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Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Kevin Love Up for NBA Awards

NEW YORK – The NBA announced on Sunday the finalists for six awards that honor top performers for the 2021-22 regular season: NBA Coach 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 and Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year.

The three finalists for each annual award, based on voting results from a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters, are listed below:

Kia NBA Most Improved Player

  • Darius Garland, Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
  • Dejounte Murray, San Antonio Spurs

    Kia NBA Rookie of the Year

  • Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors
  • Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons

    Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year

  • Kevin Love, Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Tyler Herro, Miami Heat
  • Cam Johnson, Phoenix Suns

    Kia NBA Most Valuable Player

  • Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
  • Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
  • Nikola Jokiu0107, Denver Nuggets

    Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year

  • Mikal Bridges, Phoenix Suns
  • Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
  • Marcus Smart, Boston Celtics

    NBA Coach of the Year

  • Taylor Jenkins, Memphis Grizzlies
  • Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat
  • Monty Williams, Phoenix Suns

    TNT will announce the winner of each award during its coverage of the 2022 NBA Playoffs presented by Google Pixel.