While it doesn’t get the same level of recognition as some other awards, the NBA sportsmanship award might be one of the highest honors NBA players can receive. It signifies a special level of commitment by a player to the sanctity of professionalism on the floor, and off-court leadership in the locker room. Sportsmanship award winners have come in all shapes and sizes.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re a point guard like Mike Conley of the Memphis Grizzlies or a center like David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs.
The NBA sportsmanship award recognizes current players who stand for the right things, and the league office has bestowed the honor since the 1995-1996 season. The most recent winner of the sportsmanship award was Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday.
Who has the Most Sportsmanship awards NBA?
Jason Kidd
The Hall of Fame point guard is a two-time winner of the NBA Sportsmanship award, capturing the honor in back-to-back seasons of his illustrious career. As a veteran leader of the Dallas Mavericks and New York Knicks, Jason Kidd served as a mentor to his younger teammates and a de facto coach on the floor.
Kemba Walker
Walker won the award two times with his first NBA team, the Charlotte Hornets. It says a lot that he was a two-time winner, considering that many of his Charlotte teams were not very competitive in the regular season. Even now, having lost his spot in the rotation with the New York Knicks, Walker remains a leader for his younger teammates. He was also well regarded in the locker room while with the Boston Celtics.
Mike Conley
NBA players always respected the Memphis Grizzlies teams of the 2010s, and at the head of that snake was point guard Mike Conley. Despite Memphis’ physical style of play, Conley was and still is known as a true gentleman in today’s era. He’s one of only two players in NBA history to win the NBA sportsmanship award three times.
Grant Hill
Picking up right where we left off above, the other player who has won the award three times is basketball Hall Of Famer Grant Hill. Ever since his college days at Duke University, Hill has been the epitome of class on the basketball court. His determination to keep fighting back from devastating injuries, and serve as a sounding board for his teammates has earned him a special place in league history.
The Joe Dumars Trophy
Joe Dumars was an integral part of one of the most storied teams in league history—the late 1980s, early 1990s Detroit Pistons. Those teams were known as rugged, even dirty defensive teams. However, despite the reputation that some of his teammates have, Dumars was always viewed as one of the NBA’s good guys. The very first NBA sportsmanship award was given to him, and the Joe Dumars trophy has been bestowed upon the annual award winner each season.
Voting
What makes winning this award so special is that league executives, the league office, and periphery NBA personnel have no say on who wins. It is the players who exclusively vote for the sportsmanship award, which says a lot. Selfless play and character are traits that do not go unnoticed by players, and since the honor is determined by peers, the player that wins is deemed to be very well respected around the league.
There are six finalists, and each of them is voted from one through six. Whichever player of the six finalists comprises the highest total of voting points is the winner. In the past, each NBA team nominated a player to be considered for the distinction.
Defending NBA Sportsmanship Award Winner-Jrue Holiday
Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday took home the honor last year and is known as a player who will do whatever it takes to win. He was involved in a four-team trade, which saw him leave the New Orleans Pelicans and land on the Milwaukee Bucks.
Holiday has made the NBA all-defensive team, won an NBA championship and an Olympic gold medal, but this honor stacks right up there in his list of career accomplishments for this NBA player. 130 players gave Jrue Holiday the first-place vote last season, which speaks to how highly he is regarded amongst current NBA players.
Trends Among Winners
As noted earlier, guards, forwards, and centers alike can be nominated and take home the award. However, there does seem to be a common theme among players who are most consistently victorious. Most of them are elite defenders who bring intensity on both sides of the court.
Last year, Jrue Holiday made the NBA All-Defensive first team and has previously been acknowledged as a stopper. Conley and Kidd have also been named to defensive teams.
Joe Dumars, the progenitor of the award, was also a fixture on the NBA’s first-team all-defense in the late ’80s and early 90’s. San Antonio Spurs Hall of Fame center David Robinson was also known as a deterrent at the rim.
