In the world of NBA awards, the voting process for major accolades like the MVP has stirred up quite a controversy among fans. Is it time for a change?
Summary
- Should NBA awards be decided by experts rather than media personalities with hot takes?
- Are current voters diluting the prestige of major awards like MVP and DPOY?
- Do fans believe the voting process for NBA awards needs a serious overhaul?
Controversial Votes
Fans criticize media personalities like SAS and Kendrick Perkins for their questionable votes on major NBA awards.
Professional Insights
Importance of having knowledgeable basketball analysts like Zach Lowe in the voting process for NBA awards.
The Fan Perspective
Fans express their concerns about maintaining the integrity and significance of NBA awards by ensuring credible voters.
Last year Kendrick Perkins went on national TV and claimed the only reason Jokic was leading the MVP race was because he’s white and Embiid is black. Kendrick Perkins has a vote for major awards.
The other night, SAS (who is supposedly a Knicks superfan) talked about how great Quentin Grimes was looking and how he loved Hartenstein’s production off the bench. SAS has a vote for major awards.
In recent years, the MVP and other major awards have seen a STEEP drop off in terms of the way people view and respect them. They used to be huge deals and the winners would be held in extremely high regard, but now these awards are treated as little more than a gimmick.
People have talked about the issue of these awards not meaning much anymore for the past 2-3 years, but I’ve rarely seen those same people point out how big of an issue it is that media personalities like SAS and Kendrick Perkins, who are more known for their outlandish and ridiculous takes than their actual basketball knowledge, are voting on these awards.
How much better would this award be if the voters were guys like Ben and Cody from Thinking Basketball, Zach Lowe, etc. whose popularity stems almost entirely from their genuinely insightful NBA content rather than hot takes and clickbait. Even if it didn’t change the outcome of every award, would those awards not feel more meaningful because the voters are people whose analysis is more reliable and respected?
Basically, why not change things up so that the votes people voting on these awards are people who display a true, deep understanding of the game rather than hot take artists and biased beat writers?