Last week, NBA media submitted their ballots for regular-season awards, with the late-breaking stipulation that Cade Cunningham and Luka Doncic were indeed eligible despite playing fewer than 65 games. What a stupid rule. As we hope that one goes the way of the dodo bird in short order, and as hardware starts to come out with Victor Wembanyama winning Defensive Player of the Year last night, here are our picks. Not that we have ballots!
Most Valuable Player
Van: Looks like I’m going against the grain here! Truthfully,
Gilgeous-Alexander is the league’s best player right now, and all arguments for him are worthy. And the Thunder are world-beaters with him on the floor. But here’s the thing—they’re still damn good when he rests, which is not his fault; they’re an amazing team! But the Spurs were quite meh in the 2,081 minutes that Wemby sat, and when he played, they were just as good as the Thunder. That, plus the larger defensive impact (see next section), gives the big Frenchman my vote over the Canadian. I’ll explain Brown once we get to All-NBA.
Zac: An otherworldly offensive player who also contributes to one of the best defences of all time and led his team to the best record in the league (again)? Yeah, this one was pretty easy. SGA is just on another plane right now. You know what he’s going to do, but he does it anyway. Oh, and when the game is on the line, he’s the one you want, averaging the most points per game in clutch time (6.5)—nearly a full point per game more than second-place Anthony Edwards (5.6)—to go along with the best plus/minus (+3.4). How could it be anyone else?
Jack: SGA is an excellent two-way player who was, quite clearly, the deserving MVP when you account for individual and team success. Wemby will get his soon enough, but it wasn’t his time just yet.
Finn: SGA was the best player in the world during the 2025-26 season. His consistency was unmatched, and his floor impact was as high as anybody’s. He shot 55.3% from the field as a guard while averaging 30+ points for the fourth straight year. Wemby is gonna win at least three MVPs in the next five years (assuming health), but we’re still in the Shai “era” for now.
Deolu: The evidence is pretty overwhelming for Shai over Wembanyama. Not only is he the main offensive factor, a notable defensive presence, and all-around the best player on the best team, but he’s also been scoring at historic rates. Not only is he totaling around 127 games straight with 20 points scored as a slender guard, but he leads the league in win shares and VORP (value over replacement player). His efficiency and pure scoring prowess make his season definitively MVP-caliber.
Defensive Player of the Year
Van: Is there any doubt who this should be? Voters agreed, as he was the unanimous selection last night. San Antonio was equivalent to the league’s best statistical defense when he played, and equivalent to the Dallas Mavericks when he didn’t. That’s an impact he didn’t have as a rookie, or even last year, when he was ineligible for this award. Second and third were more interesting selections that I’ll go into when we hit the All-Defensive teams.
Zac: If MVP was easy, then DPOY was a no-brainer. The only thing that could have stopped Wembanyama from winning this award was the right-intentions-wrong-result 65-game rule. Of course, he checked that box, dropping a casual 40, 13, five, one, and two in a blowout win against the Dallas Mavericks. You can pencil Wemby in for the foreseeable future—he’s that good of a defender.
Jack: Agree with everything Zac said. It truly feels like Wemby could dominate this award going forward, and the only factors that might stop him from winning it every season would be health and voter fatigue. Ridiculous defensive player whose bona fides are backed up by the eye test even more than the box score.
Finn: One stat sums this up: every single team in the NBA this year had an effective field goal percentage of at least 52%. When Victor Wembanyama was on the floor, though, Spurs opponents posted a sub-50% eFG%.
Deolu: You-know-who led the league in blocks for the third straight year and posted a steal per game. Interestingly enough, here is Ausar Thompson’s widespread inclusion on four of five ballots as the only guard; he has almost single-handedly made Detroit’s defense elite and has helped define their Bad Boys 2.0 playstyle.
Most Improved Player
Van: Every year, my choice comes down to who had the most consequential—and therefore biggest—leap. For that reason, I’m deviating from Bucks partisanship by leaving Rollins out, and I think the real voters made the correct call doing so too. To be clear, he made a giant leap this season, from fringe rotation player (on a two-way deal for most of last year, even) to quality starter, if on a bad team. To me, that’s not anywhere near the leap the other guys made. Duren was a quality starter on a playoff team and had some big-time statistical gains when you average them out per-36. NAW equaled Rollins’ scoring jump and surpassed it on that same per-36 basis, so I thought real hard about giving this to him. But ultimately, Avdija went from—once again—quality starter (on a non-playoff team) to All-NBA candidate and leading scorer on a playoff team, maintaining his efficiency in a bigger role. His statistical gains this year compared to last year surpassed those of last year to two years ago, so 2025–26 was more of an Avdija breakout. His is the biggest and most consequential leap any NBA player made this season. Rollins could follow this arc and go from quality starter to All-Star next year, and if he does, he’ll have my MIP vote.
