SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Spurs starting point guard Tre Jones was named a finalist for the NBA Sportsmanship Award on Tuesday, joining five other candidates, the league announced.
Jones, the chosen finalist from the Spurs’ Southwest Division, is included in a group that includes the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander from the Northwest Division, along with the Sacramento Kings’ Harrison Barnes.
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From the Eastern Conference, Cleveland’s Jarrett Allen, a former Texas Longhorns player, was selected, along with Philadelphia’s Tyrese Maxey (Atlantic Division) and Miami’s Kevin Love (Southeast Division).
The annual award recognizes the player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, the league said.
Current NBA players will select the winner from the six finalists.
Jones has started 42 games this season, averaging 9.8 points and 6.2 assists in 27.2 minutes per game. A former second-round draft pick by the team out of Duke in 2020, his older brother Tyus currently plays in the NBA as well, for the Washington Wizards.
Should Jones win the award he would be the fourth Spurs player ever to win the sportsmanship award, joining Avery Johnson in 1997-98, David Robinson in 2000-01 and Steve Smith in 2001-02.
On Tuesday night, Jones had a triple-double, totaling 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists, but it wasn’t enough as the Spurs (18-58) suffered a road defeat against the Denver Nuggets 110-105.
Nikola Jokic scored 42 points for Nuggets in a head-to-head matchup with rookie-of-the-year candidate Victor Wembanyama, who scored 23 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and had nine blocks and eight assists in the loss.
The team next plays on Friday on the road against Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans.