Aaron Rodgers among the Wisconsin connections nominated for ESPY Awards (but no Giannis, again?)
ESPN has unveiled nominees for its annual ESPY Awards, slated for 7 p.m. July 20, with fan voting continuing until 7 p.m. July 17.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is among the nominees for "Best Athlete, Men's Sports" for the fourth time, squaring off with Stephen Curry, Connor McDavid and Shohei Ohtani. Rodgers won his fourth MVP after the 2021 NFL season, though he did not win the ESPY for Best NFL Player last season coming off an MVP win, when Tom Brady took home the hardware instead.
Rodgers has, however, won Best NFL Player six times at the ESPYs and Male Athlete of the Year three times, not to mention two "Best Play" wins for his pass to Jared Cook against the Cowboys in the NFC divisional round and his Hail Mary to Richard Rodgers the year before that.
"Best NBA Player," however, curiously does not include two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, with the list including Luka Dončić, Nikola Jokić, Joel Embiid and Stephen Curry. Antetokounmpo took third in the NBA MVP voting this past season behind Jokić and Embiid.
It's the second straight year that Antetokounmpo was not among the finalists; last year Chris Paul made the four-player cut in lieu of Embiid, with the other three players the same. In fairness, the 2021 ceremony July 10 took place before Antetokounmpo's remarkable performance in the 2021 NBA Finals.
Antetokounmpo won Best Male Athlete in 2019 along with Best NBA Player, the same year Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich won Best MLB Player.
The ceremony will air live from Los Angeles. Here is a full look at Wisconsin sports connections among the nominees:
Aaron Rodgers, T.J. Watt and Jonathan Taylor, Best NFL Player
Three of the four finalists for Best NFL Player have Wisconsin ties, including Rodgers, former University of Wisconsin and Pewaukee High School standout T.J. Watt and former UW running back Jonathan Taylor of the Indianapolis Colts. Watt, of the Pittsburgh Steelers, won the league's defensive player of the year honor, while Taylor was runner-up to Cooper Kupp for the league's offensive player of the year. Kupp is the fourth nominee in this category.
Taylor, Best Breakthrough Athlete
The University of Wisconsin alumnus had a massive second year with the Colts, rushing for more than 1,800 yards with 18 touchdowns. He's up against fellow nominees Trinity Rodman of the NWSL's Washington Spirit, Olympic skier Eileen Gu and Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant.
Ochai Agbaji and Kansas, Best Game
This includes Kansas' 16-point rally against North Carolina for the biggest comeback in NCAA men's basketball championship game history. Milwaukee-born Ochai Agbaji was named the most outstanding player of the Final Four in helping Kansas to the title.
This one might have an uphill battle against the Chiefs-Bils overtime thriller in the AFC divisional round. Other nominees are Connecticut against North Carolina State in the Elite Eight of the women's NCAA basketball tournament and Alabama beating Auburn in four overtimes in the annual "Iron Bowl."
JR Radcliffe can be reached at (262) 361-9141 or jradcliffe@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JRRadcliffe.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Aaron Rodgers (but not Giannis Antetokounmpo) up for ESPY Awards
