King Chuddy's Awards Ballot
April 14, 2022
The NBA regular season came to a close on Sunday, April 10th, but there is still plenty left to be determined. Of course there’s the play-in tournament, and then the NBA playoffs, and that will wrap up with the NBA Finals in mid June. Shortly after the Finals, the league will shift gears into draft and offseason mode. But mixed in there will be an awards ceremony and the players who have shined the brightest this regular season will be honored. So now I will dig into every award, and reveal my ballot for each. As a reminder, these are NOT my predictions of what will happen, these are my picks for what I think SHOULD happen. So without further ado…
COACH OF THE YEAR
3. Erik Spoelstra - MIA
2. Taylor Jenkins - MEM
Winner: Monty Williams - PHX
Let’s start off with one of the easier choices, and that’s Monty Williams for Coach of the Year. Frankly, Monty should have won this award last year for the job he did with the Suns, but alas he came in second. Well this year, the team took another giant leap forward from contender to title favorite and borderline juggernaut. The Suns quietly steamrolled through the regular season, establishing a dominant offense, defense, and crunch time unit. Phoenix surely has a talented roster, but to roll to 64 wins - 8 clear of the next best team in the league - a year after falling short in the NBA Finals is extremely impressive and it all stems from their coach and leader. The culture in Phoenix has come together very quickly after many years of despair, and now they appear to be one of the most admirable organizations in the league. The real coup de grace for Williams was when Chris Paul went down with an injury and this team didn’t even miss a beat. The culture that has been established is impeccable and Monty Williams deserves his flowers.
While Williams was an easy choice to win this award, there were a number of worthy candidates and coaching across the league is as good as it has ever been. Taylor Jenkins took a Grizzlies team that appeared to have a play-in type of ceiling, and led them to the best season in franchise history and a 2 seed in the west. Erik Spoelstra just keeps on humming in Miami, further cementing his position as an all time great coach. He led his team to the 1 seed in the East, likely without a single All-NBA player (they might sneak Butler or Bam onto the 3rd team) or anything resembling an MVP candidate. Furthermore, every key player missed significant games, but you’d barely know it. Spoelstra just kept them plugging along regardless of who was available. The Heat had no business winning as many games as they did, and it’s largely a testament to their incredible coach.
Other coaches who deserve mention include J.B. Bickerstaff, Chris Finch, Ime Udoka, and Jason Kidd. Bickerstaff led perhaps the most surprising season in the league, as he had the upstart Cavaliers in the hunt for a top seed in the East before injuries derailed their season. Finch seems to have finally turned a corner in Minnesota and has the franchise in the best shape it's been in in years. Udoka (Celtics) and Kidd (Mavericks) both stepped into a new role this season and after slow starts, both crushed it. Udoka masterminded one of the best turnarounds in league history, leading the Celtics all the way to the 2 seed after a mediocre first half of the season, while Kidd found a system and style that works around his superstar, Luka Doncic, while turning Dallas into one of the best defenses in the league to go along with their already lethal offense. The bottom line is there are a lot of great coaches in the NBA these days.
SIXTH MAN OF THE YEAR
3. Bogdan Bogdanovic - ATL
2. Kevin Love - CLE
Winner: Tyler Herro - MIA
This was another relatively easy one for me. Apply much of what I said about Erik Spoelstra here. The Heat have been a great team all season, without a true superstar, and while dealing with constant injuries. Herro has been as close to a constant as the Heat have had; he ended up playing in 66 games, while starting only ten. He averaged over 20 points per game to go along with 5 rebounds and 4 assists. He did that while shooting 40% from three on almost seven attempts per game. Miami cut their teeth on defense this year, but Herro was arguably their best and most important offensive player. He took on a massive crunch time role - especially with Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry missing considerable time. Herro has the best statistical case, but his impact on winning is what sealed it for me. Miami has plenty of good defenders, but without the offensive contributions from Herro, this team would really struggle to score on a consistent basis. Factor in that Herro helped lead the Heat to the 1 seed in the east and this one was pretty much a no-brainer for me.
