NBA Playoffs 2011: Does Rose's MVP Award Spell D-O-O-M for the Bulls Title Shot?
The NBA’s Most Valuable Player award is handed out year after year to whomever the panel of sportswriters and broadcasters deem is most deserving of the award. At one point, the award was decided by the winner’s peers around the league, but many felt that the voting was biased, so that is why the format has changed.
Whatever way the recipient is chosen, it is a great honor and an award the winner will cherish for years to come.
While it may be great to win the award, it does not come with the guarantee of winning the real piece of hardware that every player in the league is chasing, the coveted Larry O’Brien trophy.
In fact, you’d be hard pressed to find an MVP who has not only won the league MVP, but made it to the NBA Finals or even won the Finals.
The MVP was handed out for the first time at the conclusion of the 1955-1956 season. In the 55 years since, only 16 different players have made it to the NBA Finals after winning that season’s MVP honor. Out of those 16, 11 different players have won the NBA Finals, several of them winning the championship multiple times.
Here is a list of those players:
- Bob Cousy 1956-1957
- Bill Russell 1957-1958 (lost), 1960-1961,1961-1962,1962-1963,1964-1965
- Wilt Chamberlain 1966-1967
- Willis Reed 1969-1970
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1970-1971, 1973-1974 (lost), 1979-1980
- Moses Malone 1982-1983
- Larry Bird 1983-1984, 1984-1985 (lost), 1985-1986
- Magic Johnson 1986-1987, 1988-1989 (lost)
- Michael Jordan 1990-1991, 1991-1992, 1995-1996, 1997-1998
- Charles Barkley 1992-1993 (lost)
- Hakeem Olajuwon 1993-1994
- Karl Malone 1996-1997 (lost)
- Shaquille O’Neal 1999-2000
- Allen Iverson 2000-2001 (lost)
- Tim Duncan 2002-2003
- Kobe Bryant 207-2008 (lost)
History has proven that winning the MVP and the NBA Championship is a rare accomplishment. In 55 years, the league MVP has been represented in a total of 28 NBA Finals. That’s a 51 percent shot at getting to the NBA Finals.
Those who have won both are high on the lists of the best basketball players of all time. There’s a 36 percent chance of winning the MVP and winning the NBA Finals.
As you see, Derrick Rose still has quite the uphill climb in front of him if hopes to win the NBA title this year. The Chicago Bulls are down 2-1 against the Miami Heat heading into a pivotal Game 4. If the Bulls lose, it will put Rose’s chances at getting to the Finals as the league MVP a lot further out of reach.
History certainly hasn’t been kind to the MVP winners, especially recently. Since 2000, only four MVP winners have even reached the Finals.
Only two have won the NBA Finals.
The last league MVP to make it to the Finals was Kobe Bryant back in 2008 when the Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics.
The last MVP to make it to the Finals and win was Tim Duncan in 2003 when they beat the New Jersey Nets.
Look at the MVP winners from the past 10 years:
- LeBron James – 2009-2010: lost in the 2nd round to the Boston Celtics
- LeBron James -2008-2009: lost in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Orlando Magic
- Kobe Bryant – 2007-2008: lost in the NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics
- Dirk Nowitzki – 2006-2007: lost in the 1st round to the Golden State Warriors
- Steve Nash – 2005-2006: lost in the Western Conference Finals to the Dallas Mavericks
- Steve Nash -2004-2005: lost in the Western Conference Finals to the San Antonio Spurs
- Kevin Garnett – 2003-2004: lost in the Western Conference Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers
- Tim Duncan – 2002-2003: Won the NBA Finals over the New Jersey Nets
- Tim Duncan – 2001-2002: Lost in the 2nd Round to the Los Angeles Lakers
- Allen Iverson – 2000-2001: Lost in the NBA Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers
If recent trends continue, then all signs point to the Chicago Bulls coming up short in their quest to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy. Either they will lose to the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals or they will get to the Finals and lose to the Western Conference representative in the Finals.
Nothing is written in stone so the Bulls still have a chance to rewrite recent history.
In order to do that, they are going to need their MVP to put on a display for the rest of the playoffs to show off just why he won the award.
History awaits young man.
