Derrick Rose MVP: Just Say No



SURGEON GENERAL WARNING: Voting against Derrick Rose may give athletes in Orlando, Boston/Miami and Los Angeles lung cancer, emphysema and birth defects in future children.


Everyone and their mother who is involved in the NBA MVP voting process seems to be leaning towards anointing Derrick Rose as the league's most valuable player. While I don't disagree with their logic based on a statistical perspective, I believe that Chicago fans would be better served rooting for D Rose to not be named MVP. Before you throw me under a bus or ask for my immediate castration, hear me out:

Imagine this scenario: middle of May, conference semifinals, Bulls hosting the Magic in game 5, up 3 games to 1. Dwight Howard has just accepted the MVP a few nights earlier in front of tens of thousands of screaming Magic fans.

Let's peak inside the mind of Derrick Rose in recent games the Bulls have played, in which an element of revenge was on his mind:

vs. Kings at home in 09-10 season: Kings beat the Bulls 102-98 after being down by as many as 35 points. Clearly the lowest point of Rose's 2+ year career in regular season play.
vs Kings at home in 10-11 season, March 21st: Bulls make sure not to let a 35 point lead go to waste this time, romping the Kings 135-95. Rose only needs to play 28 minutes, scoring 18 and dishing out 8 asts in the process.

@Atlanta, March 2nd: Bulls blow a huge halftime lead, lose 83-80 to the Hawks, Rose (12 points, 12 assists, 5-for-21 shooting)
vs. Atlanta, March 11th: Bulls run away with a 94-76 win at home. Rose (34 points, 5 asts, 9-for-24 shooting- definitely not great, but his 14-for-15 from FT was)
@Atlanta (the true revenge game), March 22nd: Bulls 114, Hawks 81. Rose vows a letdown won't happen in Atlanta again, and he lives up to his word. 30 points, 10 asts and a much much better 11-for-20 from the field.

Now fast forward two months, and just picture the element of revenge that Rose would have in mind if he wasn't named MVP. Guys like Rose don't need a reason to play good, because they are already great to begin with. But give them an extra edge, just like the days where someone would diss Jordan only to have him tear team's hearts out of their asses, and watch out.

Even better would be if Lebron won the MVP. If the Heat are to get by the Celtics (assuming the current seedings hold up), no doubt would Rose want to show the world in front of the Big Three Stooges that he is the most deserving of MVP.

I'm not saying Rose doesn't deserve the MVP or shouldn't win it (because he probably will), but wouldn't you rather see Derrick Rose with an extra edge in the playoffs?

An MVP wouldn't make Rose complacent by any means, but not winning it, he'd deliver an even bigger "F You" in May/June basketball performances for the ages.

So Bulls fans of all ages, in the words of Nancy Reagan: "Just Say No". But this time, instead of drugs, just say no to Derrick Rose for MVP. I'd love to see his reaction to this occurrence.