There was a clear winner, but there were plenty of other bench players who deserve recognition. Kevin Love (finally!) bought into his role and embraced being a veteran leader for the Cavaliers. He provided a nice scoring and rebounding punch off the bench to go along with veteran leadership for a young Cavs team that overachieved. It has been nice to see this late career mini-resurgence from the former all-star. Bogdan Bogdanovic also provided a great spark plug for the Hawks off the bench. He came on late in the season especially as a secondary scorer, and proved able to carry the offense in stretches while Trae Young rested - something they desperately needed. I also wanted to give a shout out to the Suns, as the Cam’s, Cameron Payne and especially Cameron Johnson did a great job all year, essentially acting as a 6th and 7th starter for the best team in the NBA.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
3. Cade Cunningham - DET
2. Scottie Barnes - TOR
Winner: Evan Mobley - CLE
Believe it or not, this proved to be the most difficult award decision for me. Rookie of the year is always tough, because how do you balance players carrying a huge burden for bad teams (like Cunningham in Detroit), versus players who have smaller roles, but are contributing to winning in a meaningful way (like Barnes in Toronto)? Ultimately I settled on the best balance of both, which is Cavs big man, Evan Mobley. Mobley immediately stepped in and became a defensive anchor for the Cavs, propelling them to a great start to the season. Mobley can do it all defensively, switching onto smaller players while also managing to protect the rim. He fared better playing more of a power forward/roamer type role alongside a true center in Jarrett Allen. But when Allen went down with an injury, Mobley slid over to center and filled the Cleveland void on the back end as well. It is rare to see a rookie step in and make such a big impact defensively right away, especially one with that much responsibility. He was drawing early comparisons to guys like Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett, which pretty much speaks for itself. Mobley obviously isn’t there yet, but the fact that he was able to make the impact he did is very impressive, and he could be a generational talent on that end, anchoring the Cavs defense for years to come. Furthermore, Mobley was no slouch on offense. He wasn’t in a primary playmaking role, but showed some chops both inside and outside and was able to take on more of a burden as players were out of the lineup with injuries. Mobley managed 15 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.7 blocks a game while playing in the most games of anyone on the Cavs and averaging almost 34 minutes a game. Due in no part to Mobley, the Cavs struggled towards the end of the season and limped to the finish line, but I still believe there was no rookie who made a larger impact over the course of the entire season than Evan Mobley.
As good as Mobley was, this was such a tough choice because there were a number of worthy candidates, most notably Scottie Barnes and Cade Cunningham. Their cases are actually very different but both very strong. Barnes stepped right into a strong Raptors team and exceeded all expectations. He struggled a bit on the defensive end to start the year, but was able to figure it out as the season went along. His offense was great right from the jump though, as Barnes showed the chops of a veteran three level scorer in high leverage situations. Barnes played heavy minutes all season for the Raptors and was a big part of their core and why they surged to the 5 seed in the east down the stretch. I went back and forth on this one a lot, but for me, Barnes just didn’t have quite as much responsibility or impact as Mobley did for their respective teams and I can’t punish Mobley for having inferior teammates. Barnes was amazing, but realistically he was the third or fourth option on both ends, whereas Mobley was the focal point of the Cleveland defense. Cunningham on the other hand, was thrust into an impossible situation and somehow, largely succeeded. The Pistons weren’t very good, and weren’t really even trying to be good, but Cunningham proved able to run a competent NBA offense - which is an incredible achievement for a rookie. Cunningham had by far the largest burden, as he did it all for the Pistons. It’s easy to see why he was the first pick of the draft, and it won’t be long until he is one of the premier offensive playmakers in the whole league. It took him a little over half the season to really figure it out and start to run an efficient offense, but by the end of the year the Pistons looked like an up and coming young team, thanks mostly to Cade. In a normal season, all three of these players would be deserving winners of this award, but it speaks to how great of a rookie class this may be. Even guys like Franz Wagner of the Magic, Jalen Green of the Rockets, and Josh Giddey of the Thunder could have had a case in other seasons, while later picks like Herb Jones of the Pelicans and Bones Hyland of the Nuggets made major contributions to postseason teams. The 2021 draft could easily end up being one of the greatest of all time.
