The 2024 BET Awards celebrate amazing talents from the Black community from various fields. On May 17, 2024, BET released the full list of nominees for its 2024 Awards ceremony. Despite suffering a huge blow in his beef with Kendrick Lamar, Drake heads the nominations list for the BET Awards 2024 with seven nominations. He is followed closely by Nicki Minaj with six nominations. Meanwhile, Beyoncé got four nominations, while Victoria Monét has five nominations.
Like previous years, the BET Awards 2024 will include the Sportswoman of the Year category, which celebrates the most successful woman in sports from the previous year. The BET Sportswoman of the Year 2024 nominees are A'Ja Wilson, Angel Reese, Coco Gauff, Flau'Jae Johnson and Juju Watkins. Other nominees for the prestigious award include Naomi Osaka, Sha'Carri Richardson, and Simone Biles. Follow as we x-ray each of the nominees for the BET Awards 2024 Sportswoman of the Year and discover their achievements in 2023.
A'Ja Wilson
WNBA and Los Angeles Aces star A'Ja Wilson enjoyed a stellar 2023 filled with personal and team glories. She played a pivotal role in the Aces' run to the 2023 WNBA Championships. Victory over New York Liberty in the WNBA Finals meant the Aces won their second consecutive title after their 2022 triumph. Hence, they became the first WNBA team to win back-to-back Championship titles since the Los Angeles Sparks did the same in 2001 and 2002. A'Ja propelled her team to victory with her inspiring performances. She posted averages of 23.8 points and 11.8 rebounds per game in the finals. Thus, she unsurprisingly won the Finals MVP, the first in her career.
Besides winning the WNBA Championships back-to-back, A'Ja was named the Defensive Player of the Year in 2023. That accolade meant she won the Defensive Player of the Year award for the second time in a row after her 2022 win. A' Ja is not only brilliant on the court but off of it, too. She is known for being an advocate for mental health awareness and racial equality. Through her platform, she promotes positive change and supports several charitable causes.
Angel Reese
Angel Reese's stock in female basketball continues to rise. Her BET Awards 2024 nomination for Sportswoman of the Year is a testament to her significant impact in basketball within a short time. After spending her first two college seasons with the Maryland Terrapins, Angel joined the LSU Tigers in 2022. She went on to enjoy incredible success with the Tigers, helping them win their first national title at the end of the 2022-2023 season.
Since then, Angel has added more accolades to her name. She was named the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player at the end of the 2022-2023 season. Reese is also a two-time All-American Player and grabbed the Southern Conference (SEC) Player of the Year Title at the end of the 2023-2024 season.'Angel has added more accolades to her name. She was named the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player at the end of the 2022-2023 season. Moreover, she is a two-time All-American Player and grabbed the Southern Conference (SEC) Player of the Year Title at the end of the 2023-2024 season.
In addition to these, Angel was named to the first-team All-SEC and SEC All-Defensive Team in her two seasons at LSU. On April 15, 2024, Angel got drafted into the WNBA. She was the 7th overall pick in the first round of the 2024 WNBA Draft. The Chicago Sky drafted Angel, who has enjoyed a good start to her WNBA career. On May 17, Angel added another feather to her cap after LSU announced her graduation. Besides basketball, Angel enjoys engaging in community development and youth empowerment projects. Angel will hope to win the BET Sportswoman of the Year award for the second time in a row after winning it last year.
Coco Gauff
Coco Gauff became a tennis sensation after her WTA Tour debut in 2019. The Atlanta-born athlete first made the world take notice of her incredulous talent after defeating Venus Williams at Wimbledon 2019. Since then, Coco has only gone on to achieve greater things. Her first WTA Tour singles title win came in 2019 at the Linz Open. She reached her first major final in women's double two years later at the 2021 US Open. In 2022, Coco reached the French Open final but lost to Iga Świątek.
However, Coco wasn't to be denied in 2023. Last year, she claimed her first WTA 1000 title at the Cincinnati Masters before going on to win her first Grand Slam title by defeating Aryna Sabalenka at the US Open finals. Away from the tennis courts, Coco uses her influence to inspire young athletes to be agents of change in their communities. This is Coco's second nomination for the BET Sportswoman of the Year Award, and she hopes to be second-time lucky this time around.
Flau'jae Johnson
LSU Tigers player Flau'jae Johnson rose from difficult circumstances to become a rising sportswoman and rapper. About six months before Flau'jae's birth, her dad, a rapper named Camouflage, was shot and killed in May 2003. Flau'jae grew up loving and playing sports. She played baseball at a young age before going on to play basketball for Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Georgia. Flau'jae was exceptional in her time at Sprayberry High School and carried on with that momentum at LSU, where she became the Tigers' starting shooting guard in her freshman year. She helped the Tigers win the national championship in her freshman year and was named the 2022-2023 SEC Freshman of the Year. She also made the SEC All-Freshman Team for 2023 and Second-team All-SEC in 2024.
