Overview
- Moussa Diabaté was named the 2025–26 Hustle Award winner Thursday, confirming the NBA's data-driven honor for effort plays.
- The award relies on per-minute rates across nine tracked categories such as deflections, loose balls, charges drawn, screen assists, contested shots and box outs.
- Diabaté led the league in offensive box outs per minute (0.0537) and ranked fourth in screen assists per minute (0.1122), placing top 11 in six of the nine categories.
- After he became a full-time starter on Dec. 23, Charlotte improved from a 9–20 start to a 35–18 finish, highlighting his impact beyond scoring.
- Dyson Daniels, Draymond Green, Cedric Coward and Josh Hart completed the top five, continuing an honor first awarded in 2016–17 to spotlight high-effort contributors.