Zac: Call me a homer, but I can’t go past our very own Ryan Rollins. He went from being a “can he play some meaningful minutes?” guy to “this dude might make an All-Star team!” in half a season. He played 47% of his career games this season; 71% of his career minutes. That leap is just absurd. Now he’s just as likely to get 30+ (three times) as he is to have nine or fewer points (four times). And he plays both ends. And he shoots 41% from three. Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Deni Avdija are worthy recipients too, but for Rollins to not even be a finalist is criminal (sorry, Jalen).
Jack: The MIP award is always somewhat tough to predict because of the different interpretations people can have. For me, Ryan Rollins embodies everything this award should be about, going from a two-way contract to potentially a long-time starter in this league (and possibly an All-Star too). These other guys were somewhat known commodities (not to say we expected this out of NAW). To me, Deni “broke out” last season.
Finn: Our guy Ryan jumped from a decent-at-best rotation player to a good starter with star potential. He posted career-highs in all five major categories while maintaining strong efficiency (52.3% from two, 40.6% from three) despite taking more shots and facing more defensive pressure than ever before. Homer pick? Sorta kinda. Deserving pick? Absolutely. Shoutout Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who will likely be the real winner and made an ascension with the Hawks that nobody expected.
Deolu: I’ll be the odd man out and pick Alexander-Walker here. Alexander-Walker went from a backup wing on a fringe contender in Minnesota to arguably The Man for one of the league’s hottest teams. The 11.4-point jump, along with career highs in rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks, plus notable boosts in efficiency, show genuine growth outside of usage. Also, shoutout to C’s center Neemias Queta. Queta was a fringe starter, barely managing 14 minutes a game last year. Now he is the centerpiece of Boston’s imposing defense and has posted career highs in virtually everything worth counting.
Rookie of the Year
Van: Milwaukee’s own Knueppel was the better player from start to finish this year. It wasn’t Flagg’s fault that he was miscast for a time thanks to Jason Kidd running the offense through him, which affected his production a bit, and it’s not as though he had a significantly worse season than his former Duke teammate. The huge efficiency gap, plus the fact that Knueppel was putting those numbers up on a play-in team as opposed to a 26-win squad, makes this an easy call.
Zac: Cooper Flagg will likely end up being the better player down the road, but this year you can’t go past Kon Knueppel. In addition to leading the league in three-pointers made, he was part of some of the best five-man lineups in the league, leading the Hornets to postseason (if not playoff) action. In some ways, this reminds me of the LeBron James vs. Carmelo Anthony ROY debate. The NBA got that wrong—it should have at least been a tie—but now they have a shot at redemption.
Jack: Really tough one. As Finn says, we are not meant to consider Kon’s play-in performance. I just think Kon impacted winning and was a key part of one of the best stories in the NBA this season. Flagg struggled somewhat early, then really hit his stride in the final third of the season, but the Mavs were not playing competitive basketball during that stretch, so I rewarded winning. I still think Flagg has a better career.
Finn: This was the toughest pick to make, and honestly, after Knueppel’s showing in the play-in, I don’t feel good about my decision. But it’s a regular-season award, and the young Hornet did things we’ve never seen before from a rookie, including leading the entire NBA in three-pointers made. No matter which way you shake it, he and Flagg both had special freshman campaigns.
Deolu: Knueppel’s season ended with a whimper in the play-in, but it shouldn’t erase the legendary rookie season he had. Knueppel’s worth extends farther than his league-leading three-point shooting: his all-around scoring (18.6 PPG) on 64% true shooting has pushed the Hornets from the bottom of the barrel to a spooky team. The race is closer than our ballots make it seem, but Kon narrowly gets the edge in my mock ballot.
