Moussa Diabaté Claims 2025-26 Kia NBA Hustle Award After Fueling Hornets’ Turnaround

The NBA has officially recognized the “dirty work” that often goes unnoticed in a box score. On Thursday, the league announced that Charlotte Hornets forward Moussa Diabaté is the winner of the 2025-26 Kia NBA Hustle Award.

While the league’s most prestigious trophies are typically decided by a panel of media members, the Kia NBA Hustle Award operates differently. This proves a purely statistical honor, designed to reward the players who impact winning through effort plays—the screens, the box outs, and the loose ball recoveries that provide the foundation for a team’s success but rarely make the highlight reel.

The Math Behind the Hustle

The NBA has tracked hustle statistics since the 2016 Playoffs, utilizing a specific formula to standardize performance across players who may notice varying amounts of playing time. To be eligible for the award, players must meet a minimum threshold: appearing in at least 58 games (70% of the 82-game schedule) and averaging at least 24 minutes per game.

For the 2025-26 season, Diabaté emerged as the gold standard for this brand of basketball. Measured on a per-minute basis among 124 eligible players, Diabaté’s dominance in the trenches was absolute. He ranked 1st in the NBA in offensive box outs (0.0537 per minute), ensuring his teammates had the best possible positioning to secure second-chance opportunities.

His contribution extended beyond rebounding. Diabaté ranked 4th in screen assists (0.1122), a metric that highlights his ability to create open looks for shooters through physical, effective screening. He likewise finished the season ranked 8th in offensive loose balls recovered (0.0147), 10th in contested two-point shots (0.2001), and tied for 11th in both defensive box outs (0.0405) and contested three-point shots (0.0958).

“hustle” is a broad spectrum. While Diabaté dominated the physical battle for position and space, he was less active in other categories, ranking 95th in deflections and tied for 75th in charges drawn. However, the formula favors the consistent, high-impact effort plays where Diabaté excelled.

A Catalyst for Change in Charlotte

The individual accolade serves as a fitting capstone to a season that saw the Charlotte Hornets undergo a dramatic transformation. For the first few months of the campaign, the Hornets struggled to find an identity and a winning rhythm. Through Dec. 22, the team sat at a dismal 9-20 record, ranking 24th in the league in win percentage.

The trajectory of the season shifted violently on Dec. 23—the exact day Moussa Diabaté was inserted into the lineup as a full-time starter. From that date through the end of the season, the Hornets played like a completely different team, posting a 35-18 record. That stretch represented the sixth-best winning percentage in the NBA during that specific window.

The correlation between Diabaté’s increased role and the team’s success is difficult to ignore. By providing elite screening and relentless boxing out, Diabaté stabilized the Hornets’ interior presence and allowed the team’s offensive flow to improve. In the NBA, “hustle” is often a proxy for chemistry and sacrifice; when a player commits to the unglamorous tasks, it elevates the performance of every other player on the floor.

Understanding the ‘Invisible’ Game

For the casual observer, a box score typically emphasizes points, rebounds, and assists. However, the Kia NBA Hustle Award shines a light on the tactical advantages that these traditional stats miss. A screen assist, for example, is a direct contribution to a score that doesn’t count as a traditional assist but is just as vital to the play’s success. Similarly, a box out doesn’t show up as a rebound, but it is the action that *allows* a teammate to get the rebound.

By rewarding these specific actions, the NBA acknowledges that winning is a cumulative result of many small, high-effort plays. Diabaté’s ability to maintain this level of intensity over 58+ games demonstrates a professional discipline that has clearly resonated with the Hornets’ coaching staff and teammates.

As the league moves forward, the reliance on these advanced hustle metrics continues to grow. Teams are increasingly valuing “connector” players—those who may not lead the league in scoring but whose presence on the floor correlates with a higher team win percentage. Diabaté has evolved into the prototypical connector for Charlotte.

With the 2025-26 season now concluded, the Hornets have a clear blueprint for their interior play. The stability Diabaté provided from Dec. 23 onward has not only earned him a trophy but has fundamentally changed the expectations for the franchise heading into the next campaign.

Detailed hustle statistics for all eligible players can be tracked and viewed on an individual and team level at NBA.com/Stats.

The NBA will continue to announce its end-of-season awards throughout the coming days. Stay tuned for further updates on the 2025-26 honors.

Do you think the Hustle Award is the most underrated trophy in the NBA? Let us recognize your thoughts in the comments below.