Sydney Kings star Kendric Davis reacted strongly to losing the National Basketball League’s (NBL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) award to Adelaide 36ers’ Bryce Cotton by a mere two votes. The , announcement sparked a lengthy and critical response from Davis via an Instagram Live session, questioning the voting process and suggesting a bias against him.
Cotton secured his sixth NBL MVP award, and third consecutive, with 96 votes, narrowly edging out Davis who received 94. This incredibly tight margin – a single vote difference would have resulted in a tie – fueled Davis’s frustration, leading him to publicly challenge the integrity of the selection process. The Andrew Gaze Award, as the NBL MVP is officially known, is determined by votes from each club’s head coach and captain, with a stipulation that players cannot vote for teammates.
While statistical comparisons reveal a close contest, Davis’s argument centers on a perceived lack of recognition for his performance relative to Cotton’s. Cotton averaged 25.7 points per game compared to Davis’s 24.4, but Davis demonstrated greater shooting efficiency, converting 48% of his field goal attempts versus Cotton’s 44%. Davis also marginally led in rebounds (3.9 to 3.6), while Cotton excelled in assists (7.6 to 6.7) and steals (1.8 to 1.1). These nuanced differences, however, did little to sway the voters.
Davis’s criticism extended to long-time NBL commentator John Casey, questioning his inclusion on the voting panel. “They got John Casey. I love John Casey but John Casey on this, like c’mon bro,” Davis stated during his Instagram Live broadcast. He further called for transparency in the voting process, advocating for a system similar to the NBA where individual votes are publicly disclosed. “Let’s see who voted for who. So we know what is going on like the NBA,” he said.
Davis went on to assert that a blind comparison of his and Cotton’s statistics, removing any potential bias based on player recognition, would favor his candidacy. “All I know is you put my stats up against his stats and take our faces off, and tell the NBA to vote on who should win MVP, I guarantee I come out on top,” he claimed. He also expressed a sense of predetermination, suggesting that the outcome was decided before the season even began. “They didn’t want me to win it from the get go. They didn’t want me to win MVP from the get go. Trust me.”
The controversy comes amidst a challenging season for the Brisbane Bullets, who finished last in the NBL with a 6-27 record. A report highlighted the team’s instability, with 19 players suiting up and a combined 270 games missed due to injury. This stands in stark contrast to the competitive success of both the Kings and the 36ers, who secured the top two spots on the NBL ladder.
At a press conference following the awards ceremony, Cotton responded to Davis’s comments with a dismissive remark, stating, “I was too busy paying for everybody’s drinks, so I didn’t catch everything that was said. Sorry about that.” This response is unlikely to quell Davis’s discontent, which appears rooted in a broader frustration with the perceived biases within the NBL’s MVP selection process.
Davis and the Sydney Kings will now focus on their playoff campaign, entering a best-of-three series against either the South East Melbourne Phoenix, the Perth Wildcats, Melbourne United, or the Tasmania JackJumpers. Cotton and the Adelaide 36ers will face either the Phoenix or the Wildcats in the other semi-final series, setting the stage for a potential rematch between the two MVP contenders.
The incident raises questions about the NBL’s voting procedures and the potential for subjective factors to influence the outcome of the MVP award. Davis’s public outburst underscores the importance of transparency and accountability in the selection process, and may prompt the league to consider reforms in future seasons. The debate also highlights the inherent challenges in comparing players across different positions and team dynamics, and the difficulty of objectively quantifying individual contributions to team success.
