2023 ESPYs: Full list of award nominations, including Pat Mahomes and LeBron James
Top sports athletes will ditch their gear for dress clothes as the 2023 ESPYs will be held next month.
The 31st annual award show will be broadcast on ABC and take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Wednesday, July 12 at 8 p.m. ET. No host has been announced for the award show yet.
The ESPYs, abbreviated for the Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly, utilizes fan votes to honor the top athletes and sports performances of the previous year. ESPN announced the nominees on Wednesday with Nikola Jokić, Patrick Mahomes, A’ja Wilson, Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese among the top nominees.
The ESPYs will also continue to hand out the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance, and The Pat Tillman Award for Service, honoring inspiring and courageous athletes. Recipients for those awards will be announced next week. This years show marks 30 years since Jimmy Valvano's famous ESPYs speech.
Here are the nominees for the 2023 ESPY Awards. Fans can vote here for the awards until July 9 at 8 p.m. ET:
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Best athlete: Men's sports
Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets
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
Angel Reese, LSU women’s basketball
Best record-breaking performance
Novak Djokovic: Won 2023 French Open for his 23rd Grand Slam title, breaking a tie with rRafael Nadal for the most major singles championship in men's tennis.
LeBron James: Surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for NBA career scoring record.
Mikaela Shiffrin: Breaking the record for the most World Cup victories with 87.
Max Verstappen: Breaking the record for most wins in a season with a win at the Mexican Grand Prix.
Best championship performance
Leon Edwards: Won the UFC welterweight title at UFC 286, defeating Kamaru Usman.
Nikola Jokić: The 2023 NBA Finals MVP for the Denver Nuggets.
Lionel Messi: Scored two goals and scored in the penalty shootout of the 2022 World Cup final, winning Man of the Match as Argentina captured the title. Also won the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament.
Rose Zhang: Won the 2023 Mizuho Americas Open, becoming the first woman since Beverly Hanson in 1951 to win in their LPGA in her pro debut.
Best comeback athlete
Jon Jones: Won the UFC heavyweight championship at UFC 285 on March 4 in his first fight since 2020.
Jamal Murray: After missing the 2021-22 season due to a torn ACL, returned for the 2022-23 season and played a key role in the Nuggets winning the NBA title.
Alyssa Thomas: The Connecticut Sun forward won the 2022 WNBA Comeback Player of the Year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in 2021.
Justin Verlander: Won the 2022 AL Cy Young and AL Comeback Player of the Year and after playing in only six innings in 2020 and missing the 2021 season due to Tommy John surgery. Was instrumental in the Houston Astros winning the 2022 World Series.
Best play
Michael Block: Hole-in-one at the 2023 PGA Championship.
Justin Jefferson: His remarkable catch vs. the Buffalo Bills.
Ally Lemos: Perfect corner kick leading to a score and tying the NCAA women's soccer national championship game.
Trinity Thomas: Her 28th perfect 10 tied the all-time NCAA record.
Best team
Kansas City Chiefs, NFL
Denver Nuggets, NBA
Vegas Golden Knights, NHL
Las Vegas Aces, WNBA
Georgia Bulldogs, College football
LSU Tigers, Women’s college basketball
Oklahoma Sooners, Softball
Best college athlete: Men's sports
Zach Edey, Purdue men's basketball
Duncan McGuire, Creighton men's soccer
Brennan O’Neill, Duke men's lacrosse
Caleb Williams, Southern California football
Best college athlete: Women's sports
Jordy Bahl, Oklahoma softball
Caitlin Clark, Iowa women’s basketball
Izzy Scane, Northwestern women's lacrosse
Trinity Thomas, Florida gymnastics
Best athlete with a disability
Erica McKee, sled hockey team
Zach Miller, snowboarding
Aaron Pike, wheelchair racing and 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
Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
Justin Verlander, Houston Astros
Best NHL player
Jonathan Marchessault, Vegas Golden Knights
David Pastrňák, Boston Bruins
Linus Ullmark, Boston Bruins
Best NBA player
Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets
Best WNBA player
Skylar Diggins-Smith, Phoenix Mercury
Candace Parker, Chicago Sky (Currently on Las Vegas Aces)
Breanna Stewart, Seattle Storm (Currently on 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
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ESPYs 2023: Full list of award nominations for best athletes, teams