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER
3. Jordan Poole - GSW
2. Dejounte Murray - SAS
Winner: Darius Garland - CLE
This was another strenuous decision, but it really comes down to how you view the award. For me, most improved should go to a player who already has an established role in the league, but shows true growth in that role to become a high-impact player. As a general rule of thumb, I don’t like voting for second year players, because that improvement should be somewhat expected. Players coming off their rookie seasons should receive a bigger role and take a bit of a leap. So as incredible as guys like Desmond Bane and Tyrese Maxey were this year, they just missed my ballot because they both had good rookie years and I expected them to improve. Sure, they both exceeded my expectations this year and deserve a lot of credit, but that’s essentially the type of growth and improvement you’d want to see from sophomores in the league. I also don’t like voting for players who were already stars and took the jump to a near-MVP level. So this eliminated the odds on favorite for me, Ja Morant. Morant was absolutely incredible this year, and he will be rewarded with an All-NBA selection. But Ja was the #2 overall pick in the draft and was already a budding star last year. His progression has been amazing to watch, but it is also a somewhat linear progression. Ja has beautifully developed into his role, but I don’t think it comes as a shock to anyone. I don’t want to take anything away from the players I mentioned, but for this award I like to recognize players who made more unexpected improvements and rose to a new class of players.
For me that conversation starts and ends with Darius Garland. Garland had been a fine young player for the Cavs in his first two seasons, but his fit with Collin Sexton was clunky at best, and it was unclear who was the go-to guard for this offense. In his third season, Garland not only took the reins, but established himself as a star and a building block for this team. He came on late last season, but was basically putting up empty calorie, low efficiency stats for a tanking team. This season, Garland was able to shift his game to impact winning and run an efficient offense. His usage went up, while his stats did across the board as well. Garland averaged 21.7 points and 8.6 assists this season, which doesn’t jump off the page. But the difference is this year Garland took the keys to the offense and made it work. For most of the season, he was really the only Cavalier capable of running the offense. He was asked to do just about everything for the team on that end, and for the most part he delivered. To see the true impact of Garland’s game on the Cavs this year, it’s helpful to look at the advanced stats. In his first two seasons, Garland had a negative VORP and BPM, while those numbers jumped well into the positives this year. Also, his PER jumped from a pedestrian 14.2 to 19 this year. The statistical leap for Garland was marked, but the true improvement is evidenced in his team’s success and his role in winning.
There were several other players this season who took a huge leap to become meaningful contributors for winning teams. Dejounte Murray brought his game to a new level this season, becoming one of the best two-way guards in the league, and securing his first all-star berth while leading the Spurs to a play-in appearance - an impressive feat for a team that was projected near the bottom of the league. Murray elevated his stats across the board, averaging a near triple double on improved efficiency while providing elite defense. Another player who elevated his status this year is Jordan Poole of the Warriors. Poole showed signs of promise in his first two seasons, but this year he has proven to be a reliable option on offense, even carrying the load at times with Klay Thompson and Steph Curry out of the lineup. Some have even gone as far as to call Poole a third splash brother, as he’s pouring in over 18 ppg on almost 60% true shooting. Poole has shown a great ability to carry the offense in stretches and keep Golden State afloat while missing key players. He has become an asset that the defense can’t ignore, and has helped significantly raise the ceiling of the Warriors as a team. Other players have made big strides, going from fringe rotation players to meaningful contributors such as Cameron Johnson for the Suns and Anfernee Simons of the Blazers.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
3. Jaren Jackson Jr. - MEM
2. Mikal Bridges - PHX
Winner: Marcus Smart - BOS
Here we have another award that was very difficult to lock down and assess, largely due to a lack of advanced stats to truly measure defensive impact. Historically this award has gone to a big man - and usually a rim protector. Rudy Gobert has had a stranglehold on this award in recent years, but with the Jazz defense slipping considerably this year (although to no fault of Rudy’s), I felt it was time to reward a new face. If I was only basing this award on the first half of the season my choice would have been Draymond Green, who was masterful as the focal point of the Warriors defense that was the best in the league. But Green got hurt, the Warriors slipped a bit, and he ended up missing too many games to make my ballot. The same could be said for Bam Adebayo, perhaps the most versatile defensive center in the league. He does it all for the Heat defense, switching at an outrageous pace for a big man while still dominating the paint. But like Green, Bam simply missed too many games to make the list (both will be honored with a selection on one of my all-defense teams).