Clutch Player of the Year
Van: Like I said last year, I still really don’t know how to determine who wins this one. And like last year, I just looked up who had the best scoring and shooting numbers in clutch situations. Murray’s were better in some ways than Ant’s and SGA’s, but he was sharing the clutch responsibilities with Jokic, unlike the other two, who were their team’s “guys.” Also, note to the NBA: keep track of game-winning field goals! Especially buzzer beaters!
Zac: I’ll reiterate what I said in my MVP paragraph: SGA is the one you want with the game on the line, averaging the most points per game in clutch time (6.5)—nearly a full point per game more than second-place Anthony Edwards (5.6)—to go along with the best plus/minus (+3.4). But it goes beyond this. As a guard, the ball is going to be in his hands, and if he doesn’t stick a dagger in your eye from the field, he’ll make it a slow, painful death from the free-throw line (where he’s the only player to average over two made free throws per game in the clutch).
Jack: As others have noted, this award feels gimmicky, but I guess I’ll go with SGA. He hit a tonne of clutch shots this season. He’s just got that quality where he never seems flustered; always in complete control under any circumstance. I thought Cade and Ant also deserve praise for what they did late in games this year.
Finn: For whatever reason, I can’t bring myself to seriously care about this award, so I didn’t put too much thought into it. Shai had the most memorable clutch moments, in my opinion, and the stats back up the selection. Ant hit that unbelievable turnaround OT-forcing triple on Christmas. McCollum had his fair share of late-game heroics for both the Wizards and the Hawks, including a game-winner against the Bucks.
Deolu: This rivalry game-winner says enough about Shai for CPOY. Kawhi Leonard sneaks his way onto my ballot for his three-game winners, including one in the NBA Cup against the Pels. His leadership as the star player and lead vet to steer the Clips from 6-21 to the play-in is also pretty clutch.
Sixth Man of the Year
Van: Seems like there was no clear-cut favorite for this award this year, but I like what Johnson did the most: a more well-rounded scorer than Hardaway, and more helpful than jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none Jaquez. Plus, the edge in team success. It was tempting to reward THJ for his career-best season from the field, though.
Zac: This debate seemingly comes down to preference: Jaime Jaquez Jr. vs. Keldon Johnson. Both are deserving candidates, but it’s Jaquez’s leap as a playmaker that gives him the edge for me. I also can’t ignore the fact that Johnson put up nearly identical numbers to last season (albeit slightly more efficiently), when he didn’t receive a single 6MOY vote. Shout-out to Bobby Portis too, who had another strong year despite the Bucks’ chaos—and should already have at least one of these awards.
Jack: Keldon was a major key to the Spurs’ success this year. He was truly all-in on winning and improved the areas of his game that needed work to play that role. I also thought Naz Reid had a strong year off the bench.
Finn: Big Body Keldon Johnson was the heart and soul of the Spurs this year as they established their dominance. He sacrificed usage in favor of impact and changed game after game for San Antonio with his energy off the pine.
Deolu: Jaquez averaged 15 points, five rebounds, and 4.7 assists off the bench on 57% true shooting. His offensive firepower helped Miami’s bench score 43.8 PPG (fourth in the league), and he leads Johnson in points, assists, and stocks. Without Jaquez on the bench, the Heat would be a shell of themselves. I’m not sure if I can say the same for Johnson.
Coach of the Year
Van: Usually, I base this vote on year-to-year improvement by incumbents, which is why Johnson (28 additional wins) and Lee (25) are on my ballot. Apologies to Darko Rajakovic (16) and Jordan Ott (nine), who mainly benefited from a healthier roster in the former’s case and a revamped roster in the latter’s. Bickerstaff got my vote last year because going from historically bad to playoff team (2024 to 2025) is crazy and more unprecedented than six-seed to 60 wins (2025 to 2026). But I can’t deny the gigantic smashing of expectations Mazzulla did with “gap year” Boston.
Zac: Look, Joe Mazzulla will probably win this award, and I have absolutely no issue with that—what he’s done with the Celtics sans Jayson Tatum et al. has been phenomenal and something no one saw coming. But I can’t ignore J.B. Bickerstaff’s efforts either. To go from lottery team to playoff team is one thing. To go from playoff team to 60 wins and the number one seed is another, especially when you lead your team to a 13-5 record without its best player.
