his message from May, to put more of an emphasis on the term "valuable" as opposed to stats.