Helping bring the Larry O'Brien Trophy back to Boston last year brought a smile to Jayson Tatum's face.
Helping bring the Larry O'Brien Trophy back to Boston last year brought a smile to Jayson Tatum's face.Erin Clark/Globe Staff
The Logo, Jerry West, never won one. Neither did Elgin Baylor. Celtics legend John Havlicek finished with zero. Ditto for Elvin Hayes. Paul Pierce never came close. Kawhi Leonard boasts two NBA titles and two Defensive Player of the Year honors, but zip of these. Dwayne Wade’s career ended with three championships and a statue in Miami, but he’s part of this no-for club.
I’m talking about the NBA’s MVP award. The NBA MVP is a fascinating and at times fickle measure of greatness. Celtics star Jayson Tatum can take some solace. Tatum is MVP-less in his career. That’s not going to change this year. The award is going to either Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Nuggets center nonpareil Nikola Jokić, who would join Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six), Michael Jordan (five), Bill Russell (five), Wilt Chamberlain (four), and LeBron James (four) as four-time MVPs.
Without even a top-three MVP finish to his name, Tatum is chasing greatness, running a race for the recognition he deserves with a finish line that keeps shifting. But does the Celtics star want the snapshot selfie or the presidential portrait of greatness?
The snapshot is the NBA’s highest individual honor. The portrait is painted by leaving a lasting legacy and lasting banners in the TD Garden rafters. Leading the Celtics to back-to-back NBA titles, a feat not accomplished since the 2016-17 and 2017-18 Warriors, would do more for Tatum’s legacy than bringing home the MVP.
Tatum badly wants to win an MVP. He told the Washington Post in a story last month that focused on Tatum feeling underappreciated that he envisions his career including an MVP.
“Growing up, I definitely envisioned myself as an MVP, and I wholeheartedly believe before it’s all said and done, I’m going to get one,” Tatum told the Post. “I know people who understand what I bring to the table, even if I’m not averaging 30 [points] like the other MVP candidates, just because of the way that the team needs me to play on a nightly basis. How much talent we have and freedom that we have on our team.”
Despite Tatum enjoying the best season of his career and an MVP-worthy one, going into the weekend averaging 27.1 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 6 assists per game, he’s a long shot. Gilgeous-Alexander, the league’s leading scorer, has powered the Thunder to the NBA’s best record. He’s on pace to do something only Jordan has. Gilgeous-Alexander could join MJ as the only players to average 30-plus points on 50 percent shooting with 5 or more rebounds, 5 or more assists, 1.5 or more steals, and 1-plus blocks. The namesake of the MVP trophy, Jordan accomplished this in MVP seasons of 1987-88 and 1990-91.
Meanwhile, Jokić is merely averaging a triple-double with a career-high 29.3 points per game. Going into the weekend, SGA and Jokić were first and second in win probability added with SGA taking the top spot at 8.67 and Jokić checking in at 8.02. Tatum ranked 10th at 5.59, right behind Payton Pritchard (5.74).
Go figure.
Other elements are working against Tatum, namely the embarrassment of basketball riches of the Celtics roster. Tatum is undisputedly the headliner, but he’s part of an ensemble cast that rivals “The White Lotus” TV drama. (Not to be confused with “The White Mamba,” Celtics broadcaster Brian Scalabrine.)
The Celtics are 13-2 the last two seasons with Tatum out of the lineup. Without JT on Wednesday night, Boston throttled a Phoenix club with future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant and All-Star Devin Booker by 30 points. That was two nights after Tatum badly rolled his ankle after landing on the foot of Kings star Domantas Sabonis while sinking a 3-pointer late in the third quarter.
It feels unfair to penalize Tatum for the capability of his supporting cast. On the other hand, it’s the overall prowess of the Celtics roster that aided Tatum in capturing his first NBA title after sub-par play (by his lofty standards) in the first two rounds of the playoffs last year. Parquet partner Jaylen Brown was named both Eastern Conference finals and NBA Finals MVP.
For the record, this basketball observer would’ve voted for Tatum, who led the Celtics in points, rebounds, and assists against Dallas, as Finals MVP.
So, the Celtics success is a double-edged sword for Tatum in his pursuit of carving out the individual adulation he craves.
My advice: Don’t measure the meaningfulness of your career by the NBA’s regular-season MVP trophy. Tatum would be the fifth Celtic to win it, joining Bill Russell, Larry Bird, who won three straight (1984-1986), Dave Cowens, and Bob Cousy.
Yes, the all-time greats have won it multiple times. But there are also some hoops head-scratchers and surprises when studying the MVP list.
Tatum’s idol, the late Kobe Bryant, only captured one MVP. Steve Nash has two. Nash isn’t iconic or more important to the story of basketball than Kobe. It’s also a bit jarring that Nash collected more MVPs than Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett, one-time recipients.
Oscar Robertson, as revolutionary a player as the NBA has ever seen, only won a single MVP. The same number as Russell Westbrook and James Harden. Westbrook and Harden each boast as many MVPs as Shaquille O’Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon, and David Robinson. That doesn’t seem right.
Would you take prime Moses Malone over prime Olajuwon or Shaq? Malone won three MVPs.
Julius Erving won NBA MVP once. Dr. J. boasts three straight ABA MVP awards (1974-76). But Derrick Rose has as many NBA MVP awards as Dr. J. Let that sink in.
So, the MVP isn’t the basketball be-all, end-all. No one won more MVPs than Kareem. Yet, Captain Skyhook has been virtually boxed out of the GOAT conversation.
Tatum, who turned 27 this month, should take solace in this MVP conversation and consideration. If he wants to frame himself historically right now, he’s one of only three players to accumulate 13,000 points and 4,000 rebounds before their 27th birthday. The other two are LeBron James and Wilt Chamberlain.
Winning championships is Tatum’s path to the adoration he seeks. He can’t be ignored if he keeps lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy that goes to the NBA champion.
The MVP is short-term glorification. Tatum can build enduring glory.
Christopher L. Gasper is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at christopher.gasper@globe.com. Follow him @cgasper and on Instagram @cgaspersports.