2024-25 NBA Awards Ballot

Daniel Waddleton

Apr 14, 2025

IT'S A LIFELONG dream of mine to one day cast my own NBA awards ballot as an official voter. Unfortunately, I clearly don't have an official ballot, so for now I'll have to settle for submitting my fake one to this blog.

Like anybody's ballot mine will not be perfect, nor will everybody agree with it. At the very least however, I want it to be known this ballot was carefully put together and I take pride in it. As you can tell if you read this blog, I'm very locked in with the season from start to finish, so I genuinely care about how this comes out.

And before you get upset someone’s missing, double-check eligibility. The 65-game rule really frustrated me this year, particularly for the All-Teams. Guys getting disqualified for playing 63 games instead of 65, or hitting 71 games but falling short on 20-minute appearances? It’s ridiculous.

Note: In filling out the All-NBA teams, I chose not to go position less because I disagree with the new concept. We've followed traditional positions since the beginning, and I believe it still makes sense to be attempting to build out a real team.

For the All-Defensive and All-Rookie teams, I kept to the format of two guards, two forwards, and a center, but allowed for a bit more flexibility without going overboard. You won’t see five centers on the All-Defensive First Team because frankly, I think it's stupid and defeats the purpose of an All-Defensive "Team". The elite Guard and Wing defenders in this league deserve to be recognized.

Most Valuable Player

1. Nikola Jokic, Denver

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City

3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee

4. Jayson Tatum, Boston

5. Evan Mobley, Cleveland

Rookie of the Year

1. Stephon Castle, San Antonio

2. Zaccharie Risacher, Atlanta

3. Jaylen Wells, Memphis

Defensive Player of the Year

1. Evan Mobley, Cleveland

2. Draymond Green, Golden State

3. Amen Thompson, Houston

Sixth Man of the Year

1. Malik Beasley, Detroit

2. Naz Reid, Minnesota

3. Peyton Pritchard, Boston

Most Improved Player

1. Dyson Daniels, Atlanta

2. Ivica Zubac, Los Angeles

3. Evan Mobley, Cleveland

Coach of the Year

1. Kenny Atkinson, Cleveland

2. J.B. Bickerstaff, Detroit

3. Tyronn Lue, Los Angeles

   
   

All-NBA First Team

• G. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City

• G. Stephen Curry, Golden State

• F. Jayson Tatum, Boston

• F. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee

• C. Nikola Jokic, Denver

All-NBA Second Team

• G. Anthony Edwards, Minnesota

• G. Donavan Mitchell, Cleveland

• F. LeBron James, Los Angeles

• F. Evan Mobley, Cleveland

• C. Ivica Zubac, Los Angeles

All-NBA Third Team

• G. Jalen Brunson, New York

• G. Cade Cunningham, Detroit

• F. Pascal Siakam, Indiana

• F. Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis

• C. Karl-Anthony Towns, New York

All-Defensive First Team

• G. Lu Dort, Oklahoma City

• G. Amen Thompson, Houston

• F. Toumani Camara, Portland

• F. Evan Mobley, Cleveland

• C. Draymond Green, Golden State

All-Defensive Second Team

• G. Dyson Daniels, Atlanta

• G. OG Anunoby, New York

• F. Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City

• F. Jaren Jackson Jr, Memphis

• C. Rudy Gobert, Minnesota

All-Rookie First Team

• G. Stephon Castle, San Antonio

• G. Jaylen Wells, Memphis

• F. Zaccharie Risacher, Atlanta

• F. Kel’el Ware, Miami

• C. Zach Edey, Memphis

All-Rookie Second Team

• G. Isaiah Collier, Utah

• G. Matas Buzelis, Chicago

• F. Alex Sarr, Washington

• F. Yves Missi, New Orleans

• C. Donavan Clingan, Portland

Most Difficult Snubs

1. Jayson Tatum, Boston - All-Defensive Team

2. James Harden, Los Angeles - Third Team All-NBA

3. Ime Udoka, Houston - Coach of the Year

4. Wrongful Ineligibility: Kris Dunn, Los Angeles - All-Defensive Team (20 min rule)