So then who had the greatest impact over the course of the entire season? My answer has to be Marcus Smart. Smart is the best defender on the best defensive team in the league and it goes far deeper than any statistic can measure. Smart is the quarterback of the most switch-heavy team in the league, directing traffic constantly and controlling everything his team does on that end. Seriously, just watch a Celtics game and keep your eyes and ears on Smart. Pay attention to how he gets his teammates into the right position, correcting mistakes on the fly, and making sure that every area of the court is covered. All the while, Smart is taking on the toughest defensive assignment every night, and has switched the most on-ball screens of any player in the league. His position is point guard, and the only guard to ever receive this honor was Gary Payton, but I think that is about to change and it’s because Smart’s defensive role goes far beyond the scope of any other guard in the league. He truly matches up with any player on the court, consistently guarding players much bigger than him without sacrificing any strength or positioning. Quick guards can’t get past Smart on the perimeter and big men can’t move him in the post. There is no way to create a mismatch with Smart, because he can cover ANYONE. There is a reason that the Celtics are able to run the switching scheme they do, and it’s because they have a defender like Smart leading the way both physically and mentally. Beyond that, Smart does everything you would want out of a defender; getting his hands on everything, chasing down fast breaks to block shots, drawing charges out of nowhere. It seems that Smart is virtually never at a disadvantage on defense, and he consistently takes away the opposing team’s strengths. It is almost impossible to quantify the value of Marcus Smart to the Celtics defense, but making him the second guard to ever receive the Defensive Player of the Year award would be a good start in my opinion.
Behind Smart there are a number of worthy candidates who also do it all for their teams. The other two names on my ballot are guys who were pivotal pieces in two of the league’s best defenses. Mikal Bridges is the unsung hero for the Phoenix Suns, the best team in the NBA. Bridges is a versatile wing player who consistently shuts down the other team’s best player while offering the versatility to switch onto any player necessary. Bridges is one of only five players in the league to play in every single game this season and brought a great deal of consistency to a team that was missing each of their three stars for stretches of time. Jaren Jackson Jr. is another player who has taken his game to another level this year, and he has been a huge part of the Grizzlies breakthrough this year. Jackson has done a fantastic job alongside Steven Adams, roaming around and protecting the rim while also being able to switch 1-5 and stick with perimeter players. Jackson’s versatility has allowed the Grizzlies to play big or small and he has proven capable of cleaning up after others. Mainstays, Rudy Gobert and Giannis Antetokounmpo also deserve a mention, but both the Jazz and Bucks slipped a bit during the regular season and neither guy played their best defense this season. Robert Williams III also deserves a lot of praise for what he brought to the Celtics in a very similar fashion to Jackson Jr. for the Grizzlies.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
3. Joel Embiid - PHI
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo
Winner: Nikola Jokic
Finally, I’ve saved the best for last. If you’ve managed to avoid the MVP discourse this season, good for you because it couldn’t be more toxic. Fans are extremely passionate about their choices and for good reason - these are three unbelievable players having historically great seasons. If you are looking for a detailed argument for any of these three candidates that is easy enough to find. There is really no “wrong” choice here, as each player is deserving, but we can only choose one. For me the choice was fairly simple. I don’t think any player in the league provided more value to their team than Nikola Jokic did for the Nuggets. You can obviously look at every single advanced stat known to man and they will tell you why Jokic is one of the best basketball players to ever live and why he just wrapped up one of the greatest individual seasons in the history of the sport. Jokic broke the charts in terms of his Player Efficiency Rating and Estimated Plus Minus (among many other stats). He led the NBA in PER - setting a new NBA record, Win Shares (WS), Box Plus/Minus (BPM), Value Over Replacement Player (VORP), and basically every other advanced