As the NBA Award announcements approach, Chris Broussard from Fox Sports disclosed his voting choices during the show “First Things First.” Broussard expressed some tough calls, particularly regarding the Defensive Player of the Year, while he was confident in his selections for MVP, Sixth Man of the Year, and Rookie of the Year.

MVP: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Broussard chose Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder as the MVP, besting both Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo due to his dual-threat capability, steering an inexperienced team to 68 victories, 18 more than Jokic’s team. Broussard stated, “Shai led the league in 20, 30, 40, and even 50-point games this season, achieving an NBA record with 72 consecutive games scoring over 20 points.”

Broussard’s five MVP-ranked players included Jayson Tatum and Cade Cunningham. However, he substituted Cunningham for Anthony Edwards, feeling Edwards displayed a stronger individual performance this season.

For Defensive Player of the Year, Broussard recognized Evan Mobley over Dyson Daniels, praising Mobley’s versatility on defense.

Broussard nominated Kenny Atkinson as Coach of the Year for guiding the Cleveland Cavaliers to a dramatic rise in wins in his inaugural season and selected Malik Beasley for Sixth Man due to his leadership after Jaden Ivey sustained an injury.