{"id":134697,"date":"2025-04-16T10:01:57","date_gmt":"2025-04-16T14:01:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=134697"},"modified":"2025-04-19T10:25:03","modified_gmt":"2025-04-19T14:25:03","slug":"nominees-for-2024-25-clutch-player-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/04\/16\/nominees-for-2024-25-clutch-player-of-the-year\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Announces Nominees For 2024-25 Clutch Player Of The Year"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/03\/03\/jalen-brunson-clutch-player-year\/\" target=\"_self\">Clutch Player of the Year<\/a> award was first handed out in the NBA after the 2022-23 regular season. The winner receives the <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/westje01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jerry West<\/a> Trophy, named after the famed former Los Angeles Lakers player who was known for his clutch play and was nicknamed Mr. Clutch. The inaugural winner was <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/f\/foxde01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">De\u2019Aaron Fox<\/a> (then of the Sacramento Kings), and last season saw <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/curryst01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Stephen Curry<\/a> named for the honor. The NBA has announced the 20 players who can be chosen by voters for the 2024-25 Clutch Player of the Year.<\/p>\n<h2>NBA Announces Nominees For 2024-25 Clutch Player Of The Year<\/h2>\n<h3>There Are 20 Players That Can Be Voted On For The 2024-25 Clutch Player Of The Year<\/h3>\n<p>On Tuesday, NBA analyst Kevin O\u2019Conner tweeted out the 20 candidates for the 2024-25 Clutch Player of the Year. They are as follows (listed in alphabetical order by last name):<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/brownja02.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jaylen Brown<\/a>, Celtics<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/brunsja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jalen Brunson<\/a>, Knicks<\/p>\n<p>Stephen Curry, Warriors<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/derozde01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">DeMar DeRozan<\/a>, Kings<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/doncilu01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Luka Doncic<\/a>, Mavericks\/Lakers<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/duranke01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Durant<\/a>, Suns<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/e\/edwaran01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Anthony Edwards<\/a>, Timberwolves<\/p>\n<p>De\u2019Aaron Fox, Kings\/Spurs<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/garlada01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Darius Garland<\/a>, Cavaliers<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/gilgesh01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a>, Thunder<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/herroty01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tyler Herro<\/a>, Heat<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/i\/irvinky01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kyrie Irving<\/a>, Mavericks<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">LeBron James<\/a>, Lakers<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jokicni01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Nikola Jokic<\/a>, Nuggets<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/maxeyty01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tyrese Maxey<\/a>, 76ers<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mitchdo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Donovan Mitchell<\/a>, Cavaliers<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/simonan01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Anfernee Simons<\/a>, Trail Blazers<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/t\/tatumja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jayson Tatum<\/a>, Celtics<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/whitede01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Derrick White<\/a>, Celtics<\/p>\n<p><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/y\/youngtr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Trae Young<\/a>, Hawks<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The official candidates for Clutch Player of the Year, as chosen by the NBA&#39;s 30 head coaches:<\/p>\n<p>Anfernee Simons, Trail Blazers<br \/>Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves<br \/>Darius Garland, Cavaliers<br \/>De&#39;Aaron Fox, Spurs<br \/>DeMar DeRozan, Kings<br \/>Derrick White, Celtics<br \/>Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers\u2026<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Kevin O&#39;Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KevinOConnorNBA\/status\/1912000486594531805?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">April 15, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Now some of these players were on teams that didn\u2019t even reach the playoffs or Play-In Tournament. It doesn\u2019t seem likely that they will have much chance at taking home the award because of that. Those players are Durant, Fox, Maxey, and Simons, members of one of the 10 teams that saw their season end once the regular season did.<\/p>\n<p>The Kings ended a 16-year playoff drought when Fox won the award in its inaugural year. The Golden State Warriors didn\u2019t reach the postseason bracket last season when Curry won, but they did finish 10 games over .500 at 46-36 and at least qualified for the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/04\/12\/eastern-conference-play-in-tournament\/\" target=\"_self\">Play-In Tournament<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Jalen Brunson Is The Favorite To Take Home The Award<\/h3>\n<p>For the past couple months, it has seemed like this would be Brunson\u2019s award to lose. The New York Knicks were involved in countless close outings, and it was Brunson that was constantly helping the Knicks pull out close wins. An ankle injury did sideline the 28-year-old point guard for 15 games though, through much of March and early April.<\/p>\n<p>Despite that, Brunson is still the heavy favorite to be crowned the third winner of the NBA\u2019s Clutch Player of the Year. On <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.covers.com\/nba\/clutch-player-of-the-year-odds\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Covers.com<\/a>, he is listed as a -200 favorite. The next two-best odds are Jokic (+220) and Young (+600). Nobody else has better than +6000 odds.<\/p>\n<p>The 6-foot-2 Brunson was a <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-traditional?PerMode=Totals&amp;Season=2024-25&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season&amp;TeamID=0&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=FGA\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">part of 28 games<\/a> that the NBA defines as clutch-time. During those clutch moments, he shot 52-101 (51.5%) from the field and 42-50 (84.0%) from the free-throw line. He had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.5, and New York was a +22 in his 135 clutch minutes. Not only has he constantly come through in the clutch, but Brunson has done it while the defense is well aware that he will get the ball in his hands when the game is in the balance. Brunson also had the <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/players\/clutch-usage?CF=MIN*GE*30&amp;dir=D&amp;sort=USG_PCT\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">highest usage rate<\/a> in the clutch (minimum of 30 minutes) at 42.4%.<\/p>\n<p>Photo credit: \u00a9 David Reginek-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Clutch Player of the Year award was first handed out in the NBA after the 2022-23 regular season. The winner receives the Jerry West Trophy, named after the famed former Los Angeles Lakers player who was known for his clutch play and was nicknamed Mr. Clutch. The inaugural winner was De\u2019Aaron Fox (then of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5060,"featured_media":134736,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,62,3],"tags":[1417,49195,72,1349],"class_list":["post-134697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-nba","category-news","tag-jalen-brunson","tag-nba-clutch-player-of-the-year","tag-nikola-jokic","tag-trae-young"],"modified_by":"Kenny Kluska","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5060"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134697"}],"version-history":[{"count":46,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134697\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":134750,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134697\/revisions\/134750"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}