Oklahoma City Thunder's Kevin Durant beats out Miami Heat's LeBron James to win first MVP award

Over the past few years it seemed like it was always LeBron James vs Kevin Durant, with James often winning the battles and wars while Durant settled for the occasional little win here and there. Finally a big landmark in Durant's career has arrived. The Oklahoma City Thunder star has won his first MVP award. His seven-year career has seen him achieve many milestones, but the Most Valuable Player award is one that seemed to evade him - until today that is.

25-year-old Durant topped his rival LeBron, with the Miami Heat star finishing second. He had lost the previous two times, finishing second to LeBron. The five-time All-Star has been tipped to receive the award for much of the season, as he averaged a career-high 32 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists. On top of that, he led his Thunder team to a terrific season. However, they'll be hoping their recent playoff form improves as they look to put Durant on the biggest stage of them all once again, the NBA championship games.

In 2007 Durant was the No. 2 overall pick in, and he's been a revelation since then. Now he is the third player since 2009 to win the award, with only LeBron and Derrick Rose winning it. Now many will be wondering if Durant can achieve something greater, like a championship. Would that be out of his reach, or is it surely the next step in the young superstar's career?

Who would you pick, LeBron James, or Kevin Durant?