NBA awards picks: Experts split on MVP and Rookie, but SGA and ...
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Nikola Jokić? Kon Knueppel or Cooper Flagg? There were some tough awards calls after the regular season
www.cbssports.comHere are the latest notable updates on the 2026 NBA awards season.
Key developments
- The NBA announced finalists for the major awards (MVP, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Sixth Man, Most Improved, and Clutch Player) as the 2025-26 season wound down. MVP finalists included Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokić, and Victor Wembanyama, with other awards highlighted in similar rounds of announcements [system reminder note: sources indicate this coverage; see coverage around late April 2026]. This is consistent with a traditional pattern where the league reveals finalists before naming winners in mid-to-late April.[1]
- Public anticipation and debate continued around the MVP race, with fans and analysts weighing Victor Wembanyama against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and similar debates shaping predictions for ROY between players like Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel.[2][4]
- A number of outlets published complete or near-complete lists of finalists or winners as the playoffs approached, including Sporting News and CBS Sports, which offered finalists and predictions for multiple awards as the season concluded.[3][4][7]
- Several content creators and outlets posted their own projections and reactions ahead of the official award announcements, including YouTube channels and sports media outlets discussing potential winners for each category (MVP, ROY, DPOY, etc.).[6][8][9][10][2]
What this means for different awards
- Most Valuable Player: The race centered around Wembanyama vs. SGA, with Jokic also in the conversation depending on voters’ weighting of team success and individual impact.[5][1]
- Rookie of the Year: Contenders included Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel, with other rookies also in the discussion depending on minutes and production in their rookie seasons.[1][3]
- Defensive Player of the Year: Wembanyama and Holmgren were among top contenders in discussions around defensive impact and advanced metrics.[4][1]
- Other awards (Most Improved, Sixth Man, Coach of the Year, Clutch Player): Finalists and predictions varied by outlet, with debates often focusing on improvements in efficiency, impact off the bench, and coach-level narratives.[3][4][1]
What I can do next
- If you’d like, I can pull the official final winners once they’re announced and summarize them with citations.
- I can also create a quick side-by-side comparison of finalists and likely winners for each award, or generate a visual chart showing predicted versus actual winners across categories.
Would you like me to fetch the official final results and provide a concise summary with sources, or compile a comparison table of finalists and predicted winners?