– Fan Voting Starts Friday, February 6 –
SPRINGFIELD, MASS. — The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced the Mid-Season Top 10 candidates for the 2026 Bob Cousy Award and, in partnership with the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), the 2026 Nancy Lieberman Award.
*Players can play their way onto and off the list at any point in the 2025-26 season.
Fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting in both of the remaining rounds starting on Friday, February 6, on hoophallawards.com. The Fan Vote will count as one committee vote during the finalist selection process.
In mid-March, the Mid-Season Top 10 list will be narrowed to just five, and in late March, five finalists will be presented to Cousy, Lieberman, and the Hall of Fame’s selection committees, where winners will be selected. The Selection Committees for the Bob Cousy and Nancy Lieberman Awards are composed of top men’s and women’s college basketball personnel, including media members, head coaches, sports information directors, and Hall of Famers.
The winners of the 2026 Cousy and Lieberman Awards will be presented on a to-be-determined date, along with the four other members of the Men’s and Women’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Jerry West and Ann Meyers Drysdale Awards (Shooting Guard), Julius Erving and Cheryl Miller Awards (Small Forward), Karl Malone and Katrina McClain Awards (Power Forward), and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Lisa Leslie Awards (Center).
Previous winners of the Bob Cousy Award include Braden Smith, Purdue (2025), Tristen Newton, UConn (2024), Markquis Nowell, Kansas State (2023), Ja Morant, Murray State (2019), Jalen Brunson, Villanova (2018), Trey Burke, Michigan (2013), and Kemba Walker, Connecticut (2011).
Previous winners of the Nancy Lieberman Award include Caitlin Clark, Iowa (2022-24), Paige Bueckers, UConn (2021 and ‘25), Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon (2018-20), Skylar Diggins, Notre Dame (2012-13), Diana Taurasi, UConn (2003-04), and Sue Bird, UConn (2000-02).
For more information on the 2026 Bob Cousy and Nancy Lieberman Awards and the latest updates, visit hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophallu, #CousyAward, and #LiebermanAward on X and Instagram.
About the WBCA:
Founded in 1981, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association is the professional association for coaches of women’s and girls’ basketball at all levels of competition. The WBCA offers educational resources that coaches need to help make themselves better leaders, teachers and mentors to their players; provides opportunities for coaches to connect with peers in the profession; serves as the unifying voice of a diverse community of coaches to those organizations that control the game; and celebrates those coaches, players and other individuals who excel each year and contribute to the advancement of the sport. For more information, visit us online: WBCA.org, follow @wbca1981, or call 1-770-279-8027.
About the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame:
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was born, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is an independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting, preserving, and celebrating the game of basketball at every level—men and women, amateur and professional players, coaches, and contributors—both domestically and internationally. The Hall of Fame museum is home to more than 475 inductees and over 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Nearly 200,000 people visit the Hall of Fame museum each year to learn about the game, experience the interactive exhibits, and test their skills on the Jerry Colangelo “Court of Dreams.” Best known for its annual marquee Enshrinement Ceremony honoring the game’s elite, the Hall of Fame also operates over 150 high school and collegiate competitions annually throughout the country and abroad. For more information on the Basketball Hall of Fame organization, its museum, and events, visit hoophall.com and follow @hoophallU.
