A defense (and an examination) of the NBA's silliest award: Player of the Week
Quiz time. Can you name an NBA Player of the Week from last year?
Perhaps if your favorite player is Jayson Tatum or Nikola Jokic, our most recent winners, you may have recollected that. But if you can go back further than this season, heck, than the last two weeks, you have my infinite respect (also, please seek help).
[Before we go further: I had some thoughts after last night’s scintillating Cleveland Cavaliers/Oklahoma City Thunder matchup, which was every bit as good as I could have hoped. It was pure, unadulterated fun. You can read that for free here.]
The NBA implemented the NBA Player of the Week/Month awards before the 1979-1980 season (along with the three-point line), bracing for a surge in popularity thanks to incoming rookies Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. The more press releases they could send hyping up their stars, the better! The inaugural winner was Julius Erving (although you better believe Johnson and Bird won it quickly enough).
Before the 2001-02 season, the league only gave one award for each week/month. Starting then, they split it by conference, doubling the number of awards that (almost) no one cares about!
Player of the Week, in particular, is a silly award without an intelligible process. Statistical excellence is important, but PotW doesn’t always go to the top box score performer: defensive specialist Bruce Bowen won it back in the first week of January 2005 while averaging 17.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 1.0 steals in three games. Winning games helps but isn’t a requirement: Jayson Tatum’s most recent win saw him average 25.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists on just 43% shooting (all below his season-long averages) as the Celtics lost their premier matchup against the Thunder.
Nobody even knows how Player of the Week is chosen. I asked around, and a few people in and around the league tentatively guessed that teams might send nominees to the NBA PR group. But they weren’t certain about that, much less who at the league office makes the final decision.
However, just because PotW is incoherent doesn’t mean it isn’t fun. I’m glad that the award goes to a random mishmash of people. Imagine how boring it would be if Michael Jordan had just won the award every Monday for years on end.
Instead, Player of the Week acknowledges the pico-moments of greatness that pop up throughout a long, long season. A rookie Saddiq Bey goes 7-for-7 from long range in a match and averages 17 points per game for four games? Player of the Week! A past-his-prime, soon-to-be-benched Kemba Walker drops a triple-double on Christmas for the 12th-seeded Knicks? Player of the Week (and deservedly so)! Jared Sullinger anomalously averages 20/13 while leading the Celtics to a 2-1 record? Player of the Week!
There’s at least a little pomp to the award; former Wizards’ big man Marcin Gortat said he got so many texts after winning Player of the Week that he thought he got traded.
Although I bring up some surprising names, the stars are still well-served, and it won’t shock you who has notched the most Player of the Week wins. LeBron James’ 68 PotW awards are more than twice as many as second-place Kobe Bryant’s 33. Here’s the list of honorees with at least 20 wins (all data from RealGM):
Remember that the award wasn’t split by conference until the 2001-02 season, so older players like Jordan are penalized. Still, James’ dominance compared to his peers stands out. In fact, James won 42 times as a member of the Cavaliers alone!
Quick shout-out to Giannis Antetokoummpo, who seems certain to pass Harden and Michael Jordan within the next few years for sole possession of fourth place. If you’re wondering where Nikola Jokic is, I am too! He’s only had 15 wins, which can’t possibly be enough.
Now, let’s look at it by team. (I’ve left it split as RealGM has it, so the Supersonics are different than the Thunder, etc.)