NBA: Ranking every MVP winner in league history

SANTA MONICA, CA - JUNE 25: James Harden, winner of the 2017-2018 MVP award, poses with his mom Monja Willis in the backstage photo room during the 2018 NBA Awards at Barker Hangar on June 25, 2018 in Santa Monica, California. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) /

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Dave Cowens (Photo By Ross Lewis/Getty Images) /

NBA: Ranking every MVP winner in league history: 31. Dave Cowens

Stats:

17.6 points
13.6 rebounds
3.8 assists

Accomplishments:

8 time All-Star
3 time All-NBA
1 time MVP
2 time NBA champ

The numbers won’t exactly wow you but Dave Cowens had a solid NBA career. At times, Cowens appeared to be an elite player. In other instances, not so much. Still, Cowens carved out several strong years.

When Bill Russell hung up his basketball shorts for good, the Celtics didn’t merely fall apart. It was Cowens who led them to two post-Russell dynasty rings in the mid-1970s. Cowens was cut from the same cloth as Russell, at least to a certain extent. He was all about rebounding the ball and scoring down low, something he did at an elite level.

During the 1972-73 season, Cowens put it all together. He averaged 20.5 points and 16.2 rebounds, both career highs. Cowens was never an efficient player. In fact, his overall field goal percentages for a starting center were flat-out awful. In five of his 11 seasons, Cowens failed to make at least 45 percent of his shots. He also never connected on anything higher than 49.0%.

Cowens wasn’t a terrific overall player but he did more than enough to keep the winning ways of Boston going. While his Hall of Fame credentials are a bit questionable, he had himself a very good career.