The Nuggets’ Nikola Jokić became the first player ever to lead the league in rebounds and assists.
A select few players didn’t just dazzle every now and then. They sparkled and shined on a regular basis during the 2025-26 season of NBA Fantasy — Salary Cap Edition.
Now that we’ve reached the end of the road, it’s time to highlight those exemplary individuals who fantasy general managers stuck with through thick and thin.
Here are the award winners from this fantasy season:
Most Valuable Player: Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets
With every step, he seems to make history. In every game, he’s likely to do something special. That’s just who Nikola Jokić is on the hardwood. The three-time MVP and eight-time All-Star takes the cake as the best player in fantasy — again.
He became the first player ever to lead the league in rebounds and assists. He’s also one of two alongside Russell Westbrook to average a triple-double in back-to-back seasons. At 31 years old, Jokić led all players with 4,464 total fantasy points and 68.6 fantasy points per game.
What’s perhaps most remarkable is that he accomplished all that despite missing 17 games in 2025-26. He also scored 80 or more fantasy points in 23% of games he did play. For now, and likely in years to come, there is simply no fantasy option quite like Jokić.
Rookie of the Year: Kon Knueppel, Charlotte Hornets
The race for this award was neck-and-neck. Both Kon Knueppel and Cooper Flagg have been exceptional first-year fantasy options following similarly exceptional seasons at Duke. The edge, though, goes to Knueppel because of one crucial difference.
Flagg racked up 3,015 TFP on a $13.1M salary, but his former teammate had 2,706 TFP at nearly half the price — just $7.4M. Dollars matter in this salary-cap based fantasy game. Since slotting into the starting five at shooting guard, Knueppel has become a terrific bargain.
He averaged just 22.1 FPPG through his first six games with the Hornets. Those numbers nearly doubled in no time at all, as he put up 41 FPPG in the next nine. Knueppel started an impressive 80 games in all for the Hornets, and among his teammates, placed third with 33.4 FPPG.
Most Improved Player of the Year: Ryan Rollins, Milwaukee Bucks
In his first few seasons, Ryan Rollins bounced around from team to team, starting with the Golden State Warriors and Washington Wizards. But neither of them kept the Toledo product around long enough for him to get comfortable.
He was elevated to starting point guard for Year 3 with the Bucks, and that role took him to new heights. Rollins finished with 2,870 TFP and 38.7 FPPG at a salary of $6.7M, creating enough value for 25.6% of fantasy general managers to roster him.
He began 2025-26 on a roll — 40.3 FPPG across his first six games — and never cooled off from there. Ultimately, he wound up with 24 outings of 45-plus fantasy points, even breaking 60 on a few occasions. As the Bucks find a new coach, it would be wise to keep Rollins around.
Bargain of the Year: Collin Gillespie, Phoenix Suns
No team wanted Collin Gillespie in the 2022 NBA Draft. Every one of them passed on him, and some did so multiple times. So he spent this season — his third in the league — proving to each of them why it was a mistake not to call his name.
The 26-year-old guard had the best year of his young career, ultimately producing 2,426 TFP on a salary of $5.6M for the highest value of any player in the game. He appeared in 80 contests for the Suns while coming off the bench behind Devin Booker and was responsible for 30.3 FPPG.
His reliability proved attractive to fantasy general managers, and every now and then, he performed at an even higher level. Gillespie tallied 16 games with 40 or more fantasy points featuring a stretch of five straight from Dec. 23-31. Teams know his name now.
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