Philadelphia 76ers: 2020 NBA award ballots
Jonathan Geib
- MVP — LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
- Defensive Player of the Year — Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers
- Sixth Man of the Year — Dennis Schroder, Oklahoma City Thunder
- Most Improved Player — Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
- Rookie of the Year — Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
- Coach of the Year — Billy Donovan, Oklahoma City Thunder
1st team All-NBA
- LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
- James Harden, Houston Rockets
- Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
- Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
2nd team All-NBA
- Chris Paul, Oklahoma City Thunder
- Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
- Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
- Pascal Siakam, Toronto Raptors
- Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
3rd team All-NBA
- Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers
- Russell Westbrook, Houston Rockets
- Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
- Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
- Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
1st team All-Defense
- Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers
- Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
- Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
- Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
2nd team All-Defense
- Kris Dunn, Chicago Bulls
- Marcus Smart, Boston Celtics
- LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
- Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
- Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
1st team All-Rookie
- Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
- Kendrick Nunn, Miami Heat
- Tyler Herro, Miami Heat
- Brandon Clarke, Memphis Grizzlies
- Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans
2nd team All-Rookie
- Terence Davis, Toronto Raptors
- Kevin Porter Jr., Cleveland Cavaliers
- Matisse Thybulle, Philadelphia 76ers
- Eric Paschall, Golden State Warriors
- P.J. Washington, Charlotte Hornets
The Most Valuable Player award this year has been a two-man race since the All-Star break between LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo. I think most believe Giannis will edge LeBron this year but consider that LeBron may be having his best season ever…ever, in his 17th season…17th season in the NBA!
He leads the league in assists with 10.6 per game, which is incredible considering he is also scoring 26 points per game. His court vision and I.Q. are unmatched and maybe another reason LeBron should win this year is because there was a span of about eight years where he should have won every year, but the voters got LeBron fatigue. He only has four MVP awards, and I realize four is a lot but he was (is) the best player on planet for more than four years.
Ben Simmons winning Defensive Player of the Year may seem biased, but he is not garnering the attention he should for his defensive game. He leads the league in steals and is the only player in the NBA that can guard all five positions effectively. Knock his shooting all you want, but Simmons is an elite defender.
Ja Morant edges Zion for Rookie of the Year, mostly due to Zion missing the majority of the season to injury. Yes, he balled out when he returned, but Ja averaged 18 points and seven assists per game and is a key reason the Memphis Grizzlies currently hold the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
The Oklahoma City Thunder were easily the most surprising team in the NBA this year. After trading Paul George and then Russell Westbrook for an “aging” Chris Paul, the Thunder were widely considered to be entering rebuild mode as a franchise. Twelve short months later and the Thunder currently hold the fifth seed in the Western Conference and look dangerous with Paul leading a roster of young, talented players.
Billy Donovan deserves heaps of credit for getting CP3 to buy in and help bring along this young team as well as assisting in the growth of Sixth Man of the Year, Dennis Schroder. Nick Nurse has done a fabulous job of navigating a post-Kawhi Raptors team and I strongly considered him for Coach of the Year. However, Donovan and the Thunder were unquestionably the most overachieving team this season.