NBA AWARDS

SportsBeat!

Written by Aaron Cantin

The NBA season is winding down, with just a handful of games remaining before the playoffs begin. In a year riddled with injuries to top stars as well as the COVID-19 pandemic making things unordinary (to say the least), the NBA awards this year feel somewhat underwhelming. Despite that, the show goes on. Whether my predictions are right or not, the winners of these awards are fully deserving. But if I am right, don’t be surprised to see some first-timers take home trophies.

Photo from The Ringer | Getty Images

Coach of the Year

This is a tough one. In the West, the two teams currently atop the standings, in Phoenix Suns and Utah Jazz have the strongest candidates. The level of improvement that the Phoenix Suns have undergone this season has been spectacular. That's why Monty Williams has to be strongly considered. Quin Snyder of the Utah Jazz has to be considered the front-runner though. The Utah Jazz is tied with the Phoenix Suns for the best record in the NBA and Quin Snyder is a big reason why they have been so successful. The Jazz doesn’t necessarily have an elite top 10 player on their roster so the fact that they have been so successful without a player on that elite level is impressive. A dark horse from the East is New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau. The Knicks have the fourth-best defensive rating in the league this season. They were 23rd a year ago before Thibodeau took the reins. No one expected the Knicks to be a playoff team let alone a contender to come out of the East. Playing in the Big Apple doesn’t hurt either.

- Pick: Monty Williams

Defensive Player of the Year

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons and Utah Jazz forward Rudy Gobert are the overwhelming favorites to claim DPOY. Ben Simmons is the best perimeter defender in the NBA and has been for two consecutive seasons now. His ability to guard anyone against any team is uncanny, and though he does not put up stats like Gobert, his defensive impact is felt just as much.

Gobert meanwhile is the two-time defensive player of the year. He’s averaging a career-high 2.8 blocks while the Jazz has a defensive rating of 101.4 with the stifle tower on the court, and 111.5 when he sits. Gobert is cementing himself as one of the best defensive players of all time and is the most important player on the team with the best record in the league.

- Pick: Rudy Gobert

Sixth Man of the Year

For the first time, I can remember and possibly ever, the two leading candidates for the sixth man of the year may both play on the same team. Joe Ingles and Jordan Clarkson of the Utah Jazz are clear favorites for the award. Ingles is on the verge of becoming just the second Jazz player in franchise history to shoot at least 45 percent from the 3-point range with 100-plus makes from downtown in a single season. Ingles has a chance to become the eighth player in NBA history to shoot 45-plus percent from beyond the arc while making 180 or more triples in a season.

Clarkson was dealt with the Jazz in December of 2019 and at the time, was overlooked or insignificant. But now a year-and-a-half later with the Jazz legitimate title contenders, that assessment was clearly wrong. Clarkson, the heavy favorite to win this award, is averaging a career-best 17.3 points through 61 games and has scored in double figures in all but four of them.

- Pick: Jordan Clarkson

Most Improved Player

This list begins and ends with Knicks forward Julius Randle. No one expected the Knicks to be this good – and certainly not because of the development of Julius Randle. Randle has been averaging over 24 points and over 10 rebounds and elevated a team that no one expected to be this good. He’s gone from a good to elite playmaker at his position, a below-average to a knockdown three-point shooter, and perhaps most importantly, become an above-average defender. Earlier in the year, it looked like there was going to be more competition specifically from Chris Boucher of the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors went the wrong way in the standings as time went on effectively eliminating Boucher from award contention.

- Pick: Julius Randle

Rookie of the Year

If not the toughest one to call this year, definitely the most compelling. Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball and Minnesota Timberwolves forward Anthony Edwards lead the race and each has a case of their own. Ball is one of just four players in history to average at least 15.9 points, six assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game in their rookie season. During the first half of the season, LaMelo Ball was running away with the rookie of the year award until he injured his wrist on March 21st. That's roughly when Edwards began the shine. Edwards had a sluggish start for his standards averaging 18.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists all while struggling to get things rolling under Ryan Saunders. Edwards has completely turned around his rookie season, however, averaging 22.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.6 steals per game since the All-star break.

While Edwards has improved drastically over the course of the year, 50 games of LaMelo Ball still takes the cake. That’s not to slight Edwards – it’s more just notable how incredible Ball has been when healthy.

- Pick: LaMelo Ball

MVP

Most Valuable Player. The big one. This year, there are a couple of big names atop the list. I say big as in two seven-footers big. Denver Nuggets centre Nikola Jokic and Philadelphia 76ers centre Joel Embiid have to be considered front-runners. Then there's the sharp=shooter Steph Curry who has been lights-on for the second half of the year. Joel Embiid was considered the heavy favorite before he went down with an injury. He’s spent too much time on the sidelines to be considered the most valuable player.

Curry meanwhile is averaging a career-high in points on superb efficiency. The Golden State Warriors don’t have Klay Thompson, so he’s had to emerge as one of the better players in the league again following only playing five games in 2019-20. What Curry does is incredible. He is the best shooter we have ever witnessed and does things on offense only he can. Despite the praise, his team may still miss out on the playoffs, and that's huge. That leaves us with Nikola Jokic. He’s having a fantastic season averaging 26.3 points per game, 10.9 rebounds, and 8.7 assists on the fourth-seeded Nuggets. Jokic is the best Center and passer in the league. Even without Jamal Murray, the Nuggets have gone 6-1. Jokic hasn’t missed a game yet this season, unlike Joel Embiid who has missed significant time in a shortened season. Sometimes the best ability is availability.

- Pick: Nikola Jokic