Will it be Nikola Jokic or Joel Embiid? What about Giannis Antetokounmpo? These questions have dominated the NBA's MVP conversation in recent years and will once again be focal points entering the 2023-24 season, a year that will be filled with high-level basketball.
There is a ton of talent spread across the league right now, so much so that you can point to each of the 30 teams and make an argument for a player to be an All-Star. The NBA is in a great spot, yet this is a league that is still dominated by their top talents.
It's fun to break down the NBA Top 100 rankings and discuss who the best players are, but at the end of the day, only one of them will be crowned the league's Most Valuable Player.
Throughout the course of the NBA preseason, ClutchPoints conducted a poll featuring media members from around the country, some of whom are official voters the league uses to determine the winner of their end-of-season awards. Some cover the league at-large, while others cover individual teams. Nonetheless, each media member was asked a variety of questions pertaining to the playoffs, NBA Finals, and individual player awards and accolades.
ClutchPoints' Full NBA Preseason Media Poll
Most Valuable Player | Rookie of the Year | Most Improved Player| Coach of the Year
Sixth Man of the Year | Defensive Player of the Year | NBA Finals/Playoffs/season predictions
Most likely to be a first-time All-Star
The media believes there is a clear favorite for this upcoming season's MVP, and he is a player many tend to be familiar with, especially since this wouldn't be his first time being named MVP.
Below are the results from the voting that took place for 2023-24 NBA Most Valuable Player.
ClutchPoints' 2023-24 NBA Most Valuable Player Media Poll results
- Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) – 52%
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) – 16%
- Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks) – 12%
- Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics) – 8%
Also receiving votes: LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors), Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns)
Nikola Jokic's path to another MVP award
It should not come as a surprise to see Nikola Jokic as the media's pick to win the 2023-24 NBA MVP award, especially after Joel Embiid received the honor last season. While the official vote should have been a lot closer for 2022-23 MVP honors, Embiid ended up receiving 73 first-place votes compared to Jokic's 15 votes.
What the Denver Nuggets center did last season was incredible, especially since he almost averaged a triple-double for the second consecutive season. Gunning for personal achievements and accolades is not Jokic's thing, though, as his focus was on the bigger picture. The Nuggets and Jokic knew they could capture their first championship, and this goal was achieved when Denver defeated the Miami Heat in five games. The Serbian big man was named the Finals MVP.
As he prepares for his ninth NBA season, Jokic is clearly the frontrunner for the regular-season MVP award yet again, especially since he is what makes the Nuggets the defending champions. From having the ability to score from anywhere on the floor to being the best passer in the league to being able to record a double-double or triple-double every single game, Jokic is the most complete player in the NBA right now.
He can control the game is so many different aspects, which is why he's so dangerous despite not being super athletic. Jokic's demeanors and leadership brings out the best in everyone around him, which is another reason why he is so valuable to Denver's success.
“The Most Valuable Player award should go to someone who exemplifies winning and is irreplaceable,” one of the media voters from the Eastern Conference who participated in this preseason poll told ClutchPoints. “We have so many of those players in the league, which makes the preseason MVP decision a tough one. However, between his numbers, success, and ability to make those around him better, it's hard to come up with an argument against Nikola. Joel Embiid and others are great players, but looking back on it, Jokic probably was the MVP last season.”
Jokic enters the 2023-24 NBA season as the clear-cut favorite for the Most Valuable Player award. Should he be able to claim this honor when all is said and done, he would become just the sixth player in NBA history to win three regular-season MVP awards in a four-year span, joining the likes of Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and LeBron James.
No love for Joel Embiid?
Joel Embiid had an incredible 2022-23 season with the Philadelphia 76ers, as he became the first center to lead the league in scoring in back-to-back seasons since Wilt Chamberlain did so from 1959-66. We just won't ever be able to comprehend how good Wilt actually was, as some of his accolades and records will never be broken.
The Sixers were a talented team last year, but Embiid was truly the reason why they finished with 54 wins, their most since the 2000-01 season when they advanced to the NBA Finals under Allen Iverson, who won the MVP award that year.
Compared to Nikola Jokic, who did not really seem to care about not winning the MVP award, Embiid truly wanted to earn this honor and did everything he could late in the season to make that dream his reality. Overall, as good as a scorer as he is, Embiid's defensive effort goes severely unnoticed by the national media. He truly is an All-Defensive-caliber center in this league, which is why the Sixers big man will once again be a MVP candidate during the 2023-24 season.
It was quite shocking to see him not receive even a single vote in this preseason media poll. As the league's reigning MVP, one would assume Embiid has a good shot at leading the pack early on when the season begins. Memories appear to be short, as Embiid once again finds himself having to play in Jokic's shadow.
Who else will be in the MVP race?
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, and Jayson Tatum were the three players to come after Nikola Jokic in the preseason media vote.
With the Milwaukee Bucks finishing with the best record in the league last season, everyone anticipated Giannis leading them through the Eastern Conference and back to the NBA Finals with a chance to win their second title in three years. They ultimately fell in the first round to Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat, which is why many are expecting new life and energy from Antetokounmpo and the Bucks this upcoming season.
Giannis' MVP odds also increase due to the fact that Damian Lillard is standing next to him as well, because there is a very good chance Milwaukee finishes with the best record in the NBA and Dame's presence makes Antetokounmpo even more dominant.
For Doncic and Tatum, their paths to a potential MVP award are much different. Doncic is a lot like Jokic in the sense that he does everything for his team. Without Luka on the floor last season, the Dallas Mavericks looked lost and ultimately missed the playoffs even after trading for Kyrie Irving. Having a full season to play alongside Irving, we should expect Doncic to have his best season in the league.
In the East, Tatum is once again the focal point for the Boston Celtics, a team that added the likes of Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday in the offseason. The best player on the best team in the league oftentimes gets consideration for the MVP award, which is why Tatum is likely to finish inside of the top 5 of the vote at the end of the year.
LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Devin Booker each received consideration in the preseason poll as well. While each of the three are long shots to ultimately come away with the award, it is not far-fetched to believe they will be in the running if healthy. We all know what LeBron can do, even at an older age, and Curry was actually a favorite for the award last season before suffering some injury setbacks.
Much like Tatum and the Celtics, Booker and the Phoenix Suns added a ton of talent this offseason in hopes of contending for a title. If they end up with the best record in the Western Conference or the league and Booker is able to remain healthy, he will suddenly look like a real candidate for this award.
While the race for the 2023-24 NBA Most Valuable Player award features familiar faces, we should once again expect a back-and-forth competition that comes down to the final few weeks of the regular season.
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