Newest MVP Ladder (12/30/22): https://www.nba.com/news/kia-mvp-ladder-dec-30-2022-edition
1. Jokic
2. Tatum
3. Luka
4. KD
5. Giannis
6. Embiid
7. Zion
8. Ja
9. Jaylen Brown
10. Donovan Mitchell
Next 5 (alphabetical order): Devin Booker, Stephen Curry,Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Julius Randle, Domantas Sabonis
by BlueJays007
32 Comments
Tatum at 2 and Brown at 9 is interesting…..
It’s strange cause Vegas has it as Tatum>Luka>Jokic.
Jokic is really gonna 3-peat isnt he
It baffles me. MVP is an award for valuable player,someone who drags his team and is key factor for success. So said,how can be there 2 players from same team? It just means that those are good pair,not one extra player (2 celtics)
The 4 players under Tatum are all individually better than him and are having better seasons imo
The league’s leading scorer is anchoring the 2nd best DRTG in the league at the same time. I know he’s missed like 10/35 games but Embiid is unlucky to only be 6th.
With the way KD is playing and the nets huge turn around im surprised he isnt #1
Joker is inevitable
Embiid gonna have to average 40 and anchor the best defense of all time to get into the top 3 I guess.
What else does KD have to do exactly to get top 3 in these polls? He’s been elite on both ends of the court, hes been historically efficient, he’s been extremely consistent and available and he’s won 10 games in a row….
If Jokic wins it on changing criteria for the 3rd time I will kek
It’s crazy to me someone like Embiid can’t even crack the top 5 but I guess he has missed a decent amount of games compared to the top guys
Kd should be top 3 and Embiid should be top 5
Tatum has definitely made a leap but you can’t tell me that he’s not clearly a step below the others in the top 6.
How is Giannis still in the top 5?
Even though Zion being 7th doesn’t really mean too much in the grand scheme of things. It still makes me happy just seeing him on this list.
I think Luka can win MVP this year, but the team needs to finish in the top 4 in the West.
Tatum ahead of luka is laughable
It should be Jokic, Luka, Embiid, KD, Tatum, Zion, Giannis, Ja, Spida
Jaylen doesn’t deserve a spot here
I know OKC’s record isn’t all that great, but I feel like SGA is being slept on for how much of an impact he makes. Should be in that 8-10 range IMO.
I cannot understand Tatum at 2, what does he do to be over KD who has been better on both ends of the floor and is leading a massive team turn around?
I’d of course make a similar argument for Embiid, but I acknowledge my bias
If we use the exact same criteria as last year – player putting up stats and dragging a middling team to a 6 seed – it’s Doncic by a mile.
Something tells me the goalposts will move, though.
People foaming at the mouth for seeing KD at #4. Put KD on the Mavericks instead of Luka and let’s see the results. Must be nice to have Kyrie Irving as your secondary scorer on the team and win lots of games.
It seems dumb because Giannis’ stats have been insane but our recent run and his form has just felt worse than it has in the RS in years. I don’t know if it’s body language, shot count, or what but he looks absolutely dejected. That being said I am pretty shocked he’s over Embiid.
KD and Embiid literally gotta rescue a litter of kittens from a burning building to get some love. Embiid should be over Giannis this season, KD should be right up with Tatum
I’m sorry but I’m not buying Tatum’s case at all. Half the games they play JB either out plays or matches his production both on offense and defense, against the good teams it’s a straight up a wash in production with JB out dueling him at times. I don’t think it’s at all comparable to Curry and Draymond or LeBron and Wade. The latter two *were never* anywhere nearly as productive offensively as their main superstar. It’s so much closer to a 1A/1B situation ala KD/Curry(ie: similar amount of points and assists on similar efficiency). I think if Tatum drops below 30 for the season and it’s 27 vs 29, he’ll fall numerous spots below instantly
Jokic for the back to back to back MVP.
I want Jokic to win just to spite Nick Wright
Almost every single comment is hating on Tatum saying hes not on the same level as the guys around him, but Tatum has matched up with Jokic, Luka, KD, Embiid and Giannis. In those games Tatum clearly outplayed Jokic, Embiid and Giannis and while individually it was close he arguably outplayed or at least played on par with KD and Luka. In every single matchup however, he won the game. People will say “winning is a team achievement” which is partially true but thats the entire point of basketball and plays a big role in MVP voting. If in a win Tatum was just completely bested individually it would be different but Tatum was the driving player behind those wins. 30 points in a win >> 40 points in a loss.
Also lets not pretend that playoffs are just completely meaningless when it comes to the MVP, no voter wants to give the MVP to a player who they worry will disappoint in the playoffs. That was a huge reason Harden was getting snubbed despite historic regular season play. It makes the voters look stupid so they try to avoid it when they can. Giannis is only top 5 because he’s a proven animal in the playoffs and known best player in the world, his regular season has easily been worse than Embiid. But guess what Embiid chokes in the playoffs and Giannis doesn’t. Tatum has been to ECFs almost every year of his career and just came off a finals run. Hes the most playoff proven outside of Giannis and hes coming off a year where he beat Giannis in the playoffs (also slaughtered KD which I believe is still weighing heavily in voters minds, imagine the embarrassment of giving KD MVP over Tatum and having something similar happen again, voters are terrified of that). His ranking is more than deserved so stop crying lol
Tatum
For at least a week we can sleep soundly not seeing posts about Jokic being disrespected and robbed two months into the season.
Been watching the nba since 05, I don’t think I can think of a MVP race like this. So many guys playing otherworldly basketball, could be one of the hardest MVP decisions ever especially if some of these players end up having similar records