List of National Basketball Association awards

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"NBA awards" redirects here. For the awards show, see NBA Awards.

National Basketball Association awards and honors
Championship
Individual awards
Honors
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The National Basketball Association (NBA) presents 13 annual awards to recognize its teams, players, and coaches for their accomplishments. This does not include the NBA championship trophy which is given to the winning team of the NBA Finals.

The NBA's championship trophy made its first appearance after the inaugural NBA Finals in 1947. In 1964, it was named after Walter A. Brown who was instrumental in merging the Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League into the NBA.[1][2] The Brown Trophy design remained the same until 1977 when the current trophy design was first introduced although it retained the Walter A. Brown title.[3] In 1984, the trophy was renamed to honor former NBA commissioner Larry O'Brien.[3][4][5]

The NBA's first individual awards were the Rookie of the Year and the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player, both of which were introduced in 1953.[6][7] The only individual award of the postseason is the Bill Russell Finals MVP. The Executive of the Year is the only award not presented by the NBA. It is named annually by Sporting News but is officially recognized by the NBA.[8]

Through the 2015–16 season, each individual award, with the exception of the Finals MVP, was awarded at the end of the regular season while the NBA Playoffs were ongoing. This procedure was different from the other major professional sports leagues, which have long handed out individual awards after their postseasons have concluded. The 2016–17 season was the first in which the NBA held an awards show after the completion of the Finals,[9] during which the winners of all season-long individual awards are announced[10] except for the winner of the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, which continued to be announced during the playoffs until 2017[11] and in 2018 was announced after the playoffs but before the awards show.[12]

Aside from these annual awards, the league also has weekly and monthly honors during the regular season for its players and coaches.

In 2021, the NBA made a social justice award, named after 6-time NBA champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award. This award was made to recognize players who are making strides in the fight for social justice.

Team trophies[]

Award Created Description Most recent winner Notes
Larry O'Brien Trophy 1977 The NBA's championship trophy; awarded to the winning team of the NBA Finals. Milwaukee Bucks [3][4][13]
Walter A. Brown Trophy 1947 The NBA's first championship trophy which was awarded to the winning team of the NBA Finals until it was replaced with the Larry O'Brien Trophy. N/A; trophy retired after 1977 [5]

Honors[]

Honor Created Description Notes
All-NBA Team 1947 Three 5-player teams (a first, second, and third team) composed of the best players in the league during the regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. [14]
All-Rookie Team 1963 Two 5-player teams (a first and second team) composed of the top rookies during the regular season as voted by NBA head coaches. The coaches are not allowed to vote for players of their own team. [15]
All-Defensive Team 1969 Two 5-player teams (a first and second team) composed of the best defensive players in the league during the regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. [16]

Individual awards[]

Award Created Description Most recent winner(s) Notes
All-Star Game MVP
(Kobe Bryant Trophy) 		1951 Awarded to the best performing player of the annual NBA All-Star Game as voted by a panel of media members. Steph Curry (Golden State Warriors) [17]
Rookie of the Year
(Eddie Gottlieb Trophy) 		1953 Awarded to the top rookie of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. LaMelo Ball (Charlotte Hornets) [18]
Most Valuable Player
(Maurice Podoloff Trophy) 		1956 Awarded to the best performing player of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and media members. Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets) [19]
Coach of the Year
(Red Auerbach Trophy) 		1963 Awarded to the best coach of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and media members. Tom Thibodeau (New York Knicks) [20]
NBA Finals Most Valuable Player
(Bill Russell Trophy) 		1969 Named after Bill Russell;[21] awarded to the best performing player of the NBA Finals as voted by a panel of nine media members.[a] Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) [22]
Executive of the Year 1973 Awarded to the NBA's top front office executive as voted by the executives from the league's 30 teams. James Jones (Phoenix Suns) [23]
Citizenship Award
(J. Walter Kennedy Trophy) 		1975 Named after J. Walter Kennedy; awarded to a team member who showed "great service and dedication to the community" as voted by the PBWA. Malcolm Brogdon (Indiana Pacers) [12]
Defensive Player of the Year 1983 Awarded to the top defensive player of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. Rudy Gobert (Utah Jazz) [24]
Sixth Man of the Year 1983 Awarded to the best performing player as a substitute (or sixth man) during the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters. Jordan Clarkson (Utah Jazz) [25]
Most Improved Player 1986 Awarded to the most improved player in the NBA as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. Julius Randle (New York Knicks) [26]
Sportsmanship Award
(Joe Dumars Trophy) 		1996 Awarded to the player who most displays "the ideals of sportsmanship on the court with ethical behavior, fair play and integrity" as voted by NBA players. Jrue Holiday (Milwaukee Bucks) [27]
Teammate of the Year
(Twyman–Stokes Trophy) 		2013 Awarded to the "ideal teammate" who exemplifies "selfless play and commitment and dedication to his team" as voted by NBA players. Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers) [28]
Lifetime Achievement Award 2017 Awarded to the NBA player who has had a lifetime of achievement in the NBA. Magic Johnson (Los Angeles Lakers) and Larry Bird (Boston Celtics) [29]
Social Justice Champion Award
(Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Trophy) 		2021 Awarded to the NBA player who are making strides in the fight for social justice. Carmelo Anthony (Portland Trail Blazers) [30]

