My 2024 NBA Award Ballot
Though I am not a voter for the official NBA awards, here is what my ballot would look like if I were along with explanations and honorable mentions.
Most Valuable Player: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
Season Stats: 33.9 Points, 9.2 Rebounds, 9.8 Assists, 1.4 Steals Per Game
(Photo via @adamschefter, Instagram)
This was without a doubt one of the hardest choices to make. Shai and Jokic made legitimate cases for themselves. I have no problems with anyone voting for either of the two, especially Shai leading the second youngest team in the NBA to the Western Conference’s number-one overall seed. Jokic of course is the undisputed best player in the world and did his thing this year also, but I went with the Slovenian Sensation Luka Doncic. His stat line of basically 34/10/9 was stellar. He had plenty of “MVP Moments” this year as well, none better than his 73-point outing against the Hawks which also saw him compile 10 rebounds and 7 assists on just 33 field goal attempts.
Considering we’ve seen guys in recent years take home MVP honors as a six seed, Luka keeping the Mavericks afloat in a loaded west despite midseason roster changes and injuries, landing them the fifth seed, and crossing the fifty-win threshold makes him a more than deserving winner.
Honorable Mentions also on my ballot:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
Giannis Antentekounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
Joel Embiid was my frontrunner to win the award halfway through the season, but injuries limited him to only 39 games played. Due to not meeting the new required 65-game minimum the league set last offseason, he will not be included in the All-NBA teams or on the ballot for any award.
Rookie of the Year: Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
Season Stats: 21.4 Points, 10.6 Rebounds, 3.9 Assists, 3.6 Blocks, 1.2 Steals Per Game
(Photo via New York Post)
No disrespect to Chet or Brandon Miller because they had successful first years, but this was the easiest pick for me to make. “Wemby” was not only the best rookie in the association, but had the best rookie season I have ever witnessed. He enters next year as a top 15 player and will be knocking on the door of the top 10 in no time. We all knew he would be a force on the defensive end, but the way he has developed his game on offense in just 71 games makes it hard not to believe that barring injuries he has a good chance of becoming one of the greatest players in the league history when it’s all said and done.
Honorable Mentions:
Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City Thunder
Brandon Miller, Charlotte Hornets
Sixth Man of the Year: Malik Monk, Sacramento Kings
Season Stats: 15.4 Points, 2.9 Rebounds, 5.1 Assists, 0.6 Steals Per Game
(Photo via ESPN)
Despite missing the final nine games of the year with an MCL Sprain, Malik Monk played 72 out of the 82-game schedule and is my pick for best man off the bench in the NBA this season. He was the heavy favorite to win the award before the injury, posting career-bests in both points and assists. His value to the Kings was evident during his absence, as they were not the same team and could not get out of the play-in tournament.
Naz Reid was the hardest omission, and I have no gripe with him being given the actual award. I do however have concerns over the fact that seven voters left Monk off of their ballots entirely.
Honorable Mentions:
Naz Reid, Minnesota Timberwolves
Bobby Portis, Milwaukee Bucks
Norman Powell, Los Angeles Clippers
Defensive Player of the Year: Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
(Photo via The Predictors)
Though I anticipate Rudy Gobert taking this award home, I believe Wembanyama and Spurs fans have a right to feel like he’s getting snubbed here. Yes, Gobert held together the best defense in the association, but he was surrounded by size and fellow elite defenders such as Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards. At first glance, Wemby’s defensive impact seems to not translate to team success, but the more you look into it the more you realize he is by far the most important defense weapon in the sport. The league leader in blocks had the Spurs on a top-five level on the defensive end when he was on the court, and they plummeted to the worst defense in the league whenever he headed to the bench.
Honorable Mentions:
Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves
Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
Most Improved Player: Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder
(Photo via Sports Illustrated)
This is the type of year where I wish we had a most improved team because all five guys I have on my ballot made significant advances in their game, all in different ways. Though I tend to shy away from handing this award to second-year players due to expected growth, what “J-Dub” did this year on a top-seeded team was not your average year-two jump. Most statistical “improvements” come from an increase in playing time and the argument can be made that those players were frankly just given more opportunities rather than changing their game. In just one additional minute per game, Williams saw his scoring average increase by five points per game. With a rise in offensive touches and shot attempts, most players struggle to sustain the same efficiency. That was not the case here, as he climbed from 52% to 54% on an extra four field goal attempts and most impressively went from a 36% three-point shooter to hitting 43% of his shots from downtown this year while taking an extra three per game.
Williams also impacts the game beyond the stat sheet. His defense both on the perimeter and inside is a huge asset and helped OKC have the success they did this year, and only helped his case to win my vote for the most improved player.
Honorable Mentions:
Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers
Coby White, Chicago Bulls
Jalen Johnson, Atlanta Hawks
Alperen Sengun, Houston Rockets
Coach of the Year: Mark Daigneault, Oklahoma City Thunder
(Photo via Sports Illustrated)
Easy pick. All the other coaches on my ballot had great years, but Daigneault leading the second-youngest team in the league to the number-one overall seed in potentially the deepest Western Conference of all time more than earned him coach of the year honors. For a team that due to lack of experience is supposed to be “a year or two away”, they are showing that the future is now and they have arrived ahead of schedule as legit contenders.
Honorable Mentions:
Jamahl Mosley, Orlando Magic
Joe Mazulla, Boston Celtics
Chris Finch, Minnesota Timberwolves
Tom Thibodeau, New York Knicks
Clutch Player of the Year: Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
(Photo via San Diego Union-Tribune)
DeMar DeRozan would have run away with the award in 2022 before it was a thing and has been a finalist in the last two seasons. As much as I’d love to give him the credit he deserves for coming up big late in games year after year, Stephen Curry has to be the choice for this specific season. Curry finished first in an abundance of stat categories centered around clutch time (five-point game or less with under five minutes remaining), including clutch time points, field goals made, three-pointers made, points-per-minute, go-ahead field goals made, clutch win probability added, and also had the highest percentage of clutch team points.
Honorable Mentions:
DeMar DeRozan, Chicago Bulls
LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
Executive of the Year: Brad Stevens, Boston Celtics
(Photo via Celtics Blog)
Offseason acquisition of Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday turned the Celtics from a contender to a regular season juggernaut. They had an average point differential this year of +11.34, which was good enough to be top five all-time. The teams ahead of them, the ‘72 Lakers, ‘71 Bucks, ‘96 Bulls, and ‘17 Warriors, all won championships. Will the Celtics join those teams and be just as dominant in the postseason as they were in the regular season and get over the hump? To be determined, but regardless Brad Stevens is the rightful winner here.
Honorable Mentions:
Sam Presti, Oklahoma City Thunder
Leon Rose, New York Knicks
Nico Harrison, Dallas Mavericks
ALL-NBA Teams
First Team:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
Giannis Antentekounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Second Team:
Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers
Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns
Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
Third Team:
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings
All-Defensive Teams
First Team:
Herbert Jones, New Orleans Pelicans
Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves
Second Team:
Alex Caruso, Chicago Bulls
Derrick White, Boston Celtics
Jalen Suggs, Orlando Magic
Jaden McDaniels, Minnesota Timberwolves
Aaron Gordon, Denver Nuggets
All-Rookie Teams
First Team:
Brandon Miller, Charlotte Hornets
Jaime Jacquez, Miami Heat
Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City Thunder
Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
Derek Lively, Dallas Mavericks
Second Team:
Keyonate George, Utah Jazz
Cason Wallace, Oklahoma City Thunder
Brandon Podziemski, Golden State Warriors
Amen Thompson, Houston Rockets
Ausar Thompson, Detroit Pistons