2022 ESPY Awards: Who Should Win Biggest Sports Honors

by Eric Fulton & Julian Spivey

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Best Team
Nominees: Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Rams, Atlanta Braves, Colorado Avalanche, Georgia Bulldogs Football, Oklahoma Sooners Softball, Chicago Sky

Eric’s Pick to Win: Golden State Warriors
The Warriors became the first team in NBA history to go from worst to first in a three-year span. A lot of people thought their championship window was closed after Kevin Durant left in free agency and injuries to key players. But their championship pedigree is still intact and looks to be poised for another dynasty. EF

Julian’s Pick to Win: Atlanta Braves
This one’s hard for me. I could almost flip a coin to decide between the Atlanta Braves and Golden State Warriors (honesty moment – these are my favorite teams in MLB and NBA). Both were unexpected champions – the Braves a young team that was under .500 with two months remaining in the 2021 season and went on to somehow win it all and the Warriors a former dynasty rebuilding around a trio often injured over the last couple of seasons and back to their glory. Eric choosing the Warriors makes me selection a bit easier because I won’t have to feel bad voting for the Atlanta Braves. JS

Best Athlete, Men's Sports
Nominees: Stephen Curry, Aaron Rodgers, Shohei Ohtani, Connor McDavid

Eric’s Pick to Win: Stephen Curry
After a tough couple of seasons, Curry led the Warriors to the return of NBA's top team. He solidified his legacy by winning his first NBA Finals MVP.  With Golden State winning their fourth title in the last eight seasons, Curry has established a legacy as one of the greatest basketball players of all-time. EF

Julian’s Pick to Win: Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani did something in the 2021 MLB season that’s never been done before – he was an All-Star as a hitter and a pitcher. Ohtani is a unicorn. There’s no athlete in his sport or any sport for that matter that’s like him. The 2021 American League Most Valuable Player for the Los Angeles Angels is the obvious pick here, but ESPY voters haven’t voted a baseball player as Male Athlete of the Year in more than 20 years since ‘roided up Mark McGwire won in 1999. If a baseball player can do it to it’s Ohtani, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Curry took it. JS
 
Best Athlete, Women's Sports
Nominees: Oksana Masters, Sunisa Lee, Katie Ledecky, and Candace Parker

Eric’s Pick to Win: Sunisa Lee
Sunisa Lee stole the spotlight in the 2020 Summer Olympics. She won all-around gymnastics as well as a bronze medal in the uneven bars. Lee would compete in collegiate gymnastics at Auburn University. She finished first in the balance beam in the NCAA Championships and second in the all-around. EF

Best Breakthrough Athlete
Nominees: Trinity Rodman, Eileen Gu, Jonathan Taylor, Ja Morant

Eric’s Pick to Win: Ja Morant
Morant led the Memphis Grizzlies to the second seed in the NBA's Western Conference. The former NBA Rookie of the Year also became a starter in this year's NBA All-Star Game. EF

Best Record-Breaking Performance
Nominees: Stephen Curry, Jocelyn Alo, Tom Brady, Allyson Felix

Eric’s Pick to Win: Stephen Curry setting the record for most three-pointers made in NBA history.
It is not a surprise to anyone not if, but when Curry was going to set the record for most three pointers made. Let's face it, Curry can shoot it from anywhere and most times, it would go in. Whenever he does retire, that is one record that will probably never be broken. EF

Julian’s Pick to Win: Stephen Curry
I’ve never seen one athlete completely change the way a sport is played like Stephen Curry has done in the NBA with his three-point shooting. It only took Curry basically 11 seasons to break the league’s all-time three-point record held by Ray Allen. At 34 years old Curry still has multiple seasons ahead of him and his shot is still falling at a great clip. He’s going to set a mark that may never be topped. JS

Best Championship Performance
Nominees: Cooper Kupp, Julianna Pena, Max Verstappen, Cale Makar

Eric’s Pick to Win: Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams – Super Bowl LVI
Cooper Kupp's historic 2021 season ended with an outstanding performance in Super Bowl LVI. Kupp had eight catches for 92 yards with two touchdowns, including the game winner. Including the postseason, Kupp had a total of 2,425 recieving yards for the 2021 season. He also led the NFL in receptions (145) and touchdowns (16). EF

Julian’s Pick to Win: Cooper Kupp
First of all, it’s irritating to see Formula 1’s Max Verstappen even nominated for Best Championship Performance because he only won the F1 title because of a controversial ruling late in the race during a caution and restart that screwed Lewis Hamilton out of a record eighth championship.

I voted for Cooper Kupp, who not only had one of the greatest Super Bowls of all-time by a receiver, but I felt should’ve been the NFL’s MVP of the regular season – but that has seemingly become a quarterback only award. JS

Best Game
Nominees: Chiefs defeat Bills in the AFC Divisional Round, Kansas comeback over North Carolina, UCONN 2OT win over NC State, Alabama defeating Auburn in 4OT

Eric’s Pick to Win: Chiefs over Bills.
While many fans did not like how the game ended, Kansas City versus Buffalo in the AFC Divisional Round was still one of the best football games ever played. Each team scoring at will in the fourth quarter sending a classic into overtime. While the Bills' offense did not get a chance to score in overtime, they still provided some fireworks late. EF

Julian’s Pick to Win: Kansas comeback over North Carolina in NCAA Men’s College Basketball Championship
Chiefs over Bills was a fantastic NFL playoff game, but it was only the divisional round! What the Kansas Jayhawks did in the NCAA men’s college basketball championship coming back from a record 16 points down to the North Carolina Tar Heels should be the winner because it was for all the marbles. JS

Best NFL Player
Nominees: Cooper Kupp, T.J. Watt, Aaron Rodgers, Jonathan Taylor

Julian’s Pick to Win: Cooper Kupp
I’ve mentioned multiple times on this website over the last couple of years how I hate how the NFL MVP award has become essentially a quarterback only award. The last two seasons Aaron Rodgers have been given the honor over more deserving players in my opinion – Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry two years ago and Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp this past season. Kupp had one of the all-time greatest seasons for a receiver in NFL history last year and while I can’t do anything about him being snubbed as MVP I can at least give him my ESPY vote.
 
Best MLB Player:
Nominees: Shohei Ohtani, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Jorge Soler

Julian’s Pick to Win: Shohei Ohtani

It’s so dumb that Jorge Soler is nominated here. He won the MVP of the World Series for the Atlanta Braves and that’s the entire reason he’s nominated for an ESPY, because apparently the ESPYs don’t look too far into who’s actually deserving.

Shohei Ohtani absolutely has to be the winning choice for this category. As mentioned earlier, he’s a unicorn. There’s nobody like him in the game of baseball – dominant on the mound and at the plate. JS

Best NBA Player:
Nominees: Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Luka Doncic, Stephen Curry

Julian’s Pick to Win: Nikola Jokic
This one was very hard for me because I’d honestly like to vote for Stephen Curry, he is my favorite player in the NBA, after all, but I’ve got to be objective and go with the guy who’s won the last two NBA MVP’s in Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic. I watched the first round NBA Playoffs matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Nuggets and the Nuggets are nothing without Jokic, who does it all for that team. JS

Best NHL Player
Nominees: Connor McDavid, Igor Shesterkin, Roman Josi, Auston Matthews

Eric’s Pick to Win: Auston Matthews
Matthews became the first player in a decade to score 60 goals in a season.  He registered a career high in goals, assists, and points in a season. EF