Once the NBA regular season has concluded and the first round of playoffs, the American league has announced the finalists for the individual awards for the 2023-24 season. Equality has been the dominant note, especially in the Western Conference, so it is not surprising that the three contenders for the title of best player of the year (MVP) come from the left hemisphere of the league. The Serbian Nicola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) is the favorite to win what would be his third award, but the great campaign of the Oklahoma City Thunder puts Canadian point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander fully into the dispute. The brutal individual performance of the Slovenian Luka Dončić and the improvement of the Dallas Mavericks in the final stretch, open the options for his first award.
Although the influence of European players has been increasing in recent years, the absence of American players in the final shortlist for the highest individual award is striking. The latest winners have been the Cameroonian Joel Embiid, the Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Jokic himself. Taking into account that all of them are inside players (power forwards or centers), the victory of Dončić or Shai would represent the victory of an outside player for the first time since James Harden won in 17-18.
The Denver Nuggets record and Jokic’s very complete statistics (26.6 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9 assists per game) make him a favorite to win his third MVP, which would lead the Serbian to equal Larry Bird or Magic Johnson, and surpass Tim Duncan, Stephen Curry or Steve Nash, with two trophies each.
However, Shai also has good numbers (30.4 points, 5.6 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game) and no one can question his ability to lead a Thunder team that has finished first in the West. Dončić, for his part, has experienced a brutal end to the season that has ended with the Mavericks in fourth place and his averages are close to the triple-double: 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists .
Defensive Player of the Year
The French center of the San Antonio Spurs and top favorite for the rookie of the year, Víctor Wembanyama, is one of the big surprises in the shortlist to win the award for best defensive player of the year. The 10.6 rebounds, 3.6 blocks and 1.2 steals achieved in his first year in the elite demonstrate the defensive capacity of a player called to mark an era. .
Another Frenchman, Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (12.9 rebounds 2.1 blocks 0.7 steals), is also among the candidates. A three-time winner, the 31-year-old interior veteran would equal Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace as players with the most awards in history. And with fewer options appears Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo, who has managed to average 10.4 rebounds, 0.9 blocks and 1.1 steals per game.
Among the candidates, the absence of the league’s top rebounder, Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento Kings, 13.7 catches per night), and the Los Angeles Lakers center, Anthony Davis (12.6 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1 ,2 robberies).
Rookie of the Year
One of the awards with the least suspense is rookie of the year. If the collective performance were judged, Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holgrem (stats) would be the favorite considering that his franchise has finished as the leader of the disputed Western Conference.
Indeed, the franchise of his rival and main candidate, center Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs), has the third worst record in the competition; but the Frenchman’s performance has been so extraordinary (stats) that the entire basketball community is clear that his potential is as a player with the capacity to mark an era in the league.
The third in contention is Brandon Miller (Charlotte Hornets), who finished the year with an average of 17.3 points.
Most Improved Player of the Year
Among the candidates to win the award for best performance as a player, the top favorite is sixer Tyrese Maxey (25.9 points and 6.2 assists per game), thanks to his ability to have replaced James Harden and become in the ideal complement in attack for Joel Embiid.
The Turkish center Alperen Sengün, the Turkish center, one of the keys to the resurrection of the Houston Rockets, has also made merits with 21.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 5.0 assists that have left the Texan franchise on the verge of playing the play-in. Finally, Chicago Bulls point guard Coby White and his 19.1 points per game close the list.
Sixth Man
Player Malik Monk (Sacramento Kings) and his 15.4 points per game, which he averages in just 26 minutes of play, make him the favorite to win the award for best bench player. Bobby Portis, center for the Milwaukee Bucks (13.8 points and 7.4 rebounds in 24 minutes per night) and Naz Reid (Minnesota Timberwolves, 13.5 points and 5.2 rebounds in 24 minutes), their opponents.
Player Clutch
He clutch o ability to decide tight matches is measured based on matches won when in the last five minutes of the match there is a difference of five points or less on the scoreboard. The big favorite is Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), as he demonstrated early this Monday by scoring the winning basket of the first playoff game against the New Orleans Pelicans. Golden State Warriors point guard and Chicago Bulls guard DeMar DeRozan, their rivals.
Coach of the Year
Mark Daigneault, coach of what has been the great revelation of the season, the Oklahoma City Thunder (57 wins and 25 losses), is the great favorite to win the award. In second place, appears Mark Daigneault, of the Minnesota Timberwolves (56-26), another of the teams that has grown the most in the 23-24; while the creditable fourth place of the Orlando Magic (47-35) in the East has led Jamahl Mosley to be among the contenders. The absence of Joe Mazulla, coach of the Boston Celtics, a franchise with the best record (64-18) in the regular season, is surprising.
