Talking of Being Robbed in 2011, Dwight Howard Believes Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant Were the Biggest MVP Snubs

Earning the Most Valuable Player award in the NBA isn’t as straightforward as it once was. The criteria seem to shift from season to season, leaving some of the game’s biggest names out in the cold when they arguably deserved the MVP trophy. Dwight Howard, for instance, believes he should have lifted that trophy back in 2011.

Howard finished second in MVP voting that year, behind eventual winner Derrick Rose. But the outcome didn’t entirely convince Superman, and he spoke about it during a recent appearance on the Club 520 podcast.

“What happened that year? Why he should have got it?” asked Howard when the topic came up.

“Bro, he had that Bulls team rocking,” replied former NBA star and show host Jeff Teague. It’s true — D-Rose carried the entire city of Chicago on his back, an almost impossible feat given that the franchise will forever be in the shadow of the game’s greatest player, Michael Jordan.

One of Teague’s co-hosts then asked Howard whether they thought he should have won over Rose. “Yeah,” he answered. “I thought that was my year. Obviously, I ain’t ever gonna hate on D-Rose cause that’s my dawg. But dang, I thought that was my year, bro.”

In 2011, Rose and Howard’s stats weren’t too far apart. The Bulls’ superstar averaged 25 points per game compared to the Magic big man’s 22, but Howard pulled down nearly 14 rebounds a night — well ahead of Rose’s 7. Howard’s gripe does make sense, but the unfortunate reality is that Orlando is a much smaller market than Chicago, especially when it comes to the NBA’s rich history.

The conversation grew more interesting when the panel was asked about the biggest MVP snubs in history. Led by Howard, the group unanimously agreed that Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant missing out to Steve Nash in 2005 and 2006 topped the list.

“The Shaq and the Kobe one,” said Howard. They’re not the only ones who feel that way, either. Shaq has been very vocal about his thoughts on losing the MVP to Nash in back-to-back years. “He got two. I got one, Kobe got one. Something wrong with that picture,” Shaq said in an interview years ago.

Nash is a phenomenal player and rightfully deserves recognition as one of the best point guards of all time. But Howard and Shaq have a point — it doesn’t quite sit right that the Canadian has more MVPs than arguably the most dominant player in league history.

It seems like the criteria change all the time anyway. “What is the actual rules on it?” asked Howard on Club 520. “‘Cause it feel like every year they switch up.”

Howard isn’t wrong. Perhaps one day it will be easier to understand.