Jaylen Adams crowned the winner of the NBL MVP Award

Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings import point guard Jaylen Adams has been recognised with The Andrew Gaze Most Valuable Player Award.

Adams becomes the fourth Kings' player in franchise history to be named the NBL Most Valuable Player, joining Chris Williams (2003), Matthew Nielsen (2004) and Andrew Bogut (2019).

Jaylen led the Kings’ resurgence from eighth on the ladder in round seven to a top-three finals seed. With multiple game-winning plays, he was the key factor in the team’s 13-game win streak.

Adams led the league in assists per game and was top-five in points per game. He averaged 20.1 points, 6.1 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game in 21 games.

The award nominees are voted on by an expert panel of media, while the votes are done by coaches and captains.

Adams polled 105 votes, beating Perth’s Bryce Cotton (94 votes) and Melbourne’s Jo Lual-Acuil Jr (62 votes).

Kings forward Xavier Cooks was third in the voting for the Damian Martin Trophy for the Best Defensive Player and Kings head coach Chase Buford was also third in voting for the Lindsay Gaze Trophy for the Coach of the Year.

Adams and Cooks both made All-NBL teams, with Adams being selected for one of the guard positions in the All-NBL First-Team, next to MVP runner-up Bryce Cotton. Cooks was selected to the All-NBL Second Team as a forward. 

Jaylen was the runner-up for the G League MVP Award in the 2019/2020 season and was also coached by Chase Buford with the Wisconsin Herd. Now under the same coach, Adams has been awarded the NBL MVP less than two years later. 

In his acceptance speech, Adams thanked Kings Chairman and Owner Paul Smith, Kings CEO Chris Pongrass, Luc Longley and Andrew Bogut for bringing him to Sydney.

“[Thank you for giving me] the opportunity to come down here and play for the Sydney Kings this season,” Jaylen said.

“I also want to thank the Sydney community and the fans for just showing me love and continued support throughout the year.”

Heading into an NBL Finals push, Adams said “There’s not another group of guys I’d rather go to war with … Let’s finish this thing out strong.”

The Kings will play at home in game two of the NBL Semi-Finals on Sunday, May 1 at 2.45pm. There are limited tickets left; to see the MVP live against the Illawarra Hawks click here.