Overview
- ESPN’s final MVP straw poll released Friday put Gilgeous-Alexander first with 88 of 100 first-place votes and 958 points, ahead of Victor Wembanyama’s eight first-place votes and 644 points.
- Following Saturday’s Nuggets–Spurs overtime duel in Denver, Nikola Jokic’s 40 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds against Wembanyama’s 34 points, 18 rebounds, seven assists and five blocks kept his case in the mix.
- Betting markets now price Gilgeous-Alexander as a heavy favorite, as Newsweek noted, with injuries and the NBA’s 65-game rule removing Luka Dončić and Cade Cunningham from contention.
- NBA.com’s latest MVP ladder elevated Wembanyama on the strength of his two-way surge, highlighting a split between league ladder sentiment and both sportsbooks and media polling.
- In a parallel vote for Rookie of the Year, ESPN’s straw poll favored Kon Knueppel 80–20 over Cooper Flagg, with voters citing Knueppel’s league-leading 3-pointers and better than 43% accuracy from deep.