Most pundits already have made up their mind that Kevin Durant and LeBron James are in a two-man race for NBA MVP, while dismissing the rest of the field. Easily the most assuming lurking candidate is the Phoenix Suns’ Goran Dragic. Dragic was unfathomably left off of the All-Star Game for the Western Conference despite leading a team of nobodies into playoff contention.

Heading into Friday night he was averaging 20.4 points, 6 assists, while shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 42.3 percent from downtown. The Suns were projected by many to be the worst team in the entire NBA before the season began, and after beating the New York Knicks on Friday they are currently at 44-29, good for eighth in the West. This despite the fact Eric Bledsoe was injured earlier in the year and missed 33 games, where Dragic kept Phoenix afloat.

No doubt Dragic has been the engine to one of the most high octane offenses in the league, often times destroying an opponent with cold-blooded daggers from the outside. He isn’t the type of guy to beat his chest and draw attention to himself, which keeps him mostly unnoticed by the space cadets of the world. Against New York, Dragic received an elbow from Tyson Chandler causing a cut over his eye, but that didn’t stop him from coming back out for the second half and finishing strong. That’s what an MVP does.

Most of the MVP voters have probably made up their mind already, with a lot of them going to sleep in the east before Phoenix has started their game out on the west coast. So in all likelihood there are a ton of individuals who haven’t even seen Dragic play this year. Yet, Dragic continues to put up huge numbers, clutch baskets, and big-time wins. He can no longer be ignored for MVP consideration.

Scott Groff is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @ucla_unknown and add him to your network on Google.