It’s awards season in the NBA and therefore it’s awards season in the NBA section of FantraxHQ.com. So put on your finest suit or pantsuit and attend this very imaginary virtual awards show.
Fantasy Basketball Awards 2023-24
Most Valuable Player – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Stats: 75 GP, 34 MIN, 19.8 FGA, 0.535 FG%, 1.3 3PTM, 8.7 FTA, 0.874 FT%, 30.1 PTS, 5.5 REB, 6.2 AST, 2 STL, 0.9 BLK, 2.2 TO
Shai narrowly beats Nikola Jokic for the inaugural Fantasy MVP award. Ultimately, every category counts, but Gilgeous-Alexander can, perhaps, credit his victory to being absolutely elite in both field goal and free throw percentages. No one really comes close. Embiid would have but you know. The percentages set the foundation for Shai to finish second in total points in the league. Also, Gilgeous-Alexander’s defensive prowess shouldn’t go without mention – he finished joint first in steals and in the top 5 in blocks among guards. There you go – that’s how you make the MVP. Where will you draft Shai next year?
Rookie of the Year – Chet Holmgren (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Stats: 82 GP, 29.4 MIN, 11.6 FGA, 0.53 FG%, 1.6 3PTM, 3.4 FTA, 0.793 FT%, 16.5 PTS, 7.9 REB, 2.4 AST, 0.6 STL, 2.3 BLK, 1.6 TO
Controversy! Chet gets the ROY Award in a decision that will surely look pretty silly as soon as this gets published. His biggest ability was his availability having played in all 82 games versus Victor Wembanyama who played in 71. Had they played the same amount of games, Wembanyama would have won. If we discounted turnovers, Wembanyama would have won. Had Wembanyama played as the center for the Spurs from the beginning, he probably would have won. In any case, both fellas came in as top 20 fantasy players for the season and have bright futures. Some people are even talking of Wemby as the #1 pick the next season. Too soon?!
Sophomore of the Year – Jalen Williams (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Stats: 71 GP, 31.4 MIN, 14 FGA, 0.54 FG%, 1.5 3PTM, 3.1 FTA, 0.814 FT%, 19.1 PTS, 4 REB, 4.5 AST, 1.1 STL, 0.6 BLK, 1.7 TO
It’s three-for-three for the OKC Thunder. While Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren overshadowed Williams, he had a top 30 fantasy season of his own. And, really, when you think about it, overshadowed and under-the-radar players are what you want in fantasy. Go and take a look at where the team with Jalen Williams finished in your fantasy leagues. I bet they did very well.
Most Improved Player – Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers)
Stats (2022-23): 60 GP, 33.6 MIN, 15.2 FGA, 0.481 FG%, 2.7 3PTM, 3.5 FTA, 0.845 FT%, 20.3 PTS, 2.9 REB, 3.5 AST, 0.8 STL, 0.1 BLK, 1.3 TO
Stats (2023-24): 70 GP, 37.5 MIN, 20.3 FGA, 0.45 FG%, 3 3PTM, 5.4 FTA, 0.868 FT%, 25.9 PTS, 3.7 REB, 6.2 AST, 1 STL, 0.5 BLK, 1.7 TO
Tyrese Maxey had the fortune of James Harden getting traded to the Clippers and, as a result, a million possessions opening up in the 76ers offense. Maxey’s stats went up across the board and he delivered second-round fantasy value over the season, rather than mid-round value in 22-23. I wonder where he will be in 24-25. Another step up in production?! Or a step back if the 76ers find a big scorer with their available cap?
Best Single-Category Player – Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) – FG%
Stats: 73 GP, 35.2 MIN, 18.8 FGA, 0.611 FG%
Another snub for Victor Wembanyama. I was certain he’d get this one with blocks before I started to crunch the numbers. Alas, Giannis’ overwhelming shooting numbers may just have had a bigger fantasy impact. For comparison, 61.6% is higher than any season Shaq had. (Technically, not true since Shaq shot 66.7% his last season in Boston but that doesn’t count.) By the way, can it still be called shooting when it’s mostly dunks and lay-ups? Why doesn’t everybody do that?
Performance of the Year – Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks) – 2023-12-25 @PHX
Stats: 44 MIN, 25 FGA, .600 FG%, 8 3PTM, 12 FTA, 1.000 FT%, 50 PTS, 6 REB, 15 AST, 4 STL, 3 BLK, 4 TO
Luka locked up the Fantasy Performance of the Year on Christmas Day with a beautiful stat line. A strong contribution in almost every category. His 73-point game ranked second in this award and he had a 45-point game that came in sixth. If those impressive performances are anything to go by then it’s curious why he wouldn’t rank as the best fantasy player for the season. The answer lies in his percentages – he’s only about average from the field and below average from the line. However, it should be said that this season was his best from the line (as well as from the three-point line).
All-Fantasy First Team
G: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
G: Kawhi Leonard
F: Kevin Durant
F: Anthony Davis
C: Nikola Jokic
All-Fantasy Second Team
G: Luka Doncic
G: DeMar DeRozan
F: Paul George
F: Jayson Tatum
C: Chet Holmgren
All-Fantasy Third Team
G: Tyrese Haliburton
G: Jalen Brunson
F: Devin Booker
F: LeBron James
C: Giannis Antetokounmpo
All-Rookie First Team
G: Jaime Jaquez
G: Cason Wallace
F: Brandon Miller
F: Chet Holmgren
C: Victor Wembanyama
All-Rookie Second Team
G: Brandin Podziemski
G: Amen Thompson
F: Toumani Camara
F: Trayce Jackson-Davis
C: Dereck Lively