On Tuesday, April 23rd, the Philadelphia 76ers’ fourth-year breakout point guard Tyrese Maxey was awarded the NBA’s Most Improved Player award. In the West, a lot of fans were advocating for the Warriors’ third-year forward Jonathan Kuminga to get the award instead.
Kuminga averaged 16 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in an average of 26.3 minutes per game, a massive leap from his sophomore season in every sense. This year, although the Warriors floundered, Kuminga flourished.
Although Kuminga hit the new 65-game threshold to meet eligibility for postseason awards, he missed out due to what Warriors on NBCS refers to as a “caveat” in the NBA’s rules.