ESPYS 2023: See the Complete List of Nominees
These athletes have hit it out of the park!
ESPN has released this year's nominations for the 2023 EPSY Awards, honoring some of the world's biggest names in sports. Among the nominees for Best Athlete in the men and women's sports categories are Patrick Mahomes, Lionel Messi, Mikaela Shiffrin and A'ja Wilson.
That's just one of the awards Mikaela is up for, too, as she's also in contention for Best Record-Breaking Performance with her whopping 87 World Cup victories.
Also in the category? None other than Lebron James who broke the NBA All-Time Scoring Record. Rounding out the category are F1's Max Verstappen for most wins in a season and Novak Djokovic for his historic 23rd Grand Slam title—which he clinched earlier this month at the French Open.
Fresh off picking up their first NBA title, the Denver Nuggets are up for Best Team, while their star Nikola Jokić picked up an individual nod in the Best Championship Performance category. The Nuggets join the Kansas City Chiefs (NFL), Las Vegas Aces (WNBA) and the Georgia Bulldogs (NCAA Football) and more for the top team prize.
Fans are able to vote for their favorite teams and athletes on EPSYs.com through Sunday, July 9. As for who will bring home gold, viewers can catch the big event Wednesday, July 12 at 8 p.m. ET / PT on ABC live from Los Angeles.
Keep reading for the complete list of 2023 nominees:
BEST ATHLETE, MEN'S SPORTS
Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets
Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Lionel Messi, Argentina
BEST ATHLETE, WOMEN'S SPORTS
Mikaela Shiffrin, Ski
Sophia Smith, Portland Thorns
Iga Świątek, Tennis
A'ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces
BEST BREAKTHROUGH ATHLETE
Caitlin Clark, Iowa Women's Basketball
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Angel Reese, LSU Women's Basketball
Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners
BEST RECORD-BREAKING PERFORMANCE
Novak Djokovic wins his 23rd Grand Slam title, defeating Casper Ruud in the French Open final. Breaking a tie with rival Rafael Nadal for the most major singles trophies in the history of men's tennis, which dates to the 1800s
LeBron James surpasses Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for NBA career scoring record
Mikaela Shiffrin breaks the record for the most World Cup victories with her 87th win
Max Verstappen wins the Mexican Grand Prix, breaking the record for most wins in a season
BEST CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCE
Leon Edwards, UFC - defeats Kamaru Usman by 5th-round KO to win UFC welterweight title, handing Usman his first UFC loss
Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets - 2023 NBA Finals MVP
Lionel Messi, Argentina - 2022 World Cup Final - scored 2 goals and scored in the penalty shootout to win Man of the Match and he won the Golden Ball as FIFA's best player of the tournament
Rose Zhang, LPGA - defeated Jennifer Kupcho in a two-hole sudden death playoff, making history by winning by becoming the first woman in 72 years to win her first professional start.
BEST COMEBACK ATHLETE
Jon Jones, UFC
Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets
Alyssa Thomas, Connecticut Sun
Justin Verlander, Current New York Mets / Houston Astros
BEST PLAY
Michael Block Hole-in-One! GOLF
Justin Jefferson with the Catch of the Century NFL
Ally Lemos with the perfect corner to tie the National Championship game NCAA
Trinity Thomas Perfect 10 Tying the All-Time NCAA Record NCAA
BEST TEAM
Denver Nuggets, NBA
Georgia Bulldogs, NCAA Football
Kansas City Chiefs, NFL
Las Vegas Aces, WNBA
Louisiana State Tigers, NCAA Women's Basketball
Oklahoma Sooners, NCAA Softball
Vegas Golden Knights, NHL
BEST COLLEGE ATHLETE, MEN'S SPORTS
Zach Edey, Purdue Men's Basketball
Duncan McGuire, Creighton Soccer
Brennan O'Neill, Duke Lacrosse
Caleb Williams, USC Football
BEST COLLEGE ATHLETE, WOMEN'S SPORTS
Jordy Bahl, Oklahoma Softball
Caitlin Clark, Iowa Women's Basketball
Izzy Scane, Northwestern Lacrosse
Trinity Thomas, Florida Gators Gymnastics
BEST ATHLETE WITH A DISABILITY
Erica McKee, Sled Hockey Team
Zach Miller, Snowboarding
Aaron Pike, Wheelchair Racing & Cross-Country Skiing
Susannah Scaroni, Wheelchair Racing
BEST NFL PLAYER
Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers
Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
BEST MLB PLAYER
Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
Justin Verlander, Houston Astros
BEST NHL PLAYER
Jonathan Marchessault, Vegas Golden Knights
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
David Pastrňák, Boston Bruins
Linus Ullmark, Boston Bruins
BEST NBA PLAYER
Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets
Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
BEST WNBA PLAYER
Skylar Diggins-Smith, Phoenix Mercury
Candace Parker, Chicago Sky (Current Las Vegas Aces)
Breanna Stewart, Seattle Storm (Current New York Liberty)
A'ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces
BEST DRIVER
Brittany Force, NHRA
Kyle Larson, NASCAR
Josef Newgarden, IndyCar
Max Verstappen, F1
BEST UFC FIGHTER
Leon Edwards
Jon Jones
Islam Makhachev
Amanda Nunes
BEST BOXER
Gervonta Davis
Devin Haney
Claressa Shields
Shakur Stevenson
BEST SOCCER PLAYER
Aitana Bonmatí, Spain/Barcelona
Erling Haaland, Norway/Manchester City
Lionel Messi, Argentina/PSG
Sophia Smith, USWNT/Portland Thorns
BEST GOLFER
Wyndham Clark
Nelly Korda
Jon Rahm
Scottie Scheffler
BEST TENNIS PLAYER
Carlos Alcaraz
Novak Djokovic
Aryna Sabalenka
Iga Świątek
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