The Road to the MVP

The Chicago Bulls are the story of the year after losing out on big-time free agents LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, and Joe Johnson; however, Gar Forman and Jon Paxson put together one of the most complete teams in the NBA.  They brought in Carlos Boozer, Keith Bogans, Ronnie Brewer, Kyle Korver, Kurt Thomas, and C.J. Watson after an overhaul of their roster.  Four returning pieces filled out the rest of the puzzle: Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, and Taj Gibson.  These ten players, along with Omer Asik, won 62 games this season to earn the top seed in the East and the best record in the NBA.  Despite all of those acquisitions, the biggest one of them all is probably the Coach of the Year, Tom Thibodeau.  His relentless work and defensive knowledge allowed this team to achieve greatness.  He pushed this team as far as he could and never settled for anything but the best.  He is the main cog to this team's success, often overlooked by the talent on the roster.  

On the other hand, one player "rose" to the occasion, clearly showing why he deserved to be called the Most Valuable Player of the NBA.  Derrick Rose's significance has nothing to do with the 25 points and 7.7 assists that he averaged during the season.  His leadership and humility make him one of the most likable players in the league.  He takes nothing for granted and attributes all of his success to his teammates and coaches.  Some may even argue that Derrick Rose is not even the most valuable asset to the Bulls, as their defense is the reason why they are who they are.  Even though that is probably true, many people overlook the fact that Derrick Rose carries his team like no other player in the NBA.  In the fourth quarter, the ball is in his hands and he has no choice but to make a play.  If he doesn't, then they lose.  That is why he is the MVP.  Stars are made both in the playoffs and late in games, and Derrick Rose has done nothing but win.  As Rose himself said, "winning gets you everything in this league, so I just want to be labeled as a winner."  Derrick Rose won a state title in high school, went to the Championship game in college, and has led the Chicago Bulls to the best record in the NBA in just his third season.  Derrick Rose deserved this award, but I believe that his personality helped him jump over LeBron in the race for the MVP.

Not to say that LeBron James didn't deserve this award, because in all honesty he is probably the best player in the league, but his reputation has taken a major hit.  That is why I think he had absolutely no shot at this award.  So many basketball fans simply cheer against LeBron James, because of the way he left Cleveland.  It is not fair to him, but he knew what was going to happen when he showcased his decision process.  His numbers this season were simply incredible: 27 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists.  His talent is scary good, but what it all comes to is the fact that he will be labeled a coward until he wins a championship in Miami.  Even if he wins a title, he will still be hated by most of basketball just because of his past decisions. It's sad since he has never had trouble legally, criminally, or financially, but he is just hated because people don't respect him.  James will have trouble fixing his reputation, but let's hope his publicist doesn't let him do another "The Decision" fiasco.