“There is a narrow leader in the early race for the Michael Jordan Trophy.
Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who is averaging a career-high 30.2 points per game, claimed 47 first-place votes and was on 98 of 100 ballots cast in the 2022-23 debut of ESPN's NBA MVP straw poll, which was conducted from Sunday to Tuesday.”
Tatum led the way with 759 total points, followed by Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (36 first-place votes, 687 total points) in second and Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (10 first-place votes, 392 total points) in third.
Rounding out the top five behind Tatum, Antetokounmpo and Doncic were Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (six first-place votes, 250 total points) and Denver Nuggets center (and reigning two-time NBA MVP) Nikola Jokic, who had one first-place vote and 195 total points.
