NBL star accuses MVP voters of favouritism in wild Instagram rant following narrow loss
Monday night's NBL MVP award has sparked controversy, with Sydney Kings star Kendric Davis accusing the voters of favouritism.
Davis finished second in the voting to Adelaide's Bryce Cotton by just two votes, handing the legendary guard his sixth Andrew Gaze Award.
For the Kings point guard, it is the second straight season he has finished runner up and if one more voter had leant in his direction, it would have been a tie.
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Bryce Cotton of the 36ers and Kendric Davis of the Kings. Getty
The American star was clearly frustrated to miss out once again, and aired his grievances during an Instagram Live video overnight.
He is particularly frustrated that, unlike in the NBA, voters' ballots are not made public.
"They got John Casey (voting). I love John Casey but John Casey on this, like c'mon bro," Davis said.
"Let's see who voted for who. So we know what is going on like the NBA.
"All I know is you put my stats up against his stats and take our faces off, and tell the NBA to vote on who should win MVP, I guarantee I come out on top. Guarantee, but not a go.
"I don't really even care. I'm just speaking on it because if it ain't spoke on, they gonna sweep it under the rug. So, you gotta speak on it.
"Don't tell me about 'rook' no more. 'Rook' is fake. Man, two straight.
"They didn't want me to win it from the get go. They didn't want me to win MVP from the get go. Trust me.
"Why do you think at the beginning of the year all they did was post, the NBL post said I'm a bad teammate and all this and that."
Bryce Cotton of the 36ers poses with the Andrew Gaze Trophy. Getty Images for NBL
Cotton now sits just one MVP behind the trophy's namesake Gaze. He joined the Adelaide 36ers in 2025 after a lengthy stint with the Perth Wildcats, including three championships.
The veteran averaged more points per game than Davis this season: 25.7 to 24.4. He also averaged more assists and steals, but slightly fewer rebounds.
Cotton elected to play down the situation when asked about Davis' comments on Tuesday morning.
"I was too busy paying for everybody's drinks, so I didn't catch everything that was said. Sorry about that," he told reporters.
