B/R Staff Roundtable: Final Picks for 2023 NBA Awards | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats and rumors

It’s the final weekend of the 2022-23 NBA regular season, and with nearly 82 games by 30 teams in the books, awards season is officially upon us.

All year long, the race has dominated MVP discussions. From TV broadcasts to Twitter timelines, there is discussion, sometimes fierce.

But while the MVP stole a lot of the bow, we’re here to break down the eight major awards;

1. Most Valuable Player
2. Rookie of the Year
3. Defensive Player of the Year
4. Sixth Year
5. The most important player
6. Clutch Player of the Year
7. Some Years
8. Executive of the Year

To determine the finalists, Bleacher Report asked NBA writers and editors to vote on one player for each category.

We’ve matched the results, and what follows is a breakdown of each award, and a look at the most deserving winners.

*Special thanks to B/R’s Dan Favale, Zach Buckley, Greg Swartz, Andy Bailey, Eric Pincus and Johnny Flowers for their votes.

Hit the comments to choose a participant for each major 2023 NBA award.

Nikola JokicAlex Bierens de Haan / Getty Images

Choosing Iokić to earn his third consecutive MVP award and with the likes of Bill Russell, Chamberlain and Larry Bird does not create any division or hostility in Visnea. Not one twice. No way, no, no.

Look, this year’s MVP can legitimately go to Nikola Jokić, Joel Embiid or Giannis Antetokounmpo. So far it comes down to a matter of preference and interpretation. What does “valuable” in Most Player mean to you?

Plenty of people will say that Jokić hasn’t done enough in the games to warrant a third straight trophy, or simply replace Embiid. You don’t have to develop a joke. That is your choice. But the above reasons are nonsense.

Joki’s play numbers are really good – certainly not worse than Embiid’s – this is the first season he’s entered with a helping hand injected with healthy hope to provide unrelenting anticipation. Also: The MVP will be decided by the regular-season. Meanwhile, this fervor until “Embiid’s turn” is frankly insulting to him. He has a real reason that doesn’t need a sympathy bump.

Others I will quote prominently higher usage rates from Giannis (38.7) and Embiid (37.3). Jokić’s mark of 27.3 checks in 10 points under both. But this metric doesn’t quite encapsulate the value he provides as a player. Jokić is contributing 49.2 points per game, tying for the highest scoring record It helps to generate buckets off. Giannis came in at 46.1 points on the season and Embiid is at 44.1 points.

This says nothing about the real effectiveness of Joki. This is a 70.2 true shooting percentage the third highest in NBA history among anyone who has attempted at least 500 field goals in a single season.

Psaltery in defense of Jokic, if necessary. Seriously. It is fair. Giannis and Embiid are substantially better in the less flashy end. But let us not pretend that this is the way to settle Joki’s quarrel. Denver Nuggets with him they are better on the floor than the Philadelphia 76ers with Embiid and Bucks of Rome with Giannis.

But this is not meant to detract from these two. I prefer a friendly reminder: Jokić can’t be everyone’s vagrant. It does not cause injury or harm.

-Dan Favale

Paul BancheroJess Rapfogel/Getty Images

There are many ambitious people here, but this is not one.

Paolo Banchero was the consensus pick of the B/R crowd, and he must be an expert NBA voter as well.

All due respect to Jalen Williams, Walker Kessler and Benedict Mathurin, but Banchero has been inoffensive for a while. No freshman in this class has numbers that stand next to his: 20.0 points per game (first among rookies), 6.9 rebounds (fourth) and 3.7 assists (third).

Frankly, few first-year players ever hit those marks. If Bancher has kept these averages, he will be the only one 12th rookies always averaged 20 points, six boards and three tens.

Banchero also made the Magic feel worse than their 34-45 record entering Thursday. Remember, this is a slumping squad off to a 5-20 start, meaning this group has been playing winning basketball for the past four months (29-25).

– Zach Buckley

Jaren Jackson Jr.Justin Ford / Getty Images

The great men have dominated the Defensive Player of the Year award for most of the history. And after Marcus Smart was forced to take a short break from that trend in 2021-22, he looks set to return to the bigs. And for a certain reason.

Jaren Jackson Jr 99th cent more or less to be valued defensively (one most he trusted capturing all the metrics in basketball). His are the Memphis Grizzlies third in the league in points allowed per 100 possessions, despite missing starters Ja Morant and Steven Adams for much of the season.

The Milwaukee Bucks, meanwhile, are just 0.2 points per 100 possessions better there, and have three All-Defensive contenders in their starting five. Oh, and if you’re into traditional numbers, JJJ’s 3.0 blocks per game leads the league, and 0.5 clear of second place.

I delete Alciatus’ name. That usually happens at the rim, of course, but it can also hinder jumpers and make perimeter-drew balls at least uncomfortable. And he is the driving force behind Memphis’ title defense.

