Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal have combined 2 MVPs which is absurd to think of as it holds importance in legacy discussions.
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Choosing an MVP is always one of the biggest headaches the NBA has faced since it came into the picture. No matter the evolution of the selection process over the years, to this date there’s always debate on that matter.
When All-Star selection depends on 50% fan votes, 25% media votes, and 25% current players’ votes, selection of MVP, DPOY, and ROTY all being totally depending on media is a bit confusing.
And confusing that has been for decades. Steve Nash winning more MVPs than the likes of Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, and Allen Iverson who played in his era and were on completely another stratosphere as players, just makes it so absurd to swallow.
Steve Nash has 2 MVPs while Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, and many more legends have one or none
We should have moved on from media selecting some of the biggest awards of the season after what happened in the 2000s but it took the NBA to come to 2017 just to make a change where the voting panel will be made up of 100 independent media members who are not affiliated with teams.
The team association of media members who had been voting for the year-end awards led to many mishaps including two straight MVPs to Nash in 05 and 06′ when Shaq and Kobe clearly deserved it over the Suns’ point guard.
When you think of it closely only 8 players in the league have more MVPs than him, and only one of them is a point guard who goes by the name Magic Johnson. Does that mean he’s only second to him on the all-time list as a point guard? He just cannot be over Isiah Thomas. Not even before John Stockton or Chris Paul when you think of the point-savants who never won a Championship.
But history will have him as a 2x MVP, while Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson as one-timers, and Isiah Thomas, John Stockton, and Chris Paul have won the Maurice Podoloff Trophy ZERO times. Good for NBA.
