| National Basketball Associationawards and honors |
|---|
| Team awards |
| Individual awards |
| Honors |
TheNational Basketball Association (NBA) presents 13 annual awards to recognize its teams, players, and coaches for their accomplishments. This does not include theNBA championship trophy which is given to thewinning team of theNBA Finals. The NBA's championship trophy made its first appearance after the inauguralNBA Finals in1947. In1964, it was named afterWalter A. Brown who was instrumental in merging theBasketball Association of America and theNational Basketball League into the NBA.[1][2] The Brown Trophy design remained the same until1977 when the currenttrophy design was first introduced although it retained the Walter A. Brown title.[3] In1984, the trophy was renamed to honor former NBAcommissionerLarry O'Brien.[3][4][5] The NBA then first started awardingEastern Conference andWestern Conference championship trophies in2001, renaming them in2022 after former playersBob Cousy andOscar Robertson, respectively.[6]
The NBA's first individual awards were theRookie of the Year and theAll-Star Game Most Valuable Player, both of which were introduced in1953.[7][8] Three individual awards are awarded during the postseason: the Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals MVP, the Magic Johnson Western Conference Finals MVP, and theBill Russell Finals MVP. TheExecutive of the Year is the only award not presented by the NBA. It is named annually bySporting News but is officially recognized by the NBA.[9]
Through the 2015–16 season and since the 2019–20 season, each individual award, with the exception of the Finals MVP, was awarded at the end of the regular season while theNBA playoffs were ongoing. This procedure was different from the othermajor 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,[10] during which the winners of all season-long individual awards are announced[11] except for the winner of theJ. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, which continued to be announced during the playoffs until 2017[12] and in 2018 was announced after the playoffs but before the awards show.[13]
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 championKareem Abdul-Jabbar, theKareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award. This award was made to recognize players who are making strides in the fight for social justice.
| Award | First awarded | Description | Most recent winner | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Larry O'Brien Trophy | 1977 | The NBA's championship trophy; awarded to thewinning team of theNBA Finals. Named afterLarry O'Brien, who served asNBA Commissioner from 1975 to 1984. | Oklahoma City Thunder | [3][4] |
| Walter A. Brown Trophy | 1947 | The NBA's first championship trophy which was awarded to thewinning team of theNBA Finals until it was replaced with theLarry O'Brien Trophy. Named after team ownerWalter A. Brown. | N/A; trophy retired after1977 | [5] |
| Bob Cousy Trophy | 2001 | The NBA'sEastern Conference championship trophy; awarded to thewinning team of the Eastern Conference Finals. Renamed after point guardBob Cousy in2022. | Indiana Pacers | [6][14] |
| Oscar Robertson Trophy | 2001 | The NBA'sWestern Conference championship trophy; awarded to thewinning team of the Western Conference Finals. Renamed after point guardOscar Robertson in2022. | Oklahoma City Thunder | [6][14] |
| Maurice Podoloff Trophy | 2023 | The NBA's regular season championship trophy; awarded to the team with the best overall record in the regular season. Named afterMaurice Podoloff, who served as NBA commissioner from 1946 to 1963. A previous Maurice Podoloff Trophy was awarded until 2021 to theNBA's most valuable player in the regular season. | Oklahoma City Thunder | [15] |
| NBA Cup | 2023 | The NBA's in-season tournament championship trophy; awarded to the winning team of the NBA Cup tournament. | Milwaukee Bucks | [16][17] |
| Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton Trophy | 2022 | The NBA'sAtlantic Division championship trophy; awarded to the first-placed team in the Atlantic Division. Named afterNat Clifton, the first African American player to sign an NBA contract. | Boston Celtics | [18] |
| Wayne Embry Trophy | 2022 | The NBA'sCentral Division championship trophy; awarded to the first-placed team in the Central Division. Named afterWayne Embry, the first African American NBA general manager and team president. | Cleveland Cavaliers | [18] |
| Earl Lloyd Trophy | 2022 | The NBA'sSoutheast Division championship trophy; awarded to the first-placed team in the Southeast Division. Named afterEarl Lloyd, the first African American player to play a game in the NBA. | Orlando Magic | [18] |
| Willis Reed Trophy | 2022 | The NBA'sSouthwest Division championship trophy; awarded to the first-placed team in the Southwest Division. Named after player, coach, and general managerWillis Reed. | Houston Rockets | [18] |
| Sam Jones Trophy | 2022 | The NBA'sNorthwest Division championship trophy; awarded to the first-placed team in the Northwest Division. Named after shooting guardSam Jones. | Oklahoma City Thunder | [18] |
| Chuck Cooper Trophy | 2022 | The NBA'sPacific Division championship trophy; awarded to the first-placed team in the Pacific Division. Named afterChuck Cooper, the first African American player to be drafted by an NBA team. | Los Angeles Lakers | [18] |
