List of National Basketball Association awards

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National Basketball Association awards and honors
Championship
Individual awards
Honors

The National Basketball Association (NBA) presents 12 annual awards to recognize its teams and players for their accomplishments. The NBA championship trophy is called the Larry O'Brien Trophy. First introduced in the 1978 NBA Finals, it is awarded annually to the winner of the NBA Finals.

The NBA's championship trophy was first awarded after the inaugural NBA Finals in 1947. In 1964, it was named after Walter A. Brown, in honor of the original owner of the Boston Celtics who was instrumental in merging the Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League into the NBA in 1949.[1][2] The Brown Trophy remained in use until 1978, when a new trophy design was introduced and first presented, though it retained the Walter A. Brown title.[3] In 1984, the new trophy was renamed to honor former NBA commissioner Larry O'Brien, who served from 1975 to 1984.[3][4][5]

The NBA's first individual awards were the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player and the Rookie of the Year awards, both of which made their first appearance in 1953.[6][7] First awarded in 1956, the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award is presented to the best performing player of the regular NBA season.[8] The only individual award awarded in the NBA Finals is the Bill Russell Finals Most Valuable Player award, which was first presented in 1969. The Executive of the Year award is the only award not presented by the NBA. Though it is presented annually by Sporting News, it is officially recognized by the NBA.[9]

Aside from annual awards, the league also awards players and coaches weekly and monthly awards.

The awarding of each individual regular season award in the NBA is unique because they were awarded while the NBA Playoffs are ongoing, unlike in other major professional sports leagues where they hand out individual awards well after their postseasons have concluded.

Contents

Team trophies [edit]

Image Award Created Description Most recent winner Notes
2008 NBA Playoffs Symposium in Taiwan the Champion Trophy
 Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy 1978 Awarded to the winner of the NBA Finals. Miami Heat [3][4]
the trophy on display Walter A. Brown Trophy 1947 Was awarded to the winner of the NBA Finals but was replaced with the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy. None, trophy retired after the 1977 NBA Finals [5]

Individual awards [edit]

the trophy at a championship parade
Bill Russell Finals Most Valuable Player Award
Award Created Description Most recent winner(s) Notes
All-Star Game Most Valuable Player 1953 Awarded to the best performing player of the annual NBA All-Star Game as voted by a panel of media members. Chris Paul (Los Angeles Clippers) [6]
Rookie of the Year
(Eddie Gottlieb Trophy)		 1953 Awarded to the top rookie of the regular NBA season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers) [7]
Most Valuable Player
(Maurice Podoloff Trophy)		 1956 Awarded to the best performing player of the regular NBA season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. LeBron James (Miami Heat) [8]
Coach of the Year
(Red Auerbach Trophy)		 1963 Awarded to the best coach of the regular NBA season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. George Karl (Denver Nuggets) [10]
Bill Russell Finals Most Valuable Player 1969 Named after Bill Russell;[11] awarded to the best performing player of the NBA Finals as voted by a panel of nine media members.[a] LeBron James (Miami Heat) [12]
Executive of the Year 1973 Awarded to the NBA's best front office executive as voted by executives from the league's 30 teams. Masai Ujiri (Denver Nuggets) [13]
J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award 1975 Named after J. Walter Kennedy; awarded to a player, coach or trainer who shows "outstanding service and dedication to the community" as selected by the Professional Basketball Writers Association (PBWA). Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets) [14]
Defensive Player of the Year 1984 Awarded to the top defensive player of the regular NBA season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. Marc Gasol (Memphis Grizzlies) [15]
Sixth Man of the Year 1984 Awarded to the NBA's best performing player for his team coming off the bench as a substitute (or sixth man) as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. J. R. Smith (New York Knicks) [16]
Most Improved Player 1986 Awarded to the most improved player of the regular NBA season as voted by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada. Paul George (Indiana Pacers) [17]
Sportsmanship Award
(Joe Dumars Trophy)		 1996 Awarded to the player who most "exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court—ethical behavior, fair play and integrity" as voted by NBA players. Jason Kidd (New York Knicks) [18]

Honors [edit]

Honor Created Description Notes
All-NBA Team 1947 Awarded to the best players in the league following every NBA season as voted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. [19]
All-Rookie Team 1963 Awarded to the top rookies during the regular season as voted by NBA head coaches; who are not allowed to vote for players on their own team. [20]
All-Defensive Team 1969 Awarded to the best defensive players during the regular season as voted by NBA head coaches; who are not allowed to vote for players on their own team. [21]

See also [edit]

Notes [edit]

  • a Though the award winner is usually determined by nine votes, fans balloting on NBA.com accounted for the tenth vote in at least one NBA Finals.[22][23]

References [edit]

General
Specific
  1. ^ "Walter A. Brown". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 27, 2008. 
  2. ^ "NBA". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 27, 2008. 
  3. ^ a b c "Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  4. ^ a b "The trophies". St. Petersburg Times. April 10, 2003. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  5. ^ a b "NBA Legends Launch 2005 NBA Legends Tour: Destination Finals". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  6. ^ a b "All-Star Game: Year-by-Year Results". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  7. ^ a b "Rookie of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  8. ^ a b "Most Valuable Player". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  9. ^ "Reports: Baylor wins NBA executive of the year". ESPN.com. May 14, 2006. Retrieved July 24, 2008. 
  10. ^ "Coach of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  11. ^ "The Finals MVP to Receive Bill Russell MVP Award". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. February 14, 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009. 
  12. ^ "Finals Most Valuable Player". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  13. ^ "NBA Awards — Executive of the Year". The Sports Network. Retrieved August 6, 2008. 
  14. ^ "Pistons G Chauncey Billups wins sportsmanship award". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  15. ^ "Defensive of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  16. ^ "Sixth Man of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved June 2, 2008. 
  17. ^ "Most Improved Player". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved October 19, 2010. 
  18. ^ "Chicago's Deng Wins 2006-07 NBA Sportsmanship Award". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2008. 
  19. ^ "MVP Nash Highlights All-NBA First Team". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 17, 2006. Retrieved October 30, 2008. 
  20. ^ "Kobe, Garnett Headline All-Defensive Team". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 12, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2008. 
  21. ^ "Durant, Horford Headline T-Mobile All-Rookie Team". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 14, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2008. 
  22. ^ Mike Bresnahan (June 19, 2008). "Numbers from final game tell bad tale for Lakers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 15, 2008. 
  23. ^ Johnny Ludden (June 25, 2005). "MVP voting as close as the series". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved July 15, 2008. 
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