stat you can name (and many that you probably can’t). In layman's terms, the Nuggets were essentially a juggernaut when Jokic was on the floor, and a g-league team when he sat. If you watch the games, it’s easy to see why. He does EVERYTHING for this team. Big Honey is basically the point guard and the center for the Nuggets. He scores the points, he grabs all the rebounds, and he sets up all of his teammates to score. Naysayers will point to the fact that Jokic is rarely double-teamed as a knock, but the reason teams don’t double him is because he is such a prolific passer that it results in an easy basket for the Nuggets every time. Jokic can punish opponents inside with ridiculous touch and scoring efficiency inside, but he can also take things outside running the show from outside the arc, and he’ll happily bury threes if given some space. There are simply no answers for Jokic on the offensive end. Despite playing without their second and third best players for the entire season (Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr.), Jokic was somehow able to lead the Nuggets to a 48-34 record and the 6 seed in the west. I truly don’t think there is another player in the league who could have done that with this supporting cast. The consistency he brought every single night, and his adaptability to take whatever the defense threw at him and make them pay was second to none. If advanced stats and the eye test aren’t your thing, just look at his basic counting stats. Jokic averaged 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, and 7.9 assists while becoming the only player in NBA history with 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 500 assists in a season. He was also the only player in the league in the top 10 for points, rebounds, and assists. The only knock on Jokic through the years has been his defense, and even that was much improved this year. He’s certainly not elite, but he was able to rack up steals and blocks while using his size and smarts to play great positional defense. Becoming a plus defender at his age and with his offensive burden was just the icing on the cake. If you prefer one of the other candidates, that’s fine and fair, but please don’t do it at the expense of Jokic. Appreciate what this man is doing because it’s special and we may never see anything like it again. Having him above Giannis and Embiid is not a knock on those guys at all, but a credit to how incredible Jokic truly has been this season.
Sadly since there can only be one MVP each season, that means there will be players who are “snubbed” and that seems especially true this season. That’s because Joel Embiid and Giannis have been remarkable, and probably good enough to win MVP in almost any other year. But unfortunately for them, Nikola Jokic was just too damn good. Giannis was his typical self, dominating on both ends, while leading the Bucks to a 3 seed in the east. In fact, if not for the season Jokic is having, Giannis would have set a new NBA record for PER - that’s how good he’s been. But he didn’t bring it on a consistent basis the way Jokic did, and had much more help from his supporting cast of two all-stars. Frankly, the Bucks and Giannis are beyond awards like this. He’s gotten his fair share of accolades and at this point he only wants more championships. I’m sure he could have pushed harder and possibly won this award, but it wasn’t in his or the team’s best interest. Now as for Embiid, I almost feel bad. It has been evident all year how badly he wanted this award and how bad Sixers fans wanted it for him. He has been amazing all year, carrying an outrageous burden for Philly and becoming the first center since Shaq to lead the NBA in scoring (per game). Embiid has done everything he possibly could have done, and has kept his team in a great position all season even while it seemed that everything around him was collapsing. Embiid didn’t let the Ben Simmons fiasco distract him or wear on him at all; instead he went out and played the best basketball of his career, dominating on a nightly basis, and leading the Sixers to a 51-31 record and the 4 seed in the east. It was a brilliant season and it’s honestly a shame that he won’t win, because he is certainly deserving.
Other guys like Devin Booker, Luka Doncic, and Jayson Tatum have compelling cases based on their stats and team success. In a “normal year” or based on historical precedent they would each have a strong argument. But this year the bar was raised to a new level and those guys will have to settle for other honors and places lower down the ballot. There is no shame in that. It was an amazing NBA season and hopefully the best is yet to come in the playoffs.
Ben Handler