NBA naming MVP after Michael Jordan as top awards reimagined
Nobody was really expecting the NBA to pick a winner in the Greatest of All Time debate this week.
Then on Tuesday morning, the league introduced the Michael Jordan Trophy, which will be given to the MVP, beginning with last year's winner Nikola Jokic.
Jordan won the MVP trophy five times, one fewer than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Meanwhile, debate still rages about who is the NBA's GOAT, with LeBron James getting widespread support.
So why did the NBA decide now was the time to name the premier individual award after Jordan? And who exactly made this call?
According to the official news release, it was just the latest step in the NBA's movement to honor legendary players by etching their names on trophies.
"Our new collection of trophies celebrates some of the greatest and most impactful players in the history of the NBA," Commissioner Adam Silver said. "As we recognize the league's top performers each season, we also pay tribute to the legends who embody these prestigious awards."
In addition to Jordan, the NBA is naming the Defensive Player of the Year award for Hakeem Olajuwon, Rookie of the Year for Wilt Chamberlain, the Sixth Man Award for John Havlicek and Most Improved for Chicago native George Mikan. There will be a new Clutch Player Award named for Jerry West.
The league previously named All-Star MVP for Kobe Bryant, Finals MVP for Bill Russell, conference championship trophies named for Bob Cousy and Oscar Robertson, conference finals MVPs for Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, Coach of the Year honors Red Auerbach.
Abdul-Jabbar is attached to the NBA's social justice award, Joe Dumars to the sportsmanship award. There's a best teammate award dedicated to former Cincinnati Royals Maurice Stokes and Jack Twyman.
Jordan never practiced at the Advocate Center, though his statue across the street remains a popular tourist attraction. The Bulls showed no interest in promoting the team's greatest player at Tuesday's practice.
Interview requests for current stars DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine, Chicago native Ayo Dosunmu, and John Paxson, who spent several minutes talking in coach Billy Donovan after practice, were all denied.
Sam Smith did collect a statement from chairman Jerry Reinsdorf for bulls.com: "It is proper the trophy symbolically depicts his remarkable ascent to the pinnacle of the sports world to also provide the inspiration to others which defined his incomparable career," the statement read.
Will some sort of award be named after James someday? It's hard to imagine what that would be, with so many players already assigned to NBA trophies.
The Jordan vs. LeBron debate still rages, although it feels like most who favor LeBron are from younger generations and never saw Jordan play.
Jordan vs. LeBron arguments should always be prefaced by two statements: Calling someone the second-greatest player of all time is not an insult. And the two players are tough to compare because they're very different. Jordan was the ultimate alpha scorer while James is a great all-around player and teammate.
On Tuesday morning, the NBA symbolically declared Jordan the greatest of all-time, so it's time for a new debate:
Is naming the Most Improved Award after George Mikan disrespectful to Ray Meyer?
The answer is clearly yes, because Mikan led the league in scoring as a rookie. So his greatest improvement happened under Meyer's watch at DePaul. Not sure the best way for the NBA to fix this one.
Twitter: @McGrawDHSports