This has been a tremendous season for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and as such they have factored into a number of award races. We went deep on three in particular that feature Cavaliers players in prominent position to win the award: Coach of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Defensive Player of the Year.
Now we come to the rest of the awards, the ones that Cavs are not truly contending to win -- but, by nature of their phenomenal season with players contributing on every level, have at least one player in the mix to find their way onto the ballot. Well, of every one but Rookie of the Year.
Without further preamble, we begin with the Most Valuable Player award, with a race that is as tight as any in recent memory. These are my picks, not predictions, and I followed the qualifications the NBA has -- including the 65-game mark.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the MVP
In most years, the performances that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic are putting up would easily win them MVP. Unfortunately, this season one of them has to finish as the runner-up. The statistical season that Jokic is having is truly unprecedented, and one of the 10-best offensive players in NBA history is having the best offensive season of his career.
Yet he has slipped on defense, and taking on a larger scoring load hasn't necessarily meant he has elevated his team further, even if it has been needed. Gilgeous-Alexander, on the other hand, is an above-average defender and the second-best offensive player in basketball. He is putting up numbers not seen since Michael Jordan, is highly efficient and versatile and the most consistent scorer in decades. Team success is a data point, not a determining factor, but the Oklahoma City Thunder have built a team with the best net rating in NBA history and SGA is the centerpiece of that success.
He wins the award in a powerhouse of a race.
No. 1: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
No. 2: Nikola Jokic
No. 3: Giannis Antetokounmpo
No. 4: Jayson Tatum
No. 5: Evan Mobley
Giannis Antetokounmpo is an easy pick for No. 3, having another efficient and high-impact season. The Milwaukee Bucks are down, and part of that is his fault, but most of it points to the degradation of the roster around him and the lukewarm coaching job of Doc Rivers. He is locked in at No. 3. Jayson Tatum comes next, having yet another Top-5 season for a championship contender. He is a fantastic two-way player who is somehow underrated for the impact he has on the Boston Celtics.
Finally, the fifth-slot was more wide-open. Anthony Edwards had a reasonable case with the efficient shooting he has added to his game at high volume. Stephen Curry has more of a case for the same reason, although his inconsistency this season (50 points one game, six points the next) just barely pulled him back off the ballot. Seriously, just off the ballot; I typed Stephen Curry in the fifth spot and then changed it.
LeBron James deserves immense credit for the season he is having at age 40. Donovan Mitchell has been great, and does need to be applauded for empowering his teammates to shine and buying into the team system Kenny Atkinson brought to the Cavaliers, but at the end of the day his numbers and efficiency were down; he was not in serious contention for this spot.
The fifth slot goes therefore to Evan Mobley, our pick for the best defensive season combined with a phenomenal offensive improvement and a largely healthy season. He is a two-way force without the weaknesses of similar players and is having the best season on the team.
Picking the All-NBA Teams
First-Team All-NBA:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Nikola Jokic
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Jayson Tatum
Evan Mobley
The Top 5 for MVP all translate straight to the All-NBA teams.
Second-Team All-NBA:
Stephen Curry
LeBron James
Donovan Mitchell
Anthony Edwards
Jalen Brunson
In addition to the "also considered" for the MVP ballot, Jalen Brunson returned in time to qualify for year-end awards with 65 games played exactly. He is a unique offensive engine as a small guard and carries a phenomenal load for Tom Thibodeau's Knicks.
Third-Team All-NBA:
Jaren Jackson Jr.
Darius Garland
Cade Cunningham
Jalen Williams
Ivica Zubac
At the end there were seven players in the mix for the final five spots on the All-NBA team, especially with names like Victor Wembanyama, Anthony Davis and Kevin Durant ineligible. Jaren Jackson Jr. made the team easily as the Memphis Grizzlies' best offensive and defensive player; they stumbled late but won 48 games with the third-best point differential in the Western Conference.
