Most controversial award choices in NBA history?

[...and some waffle fries]

tyson chandler and marc gasol winning defensive player of the year, but then not making the first all defensive teams.

Kobe's last 4 all-defensive teams.

These 2 easily. These hade me like

 

[Shadow King]

Kobe's last 4 all-defensive teams.

Came in here to post this great defense from Kobe was last seen in Beijing

I'd say Kawhi's DPOY but I'm biased cause nikkas overrate him in general so...

 

[Danny Up]

Where was the controversy in any of these things? You disagreeing isn't "really controversy".

 

[Boolean]

The fukk is a Wes Unseld

 

[Noah]

Damn, that Wes Unseld MVP in '68-69 was a joke. @Noah

Yeah, nothing against Unseld and his legitimate impact but there were more deserving players. Voters did understand what he did (defend/rebound/pass/lead at a high level), but they ran away with the narrative that he turned the franchise completely around and got caught up a little too much in the "little things" aspect of his game. While it is true he did improve the team and the players on it, I'd have argued Reed or even Russell over him and once Kareem came around by the 70's Unseld never garnered the same consideration again despite doing the same things he did his rookie year. He had positive circumstances (in his favor) surrounding the voting too, with Willis Reed, Billy Cunningham, and 34 year old Russell/Baylor being his main consideration for the voting (Unseld had the third highest WS of the group but it was still particularly weak imo). Found it odd that no Wilt, West (though it is rare to find MVP candidates as teammates), or even Havlicek/Robertson showed up in the top 5 balloting. Wes got a little lucky.

 

[GunRanger]

Lebron winning ROTY over Melo

 

[Piff Huxtable]

Steve Nash's MVPs

Rick Barry being denied the award out of spite

Kobe winning finals mvp while going 6-24 in game 7

low key aside from shooting that was one of Kobe's best all around games in his playoff career

snatching rebounds from Garnett and Sheed, locking up Allen and Pierce on D

 

[Window Shopper]

Kidd losing the MVP to the Big Fundamental

 

[The Goodz]

Truth.

He deserved none of them.

Really

How much more VALUABLE do you have to be to take a 29 win team and take them to 60 wins the next season after adding you??

Let Kobe take a sub .500 win team and get 60 plus wins and the best record in the league and these servers would be shut down, but a Canadian does it but he doesn't deserve it??

 

[Ethnic Cleansing]

Laettner over Shaq in the '92 Olympics

 

[InstantKlassik]

The fukk is a Wes Unseld

 

[CACarot]

Kobe winning MVP over CP3

 

[FS4LFE]

Even though he had a bad game 7, he was the best in that series. They weren't going to give Artest the MVP for 1 good shot, nothing controversial about that.

Oh so now one shot doesn't make a series?

 

[Reid2Achieve]

I nominate Iggy winning Finals MVP? Many people think LeBron should have won and Curry didn't get a single vote.

 

[GilSho]

Kobe winning MVP over LeBron & CP3 in 08
Rose winning MVP despite there being 8 or 9 better players that year.
Jamal fukking MacGloire starting an all star game over Bron
David Lee making the all star team ahead of Curry a few years back
Jeremy Lin not being player of the month during Linsanity.