Inspired by her late dad, Flau'jae became a rapper to continue his legacy. She is signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation and has appeared on The Rap Game and America's Got Talent. Combining being a college student with being a top-rated NCAA star and rapper is no mean feat, but Flau'jae is doing it with class. Hence, she is a role model for aspiring athletes and artists and proves that hard work always gets you far.
Juju Watkins
Juju Watkins is an amazing talent and already has a truckload of awards and honors to prove this. After dazzling and earning rave reviews at Sierra Canyon School in Los Angeles, Juju committed to the University of Southern California in November 2022. She continued with her incredible performances for the USC Trojans, breaking records and winning awards along the way. Some of Juju's recognitions include the ESPN National Freshman of the Year Award 2023, the Gatorade National Player of the Year 2023, and the All-Pac-12 Team for 2024.
Juju is known for her exceptional scoring prowess. She set the record for points in a freshman debut, breaking Lisa Leslie's record set in 1990. She also broke the USC single-game scoring record previously held by Cherie Nelson and set in 1989. Juju also helped the US win the FIBA U-17 World Cup in 2022 and was named the tournament's MVP. Besides her ability to make baskets, Juju is athletic and has a high basketball IQ. She is definitely a promising talent bound to make more history in the coming years.
Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka earned her sixth BET Sportswoman of the Year nomination. The two-time winner of the prestigious award will be hoping to win it for the third time after her 2021 and 2022 successes. Naomi needs no introduction. The 26-year-old has won four Grand Slam titles and is well on her way to becoming a sports icon. However, Naomi played little tennis in 2023. In January 2023, she announced she was expecting a baby with her boyfriend and rapper Cordae. The tennis star withdrew from the 2023 Australian Open and announced she won't compete for the rest of the year. In July 2023, Naomi welcomed her daughter, Shai. She returned to professional tennis in January 2024 at Brisbane. Naomi competed at the 2024 Australian Open but lost in the first round.
Naomi is known for her activism, for which he has received multiple accolades. In 2020, she withdrew from the Cincinnati Open to raise awareness for the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Before then, she joined protesters in calling for justice after George Floyd's murder. After giving birth, Naomi also called for the United States to introduce paid parental leave. Besides her activism, Naomi has also dealt with mental health issues. She has dealt with depression since 2018 and withdrew from the French Open and Wimbledon in 2021 to deal with her mental health and well-being. Naomi also promotes charitable causes and urges athletes to take their self-care more seriously.
Sha'Carri Richardson
This is Sha'Carri Richardson's third consecutive nomination for the BET Sportswoman of the Year. After a remarkable 2023, the athlete will be hoping she is third-time lucky. The world's fastest woman is arguably the current face of women's track and field. Sha'Carri endured a difficult 2021 and missed out on the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for THC metabolites, which indicated recent cannabis use. She was suspended for a month after the test results and completed a counseling program. After a not-so-good 2022, Sha'Carri came back firing in 2023. She won the Diamond League 100m race in Doha, setting a new meeting record of 10.76s.
Sha'Carri qualified for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, with a time of 10.82s at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She enjoyed a successful stay in Budapest, winning her first major individual title by beating every other competitor to the 100m gold medal, posting a time of 10.65s. Sha'Carri also won the 200m bronze medal at the championships before helping Team USA win gold at the 4 x 100m relay. Team USA, comprising Sha'Carri, Tamari Davis, Gabrielle Thomas, and Twanisha Terry, set a championship record, posting a time of 41.03s. Known for her long nails and colorful hair, Sha'Carri identifies as bisexual and supports the LGBTQ+ community. Her positivity, incredible speed, and vibrant personality have endeared her to millions of fans worldwide.
Simone Biles
Simone Biles won the BET Sportswoman of the Year award in 2020 and has been nominated multiple times. Her nomination for the BET Awards 2024 comes after an impressive 2023. Simone endured a difficult 2021 after leaving the Tokyo Olympic Games due to mental health struggles. Her decision to quit the games sparked much discussion, with some commentators criticizing her while multiple gymnasts praised her. Biles bounced back in 2023 and competed at the US Classic, where she qualified for the US National Championships. Simone won her eighth national all-around title, breaking Al Jochim's previous record of seven national title wins. She also became the oldest woman to win the title.
Simone continued her stellar performance at the World Championships, where she helped the US team win a seventh consecutive gold medal. She also won her sixth all-around gold medal, surpassing Vitaly Scherbo as the most successful gymnast of all time at the World and Olympic championships. Simone won six gold medals at the World Championships, becoming the first gymnast in World Championships history to win many titles on one apparatus. 2023 was also a successful year in Simone's personal life as she tied the knot with her long-term boyfriend and NFL star Jonathan Owens on April 22, 2023.