Derrick Rose was announced as the NBA’s MVP in a press conference in Chicago on Tuesday afternoon as the youngest player to be named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player. Rose, the Chicago Bulls 22-year-old point guard, averaged 25.0 points, 7.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds while leading the Chicago Bulls to the top-seed in the Eastern Conference with a 62-20 regular season record.
Rose earned 113 of the 121 NBA MVP votes and a total 1,182 MVP points while Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard was awarded 643 total points despite just three MVP votes. Other players with first place votes including Miami Heat forward LeBron James with four and Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant with one vote.
“As great of a player as Derrick Rose is, he’s an even better person,” Gar Forman said leading up to the introduction of announcing this year’s NBA MVP.
Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau, earlier named the NBA’s Coach of the Year (making he and Rose just the 12th duo in league history to sweep the two awards), talked about Rose’s humility as well as being impressed with Rose during his time with Team USA as well as this season as the first-year head coach of the Bulls.
As Rose took the stage for his acceptance speech, he seemed a little nervous before beginning with the speech for the award — as well as a 2011 Kia Sorrento that will be donated to Meals On Wheels in Chicago.
In his speech he thanked God, his teammates for pushing him, his friends and family, his mother, and former Chicago Bull — and current Rose agent — B.J. Armstrong.
He gave his Rookie of the Year award to his mother, but told media that he wants to keep the MVP trophy at least a couple of years before she “steals it.”
In the press conference’s media questioning, the most interesting answer came when asked to compare himself to the last MVP from Chicago, Michael Jordan, and his five NBA MVP awards.
“I’m not even touching that man right there,” Rose said. “I’m far away from him, it’d be great to get close to him, but this is a different team and a different era. We’re just worrying about right now.”