By Gio Gennero | Sports Writer
Will Jokic complete the three-peat and win his third-consecutive Most Valuable Player award? With Chet Holmgren, the second pick of the 2022 NBA Draft, out for the season, who are the favorites to contend for Rookie of the Year? With the NBA season right around the corner, we’ve compiled our early predictions for end of season awards.
Gio Gennero: Sports Writer
Most Valuable Player: Luka Doncic
Luka Doncic has already put the league on notice over the past few seasons and is already a top five player in the league. With another season under the 23-year-old’s belt, it just might be his turn on top of the totem pole. He averaged an insane 28.4 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.7 assists per game. He finished top five in scoring, assists and player efficiency rating last season. He is my favorite to win MVP.
Dark Horse MVP: Kawhi Leonard
It’s been a while since we could say Kawhi is healthy, but this season is looking like it’s going to be the first full season in years. While at 100%, he can give you a solid 25-7-5 stat line while consistently being one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. If he returns fully-healthy and plays the way we’re used to seeing him play, he can easily be in conversations come spring. Especially when you consider the last season Kawhi was healthy, the Clippers were in the conference finals.
Rookie of the Year: Paolo Banchero
This year’s draft class is extremely strong. ROTY could really go to so many different players, but I think the first pick will handle business. Especially with Chet Holmgren out for the season. I think Banchero is in the best situation to have an immediate impact.
Defensive Player of the Year: Ben Simmons
If we’re being honest, I think Giannis should be getting the DPOY award pretty much every year that he’s in his prime. However, because these awards tend to be narrative based, my prediction is that Simmons will get the award. If things workout with the Nets’ big three, then he could be in store for a really solid year. In my opinion, he should’ve received the honor after the 2021 season, where I thought he had the best defensive season in the league. Being a potential defensive anchor for a lethal offensive squad after the season and offseason they’re coming off of could be the narrative that gets him over the hump.
Sixth Man of the Year: Jordan Poole
I’m a big fan of Poole’s game. Very smooth and it fits the Warriors perfectly. Normally, when a player gets paid well, they get comfortable and stop playing as hard. However, I think Poole is going into this season with a chip on his shoulder. I believe he’s going to be motivated to prove he got paid for a reason. Also, after the altercation with Draymond Green, he was in the preseason putting opponents in blenders. I think we’ll be seeing a lot more of this during the regular season and playoffs.
Most Improved Player of the Year: Keldon Johnson
With the San Antonio Spurs in full tanking mode, Johnson is now in the running for best player on the team. He’s had a few solid seasons and seems to improve every year. With a void to fill on offense and a defense that no longer has Dejounte Murray, Johnson has a great opportunity to step up and take over the team.
Michael Haag | Sports Editor
MVP: Joel Embiid
If Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid can stay healthy for another season, it’ll be hard to argue against what he’s able to produce. Embiid has been on the cusp of the award before, but this year gives him the chance to snag it for good.
Dark Horse MVP: Karl Anthony-Towns
Now that Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl Anthony-Towns has more talent around him, this opens the door for an MVP run. Towns has the ability to impact the game on a scale much like Embiid and back-to-back MVP winner Nikola Jokic. If KAT can step up on the defensive end, he’ll be as worthy of the award as any with a strong campaign.
ROY: Bennedict Mathrurin
The isolation ability from Indiana Pacers guard-forward Bennedict Mathurin has been evident all preseason. Mathurin will be on a bad Pacers team with lots of opportunity to showcase what he’s got. Watch out for this kid, he’s not one to underrate.
DPOY: Bam Adebayo
This one is tricky, because there are always several big men in the running for Defensive Player of the Year. However, this feels like the season that Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo takes that next step, winning his first DPOY award.
Sixth Man: Malcolm Brogdon
It’s easy to go with the favorite in Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole, but this feels like a sneaky campaign from Boston Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdon. The Celtics are still as talented as ever, but with some fire-power like Brogdon coming in off the bench, he has the chance to be a very strong candidate for Sixth Man of the Year this season.
Most Improved Player: Jalen Brunson
After securing the bag in the offseason, New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson will have loads of expectations. Brunson joins a hungry Knicks team that is looking to get over the hump. He showed solid scoring ability in the playoffs for the Dallas Mavericks, and this sets him up for a big year.
Marquis Cooley | Lariat Sports Desk Retiree
MVP: Luka Doncic
Luka Doncic has already taken the league by storm since his Rookie of the Year campaign in 2018-19. Doncic has averaged a near triple-double in each of his four seasons, and with voter fatigue for the MVP award lowering the chances of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic winning it again, it’s Doncic’s time to take over.
