2024-25 BBNBA Regular Season Awards

The 2024-25 NBA regular season is in the books.

The final round of the Play-In is set for Friday, with the actual NBA Playoffs beginning this weekend. As has been the case for about a decade now, former Kentucky players performed better this season in the NBA than any other group of college alums. 33 one-time Wildcats saw some sort of action in 2024-25, and 16 of them will participate in the postseason. Four were named NBA All-Stars.

As we look ahead to what should be an exciting postseason, we’re first taking a step back and reflecting on the best of the best former Kentucky players from this past season.

2024-25 BBNBA Most Valuable Player

WINNER: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC)

Not only is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the obvious pick for the best Kentucky NBA player in 2024-25, but he might just end up being the league’s Most Valuable Player when the dust settles. It’s a clear-cut two-horse race between SGA and three-time MVP Nikola Jokic. You honestly can’t go wrong with either guy. If SGA can pull it off, he’ll become the first-ever Wildcat to win NBA MVP. The next-closest to reaching that achievement? Shai Gilgeous-Alexander last season when he came in second behind Jokic.

Gilgeous-Alexander’s case is easy to make. He’s the best player on the NBA’s best team. The Thunder went 68-14 this season and earned the Western Conference’s top seed. SGA was the straw stirring the entire drink. The 26-year-old led the league in scoring at 32.7 points per game to go along with his 6.4 assists, five rebounds, 1.7 steals, and one block in 34.2 minutes. He shot 51.9 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from deep, and 89.8 percent from the line.

One might argue Jokic had the better offensive season, but Gilgeous-Alexander was among the league’s top overall defenders on top of his incredible offensive performance.

2024-25 BBNBA Defensive Player of the Year

WINNER: Bam Adebayo (MIA)

This award came down to two candidates: Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis. Had Davis (2.2 blocks, 1.2 steals per game) been healthy the full season, he probably would have eked this one out. Gilgeous-Alexander and even second-year guard Cason Wallace (OKC) also have light cases. However, Adebayo (1.3 steals, 0.7 blocks per game) played in 27 more contests than Davis. For a significant award like Defensive Player of the Year, availability matters.

Adebayo’s Heat team hasn’t been good this season. Miami finished 37-45 in the regular season and will fight for the final Eastern Conference playoff spot on Friday. The offense ranked among the bottom third in the league. Jimmy Butler’s unwillingness to play amidst his trade request effectively ruined the franchise’s season. But throughout all of that, Adebayo helped lead Miami to a top 10 defense from start to finish. The Heat finished 9th find defensive rating this season in large part due to Adebayo, who could very well make his sixth All-Defensive Team.

2024-25 BBNBA Most Improved Player of the Year

WINNER: Tyler Herro (MIA)

There were a handful of candidates for the BBNBA Most Improved Player. Tyrese Maxey (PHI) continued his upward trajectory from last season when he won the league’s MIP award, but he didn’t take a significant leap in production and only played 52 games due to injury. He-who-shall-not-be-named, Shaedon Sharpe (POR), also had a great case for this award. The 21-year-old has improved in all three of his seasons so far, averaging 18.5 points per game in 2024-25 for a Portland team that showed some signs of optimism down the stretch of the regular season.

But this award has to go to first-time All-Star Tyler Herro (MIA). The 2022 Sixth Man of the Year, Herro took over as the Heat’s go-to offensive weapon while Butler watched from the sidelines. He finished the regular season with a career-high 23.9 points per game to go along with 5.5 assists and 5.2 rebounds. Herro, who started all 77 games played, recorded a career-high in field goal percentage (47.2) while also knocking down 37.5 percent of his 8.7 three-point attempts per outing.

He isn’t a reliable number one option on a team with championship hopes, but Herro did everything he could offensively to keep Miami afloat in 2024-25. His impressive play all season long was enough to earn him his first-ever All-Star nod.

2024-25 BBNBA Rookie of the Year

WINNER: Justin Edwards (PHI)

Coming into the season, you would have thought to see Reed Sheppard or Rob Dillingham — two Top 10 picks — on this list. But those two might have actually been the third- and fourth-best rookie Wildcats this season. Playing behind veterans on playoff teams killed their ROY chances from the jump. Antonio Reeves (NOP) came on late in the season for a bad Pelicans team and made an impact across the final two months of the season. He has a case as the second-best Kentucky rookie in 2024-25.

But this award has been a one-horse race for months. 76ers rookie Justin Edwards has been a huge surprise this season on an injury-riddled Philly roster. The 6-foot-7 undrafted wing has taken full advantage of his unexpected minutes. He only played 44 games — fewer than Sheppard’s 52 and Dillingham’s 49 — but did enough in those contests to make a real impact. Edwards averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and one steal in 26.3 minutes per outing with 26 starts. He shot 45.5 percent from the field, 36.3 percent from deep (4.3 attempts/game), and 69.6 percent from the free throw line.

2024-25 All-BBNBA First Team

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) | 76 GP | 32.7 PPG, 6.4 APG, 5.0 RPG, 1.7 SPG, 1.0 BPG, 51.9 FG%, 37.5 3PT%

Tyler Herro (MIA) | 77 GP | 23.9 PPG, 5.5 APG, 5.2 RPG, 47.2 FG%, 37.5 3PT%

Anthony Davis (DAL) | 51 GP | 24.7 PPG, 11.6 RPG, 3.5 APG, 2.2 BPG, 1.2 SPG, 51.6 FG%, 28.2 3PT%

Bam Adebayo (MIA) | 78 GP | 18.1 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.3 SPG, 48.5 FG%, 35.7 3PT%

Karl-Anthony Towns (NYK) | 72 GP | 24.4 PPG, 12.8 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.0 SPG, 52.6 FG%, 42.0 3PT%

2024-25 All-BBNBA Second Team

Tyrese Maxey (PHI) | 52 GP | 26.3 PPG, 6.1 APG, 3.3 RPG, 1.8 SPG, 43.7 FG%, 33.7 3PT%

De’Aaron Fox (SAS) | 62 GP | 23.5 PPG, 6.2 APG, 4.8 RPG, 1.5 SPG, 46.3 FG%, 31.0 3PT%

Devin Booker (PHX) | 75 GP | 25.6 PPG, 7.1 APG, 4.1 RPG, 46.1 FG%, 33.2 3PT%

Shaedon Sharpe (POR) | 72 GP | 18.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 2.8 APG, 45.2 FG%, 31.1 3PT%

Julius Randle (MIN) | 69 GP | 18.7 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 4.7 APG, 48.5 FG%, 34.4 3PT%

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