Nikola Jokic has emerged as the clear favorite to win the 23-24 NBA Most Valuable Player award following the publication of ESPN’s latest straw poll.
Jokic received 85 out of 100 first place votes to receive 953 total points ahead of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with 10 first place votes and 626 total points.
Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo rank third and fourth in what has become a very clear top-4. Embiid was the early favorite in ESPN’s first straw poll published in December, but he subsequently missed a significant portion of the season due to a meniscus injury.
Jayson Tatum, Jalen Brunson, Anthony Edwards, Kawhi Leonard, Domantas Sabonis and Jaylen Brown round out the top-10.
Jokic previously won the award in 2021 and 2022, while finishing second behind Joel Embiid in 2023. Embiid was the early favorite in ESPN’s first straw poll conducted in December. Jokic had a more narrow lead over Gilgeous-Alexander in the previous ESPN poll in February.
According to the latest odds, Jokic is a -649 favorite to win the award ahead of Doncic at +500 and Gilgeous-Alexander at +2000.