The 2024 Golden Basketball: Which NBA star had the best year? - ESPN

As we celebrate New Year's Eve, let's look back on the year that was in pro basketball with my annual (and imaginary) Golden Basketball for the top player in 2024.

In the decade since I first awarded the Golden Basketball for performance across all competitions in the calendar year — similar to the previous format of soccer's Ballon d'Or, which moved from an annual to a seasonal award in 2022 — there has never been such a wide-open field.

The Boston Celtics won the NBA title more thanks to depth instead of individual stardom, and only one of the top five finishers in regular-season MVP voting (Luka Doncic) reached the conference finals. Meanwhile, the 2024 Paris Olympics were a possible final coronation for Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and LeBron James, none of whom saw his team win a playoff series.

After all that, can reigning MVP Nikola Jokic become the first repeat Golden Basketball winner since James claimed three in a row from 2016 to 2018, or will he be unseated by Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? Let's run through their cases and pick a winner.

Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics

Résumé: NBA Finals MVP

Given the importance of the Finals, the MVP of the series has won the Golden Basketball five of the past nine years. The balanced Celtics gave us an unusual situation where Brown, who also won the Eastern Conference finals MVP, wasn't the team's acknowledged best player. Brown also missed an opportunity to pad his Golden Basketball credentials when he was passed over as a replacement on the USA Olympic team for teammate Derrick White.

Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks

Résumé: All-NBA second team

Brunson revitalized New York basketball with his leading role in last year's run to Game 7 of the