The NBA's Most Improved Player of the Year Award doesn't come with defined criteria. Some will place a premium on the individual who made the jump from good to great or found a way to elevate themselves within the latter's stratosphere. Others can look towards Neemias Queta as the quintessential example of who should get this honor.
The Boston Celtics' center was fourth on the depth chart a season ago. Now, he's anchoring the backline of a 56-win team that secured the second seed in the Eastern Conference. In this author's opinion, Queta has evolved into a top-10 player at his position.
The Lisbon, Portugal, native finished the year with the fourth-highest net rating in the NBA [13.2] among those who logged at least 60 games while averaging 25 minutes of floor time. He's fifth in win shares per 48 minutes. The fifth-year center is third in field goal percentage [65.3 percent]. He boasts the third-best effective field goal percentage [65.4 percent]. The fourth-highest true-shooting percentage [67.4 percent]. He's eighth in offensive rebounds [230], 11th in total rebounds [636], and produced the second-most screen assists [273].
Queta went from averaging 5.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in 13.9 minutes of playing time in the 2024-25 campaign to generating 10.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.3 blocks per contest as Boston's starting center.
"I think I made a pretty good case for it," said Queta in a recent appearance on teammate Derrick White's podcast "White Noise," which he co-hosts with former college teammate Alex Welsh. "And there's always so much more I can get better at. I don't get it this year, next year, it's available again. That's a good way to see it."
What oddsmakers say about Queta's Most Improved case
While the former Utah State star built a compelling case for receiving this accolade, unfortunately, it doesn't seem like it's heading his way. Inexplicably, the oddsmakers have him outside of the top four candidates for the Most Improved Player of the Year Award.
The favorite to earn this honor is Nickeil Alexander-Walker. The Atlanta Hawks guard is plenty deserving of this distinction. He has made a significant leap, pairing his defensive prowess with sharpshooting at the other end. He has gone from being viewed as more of a one-way player to someone his team is running plays for on offense.
The second-best odds belong to Jalen Duren of the Detroit Pistons. He's another well-deserving potential recipient. His growth on offense, combined with his bruising physicality, has helped elevate the franchise that calls the "Motor City" home to the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Duren helped keep them afloat in Cade Cunningham's absence. He also belongs on an All-NBA Team this season.
After Duren, Deni Avdija, the focal point of the Portland Trail Blazers' offense, and Alexander-Walker's teammate in Atlanta, Jalen Johnson, who also has a case for an All-NBA Second Team selection, round out the quartet with the highest odds of winning the Most Improved Player of the Year Award.
While appreciating the jump Johnson made this season, and the voters who value that most when determining who this award goes to, Queta's evolution could at least earn him the same odds as the Hawks' star wing, in this author's opinion.
While capturing this award became a goal for the Celtics' starting center, as he shared after Boston's 115-101 win over the Toronto Raptors, regardless of whether that comes to fruition, he's going to maintain "the same approach, same mindset. Make it or break it, it's not gonna change me."
That mature perspective will help his cause, as he could circle back after helping the Celtics in their playoff quest to vie for this award again next season.
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