Utah Jazz stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, as well as head coach Quin Snyder, are all among the finalists for NBA year-end awards.
The Utah Jazz’s 2017-18 campaign may be on the books at this point, but the good tidings continue for the team. On Wednesday, the NBA announced the final nominees for year-end honors and the Jazz were well represented.
Donovan Mitchell joins Ben Simmons and Jayson Tatum as a finalist for Rookie of the Year. Meanwhile, Rudy Gobert is a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year (along with Anthony Davis and Joel Embiid) and Quin Snyder will duke it out with Dwane Casey and Brad Stevens for Coach of the Year honors.
In other news, water: wet.
Last month, I opined that the Jazz trio would be in the running for those awards. However, I was less confident in their ability to actually bring home the hardware. Now, I’m not so sure; particularly in the case of Gobert.
The three finalists for #KiaDPOY... @rudygobert27, @JoelEmbiid and @AntDavis23!
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2018
The 2018 #NBAAwards air 6/25 @NBAonTNT! pic.twitter.com/LuAqR6y4KM
Despite appearing in just 56 games this season, Gobert was arguably the most impactful defensive player in the NBA. He led the league in defensive real plus/minus at 5.14. Also — opponents were 14.8 percent less effective in hitting their shots within six feet of the hoop when the Stifle Tower was on the scene.
He averaged more than two blocks per contest for the fourth consecutive year as well.
In the games following Gobert’s return from a mid-season injury, the Jazz D conceded just 97.5 points per 100 possessions. Overall, Gobert and Co. boasted the second-best D-rating in the league at 101.6, just 0.1 behind the top-ranked Boston Celtics.
The three finalists for NBA Coach of the Year... Dwane Casey, Quin Snyder and Brad Stevens!
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2018
The 2018 #NBAAwards air 6/25 @NBAonTNT! pic.twitter.com/48hch3A9YO
As for Snyder, Utah’s fourth-year coach directed the Jazz band to a 48-34 record and a first-round playoff series victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. His squad closed the year with on a 29-6 run, becoming the first team over a decade to finish the season with a winning record after being nine games below .500 as late as January 22.
Nevertheless, he faces stiff competition for COY honors. Brad Stevens led the Celtics to 55 wins sans Gordon Hayward. Now, he has them in the Eastern Conference Finals with a 2-0 series lead without Hayward and Kyrie Irving.
As for Casey, he coached the Toronto Raptors to the East’s best record. He was also voted the NBCA Coach of the Year by his peers in the Association.
Regardless, I would still call Snyder a strong contender here.
The three finalists for #KiaROY... @spidadmitchell, @BenSimmons25 and @jaytatum0!
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2018
The 2018 #NBAAwards air 6/25 @NBAonTNT! pic.twitter.com/kOMtMHzjDY
Finally, we have Mitchell. He’ll likely be edged out by Simmons for the ROY trophy, but man… what a season!
The 21-year-old paced the ’17-18 rookie class in scoring at 20.5 points per game. In doing so, he became the only rookie guard ever to lead a team that won 45-plus games in scoring. He also broke Damian Lillard‘s record for 3-point shots made by a rookie (now 187) and notched multiple 40-point games.
However, Simmons averaged a near triple-double at 16-8-8 and led the Philadelphia 76ers to 52 wins.
Next: Utah Jazz '17-18 review: Erik McCree's journey to Utah
The NBA Awards, where honorees will be announced, is slated for June 25 at 7 PM and will air on TNT.