On Wednesday, the Naismith Awards for the college basketball season were announced and some familiar names took home the top prizes.
Iowa Hawkeyes superstar Caitlin Clark was unsurprisingly named the Women’s Player of the Year for the second year running, while Cameron Brink, Stephen Curry’s god-sister took home the Defensive Player of the Year award.
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While Cameron Brink couldn’t take the Stanford Cardinals past the Sweet 16 in the NCAA’s March Madness tournament, she still had a brilliant year for the college. As per ESPN, she averaged 17.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and 3.7 blocks, in 25.4 minutes per game. Especially given just how good she was on the defensive end of the floor, she had solidified herself very early on, as something close to the consensus pick for the DPOY award amongst fans of college basketball.
Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry, Brink’s godbrother, was ecstatic to see his godsister take home the award. Reacting positively to it, the NBA superstar shared the Stanford superstar’s post on his Instagram stories to showcase his excitement for her win.
Stephen Curry showing love to Cameron Brink on her achievement
pic.twitter.com/RqxEwoKRrg— What are NBA Celebs Upto? (@NBACelebsUpdate) April 4, 2024
Brink’s godmother and Curry’s mother, Sonya Curry, was also proud of her goddaughter’s achievement. She also shared Brink’s post on her Instagram stories and applauded her achievement.
Sonya Curry showing love to Cam Brink pic.twitter.com/LPi3eVVqPF
— What are NBA Celebs Upto? (@NBACelebsUpdate) April 4, 2024
Brink’s godsister Sydel Curry, and her godbrother Seth Curry’s wife Callie Curry also shared Brink’s post on their Instagram stories to showcase their pride in her win.
Sydel and Callie Curry celebrating Cam's award win pic.twitter.com/4QLEOZheCr
— What are NBA Celebs Upto? (@NBACelebsUpdate) April 4, 2024
Brink’s win was well-deserved. She led the country with 3.6 blocks per game and ranked third in rebounds with 11.9. She had already won the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year thrice and finally added the Naismith Award to her collection.
She’s the first women’s college basketball player to score 500 points, grab 300 rebounds, and block 100 shots in back-to-back seasons further illustrating why she was nominated for the Player of the Year award and took home the Defensive Player of the Year trophy.
Cameron Brink excited about the future
Cameron Brink’s Defensive Player of the Year was timely as this was her final season in college basketball.
She spoke about her time with Stanford in an interview with the Naismith’s Instagram page, saying,
“I’ve been so blessed. Obviously our National Championship in my Freshman year during COVID was honestly one of my biggest accomplishments.
Best day of my life. But I think back to all our Pac-12 championships, regular season and [NCAA] tournament, and just the amazing relationships with my teammates, my coaches. So I’m just very thankful looking back at it all.”
Brink finished her collegiate career with two Pac-12 championships, one National Championship, two Pac-12 Player of the Year awards, three Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year nods, and one Naismith Defensive Player of the Year honor.
She leaves Stanford as one of the most decorated players in the program’s history.
Brink has already declared for the 2024 WNBA draft and is expected to be among the top picks alongside Caitlin Clark, and LSU Tigers superstar Angel Reese.
The Stanford superstar is among the top names in a stacked draft class and teams will line up to land the defensive juggernaut.