Darius Garland was also an easy selection due to his offensive fireworks all season; he did go through a shooting slump in March, but his work early in the season and in the final few games sewed up his case. Cade Cunningham is much higher on some people's lists; he was really good this season and deserves a lot of credit for the season the Detroit Pistons had, but the fact that they tripled their win total is probably boosting him more than necessary.
Finally, Jalen Williams was on my Defensive Player of the Year ballot and is a really strong offensive player as well; he has room for improvement, but his impact was significant and yet for some reason he isn't getting the "team is awesome" bump among many public voters as, say, Jaylen Brown got the past few seasons. That probably has more to do with Boston-connected voters than anything.
Ivica Zubac beats out Karl-Anthony Towns for the fifteenth and final spot; his All-Defense level rim protection and improved offensive game outpace Towns' incredible offense and damaging defense. James Harden was the next one out; he is having a really solid season when many left him for dead, but his efficiency is not quite there and he has being supported by some really good supporting players like Norman Powell and Zubac in addition to Kawhi Leonard playing in a handful of games.
Sixth Man of the Year
There are five candidates for this award -- one of which, Scottie Pippen Jr., is not getting much attention. He does rank fifth on our ballot, but since it's a three-person ballot he doesn't get mention. In the end, the top slot goes to Payton Pritchard of the Boston Celtics, having a bonkers shooting season and thriving whenever he sees a larger role due to injuries to the All-Defense guards ahead of him.
No. 1: Payton Pritchard
No. 2: Malik Beasley
No. 3: Ty Jerome
Malik Beasley is having a Steph-Curry like shooting season, shooting 41.6 percent on 9.3 attempts from distance -- and playing in all 82 games. In the end, it was the volume of playing time that gave him the advantage over Ty Jerome in third place.
Jerome beats out his teammate De'Andre Hunter for the third and final season. He is hyper-efficient, has an elite steal rate to help balance out his defensive deficiencies and the Cavs excel when he is on the court. Hunter is having a great year and is a close fourth, going from a high-volume role in Atlanta to an efficient supporting role in Cleveland.
Rookie of the Year
It's almost painful to have to discuss this rookie class, because it was discussed as a weak class heading in and then only further proved that point by collectively having a poor rookie season. Someone has to win, but it's not pretty.
No. 1: Stephon Castle
No. 2: Zaccharie Risacher
No. 3: Zach Edey
Stephon Castle has been incredibly inefficient despite an increasing workload, and he has actively hurt the San Antonio Spurs' offense. He has also been the best passer in the class and played solid defense as a rookie, and somewhere in there the flashes of elite play put him ahead of No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher. If the French wing had played the entire season as he played the last five weeks, he would be first.
Zach Edey stepped in as the starting center on a 48-win playoff team and has delivered on being a Top-10 pick. He beats out teammate Jaylen Wells -- another starter on a good team and an excellent defender already -- and fellow hulking center Donovan Clingan, who was a legitimately good rim protector as a rookie for a better-than-expected Portland Trail Blazers team. He was essentially better this season than max-contract Deandre Ayton.
All-Rookie Teams
The First Team was discussed above; the Second Team is assembled largely by default. You could have picked five different names (something like Alex Sarr, Isaiah Collier, Jamal Shead, Ryan Dunn and Yves Missi) and it would have been reasonable.
First Team:
Stephon Castle
Zaccharie Risacher
Donovan Clingan
Jaylen Wells
Zach Edey
Second Team:
Kel'el Ware
Jared McCain
Kyle Filipowski
Quinten Post
Matas Buzelis
Matas Buzelis has been deserving of a rotation role for the Chicago Bulls and has intriguing two-way upside that he has flashed at times. Jared McCain was the Rookie of the Year frontrunner before going down to injury. Kel'el Ware is starting for the Miami Heat and looks like the latest NBA unicorn. Quinten Post is likewise often starting for a playoff team and his shooting is a legitimately lethal weapon. Finally, Kyle Filipowski is a one-way player on offense, but his skill level is impressive and he is making a lot of teams look dumb for passing on him in the first round because of some bizarre TMZ story.
Everyone is ready for Cooper Flagg and VJ Edgecombe and Dylan Harper next season.