Nuggets center Nikola Jokic is the best NBA player right now but he’s not going to win another Most Valuable Player award next season.
That’s the majority opinion of the 18 NBA coaches, scouts and executives that ESPN’s Tim Bontemps polled. All but three of them believe Jokic is the league’s top player.
However, when the subject of next season’s MVP came up, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander received seven votes. A handful chose Mavericks guard Luka Doncic with Jokic only receiving two votes.
The Thunder and Celtics are the solid favorites to emerge from their respective conferences and square off in the Finals. Boston received 13 votes to win the East, while Oklahoma City picked up 14 votes to emerge from the West. The Celtics received eight votes to repeat as champions, while the Thunder were chosen by seven members of the group.
There was no love for the top pick in the draft, Zaccharie Risacher.The Hawks big man didn’t receive a single vote for Rookie of the Year. The same goes for the topic of best player from the 2024/25 rookie class in five years. Grizzlies center Zach Edey garnered a panel-best eight votes for ROY, while Rockets guard Reed Sheppard was chosen by eight of them to be the best of the bunch in five years.
Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama got two-thirds of the vote for top overall player in five years.
They won’t keep giving the MVP to a big.
Think SGA or Luka get it this year whoever leads team to a top 3 seed.
Unless Embiid still dominates and gets a #1-2 seed. The East is weaker overall so think he has to lead them that way and play more than the 62 required games.
A big has won the MVP for 6 years in a row, whatever conspiracy theory you have in your head that “they dont want to give it to bigs” or that “they hate bigs” should have left your head a long time ago…
Why so serious? :)
Feel free to leave us the name of your book and dates of your speaking tour. Arigato gozaimasu
If Troell lasts a full year and leads in scoring again w double digit boards and first team defense he should get MVP.
However, Jokers advanced metrics will be better, even if he scores 10 points per game less.
That’s because he produces more points thanks to his assist levels. Points generated will always weigh in Joker’s favor. Embiid has improved as a passer, but he’ll never be on Joker’s level in that regard.
MVP should always go to the best player who won the title. You arent more valuable being on a team doesnt win than an equally elite player who does. It’s not a 1-on-1 game and whoever gets the most stats is more valuable, that’s apparently how these idiot voters treat it.
Umm, they have a category for that, it is called Finals MVP. The MVP is for the best player during the regular season.
This league’s MVP voters are a disgrace who do not know ball.
Steph Curry should have 5 MVPs and 4 FMVPs right now. Harden and Westbrook were not the most valuable players in the league in any year, let alone ever more valuable than Steph, who won titles, and neither was Embiid was for that matter (Joker should have won that year).
Now Durant didn’t deserve those 2 finals MVPs hahahahaha lol. Yeah OK. Throw in a few all first defensive teams for Steph too. Hell, why not defensive player of the year even? Did Steph get robbed of a rebounding title one year too lol.