Picking an M.V.P

When discussing who should get nominated MVP for a game, I have often heard someone’s name being suggested (who is a very good player and was the best player for their team) only to have others say “but s/he always plays well” or “but I have seen him/her play better so I don’t think they should get MVP.”

This is what bugs me about the MVP award. Rarely (apologies to all those MVP awardees out there!) does it go to the Most Valuable Player. Often, it doesn’t even go to the person who performed the best for their team – It goes to someone who made a big (often gratuitous?) layout or one big play.

The Sportscenter Fallacy

“Stuff that appears on highlight reels is not necessarily the stuff that makes for winning”.

Ordinary plays far outnumber the big plays but are no less important. In Ultimate, the objective is to score goals – and there are no ‘ugly’ ones – Each fetches the offense a single point. They all serve to keep the scoreboard ticking and bring you one step closer to victory.

I tend to think of stuff like completing a 10 yard dump, a 25 yard swing pass, cutting, clearing, man marking etc as basic building blocks on which elaborate plays and team plans are built. You need the guy who can do these proficiently (consistently + reliably) more than the ‘layout guy’. Its amazing how often their contributions to the team are overlooked.

Undeniably, these are the players that make their team tick. For them, there are higher goals than trying to make the highlight reel. They understand their role as a cog in the wheel – Assuring their team a win takes higher priority over making the highlight reel. (They don’t go into a game saying ‘watch me get horizontal’ but will take every opportunity to get the disc back on D – they are no less an animal for the disc.)

“My idea of dominating is that I get all of the players on my team to play better than if I wasn’t there.” – Ben Wiggins

These under-appreciated heroes elevate the team every time they step on the field. (Elevate the team and the team will then elevate you - People often think that its the other way around )

These are the players who are focused less on the spectacular and more on getting the job done and taking the team home – depending on making a harder cut, a sharper turn to get separation from their man than depend on their ability to read the disc, jump and sky the opposition.

In my opinion, the MVP is the player that’s most intrinsic to their team’s success.

If you were given a choice of picking a player for your team – Would you pick the guy who can layout big or the guy who was ridiculously consistent and made all the simple plays look simple?