The NBA is back for another year of plot twists as it returned on October 21st. Players and coaches are looking to make themselves known by winning awards that cement themselves as one of the best in the league. The best players in the league are the ones who excel at their role. Awards such as Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year help give players more recognition. Here’s a list of the players who will win some of the most prestigious awards the NBA has to offer.
Most Valuable Player: The Most Valuable Player for the 2026 season will be Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. SGA won MVP last year as well as Finals MVP. He helped lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 68 win season last year that ended in a championship. SGA is already one of the best players in the league at 27 years old and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.
Defensive Player of the Year: Last year the DPOY was won by Cleveland Cavaliers’ center Evan Mobley. However, this year it will be San Antonio Spurs’ third year phenomenon Victor Wembanyama. Wembanyama was the front runner for the award last year until getting blood clots that cut his season short and missing the 65 game threshold to win an award. Per Basketball Reference, Wembanyama averaged 3.8 blocks per game which led the league by a wide margin. He’ll be looking to get his first DPOY with many more to come.
Rookie of the Year: In the 2025 NBA Draft the Dallas Mavericks selected the 6’9 prodigy Cooper Flagg. Flagg is only 19 years old and left Duke University after only one season to go to the NBA. The kid from Newport, Maine was one of the most polished players leaving the draft. He is able to shoot well, play defense, and play at a high level for a player his age. While being compared to LeBron James might be a stretch, the future 2026 ROY will be ready to take the league by storm.
Most Improved Player: The MIP will be Rockets’ point guard Amen Thompson. Thompson last year helped lead the Houston Rockets to the 2 seed last year. He performed well in the first round of the playoffs last year, but unfortunately fell in Game 7 to the Golden State Warriors. Thompson was All-Defensive First Team last season and averaged 14.1ppg last year. If Thompson can improve his jump shot, he will be bound to average 20+ and showcase himself as one of the best in the league.
6 Man of the Year: The 6MOY this season will be a Boston Celtic. However, it won’t be last year’s winner Payton Pritchard. This time it will be new addition Anfernee Simons. Simons has been on the Portland Trail Blazers for the past 7 years and has been a high volume scoring starter for them. He was acquired by the Celtics this offseason in the Jrue Holiday trade. Simons will be looking to fill in for superstar Jayson Tatum who tore his achilles last May in the Second Round against the Knicks. If Simons can give the Celtics efficient scoring, then they may be able to hold on without Tatum.
Coach of the Year: It’s very rare you see a back to back COY, which is why Cavaliers’ coach Kenny Atkinson will not be winning it. Instead, it will be Knicks’ brand new coach Mike Brown. Brown won COY in 2023 for the Sacramento Kings who he led to the third seed. The Knicks are looking to make a deep playoff push this year after they fired former head coach Tom Thibodeau. Thibodeau was known for not playing more than 8 players during a game. On the other hand, Brown will be using all of the depth that he has on the team. Players like Miles McBride and Guerschon Yabusele will be able to flourish in his system.
The NBA comes with many surprises every year. However, if any of these players win an award, it will be a surprise to nobody.