The 2024-25 NBA season’s conclusion signifies many key moments. Among those is the start of the playoffs, which many fans and analysts look forward to. That isn’t the only major implication, as voting for NBA awards will take place. The voting process isn’t how fans may think it is. NBA insider Brian Windhorst reveals the voting system is unlike what it once was in the past.
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Select media members are the ones who receive a vote on NBA awards. The voting process has changed throughout the years as voters typically would already have been able to vote far earlier, often times with a handful of games still unplayed.
That is no longer the case as the 65-game requirement for players has pushed voting to the final days of the season. This is to ensure anyone who just meets the requirement can receive votes if they are in contention.
Windhorst shared a bit of his experience voting on NBA awards on ESPN’s Hoop Collective podcast. He gave the general public a sneak peek into how voting works in the modern NBA, all the while his phone was buzzing with messages about said votes.
“It’s not really a ballot,” Windhorst revealed. “You go on to a website with a secret password and then you click from drop-down menus. It’s not like the good old days where you would fill out a piece of paper.”
With the season wrapping up, many are eager to find out who will win prestigious awards such as MVP and DPOY. Windhorst’s phone has been buzzing with messages in anticipation for the voting process to start.
Windhorst has never been shy about making his thoughts known regarding NBA awards. Specifically, he has been very vocal when it comes to who he thinks the winner should be in the MVP race.
Windhorst is a big advocate for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as MVP
The MVP race has dwindled down to a two-man race. Nuggets star Nikola Jokic and Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are jockeying for position as the league’s best. Despite the Serbian star’s extraordinary season, Windhorst can’t ignore what SGA has been able to do.
“I see people talk about that there’s a race for the MVP, I just don’t think that there is,” Windhorst proclaimed. “I think he’s in the lead by a lot.”
Gilgeous-Alexander currently leads the league with 32.6 points per game. The most impressive part of his game is that he has led the Thunder to a league-best 64-14 record. They are on pace to etch themselves as one of the best regular-season teams of all time.
Regardless of Windhorst’s campaigning on Gilgeous-Alexander, the MVP race is extremely close. Either SGA or Jokic could win the award and be justified in doing so.
