IT’S now reasonable to think that Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo finished third in this season’s balloting for the NBA MVP award.
The NBA released the three finalists for its major trophies on Sunday night (Monday, April 21, 2025, PH time), with Antetokounmpo on the MVP list alongside Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Denver’s Nikola Jokic, the runaway frontrunners for the award.
Jokic was last season’s MVP and is bidding for his fourth MVP award in the last five years. Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA’s scoring champion this season and the leader of a Thunder team that won 68 games while setting a league record for scoring margin, is seeking his first MVP trophy.
They were considered such big favorites that BetMGM Sportsbook didn’t even offer realistic odds toward the end of the regular season on anyone else winning. Gilgeous-Alexander was the favorite, Jokic was the second choice and nobody else had odds shorter than 500-1.
Given that All-NBA voting now essentially mirrors MVP voting, being an MVP finalist basically guarantees an All-NBA first-team nod. It’ll be the ninth appearance on that team for Antetokounmpo, the seventh for Jokic and the third for Gilgeous-Alexander.
Last year’s MVP finalists were Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, and Luka Doncic — then of Dallas, now of the Los
Angeles Lakers.
A panel of writers and broadcasters who cover the NBA voted on the awards last week. The NBA will announce the winners of the various awards, along with the All-NBA and All-rookie teams, over the coming weeks.
Other awards finalists are: Coach of the year - Kenny Atkinson (Cavaliers), J.B. Bickerstaff (Pistons), Ime Udoka (Rockets); Rookie of the year - Stephon Castle (Spurs), Zaccharie Risacher (Hawks), Jaylen Wells (Grizzlies); Sixth man of the year - Malik Beasley (Pistons), Ty Jerome (Cavaliers), Payton Pritchard (Celtics); Most Improved Player - Cade Cunningham (Pistons), Dyson Daniels (Hawks), Ivica Zubac (Clippers); Defensive player of the year - Dyson Daniels, Draymond Green (Warriors), Evan Mobley (Cavaliers); Clutch player of the year - Jalen Brunson (Knicks), Anthony Edwards (Wolves), Nikola Jokic. / AP