With the 2021-2022 NBA season being completed, it is time for NBA bettors to look ahead to the 2022-2023 campaign. Along with the futures odds to win the NBA championship, bettors can also take advantage of early NBA MVP odds. Two-time defending MVP Nikola Jokic is among the favorites to win the award again this year, but he will face several strong candidates looking to earn the award for themselves.
2022-2023 NBA MVP Odds
| Player |  |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doncic | +450 | +400 | +475 | +425 | +450 |
| Embiid | +600 | +600 | +575 | +650 | +700 |
| Antetokounmpo | +650 | +650 | +650 | +600 | +700 |
| Durant | +900 | +850 | +900 | +800 | +1000 |
| Jokic | +850 | +900 | +850 | +900 | +1000 |
| Tatum | +1200 | +1200 | +1100 | +1200 | +1300 |
| Morant | +1500 | +1400 | +1500 | +1500 | +1300 |
| Curry | +1600 | +1400 | +1600 | +1200 | +1500 |
| Booker | +3000 | +2500 | +3000 | +3000 | +4200 |
| Leonard | +3000 | +2500 | +3000 | +3000 | +2700 |
| James | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 | +1800 | +2700 |
| Young | +4000 | +3000 | +4000 | +3500 | +4200 |
| Williamson | +5000 | +3000 | +3000 | +3500 | +3000 |
| Davis | +6000 | +5000 | +6000 | +6000 | +4600 |
| Edwards | +7500 | +5000 | +7500 | +6000 | +6000 |
| Butler | +7500 | +5000 | +7500 | +5000 | +6000 |
| Towns | +6000 | +5000 | +6000 | +5000 | +6000 |
| George | +10000 | +5000 | +10000 | +8000 | +6500 |
| Lillard | +6500 | +6600 | +6000 | +4000 | +6500 |
| Mitchell | +10000 | +6600 | +8000 | +8000 | +6500 |
NBA MVP Award Favorites
There is a pack of five or so players who top the list of NBA MVP odds. These five players are all at better than +1000 to win the award, with several players in this group already having won the award in their careers. While there is no guarantee the MVP will come from this group, it is going to be hard for another player to get around all five of these elite players.
Joel Embiid and Luka Doncic are the co-favorites to win the award in the early portion of the offseason. Embiid very well could have won it last year, as he finished second to Nikola Jokic. Doncic, meanwhile, just led the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals and his NBA MVP odds reflect the level of buzz around his team going into this year.
Joining Embiid and Doncic are the aforementioned Jokic, along with Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Jokic has won two straight MVPs, but voter fatigue could cost him this year. Durant is the best scorer in the league, but his candidacy depends on how many games he misses. And Antetokounmpo is always a threat to win this award depending on what kind of year the Bucks have.
NBA MVP Award Dark Horses
Outside of the clear top five in the list of NBA MVP odds, there are several players who have a shot to win from longer odds. Young stars like Ja Morant, Devin Booker, and Jayson Tatum proved their value during the most recent postseason. And veteran talent such as LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard cannot be counted out going into the 2022-2023 season.
There are two questions worth asking when going with a candidate at over +1000 to win MVP. The first is whether their team will win enough games to improve their NBA MVP odds over the course of the season. The second is whether their statistical output will be good enough to help them vault over the favorites mentioned above.
NBA MVP Award Longshots
There are some interesting longshot bets out there for the NBA MVP award, specifically on the perimeter. Trae Young, Jimmy Butler, and Anthony Edwards are all at least +4000 to win the MVP. They have all proven that they can take games over throughout the season to propel their teams to win after win. But there is a reason these players are not considered favorites to win the award.
Longshot betting on something like the MVP award can be fun and rewarding if it goes well. But in a league like the NBA, parity is a rarity. It may just be worth finding value in the first two categories of this breakdown rather than trying to reinvent the wheel with a pick out of left field.
