For James, the painted area may be the path to an MVP trophy

NEW YORK -- LeBron James said earlier this month that when he joined forces with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in Miami, the chance of winning a third straight MVP award "kind of went out the window." And in addition to joining a more talented supporting cast, James may have hurt his standing with the media by the way he made that Decision last summer, not to mention the ugliness of his last three games as a Cleveland Cavalier last May.

But when it comes down to it, James is still as much of an MVP candidate as anyone else in the league. And right now is the time when he can prove it.

James' scoring and assists are down from last season, but by a few different metrics, he's still got the best numbers in the league. He also ranks second (behind Paul Pierce) in raw plus-minus, and is ultimately the player most responsible for turning a 47-win team into one that's on pace to win 58 games and compete for a championship this season.

And maybe the most compelling element of James' first season in Miami is the additional versatility that he's beginning to display.

By definition, the Maurice Podoloff Trophy is awarded for performance over six months, but MVP campaigns are often boosted or defined by a particular stretch of games. It may be a Kobe-esque scoring binge or a winning streak that pushes a team up the standings.

For James, this could be the stretch of games that brings his name back to the forefront of the MVP race. Bosh has missed the last four games with a sprained left ankle. Wade missed Friday's game with a sprained right wrist and is set to have an MRI on Saturday. And Udonis Haslem is still out after having surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left foot.

But for the LeBron-as-MVP argument, this stretch of games is more about the role James is playing than the role players he's left to work with.

It's Bosh's absence in particular that puts James in a position to show his value. Last week, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called Bosh "probably our most important player" because Miami needs a post presence to keep its offense from getting stagnant.

In Bosh's absence, James has been called upon to man the power forward spot for the Heat. Clearly, he's big enough to play the four and technically, it's a position that he played for the Cavs in three-guard lineups. But this time, he has to play it in a different capacity, working from the inside-out.

"It's one of the toughest transitions in this league," Spoelstra said Thursday. "Outside of going from the two guard to the point guard, shifting back and forth from the three and the four is probably as challenging as anything.

"He's role playing for us right now. It's important for us to be able to establish a post presence, which we've always done with Chris."

Until this point in his career, James has never played out of the post as much as his coaches, fans and the media would like him too. He always had the size and skills, but not the practice to be effective with his back to the basket. But now James is beginning to accept that he needs to add variety to his game, which will only benefit the Heat in the long run.

"LeBron gets it," Spoelstra said. "So if midseason, you need to make a change like this, only a few players can really do it, be effective and help the team. He's one of those guys."

Spoelstra doesn't need James on the low block every possession, but he does need him to make catches at the elbow and allow the offense to run through him there. They didn't have much success when they went to him in the post against the Knicks on Thursday, but Spoelstra was happy with the shots his team got out of those possessions. And on Friday against the Pistons, those shots began to fall.

The sample sizes are small, but thus far, the Heat lineups with James at the four have been very successful offensively, though not so much on the other end of the floor. And while Bosh may return soon, that doesn't mean that James is done playing inside.

"I think it's [a lineup] where two weeks ago we looked awkward," Spoelstra said. "Now, two weeks later, we look pretty comfortable. He is developing a comfort level there and is efficient there. And it's something we will definitely use, even when Chris comes back."

The Heat are now 2-2 without Bosh, 3-1 without Wade and 0-2 without James. A win or two without the other two stars isn't much of an argument for James' value to the Heat. But in addition to leading his team to a top seed in the East, he's adding diversity to his game. And when this season is over, James will have helped his team by playing major minutes at the point, at the wing, and in the post.

What other player can say that?

John Schuhmann is a staff writer for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here and follow him on twitter. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its clubs or Turner Broadcasting.