
via Getty
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant receives the NBA Most Valuable Player trophy from comissioner David Stern prior to game two of the Western Conference semifinal at Staples Center. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

via Getty
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant receives the NBA Most Valuable Player trophy from comissioner David Stern prior to game two of the Western Conference semifinal at Staples Center. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Apart from winning championships, players of the NBA are also focused on winning one award in particular. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. This essentially certifies that the player who wins it was the best in the league for that season. At present, the defending champion of this award is Denver’s Nikola Jokic. With yet another solid season so far, it looks like Jokic might win the award once again.
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However, not everyone sees Jokic as the outright MVP this season. In fact, there have been several occasions where the award winner was not an outright favorite. Take the 2005-06 season, for example. Kobe Bryant had put on a show that year and led the league in scoring an even scored 81 points in a single game. Despite his achievements, it was Steve Nash who was named the MVP.
WATCH THIS STORY: Who is Shaheen Halloway? NCAA Head Coach Who Made Kobe Bryants Kill List By Beating Him To An MVP Award.
It was only in the 2007-08 season that Kobe would win the award despite his scoring average not being as great as the ’05-06 season. Moreover, this would be Kobe’s only MVP award despite having a storied 20-year career. Such incidents have led to fans questioning the system in place that decides the winner.
NBA Fans on the MVP Award System
NBA fans on Twitter went berserk. They questioned the award system based on votes and even the people who are allowed to vote. In fact, they even used Kobe Bryant’s MVP scenario along with scenarios of other players to back up their claims.
The fact that Kobe got only 1 MVP in his 20 year career is all you need to know about how bad the MVP voting system has been in the NBA.
Change needs to happen with the system and also who gets to vote.
— BGN (@BGN_5) March 26, 2022
Don’t get me wrong Jokic is great and a player I enjoy watching but I still don’t understand how he’s top 3 in voting over some players who’ve led their teams to better records with better stats
— ex. (TMRW.PPL BY TOMORROW PEOPLE AVAILABLE NOW) (@exstatikk) March 26, 2022
Like James Harden coach said he's been robbed of MVP awards and should've won 3 or 4 more of them which that still includes the 2018 Most Valuable Player award
— Blender (@DieRise6) March 26, 2022
This is my case study on why Luka Doncic might only finish his career with a single MVP at most. (Personally I don’t think he will ever win it 💔) @fastbreaksa https://t.co/dWR0RMjs5J
— TY CRANE (@BrianTsabadi) March 27, 2022
Kobe should absolutely have more than one, and Bron should have a BARE MINIMUM of 7. Been a joke of an award for years https://t.co/BMdDSLgAfK
— Joe (@fettyhop_) March 27, 2022
How FAVORITISM works in the @NBA , there I corrected it https://t.co/AAnViYRIn3
— 🥷🏾♌️💸🗣💯🏁 (@CurtThaFlirt_) March 27, 2022
Clearly, the fans are frustrated with the way the system works. They believe that there are more deserving players for the award. Moreover, they also called out the league for its system and asked for a change with several pieces of evidence.
The MVP Conversation at Present
At present, the MVP fight lies mainly between three players – Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Although these three players are atop the ‘KIA NBA MVP Ladder‘, there are some more players who have earned a position on the list. These include Jayson Tatum, Luka Doncic, Ja Morant, Devin Booker, DeMar DeRozan, Kevin Durant, and Karl-Anthony Towns.
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As the season moves forward, it looks like one among the aforementioned players may take home the award. Moreover, it also appears as though the system credits players whose teams have had a successful year. This is why someone like LeBron James is not present in the Top 10 of the list despite him being in strong contention for the scoring title.
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Regardless, we will have to wait for quite sometime before the award winner is announced. And maybe this may spark yet another debate among fans.
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