Straw poll of NBA writers shows almost even split between Doncic and Jokic
The regular season is halfway over and the race for NBA MVP could not be closer. At least according to writers in an NBA.com poll.
Host Gill Alexander and producer Kelley Bydlon compared the poll results with the current odds in the market on Wednesday’s edition of A Numbers Game.
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NBA MVP odds
According to DraftKings, here are the current odds for NBA MVP:
- Luka Doncic +275
- Nikola Jokic +300
- Jayson Tatum +400
- Giannis Antetokounmpo +400
- Kevin Durant +1200
- Joel Embiid +1600
- All others +2500 or higher
Doncic and Jokic are extremely close in the minds of voters, but what about the stats? Doncic leads the NBA with 34.2 points per game and ranks 20th in rebounds per game with 8.9 and fourth in assists per game with 8.7. Jokic, meanwhile, is nearly averaging a triple-double with 25 points (17th), 10.8 rebounds (6th) and 9.7 assists (3rd) per game.
Jokic is the reigning two-time winner, so there is a question as to whether or not the voters may sour on him a bit having already won two. Doncic has yet to win his first NBA MVP award.
Tatum and Antetokounmpo are both viable candidates at 4/1, but the party at the top lost out on one player when Durant went down with a sprained MCL a few days ago.
Jonathan Von Tobel’s latest edition of Hardwood Handicappers also tackled Durant’s injury, what it means for the Nets and what it means for NBA MVP:
NBA Awards races
On that clip, Gill and Kelley also looked at the NBA Rookie of the Year odds, NBA Defensive Player of the Year odds, NBA Sixth Man of the Year odds, Most Improved Player odds and NBA Coach of the Year odds to compare the voters of the straw poll with what the market has to say.