Jack: This one was pretty easy for me. Mazzulla has done an unbelievable job turning a team that many thought was heading for a Pacers-esque gap year into a legit title contender. The way this dude has turned other teams’ trash into the Celtics’ treasure is truly astounding. Special shoutouts to Lee and Ott for how they transformed their teams from the previous season’s results.
Finn: Mazzulla is a basketball sicko and genius. The system he’s built in Boston is the reason why they were so good this year. Every single guy on the roster knows their role. The team plays the same way regardless of who’s in the lineup, and it always works. Joe, in my mind, is the real MVP candidate for Boston, not Jaylen Brown.
Deolu: It turns out they weren’t 2-26 bad. Bickerstaff’s has seen the Pistons jump 16 wins to a first seed and their first 60-win season in two decades, a whiplash-inducing turnaround. Additionally, Bickerstaff’s aggressive personality and coaching style have seen Detroit become arguably the best defensive unit in the league, with two potential All-NBA players (Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren) leading the charge.
Executive of the Year
Van: My rationale here often follows what I employ for Coach of the Year, but in this case, I have to go with Gregory despite leaving Ott off above. The first-year Suns GM completely revamped a flawed roster without a big cupboard of assets (sounds like something the Bucks could do). Peterson didn’t make any huge moves free agency or trade-wise, he just drafted well and benefited from better health—the Hornets weren’t too different. Same with Saleh’s Hawks, though he too made some savvy moves.
Zac: Deolu beat me to the point (see below). Peterson seemed to hit on every decision he made, but drafting three guys—including two second-round picks—who are a core part of a winning rotation stands out.
Jack: Peterson utilised the draft, trades, and free agency to completely transform a team that was a bottom-feeder just one year ago. Brilliant work. The Coby White trade, in particular, was a master stroke. Onsi Saleh gets in there solely off his trade with the Pels to get their first-rounder this year, LOL.
Finn: If you ask Mazzulla how the Celtics have achieved the role definition and connectivity I just gushed about (as I did when Boston visited Milwaukee on April 3rd), he’ll first credit the players, but then he’ll credit the front office. Brad Stevens sniffed out the players that fit the Boston ethos, allowing them to remain one of basketball’s best teams despite being forced to trade Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis over the summer.
Deolu: The Hornets had the best turnaround this season. Through Jeff Peterson’s savvy draft picks (Kneuppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Sion James), trades (Coby White for Collin Sexton), and hiring (second-year head coach Lee), the Hornets went from a sub-20 win team to a ninth seed in the East with aspirations of further growth.
All-NBA Teams
Van: Here’s where I talk about Jaylen Brown. All of us had him on our first team before the Doncic and Cunningham announcement. I had to put the NBA’s leading scorer (Luka) among the top five, but quite simply, Brown had a better year than Cunningham. A slight edge in efficiency and a larger one defensively outweighs Cunningham’s superiority as a passer, and Brown was certainly the more prolific scorer. The Celtics had only four fewer victories too. Shout out to Murray for a ridiculously good year that would have put him second team had it not been for the 65-game rule shenanigans, to Holmgren for the best two-way year outside of Wemby, and Wisconsin native Johnson for all-around offensive prowess.
Zac: The Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham “extraordinary circumstances” rulings changed my picks—initially, I had Jaylen Brown and Jaylen Brunson in my first team—but that’s another discussion in and of itself. I also continue to dislike the “positionless” nature of these teams, which leads them to be a list of the season’s 15 best players rather than realistic teams. All this said, I was higher on Avdija than most, who put up similar (if not better) stats than Kawhi Leonard and Kevin Durant, leading the Blazers to a better-than-expected record, while the Clippers and Rockets underwhelmed relative to expectations.
Jack: The first team drama re: Luka and Cade was addressed by others. If I were to single one guy out who really had an underrated year, it’d be LaMelo Ball. No longer is he this bit player that people make fun of; he is now a legit point guard who drives winning at a high level. The season that Kawhi put together was otherworldly, and I wanted to put him on the second team because of that.
Finn: Once Luka and Cade were approved, they were no-brainer first-team additions. Before that, I had Kawhi on my first team, who just had the best individual regular season of his Hall of Fame career. I made no real zag picks here— I thought LaMelo would be one, but Jack and Deolu made me look smarter, haha.
