Report: NBPA to hand out awards voted on by players
The National Basketball Players Association announced that the league's players will start voting on their own regular-season awards issued by the union, reportsUSA Today’s Sam Amick.
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According to a memo obtained by USA Today, the “2015 Players Choice Awards” will be awarded in Las Vegas this summer.
The media will continue to vote for awards such as MVP, Coach of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and the All-NBA team.
"This program was created at your request to recognize outstanding performance of your peers, on and off the court," NBPA executive director Michele Roberts wrote in the memo. "No one knows better than you what it takes to shine."
Roberts also said in the memo that MVP, Man of the Year and other awards will be given out.
Several players, including Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant, have criticized how the league issues awards, which have been voted on by media members for more than three decades.
The media voted Durant as the league’s Most Valuable Player last season.
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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry agreed with Durant, saying that players know who is having the best year and stand out among their peers.
"I think (players) should have a portion of the vote," Curry told the Dan Patrick Show last month. “Obviously we're the ones playing against each other. So I think that should be a part of the vote, for sure."
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