2008 Woodie Awards
The Amazing Race
The battle for NBA MVP heats up as the season winds down
Dakota Rubin
Issue date: 4/18/06 Section: Sports
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From the first tip of the NBA season sportswriters everywhere try to figure out who will be the MVP of the league. The discussions are endless and the debates are fierce. Everyone has a different opinion about what the award means and who deserves to hold the title of Most Valuable Player.
There are many different definitions people have of the award. Some feel that it should go to the best player in the league no matter what team that player plays for, if they have the best stats, they should win the award. Others feel that it should only go to players on winning teams because what does it matter if you have great stats only to see your team miss the playoffs - the award is all about value.
There are hundreds of methods of analyzing and judging each player, anything from individual stats to head-to-head match ups to what the teams have accomplished. But at the end of the day it has to be a personal decision.
No one has ever defined what it takes to be the MVP. There are not even set criteria for what makes a worthy candidate let alone a deserving winner. This leaves us in the situation where personal preference comes into play. Which player as MVP feels best to the voter?
There are many deserving candidates. But which player has that something extra, that intangible that makes them stand out to the voters as a true MVP?
Here is a group of the six candidates that I think it will come down to as the voters make their final decisions:
6. Chauncey Billups. He does not have the most phenomenal stats but how can the MVP voters not account for what the Detroit Pistons have done this season with Billups at the helm. With a ridiculous 4.04:1 assist-to-turnover ratio it is no wonder that his team is on pace to set a record for fewest turnovers in a season.
While he was an integral part of his team's run at the best record, he is no MVP. He is the best player on the best team in the league but it is a team predicated on teamwork and the whole of the team, which is a great system for winning championships but will not get Billups the MVP.
There are many different definitions people have of the award. Some feel that it should go to the best player in the league no matter what team that player plays for, if they have the best stats, they should win the award. Others feel that it should only go to players on winning teams because what does it matter if you have great stats only to see your team miss the playoffs - the award is all about value.
There are hundreds of methods of analyzing and judging each player, anything from individual stats to head-to-head match ups to what the teams have accomplished. But at the end of the day it has to be a personal decision.
No one has ever defined what it takes to be the MVP. There are not even set criteria for what makes a worthy candidate let alone a deserving winner. This leaves us in the situation where personal preference comes into play. Which player as MVP feels best to the voter?
There are many deserving candidates. But which player has that something extra, that intangible that makes them stand out to the voters as a true MVP?
Here is a group of the six candidates that I think it will come down to as the voters make their final decisions:
6. Chauncey Billups. He does not have the most phenomenal stats but how can the MVP voters not account for what the Detroit Pistons have done this season with Billups at the helm. With a ridiculous 4.04:1 assist-to-turnover ratio it is no wonder that his team is on pace to set a record for fewest turnovers in a season.
While he was an integral part of his team's run at the best record, he is no MVP. He is the best player on the best team in the league but it is a team predicated on teamwork and the whole of the team, which is a great system for winning championships but will not get Billups the MVP.
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