NEW YORK – The NBA today announced the finalists for seven awards that honor top performers for the 2022-23 regular season: Kia NBA Clutch Player 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, Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year and NBA Coach of the Year.
TNT will reveal the winner of each award during its coverage of the 2023 NBA Playoffs presented by Google Pixel. Those announcements will begin next week. On Sunday, April 16, the NBA will share the announcement schedule for the week of April 17.
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. Each voter’s complete ballot for each award will be posted at PR.NBA.com after the announcement of all end-of-season awards.
Kia NBA Most Valuable Player
* Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
* Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
* Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year
* Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis Grizzlies
* Brook Lopez, Milwaukee Bucks
* Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers
Kia NBA Most Improved Player
* Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
* Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
* Lauri Markkanen, Utah Jazz
Kia NBA Rookie of the Year
* Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
* Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz
* Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder
Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year
* Malcolm Brogdon, Boston Celtics
* Bobby Portis, Milwaukee Bucks
* Immanuel Quickley, New York Knicks
Kia NBA Clutch Player of the Year
* Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
* DeMar DeRozan, Chicago Bulls
* De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings
NBA Coach of the Year
* Mike Brown, Sacramento Kings
* Mark Daigneault, Oklahoma City Thunder
* Joe Mazzulla, Boston Celtics
