MINNEAPOLIS — Nikola Jokic is breaking the game. The Cleveland Outlaws star just earned his fourth consecutive COMO MVP award, topping former Shorewood teammate Giannis Antetkounmpo's shared record of three straight (2018-2020). Those two were, naturally, the primary focus of All-COMO voting this week, as they were among five players receiving unanimous support for first-team inclusion. The others in the "100" club: Hamburg (via Cream City) star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Scranton's Anthony Davis, and Paisley Park's Luka Doncic.
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While three consecutive COMO MVPs is undeniably impressive, the basketball world is a little bit *over* the Nikola Jokic awards conversation (and Jokic is, too). So, let's focus on some first-timers. On Thursday afternoon, Cream City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Scranton forward Jayson Tatum were both named first-team All-COMO for the first time (it's their first appearance on any of the All-COMO teams). They were joined by mainstays Luka Doncic (fourth time on the first team), Giannis Antetokounmpo (seventh), Joel Embiid (fourth), and, of course, Jokic (third). Chaska's Paolo Banchero won Rookie of the Year, while Scranton GM Sam Twetan took home the Executive of the Year award for the first time. Other notes: LeBron James and James Harden both made the second team. They're the only players to make an All-COMO team every single season in the 10-year history of the league. Anthony Davis also earned a second-team nod, the ninth All-COMO selection of his career. The third team featured a trio of first-timers: Anthony Edwards, Lauri Markkanen, and Julius Randle. Ja Morant snuck past Pascal Siakim for the final spot. 2022-2023 All-COMO selectionsFirst Team
PG - Luka Doncic, Kansas City (4th 1st-team selection, 4th overall) 💯 SG - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cream City (1st, 1st) SF - Jayson Tatum, Scranton (1st, 1st) PF - Giannis Antetokounmpo, Minnesnowta (7th, 7th) 💯 C - Nikola Jokic, Cleveland (3rd, 5th) 💯 6th - Joel Embiid, Hamburg BSV (4th, 4th) 💯 unanimous 1st-team selection Second Team PG - Damian Lillard, Sunnyvale/Memphis (5th overall) SG - James Harden, Sunnyvale (10th) SF - LeBron James, Manhattan (10th) PF - Domantas Sabonis, Scranton (4th) C - Anthony Davis, Newport Beach (9th) 6th - Kevin Durant, Shorewood/Manhattan (7th) Third Team PG - Stephen Curry, West Grove United (7th) SG - Anthony Edwards, Sunnyvale (1st) SF - Lauri Markkanen, Chaska (1st) PF - Julius Randle, Cream City/Minnesnowta (1st) C - Bam Adebayo, Shorewood/Cleveland (3rd) 6th - Ja Morant, Memphis (2nd) Also receiving votes: Pascal Siakam, Manhattan (7pts), Kyrie Irving, Hamburg BSV/Scranton (5), Nikola Vucevic, Memphis (4), Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland (3), Tyrese Haliburton, Newport Beach (3), Demar DeRozan, Scranton (1), Kristaps Porzingis, Hamburg BSV/Cream City (1), De'Aaron Fox, West Grove United (1) ST. PAUL, Minn. — Welcome to the club, Nikola Jokic. On Thursday morning, the "Joker" became the third man in COMO history to win multiple MVP awards, joining Anthony Davis (2015 and '17) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (2018, '19, and '20). Jokic, who currently stars for the Minnesnowta Chill after opening the season with the hapless Newport Beach Grizzlies, became the first player to win MVP with two different COMO teams; he also won last year with Shorewood. Minnesnowta (51-19) faces rival Scranton (48-22) in a Best-of-3 first-round series that tips Thursday night in St. Paul. (Also notable: Scranton's Evan Mobley edged out Shorewood's Scottie Barnes for Rookie of the Year. Scroll to end of this page to see the All-COMO teams.) Hamburg's Buscaglia wins COMO Executive of the YearBut Jokic and the Chill aren't even the top dogs in their own conference. That distinction belongs to Hamburg BSV (51-19), led by fourth-year GM Joe Buscaglia. In a poll of league execs, Buscaglia was a runaway winner for Executive of the Year, earning 6 votes out of 14 ballots (second place was a three-way tie at 2 votes apiece). In an interview Wednesday evening, he called the award "an insane honor," and thanked the panel. "I've learned a lot more about the league since doing the expansion route and found a strategy that worked for me," Buscaglia said. He noted two moves in particular that turned his team into a winner: Last year's eyebrow-raising trade of marquee superstar Kevin Durant, and this past offseason's free-agency signing of Rudy Gobert. The Villagers are flush with talent, and have the balanced look of a champion. They'll just need to survive an insane Empire bracket that includes Minnesnowta (51-19), Scranton (48-22) and first-round matchup Kansas City (43-27), which took two straight from Hamburg last month to earn the inaugural Butterburger® Classic. 2022 All-COMO teams1st Team