-Andy Bailey

Malcolm BrogdonBrian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

Malcolm Brodgon was the biggest favorite among B/R voters, while only Immanuel Quickley of the New York Knicks (one vote) received another consideration here.

Brogdon’s role has been defined and maintained since he first came to Boston via trade, with the 30-year-old playing in all 67 games off the bench.

After starting every contest in four years, Brogdon is averaging 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists in just 26.0 minutes in his new role, all while finishing fourth in the NBA with 44.4 percent of three-pointers. As good as Quickley has been this season, his numbers on the reserves (12.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists in 25.6 minutes, 35.2 percent from three) were noticeably lower while playing on a worse team.

The third-leading scorer on a Celtics team that would finish with the second-best record in the NBA, Brogdon was his usual consistent self in his new role while bumping up his overall shooting efficiency in the process.

– Greg Swartz

Lauri MarkkanenNathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images

As good as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Brunson have been on each team this year, no player has prioritized their preseason expectations more than Lauri Markkanen.

Coming to Utah as part of the Donovan Mitchell trade, the playbook is wide open for Markkanen, who has shown an all-around game while unable to perform with the Chicago Bulls or Cleveland Cavaliers.

While primarily used as a floor spacer a year ago, Markkanen cut his ratio of three-point attempts to field goal attempts by nearly 10 percent, putting the ball on the floor while more flowing and attacking in the pick-and-drop. they roll He made his sixth year for his first All-Star Game and averaged 25.6 points (12th-highest in the NBA), 8.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists while shooting 49.9/39.1/87.5.

The Jazz have been surprisingly good this season even after trading away their five starters from the year before, with Markkanen serving as the primary reason. Uta is 32-34 with Markkanen in the lineup and just 4-10 without him. His offensive rating of plus-10.8 entering Thursday ranked in the 95th percentile this season, per A clean mirror.

Getting the top three tackles for Mitchell was nice, but Markkanen’s harbor turned out to be the best part of Utah’s trade after all.

– Greg Swartz

De’Aaron FoxRon Jenkins/Getty Images

This feels like a foregone conclusion for months. Perhaps even until the day the Jerry West Award was introduced. All season, De’Aaron Fox has been on fire. And don’t think that he just shot promiscuously, that’s not the case. His decision-making in the most important moments of the game was too great.

Fox is leading the league 194 scored points. This is clear in the second place. He also shot 52.9 percent from the field and averaged 5.7 Assisted by 100 possessions. The Sacramento Kings are plus-6.9 He scores points per 100 possessions when he’s on the floor, posting a net rating that the team is known for overall.

And without all those late buckets and 10s, it’s hard to imagine the Kings ending their 16-season playoff drought quite and clearly.

-Andy Bailey

Mike BrownRock Widner / NBAE via Getty Images

The results agree. Mike Brown of the Sacramento Kings was Coach of the Year. The Kings, who haven’t made the stage since 2006, finally clinched a berth in the debut season with franchise Brown.

Often in the NBA, a coach will get two or maybe three shots at a position. Brown had two records in Cleveland with the Cavaliers and one in Los Angeles with the Jets. He had a reputation as a strong defensive coach who was not particularly strong on offense. With his career seemingly settled, he spent six years with the Golden State Warriors as an assistant under Steve Kerr.

Given the chance to run the team again in Sacramento, Brown showed his growth, leading the league in offensive rating with the Kings. They have 119.1 points per 100 possessions. It’s not a defensive team, but Brown got enough out of his team to win the Pacific Division.

-Eric Pincus

koby altmanJason Miller/Getty Images

The top two executives sat next to each other at the negotiating table this summer, orchestrating the blockbuster that saw the Utah Jazz send All-Star Donovan Mitchell to the Cleveland Cavaliers for (now) All-Star Lauri Markkanen (along with additional players and significant draft compensation). A rare win for both franchises. In our poll, Cleveland’s Koby Altman narrowly beat out Justin Zanik (and Danny Ainge) for executive of the year.

The Cavaliers’ 51 wins are probably Altman’s balance. The Jazz have done more for their season but will miss the season. The still-young Mitchell (over 26) was a good price for the Cavs.

In addition to Mitchell, the Jazz got Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, three future picks and two trades. The New York Knicks, who dropped Mitchell, ended the season strong by voting for executive Leon Rose.

-Eric Pincus

Joel EmbiidTim Nwachukwu / Getty Images

MVP
Nikola Jokic: 3
Joel Embiid: 2
Giannis Antetokounmpo: 1

Rookie of the Year
Paolo Banchero: 6

Defensive Player of the Year
Jaren Jackson Jr.: 4
Evan Mobile: 1
On the Torrent Lopez: 1

Sixth Man of the Year
Malcolm Brogdon: 5
Immanuel Quickley: 1

Most Improved Player
Lauri Markkanen: 4
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: 2

Most Clutch Player
De’Aaron Fox: 6

Some years
Mike Brown: 6

Executive of the Year
Koby Altman: 3
Danny Ainge/Justin Zanik: 2
Leon Rose: 1