Recently, the NBA announced the winner of the Most Improved Player award. The Philadelphia 76ers point guard Tyrese Maxey won the award and Bulls point guard Coby White came in second. Many fans are arguing over stats and how the award should work, so I’ll be going into how the award works, the top 2 players, and whether Coby White was robbed.
The Award
The Most Improved Player award is supposed to go to the player who improved their game the most, as well as had a great impact on their team’s success. The winner is selected based on votes cast by a panel of sportswriters from the United States and Canada. Each member casts 3 votes: one for third place, second place, and first place. Each first place vote awards 5 points, each second place vote awards 3 points, and each third place vote awards 1 point.
Coby White
Coby White’s improvement was a big factor in the Bulls improving this season. Although they didn’t make it far in the playoffs, Coby developed into a key player in the Bulls starting lineup. Here are his improvements: 9.7 ➡️ 19.1 points per game, 2.8 ➡️ 5.1 assists per game, 2.9 ➡️ 4.5 rebounds per game. His points per game almost doubled.
Tyrese Maxey
Tyrese Maxey improved a bit as well, although he was considered a good player before this and had bigger leaps earlier in his career. Maxey went from 20.3 ➡️25.9 points per game, 3.5 ➡️ 6.3 Assists per game, and 2.9 ➡️ 3.7 rebounds per game. Maxey was a key player in the 76ers, going 47-35, and is considered one of the best players on the team. Earlier in Maxey’s career he was already considered for the Most Improved Player award. From 2021 to 2022, he went from 8 points per game to 17.5 points per game, which could have been considered his biggest improvement in his career.
Conclusion
This competition really comes down to opinions and technicalities. By the award’s name, the award should be given to the player who improved their game the most, and for me, that would be Coby White. Undoubtedly, Tyrese Maxey is a great player who has improved a lot over the years, but Coby White made a bigger jump in his game this year. At the end of the day it’s up to the NBA’s committee and not the fans, but do you believe Coby White was robbed?
Works Cited:
Bontemps, T. (2024, April 23 ). Sixers’ Tyrese Maxey edges Coby White as NBA’s most improved. ESPN. https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/40011550/sixers-tyrese-maxey-edges-coby-white-nba-most-improved
Mohan, S. (2024, April 4). Former NBA champion feels Bulls’ Coby White was ‘robbed’ of award. YardBarker. https://www.yardbarker.com/nba/articles/former_nba_champion_feels_bulls_coby_white_was_robbed_of_award/s1_13132_40275151
The Associated Press. (2024, April 23). 2024 NBA Most Improved Player Voting. APNews. https://apnews.com/2024-nba-most-improved-player-voting-688f2d987aeb68cb1dc683e4ee1c7554