PG • LeBron James, Manhattan (7th 1st, 9th overall) SG • Luka Doncic, Kansas City (3rd 1st, 3rd overall) SF • Kevin Durant, Memphis/Shorewood (5th 1st, 6th overall) PF • Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shorewood (6th 1st, 6th overall) C• Nikola Jokic, Newport Beach/Minnesnowta (2nd 1st, 4th overall) 6th • Joel Embiid, Memphis/Manhattan (3rd 1st, 3rd overall) 2nd Team PG • Dejounte Murray, Sunnyvale (1st) SG • James Harden, Sunnyvale (9th; first time not on 1st team) SF • DeMar DeRozan, Kansas City (1st) PF • Anthony Davis, Chaska/Hamburg BSV (8th; first seven appearances were all first-team) C • Rudy Gobert, Hamburg BSV (3rd) 6th • Karl-Anthony Towns, Duval United (5th) 3rd Team PG • Trae Young, Newport Beach (1st) SG • Ja Morant, Memphis (1st) SF • Jimmy Butler, Scranton/Cleveland (5th) PF • Domantas Sabonis, Scranton (3rd) C • Pascal Siakim, Manhattan (1st) 6th • Nikola Vucevic, Minnesnowta (3rd) --- Also receiving votes: Jarrett Allen, Scranton (4), Jayson Tatum, Memphis/Scranton (3), Stephen Curry, Scranton (2), Chris Paul, Kansas City (2), Miles Bridges, Minnesnowta (2), Robert Williams III, Hamburg BSV (1), LaMelo Ball, Minnesnowta (1) Giannis Antetokounmpo wins third straight COMO MVP; Morant, Halleron collect league honors8/13/2020 Re-printed with permission from the Sun Sailor.
SHOREWOOD, Minn. — Before Thursday, it had been 34 years since major pro basketball produced a back-to-back-to-back MVP. It's fitting then, that a man whose range of skills is unmatched in the history of the game, would be the first since Larry Bird in 1986 to collect his third straight Most Valuable Player trophy. Giannis Antetokounmpo already has his gold jacket tailored. He's been part of three Shorewood Show championship teams—including last year's COMO Finals MVP performance—and now has completed a trilogy of the highest individual honor in the league. His former Show teammate, Stephen Curry, has won two in his career. So has Anthony Davis. But for the third straight year, the Greek Freak outlasted perennial runner-up James Harden (fourth in voting in 2018, second in 2019 and 2020) to capture the prize. (It's worth noting that Harden will get the last laugh this year; his Sunnyvale Slayers hold a commanding COMO Finals lead, and he just poured in 61 bones against the Chaska Moose.) The award was voted on in March, before the COVID-19 pandemic halted the COMO playoffs. Antetokounmpo posted a 36.8-bone average over 48 regular season starts. Here are the voting results (each team's ballot listed players 1-5, with the first choice receiving 5 points, second choice receiving 4 points, etc.)
Antetokounmpo was also the only player to receive unanimous first-team All-COMO honors earlier this week. Morant takes home Rookie of the Year Round 1 of Zion vs. Ja went to the latter, as St. Louis point guard Ja Morant earned COMO Rookie of the Year honors over Chaska's Zion Williamson. Morant averaged 19.1 bones over 45 starts for the hapless Hornets (16-66), who finished last place in the North Star conference. The two 2019 draft picks were the subject of controversy last year when St. Louis general manager Aaron Connolly Nutting accused the commissioner of doctoring the lottery process. Chaska won the No. 1 pick—eventually Williamson—while Nutting claimed, "Zion was taken from me!" The oft-rested Williamson and his Moose advanced all the way to the COMO Finals this season. For now, though, Morant's trophy case is a little larger. Paisley Park's Halleron gets special nod For the first time, the league's general managers voted on Executive of the Year. It was a tight race, but the award went to longtime Paisley Park GM Brendan Halleron. The embattled exec has made some risky moves in recent years—including handing Anthony Davis a gigantic multi-year contract (good), wheeling and dealing for Ben Simmons (great) and tossing a ton of money at DeMarcus Cousins (very bad)—and it paid off in 2019-2020. The Rainmakers finished 58-24, tied for first place in the North Star. An early playoff exit soured the season a bit, but it was still the most successful squad in team history. Here were the full results for EOY (teams listed just one nomination each):
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