DON EMMERT/AFP by way of Getty Pictures
Who completed forward of him: Allen Iverson, Tim Duncan
In 2000-01, Shaquille O’Neal averaged 28.7 factors, 12.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and a couple of.8 blocks on a league-leading 57.2 p.c capturing mark.
And didn’t win MVP.
The reigning NBA champion Lakers that season type of sleptwalked by way of the common season, going simply 56-26 that marketing campaign, which might be a superb yr for many groups, however not likely for the three-peat L.A. groups of the early 2000s. As such, O’Neal was snubbed for MVP honors in favor of Allen Iverson, who led the league in scoring that season at 31.3 factors per recreation for a 56-win Philadelphia staff, and in favor of Tim Duncan, who averaged 22.2 factors, 12.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists and a couple of.3 blocks whereas showing in all 82 video games for a 58-win San Antonio squad.
In fact, O’Neal confirmed everybody who the perfect participant was that postseason when he led the Lakers to a second-straight championship, sweeping Duncan within the Western Convention Finals after which defeating Iverson within the Finals 4 video games to 1 all whereas finally incomes Finals MVP honors.
O’Neal was none too joyful about not profitable MVP, going off on the media about how the award was given away by March of that yr. He even appeared to throw a little bit of shade at Iverson, saying that if he shot 50 occasions per recreation, he’d average 100 points (contemplating how unstoppable prime Shaq was, he won’t have been fallacious, both):
His reign will finish with the announcement that Allen Iverson or Chris Webber, and even Tim Duncan, is that this yr’s winner, by all appearances. In truth, there’s an assumption all through the league that Iverson has already received it, and certainly he might need, because the ballots have been due this week. “You guys gave the award away in March,” O’Neal mentioned Friday, “as a result of any individual was doing good. There’s lots of people doing good.” …. “If I take 50 photographs a recreation, I’m going to common 100,” O’Neal mentioned..
O’Neal additionally mentioned if he didn’t win the award unanimously, he didn’t need it:
He blames the media, and he swears he doesn’t need “a sympathy man’s award.” “If I can’t win that award unanimously, or near unanimous, I don’t need it,” he mentioned. Requested why, he mentioned, “As a result of I don’t know what you guys search for. When you search for percentages. When you search for consistencies. I don’t know what you search for, and it actually doesn’t matter.”
The voters appeared to take him up on that, as O’Neal completed third within the vote.
Regardless, it’s fairly ridiculous that O’Neal, a four-time champion and three-time Finals MVP, completed with one regular-season MVP award in his profession. Perhaps equally to a sure fashionable Nuggets star, O’Neal didn’t get as a lot MVP love as he deserved as a result of it was so apparent he was the perfect participant within the league that he received regarded over when it got here time to really vote for MVP.
