It’s awards season in the NBA, as winners of the league’s regular season awards are announced during the playoffs. Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting on how Miami Heat players fared in the results:
With Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant on Thursday being named NBA Rookie of the Year, the Heat’s two finalists for 2020 NBA awards have had their second-place fates settled, Kendrick Nunn for Rookie of the Year and Bam Adebayo for Most Improved Player (behind New Orleans Pelicans guard Brandon Ingram). While the Heat have had previous Most Improved winners in Rony Seikaly (1990) and Ike Austin (1997), the franchise remains without a Rookie of the Year in its 32 seasons. As a matter of perspective on Nunn’s finish, consider that Dwyane Wade placed third in the 2004 Rookie of the Year vote (behind LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony), Caron Butler third in the 2003 Rookie voting (behind Amare Stoudemire and Yao Ming), with those the top previous Heat finishes. (Michael Beasley placed seventh in 2009 as the No. 2 pick in 2008.)
