Finalists announced for 2021-22 NBA Awards
NEW YORK – The NBA today announced the finalists for six awards that honor top performers for the 2021-22 regular season: NBA Coach of the Year, Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Kia NBA Most Improved Player, Kia NBA Most Valuable Player, Kia NBA Rookie of the Year and Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
The three finalists for each annual award, based on voting results from a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters, are listed in alphabetical order below:
| NBA Coach of the Year
Taylor Jenkins, Memphis Grizzlies Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat Monty Williams, Phoenix Suns |
Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year
Mikal Bridges, Phoenix Suns Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz Marcus Smart, Boston Celtics |
|
| Kia NBA Most Improved Player
Darius Garland, Cleveland Cavaliers Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies Dejounte Murray, San Antonio Spurs |
Kia NBA Most Valuable Player
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets |
|
| Kia NBA Rookie of the Year
Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers |
Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year
Tyler Herro, Miami Heat Cam Johnson, Phoenix Suns Kevin Love, Cleveland Cavaliers |
TNT will announce the winner of each award during its coverage of the 2022 NBA Playoffs presented by Google Pixel. Each voter’s complete ballot for each award will be posted at PR.NBA.com after the announcement of all end-of-season awards.