See also[]

Notes[]

  • a Though the award winner is usually determined by nine votes, fans balloting on NBA.com accounted for the tenth vote in at least one NBA Finals.[31][32]
  • b Los Angeles Clippers player, Montrezl Harrell won the 2019-20 NBA Hustle Award, which honors the player that makes the energy and effort plays to help his team win throughout the season.[33]

References[]

General

  • "Awards and Honors Index". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved August 11, 2008.

Specific

  1. ^ "Walter A. Brown". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on August 31, 2009. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  2. ^ "NBA". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  3. ^ a b c "Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008.
  4. ^ a b "The trophies". St. Petersburg Times. April 10, 2003. Retrieved July 26, 2008.
  5. ^ a b "NBA Legends Launch 2005 NBA Legends Tour: Destination Finals". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved July 26, 2008.
  6. ^ "All-Star Game: Year-by-Year Results". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved July 26, 2008.
  7. ^ "Rookie of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on March 29, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2008.
  8. ^ "Reports: Baylor wins NBA executive of the year". ESPN. May 14, 2006. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  9. ^ "First-ever NBA awards show to air June 2017 on TNT" (Press release). National Basketball Association. November 1, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  10. ^ "2017 NBA Awards Finalists". National Basketball Association. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  11. ^ "Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James wins PBWA's J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award" (Press release). National Basketball Association. May 21, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  12. ^ a b "Mavericks' J. J. Barea Wins 2017-18 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award" (Press release). National Basketball Association. June 13, 2018. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  13. ^ Deb, Sopan (2021-07-21). "The Milwaukee Bucks Win the N.B.A. Championship". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  14. ^ "MVP Nash Highlights All-NBA First Team". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 17, 2006. Archived from the original on February 28, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
  15. ^ "Durant, Horford Headline T-Mobile All-Rookie Team". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 14, 2008. Archived from the original on July 31, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
  16. ^ "Kobe, Garnett Headline All-Defensive Team". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 12, 2008. Archived from the original on July 26, 2010. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
  17. ^ "Akron kids: Curry wins MVP, LeBron ends ASG". ESPN.com. 2022-02-21. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  18. ^ "Hornets' LaMelo Ball wins 2020-21 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-17.
  19. ^ "Nikola Jokic wins 2020-21 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  20. ^ "New York's Tom Thibodeau wins 2020-21 NBA Coach of the Year award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
  21. ^ "The Finals MVP to Receive Bill Russell MVP Award". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. February 14, 2009. Archived from the original on February 17, 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  22. ^ "Finals Most Valuable Player". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  23. ^ "Phoenix's James Jones wins 2020-21 NBA Basketball Executive of the Year award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-23.
  24. ^ "Rudy Gobert named 2020-21 Kia Defensive Player of the Year". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  25. ^ "Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson wins 2020-21 Kia NBA Sixth Man Award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
  26. ^ "Julius Randle named 2020-21 Kia NBA Most Improved Player". NBA.com. May 25, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  27. ^ "Jrue Holiday wins 2020-21 NBA Sportsmanship award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
  28. ^ "Damian Lillard wins 2020-21 Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
  29. ^ "2018 NBA Awards Complete List of Winners". National Basketball Association. June 25, 2018. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  30. ^ "NBA creates annual Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Award". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2021-06-16.
  31. ^ Mike Bresnahan (June 19, 2008). "Numbers from final game tell bad tale for Lakers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 15, 2008.
  32. ^ Johnny Ludden (June 25, 2005). "MVP voting as close as the series". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved July 15, 2008.
  33. ^ "Clippers' Montrezl Harrell wins NBA Hustle Award". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
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