Spurs guard Manu Ginobili’s reputation as one of the most media-friendly NBA players in the NBA enabled him to finish as a finalist for the Pro Basketball Writers Association’s Magic Johnson Award.
Phoenix guard Steve Nash won the PBWA’s annual award, presented annually to the player who best combines excellence on the court with co-operation with the media and fans.
Ginobili was a finalist for the award, along with Minnesota’s Kevin Love and Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers.
The PBWA also named Doc Rivers of the Boston Celtics as the winner of the Rudy Tomjanovich Award for the coach who best combines excellence in his craft with co-operation with the media and fans. Other nominees included George Karl of Denver Nuggets, Orlando’s Stan Van Gundy and Rick Carlisle of Dallas.
And the Milwaukee public-relations staff was honored with the Brian McIntyre Award, given to the team public relations staff that goes above and beyond the call of duty to work co-operatively with the local and national media. Other finalists for the award included Oklahoma City, Chicago and Memphis.