| Honor | First awarded | 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. | [19] |
| All-Rookie Team | 1963 | Two 5-player teams (a first and second team) composed of the top rookies during the regular season as voted byNBA head coaches. The coaches are not allowed to vote for players of their own team. | [20] |
| 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. | [21] |
| Award | First awarded | Description | Most recent winner(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All-Star Game MVP | 1951 | Awarded to the best performing player of the annualNBA All-Star Game as voted by a panel of media members. Trophy renamed after shooting guardKobe Bryant in 2020. | Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) | [22] |
| Rookie of the Year | 1953 | Awarded to the toprookie of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. Trophy renamed after centerWilt Chamberlain in 2022. | Stephon Castle (San Antonio Spurs) | [23][24] |
| Most Valuable Player | 1956 | Awarded to the best performing player of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and media members. Trophy was originally named afterMaurice Podoloff, the NBA commissioner from 1946 to 1963, but was dropped in 2021. In 2022, the trophy was renamed after shooting guardMichael Jordan. | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder) | [25][24] |
| Coach of the Year | 1963 | Awarded to the best coach of the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and media members. Trophy renamed after coachRed Auerbach in 1967. | Kenny Atkinson (Cleveland Cavaliers) | [15][26] |
| NBA Finals Most Valuable Player | 1969 | Awarded to the best performing player of theNBA Finals as voted by a panel of nine media members.[a] Trophy renamed after centerBill Russell in 2009.[27] | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder) | [28] |
| NBA Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player | 2022 | Awarded to the best performing player of theEastern Conference Finals as voted by a panel of media members. Trophy named after forwardLarry Bird. | Pascal Siakam (Indiana Pacers) | [14] |
| NBA Western Conference Finals Most Valuable Player | 2022 | Awarded to the best performing player of theWestern Conference Finals as voted by a panel of media members. Trophy named after point guardMagic Johnson. | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder) | [14] |
| NBA Cup Most Valuable Player | 2023 | Awarded to the best performing player of theNBA Cup tournament as voted by a panel of media members. | Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) | [17] |
| 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. | Sam Presti (Oklahoma City Thunder) | [29] |
| Citizenship Award | 1975 | Awarded to a team member who showed "great service and dedication to the community" as voted by thePBWA. Named afterJ. Walter Kennedy, who served as NBA Commissioner from 1963 to 1975. | CJ McCollum (New Orleans Pelicans) | [13][30] |
| 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. Trophy renamed after centerHakeem Olajuwon in 2022. | Evan Mobley (Cleveland Cavaliers) | [31][24] |
| Sixth Man of the Year | 1983 | Awarded to the best performing player as a substitute (orsixth man) during the NBA regular season as voted by a panel of sportswriters. Trophy renamed after small forwardJohn Havlicek in 2022. | Payton Pritchard (Boston Celtics) | [32][24] |
| 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. Trophy renamed after centerGeorge Mikan in 2022. | Dyson Daniels (Atlanta Hawks) | [33][24] |
| Sportsmanship Award | 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. Trophy named after shooting guardJoe Dumars. | Jrue Holiday (Boston Celtics) | [34] |
| Teammate of the Year | 2013 | Awarded to the "ideal teammate" who exemplifies "selfless play and commitment and dedication to his team" as voted by NBA players. Named afterJack Twyman andMaurice Stokes, who were teammates from 1955 to 1958. | Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) | [35] |
| Lifetime Achievement Award | 2017 | Awarded to the NBA player who has had a lifetime of achievement in the NBA. | Magic Johnson (Los Angeles Lakers) andLarry Bird (Boston Celtics) | [36] |
| Social Justice Champion Award | 2021 | Awarded to the NBA player who are making strides in the fight for social justice. Named after centerKareem Abdul-Jabbar, based on his involvement with social activism. | Jrue Holiday (Boston Celtics) | [37] |
| Clutch Player of the Year | 2023 | Awarded to the NBA player who best comes through for his teammates in the clutch. Trophy named after point guardJerry West. | Jalen Brunson (New York Knicks) | [24][38] |
| Hustle Award | 2017 | Awarded to the NBA player who makes the effort plays that don't often appear in the traditional box score but impact winning on a nightly basis. | Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors) | [39] |
Specific
To complete the postseason collection, the NBA updated its conference championship trophies, first created in 2001, and renamed them after Hall of Famers Bob Cousy (for the East) and Oscar Robertson (for the West)
General
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