If the show must go on, make it sooner than later
After all the waiting, basketball fans finally can have the conversations they’ve been waiting to have for some time.
Too bad they probably don’t want to anymore. The awards are out. The spectacle is over. Finally. The Rockets fared very well, taking home Sixth Man and Coach of the Year honors as well as a fan-voted hustle award.
Russell Westbrook was crowned MVP after being done with the season since the first round of the postseason a couple of months ago.
The NBA waited forever and a day to name its award recipi-
ents.
The league put together a night full of bells and whistles. Celebrities and NBA players mingled. Drake made jokes as the evening’s host.
It was all very over the top and unnecessary. And very late.
We knew Eric Gordon was the Sixth Man of the Year by about March.
Wouldn’t it have been nice for him to be honored with the award at halfcourt of the Toyota Center in front of Rockets fans?
Gordon had a phenomenal season with a terrific back story. He came to Houston expecting to start in a backcourt that needed an upgrade.
The regular season was barely underway when new Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni asked him to make a big switch and come off the bench.
That’s not easy for a career starter trying to make his way on a new team.
But Gordon did it. He embraced it, and it made his team better. The award was inevitable.
That story still matters now, but getting that honor in April or May could have given Gordon and the Rockets a push during the postseason.
If nothing else, it would have given them the chance to celebrate together before the craziness of the offseason.
Few surprises by this time
If a winner of one of the major awards had been traded on draft night, for example, the spectacle would have been beyond awkward.
D’Antoni won coach of the year in a landslide — it would have been joke if he didn’t.
His speech was great. It was exciting, moving and a big moment for the Rockets — the three or four in attendance anyway.
He thanked the players for their trust and execution.
A few of them will be gone when the team reconvenes.
The NBA effectively took away a moment a team could have shared together when one of their own was honored.
As far as the MVP award, voters released their picks long ago, so there was no surprise when Westbrook’s name was called.
The only surprise was his seemingly genuine heartfelt speech. It was a side of Westbrook we really see and provided a nice moment.
It would have been a nice moment in a news conference during the playoffs, too, though.
A short shelf life
The show did offer some highlights.
Bill Russell winning the lifetime achievement award was priceless. He stole the show, which at the time was dragging.
The Sager Strong Award was the best part.
Monty Williams was inspiring, classy and represented the namesake of the award, Craig Sager, and the league very well.
At that point, I think most viewers would have been happy giving Williams the MVP trophy and calling it a night.
Fans will talk about this show and about the awards for a day or two, then they’ll move on.
Back to baseball season, back to NFL lead up, back to NBA free agency.
The prime time to celebrate these achievements was a month ago, when the playoffs were at full steam and everyone was still engaged.
Now the NBA interest revolves around acquisitions and trades.
Few will be talking about the MVP in 24 hours.
The NBA tried something new and it wasn’t without its good moments, but here’s hoping the first year of the NBA awards show is also the last.