NBA to reap benefits of historic MVP race at inaugural awards show

They say timing is everything. For NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum and the rest of the league office, that couldn't ring more true.

As was announced in November, the NBA will host its inaugural end-of-season awards show on June 26 in New York City. The event, which will unveil the league's Most Valuable Player, among other awards, veers away from the NBA's previous practice of announcing winners separately throughout the postseason.

This year's MVP race, as luck would have it, happens to be one of the tightest in league history.

"We couldn't have asked for a better MVP race leading into our first NBA awards show," Tatum told USA TODAY Sports over the phone on Monday. " ... As a fan, it's been incredible to see. Such great performances by the players in our league. I also think it's not just the MVP vote, but there's a lot of discussion about the coaching job that many of our coaches have done and the performances defensively of many of our players in the league. It's going to be an incredible celebration of the amount of depth of talent that we have in our league."

No kidding.

► There's the MVP race: James Harden and Russell Westbrook sit at the forefront, with Harden's case fueled by record-shattering performances and team success and Westbrook's fueled by his quest for the single-season triple-double crown. Close behind are LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard, who are both enjoying MVP-worthy seasons of their own.

► The Defensive Player of the Year race: Draymond Green could be crowned after two years of finishing second. So could shot-blocking extraordinaire Rudy Gobert, who sends back an NBA-best 2.6 attempts per game. Or Leonard, who would become the second player in NBA history to win the award three years in a row.

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► And the Coach of the Year race: San Antonio's Gregg Popovich is in consideration, as he has been for the past two decades. There's also Utah's Quin Snyder, who has seen his long-term team-building approach come to fruition; Washington's Scott Brooks and Miami's Erik Spoelstra, who have both helped orchestrate historic in-season turnarounds; and Houston's Mike D'Antoni, who has morphed the Rockets into the NBA's most high-octane offense.

"I think we're fortunate to have so much talent in our league on the sidelines and on the court," Tatum said. "What we see now is, pretty much on every single team, there are players that fans love watching and love seeing compete. You're seeing that in the performances, in the record-breaking performances of some of our players."

In addition to the aforementioned awards, the show, which will be televised exclusively on TNT, will also unveil the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, Rookie of the Year, as well as a variety of new awards that will be announced at a later date, along with the host, venue and list of presenters.

"We're talking about bringing together the best players in our league, together with celebrities and legends, our teams and ownership," said Tatum, who likened the event to the Golden Globes. "It's a true celebration, but a fun night to celebrate the game of basketball on a global basis."

Follow AJ Neuharth-Keusch on Twitter @tweetAJNK