Deolu: The first five players are pretty much set in stone, but Jaylen Brown is pretty unlucky to miss out on a first-team nod. His career highs of 28.7 PPG, almost seven RPG, and just over five APG helped Boston avoid the injury slump. His stats aren’t quite good enough to hang with the likes of Shai, Wemby, Luka, and Jokic, but Jaylen Brown’s 60-or-so games as the number-one option on the C’s put him in a very real conversation with Cunningham for the final slot.
All-Defensive Teams
Van: This is all about impact for me, like the other awards. I just mentioned Holmgren, though he didn’t make my DPOY ballot for similar reasons to Shai: the Thunder were an elite defense when he played and merely really good when he didn’t. The Wolves were frankly terrible without Gobert and top-five equivalent with him, as were the Celtics depending on where you’d find White. Thompson is an outstanding individual defender for a top-ten unit, but didn’t have the on-off numbers to back it up, and I was just too impressed by White’s and Gobert’s. Three of my second team guys were also the best defenders on great defenses and merited spots (honorable mention to Dunn, whose Clippers weren’t quite good enough to get him on). Wallace is similarly great in his own right but affected by the same Holmgren dilemma. Then we have Queta, whom Delou discussed above. His on/off numbers elevated Boston from what would be the 20th-ranked D to the second.
Zac: I toyed with the idea of having three centres in my First Team, but decided Rudy Gobert would suffer from voter fatigue. Instead, I went with his teammate, Jaden McDaniels. He’s not as flashy as some of the other wing defenders out there—especially in terms of highlight plays and traditional defensive stats like blocks, steals, and rebounds. In many ways, he reminds me of another slender 6’9” wing defender who, despite making four All-Defensive Second Teams, never really got the praise he deserved: Tayshaun Prince. Plus, there’s a reason they call him “Seatbelt.”
Jack: I thought Camara started slow, but got back to his defensive best by about a third of the way through the year. Kris Dunn was a really underrated part of why the Clippers had the season they did after the rough start; he was nails all year on defence, and I thought he deserved his plauidts.
Finn: I had my first team penned in since probably December. All five guys up there would be fully deserving DPOYs, although Wemby has made it an uncontested race, of course.
Deolu: Derrick White is probably the most exciting person I chose on this list. It will genuinely be interesting if he can earn a First Team nod after being snubbed last year. White somehow averages more blocks (1.3) than steals (1.1) per game, and his role as the point-of-action defender is invaluable for the league’s second-best defense (behind the Thunder).
All-Rookie Teams
Van: Beyond the top two rooks, pretty clear that Edgecombe and Harper deserved plaudits for solid debuts on playoff teams. Bailey was good enough for a crap team. Fears and Queen were pleasant surprises, though not as much as Coward, Kalkbrenner (crazy value in the second round), and Raynaud. I admit I didn’t know who that Parisian was until late in the year. This rookie class is a touch underwhelming to me overall.
Zac: These seemed relatively straightforward for me. I suppose Cedric Coward could have taken Derik Queen’s spot, but Queen played 19 more games, which should mean something—and likely still suffers from the backlash of the trade that got him to New Orleans in the first place. I also really wanted to reward Sion James, whose defence will make him a valuable player for years to come, but couldn’t justify him above any of the other guys.
Jack: Jeremiah Fears had a really good year, and one that really surprised me as someone who thought he would be awful as a rookie. Maxime Raynaud looks like a gem for the Kings, as does Will Riley for the Wizards. I’m still undecided on Queen being a winning player, but he at least makes that trade more palatable.
Finn: Cooper Flagg is still the best long-term prospect in this class, but Dylan Harper isn’t far behind him. The bench role he was forced into (but thrived in) masked just how much of a stud he already is and is going to become. Ace Bailey, one of the most-discussed guys pre-draft, had a quiet year in terms of fanfare, but he looked like a real weapon in Will Hardy’s system and is still a strong bet to return top-five value.
Deolu: I’m surprised I’m the only one here with Kings guard Nique Clifford anywhere. Outside of disappointing shooting, Clifford has been a Swiss Army knife for a struggling, tanking squad. He averaged a respectable 8.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 0.9 steals in 75 appearances. Clifford overperformed as Tank Commander after Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan checked out for the season; in his last seven games, he averaged 17.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.1 assists on .500/.355/.842 shooting. He’ll be the sleeper to watch out from this rookie class in the future.
There you have it: our fake ballots. Why don’t you submit one too? Hit the comments, and also tell us if our picks are off base.
