Every year, each of the WNBA teams nominates one of its players to compete for this award. From these nominees, a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters vote for first and second place winners of this award. First place selections receive two votes, while second place selections receive one. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, wins the award.
Since the 2000 WNBA season, the award is named for the late Kim Perrot, who helped guide the Houston Comets to their first two WNBA championships before she died in August, 1999, after suffering from cancer for seven months.