The Boston Celtics have gotten no love from voters for the NBA’s end of season awards, snubbed in several categories their players were reasonably in the running for a nomination.
The league announced the finalists for its end of season awards on Saturday, with Celtics players conspicuously absent from the Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY), NBA Coach of the Year (COTY) and Kia NBA Most Improved Player (MIP) award races.
Veteran defensive specialist Marcus Smart has made many analysts’ short lists for DPOY, head coach Brad Stevens a frequent mention for COTY, and both Boston wings Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum in the running for MIP.
While it is always an uphill battle for guards in the DPOY contest given the award is nearly always granted to big men, and the COTY race a tight one with a half-dozen viable candidates this season, it is truly surprising neither of the Celtics young wings made the final trio of candidates for MIP.
The candidates who did make the cut for those awards are as follows:
DPOY: 1) Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks; 2) Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers; 3) Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz.
COTY: 1) Mike Budenholzer, Milwaukee Bucks; 2) Billy Donovan, Oklahoma City Thunder; 3) Nick Nurse, Toronto Raptors.
MIP: 1) Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat; 2) Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks; 3) Brandon Ingram, New Orleans Pelicans.
The final award winners will be announced during the playoffs — not that Celtics fans will care as much after having been eliminated from contention for the 2019-20 award cycle.
