Everybody has an idea of what a Most Valuable Player should be. Big scorer, makes everybody around him better, team wouldn't be the same without him, good ambassador to the game. You know the drill.

But if you ask us, there are all sorts of most valuables when it comes to this asterisked NBA season.

Here's how we define MVP. And here's our MVP lineup:

Most Valuable to His Team

Allen Iverson, Philadelphia 76ers -- Iverson is a gunner in the truest sense of the word. Once he has the ball in his hands, you'd be better off trying to get a burger away from Shawn Kemp than to get the rock from Iverson. And the 76ers should thank their shooting star for that. Yeah, he jacks it up to the tune of 22 shots a game. And he shoots almost 10 free throws a game, too. But without him, the 76ers would be the Boston Celtics.

Most Valuable to the League

Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs -- He's quiet, non-boastful, a young talent who someday may wrest the title of the best big man in the league away from Los Angeles Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal. What he's done for his Spurs this season is unbelievable, ranking in the league's Top 10 in points, rebounds, field-goal percentage, blocks and minutes per game. He also led the league in double-doubles with 37. What he can do for the league, and himself, in the future is immeasurable.

Most All-Around Valuable

Jason Kidd, Phoenix Suns -- He won't get the nod for the traditional MVP, but coach Danny Ainge says he is. Can't shoot, you say? His .444 shooting percentage this year is a career best, and better than Gary Payton, Stephon Marbury, Tim Hardaway, Penny Hardaway, Rod Strickland or Damon Stoudamire. Then, you get almost seven rebounds and a league-leading 10.8 assists, too. No one in the NBA combines the know-how of the game with the physical tools to play it better than this triple-double wizard.

Most Valuable in His Own Mind

Karl Malone, Utah Jazz -- Malone is strong as they come, a wonderful rebounder, a fantastic scorer, third in the league behind Iverson and Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers. Malone is also an elbow-to-the-chops waiting to happen, but that's another story. The Jazz would not be one of the favorites this postseason without him. But few in the NBA rely more heavily on a teammate than Malone leans on partner John Stockton. And no one is more aggressive when it comes to talking about the MVP award.

Most Value

Chris Crawford, Atlanta Hawks -- There are lots of players drudging away at the league minimum (which runs anywhere from about $175,000 for rookies to around $610,000 for 10-year vets in this pro-rated season) -- and a lot of them are playing like it. But the unheralded Crawford, making the minimum for a second-year guy (about $213,000) is a starter on a playoff team. His numbers won't impress -- about 8 points a game as a starter -- but his enthusiasm and athleticism has helped the Hawks over the loss of LaPhonso Ellis.

Most Value Meals

Bryant Reeves, Vancouver Grizzlies -- In this shortened NBA season, the least we could ask was that the players be in shape. Reeves reported in shape. It's just his shape was unbelievably round. His balloonability led to a knee injury, he started in only 14 games, played in only 25 -- all in all, a season to forget for the man called "Big Country." He had career lows in just about every statistical category except, of course, his weight, which was said to be a sloppy 318 pounds at the start of the season.

Most Valuable to Media

Charles Barkley, Houston Rockets -- He says too much, no doubt, and a lot of it is downright not smart. He can be boorish -- not to mention dangerous -- on the court and off it. But who else in the league is so willing to come down on the unappreciative young whippersnappers that are taking over the game? Who else is willing to tell it like it is, or at least his version of what it is, for publication? Sir Charles' act would be wearing a bit thin if he didn't still back up his talk with one of the better games in the NBA.

Most Valuable to the Fans

Vince Carter, Toronto Raptors -- Please, please, pleeeeease stay healthy, Carter. The Rookie of the Year in waiting has awed fans in Toronto and all over the league with his monstrous dunks. And he was one of the reasons the Raptors -- the Raptors! -- made a run at the playoffs before a late-season fade washed them out. He has great number (18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.5 blocks) for a rookie, and he was the rookie of the month in March and April. Big things will be expected of this youngster next season.