Chris Paul: Bucks beating Rockets shouldn't factor into MVP vote

Chris Paul is hopeful voters for the NBA's Most Valuable Player award won't put any stock into the Houston Rockets falling to the Milwaukee Bucks Tuesday night when choosing between James Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"Obviously I'm biased about the MVP and whoever or whatnot, but those of you that decide it on head-to-head games with a few games left in the season, good luck with that," Paul said, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon. "Happened to me in '08."

The veteran point guard was referring to when he finished second in voting to Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant for the Maurice Podoloff trophy. The Lakers defeated Paul's New Orleans Hornets in the third-last game of the campaign, with Bryant recording 29 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.

Paul referenced Harden's streak of 32 games with 30 or more points from earlier in the season as Houston battled through a number of injuries as a key reason why his superstar teammate should repeat as MVP.

"I get to see James play a lot more," Paul added. "You've got to understand that me saying that doesn't mean that Giannis hasn't had an amazing season and stuff like that. He's been great for his team and all that, but I see what James does every night, too."

Antetokounmpo finished with a line of 19 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and five turnovers on 7-of-15 shooting to lead Milwaukee to a convincing 108-94 win over the Rockets. Harden, meanwhile, missed 17 of his 26 shots from the field, but still managed to register a team-high 23 points to go along with his 10 rebounds and seven assists in 38 minutes.

Milwaukee owns a four-game lead over the Toronto Raptors for the top seed in the Eastern Conference at 56-19, while Houston is slotted in fourth out West with a 47-28 record.