OK, so this isn't a very difficult forecast: LeBron James should and will win the NBA Most Valuable Player award.
What's interesting in the MVP category is what happens down the ballot, especially for a superstar in an empire state of mind.
Carmelo Anthony's name popped up a lot on our ballots -- in the category of who should get MVP votes, the red-hot New York Knicks forward moved all the way up to fourth in the voting. If the NBA's balloting goes the same way, it would be Melo's first-ever top-five finish in the MVP voting and only his second top-10 appearance in his 10 seasons in the league.
Otherwise the top five consists of the usual suspects: LeBron, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant.
These results come from votes by our ESPN Forecast panel.
ESPN Forecast: Who should win the MVP award?
Voters ranked their top three picks, with a 10-7-5 scoring system
ESPN Forecast: Who will win the MVP award?
Voters selected one name each