Dark Horse MVP: Trae Young
Trae Young led the league in total points and assists last season and is an offensive juggernaut for the Atlanta Hawks. If the 24-year old point guard can find a way to turn that production into a high win total for the Hawks, he may find himself in the MVP conversation.
ROY: Paolo Banchero
Paolo Banchero is set up to win the award this year being the focal point of the Orlando Magic’s offense, especially with the injury to Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren. Banchero will probably have a very high usage and average around 20 ppg, 5 boards and 5 assists on a struggling Magic squad desperate for a star player.
DPOY: Mikal Bridges
While the Cavs fan in me wants to say Evan Mobley, I think Mikal Bridges has a real shot of taking defensive player of the year. Marcus Smart winning it last year showed voters are willing to look past the big guys around the league and notice some of the more capable perimeter defenders in a perimeter-oriented league.
Bridges can guard essentially every position and is the lead defender for the Phoenix Suns. His 7-foot-one-inch wingspan allows for him to get steals and blocks and be virtually everywhere on the floor. With the Suns open to trading Jae Crowder, his usage on the defensive end will be even higher. Not to mention, Bridges’ durability (only missing 19 games in four seasons) will allow him to pile up numbers.
Sixth Man: Russell Westbrook
This may be a little bit of an outside-of-the-box type pick because it isn’t confirmed whether or not Russell Westbrook will come off the bench for the Lakers, or if he’ll still be in L.A. in two months. But if head coach Darvin Ham really follows through with his preseason experiment, Westbrook is the clear favorite for the award because no second unit in the league can stop Brodie if he doesn’t have to worry about sharing the ball with Anthony Davis and LeBron James. If he starts this season then it may be John Wall’s race to lose.
Most Improved Player: Tyrese Haliburton
While there’s plenty of guys poised to take a big step forward such as Collin Sexton, Jalen Brunson, Kevin Porter Jr. and even Baylor’s very own Davion Mitchell, none seem to be as ready to take that next leap than Tyrese Haliburton. In his first stint at being the true point guard of a team after being traded from Sacramento, Haliburton averaged 17.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 9.6 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.6 blocks, shooting 50% from the floor and over 40% from three-point range in 26 games with the Pacers.
Nate Smith | LTVN Managing Editor
MVP: Joel Embiid
This year seems primed to finally be the year for “The Process.” Embiid has been on a steady upward trajectory in nearly every statistical category over the last year, including in his biggest question mark, games played. In addition to Embiid’s steady improvement, it’s also worth noting that voter fatigue is very real. Especially when it comes to MVP voting. Continued dominance by Embiid, coupled with the fact that Nikola Jokic can’t win three MVPs in a row, means that Embiid’s path to his first MVP is as clear as ever.
Dark Horse MVP: Ja Morant
Ja Morant and the Grizzlies overachieved in the regular season last year. There’s no other way to slice it. Or at least that’s what we thought. However, the association’s reigning Most Improved Player has a real chance to continue to add hardware to his trophy case. If he can improve on his totals from last year, and guide Memphis towards another top three finish, there’s no reason that one of the league’s most explosive guards can’t be in the MVP conversation.
ROY: Keegan Murray
Full disclosure: I am a college hoops nut. While I don’t think Murray will turn out to be this draft class’ best player, I do think that he’s the most pro-ready player. Murray has an incredibly polished offensive game, that includes a jumper that can make him a valuable floor spacer for Sacramento on day one. This year’s summer league MVP has a chance to be a shining example of why it can be worth staying in college for an extra year.
DPOY: Giannis Antetokounmpo
With the return of Kris Middleton, the Bucks have a very real chance to win the East. Giannis has an all business attitude that trickles down to the rest of his team. That attitude has a chance to serve Milwaukee well when it comes to competing with Eastern Conference teams that have had a more tumultuous last 12 months. I think that voters will find a way to reward Giannis for the impact that he has on the Bucks without giving him another MVP trophy, and he’ll walk away from the season with his second DPOY.
Sixth Man: Jordan Poole
It’s clear that the Warriors are committed to this guy as their guard of the future. It only makes sense that he would carry the momentum over from Golden State’s championship run to solidify his place with the Warriors. That, coupled with the potential for the Warriors to limit the workload of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson gives Poole a real shot to lead the league in bench scoring.
Most Improved: Jalen Green
Post all-star break last season, Green was the league’s most productive rookie. Green went for 22.1 points a game on nearly 39% from three. If he can start off the season playing at this level and continue his natural progression along the way, he can establish himself as being well on his way to being one of the NBA’s premier scorers.
