Denver Nuggets star thinks he deserves attention for Most Improved Player award, numbers back his case

Cade Cunningham is the favorite to clinch the award. After the Detroit Pistons‘ depressing struggles for the past couple of years, the franchise star propelled them to a meteoric rise this season.

Evan Mobley also emerged as a solid candidate too. He has made an impact to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ historic season, and a teammate even endorsed him to win another individual award too.

In the wake of the favor for Cunningham, Mobley, and several other candidates, Christian Braun meanwhile hopes to at least obtain some love for the Most Improved voting.

Christian Braun makes 2024-25 Most Improved Player case

Christian Braun has been a huge revelation for the Denver Nuggets this year.

Upon the pivotal offseason departure of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, many questioned how the team would replace the veteran swingman.

Braun proved critics wrong, perfectly shouldering the dirty work for the Nuggets as he embraced becoming their starting two-guard.

He has helped Denver remain as one of the league’s top teams, with the third-best record in the Western Conference (45-28), and Braun is convinced that he should get a nod for the Most Improved Player.

“I would hope that I’m in that mix,” he told The Denver Post.

“I know there’s a lot of guys that get a lot of mentions, and they deserve it, too. But I want to be in that mix. I feel like I work hard to be in that mix.

“And that’s not just an individual award. I think that it shows how good those guys around me are, too.”

Braun elevated his play and numbers to the next level

Numbers don’t lie, Braun has truly developed for this 2024-25 outing.

In 71 games thus far, the third-year guard has been averaging 15.1 points, a 7.8 increase compared to last year. He is also averaging career highs in field goal shooting (57.4%), rebounds (5.0), assists (2.4), and steals (1.1).

Past MIP winners include Tyrese Maxey (2024), Lauri Markanen (2023) and Ja Morant (2022).

From being a bench contributor into a prolific starter with a noticeable improvement, Braun has earned his right to believe that he’s a strong competitor for the compelling award.