NBA MVP Odds 2022

Nikola Jokic stormed the field and won MVP during the condensed 2020-21 season, but the Nuggets center isn’t the favorite to repeat with the league going back to a normal calendar in the 2021-22 season.

Odds are live at DraftKings Sportsbook for next season and the race is wide open with Luka Doncic (+400) owning the lowest odds. Joel Embiid (+700), Steph Curry (+800) and Kevin Durant (+800) are among the favorites, with LeBron James (+1100) and Jokic (+1500) lurking.

Here is a look at NBA MVP odds for the 2021-22 season from the top US sportsbooks.

NBA MVP odds 2022

Pro basketball MVP futures report

The Favorites

Luka Doncic (+400): There is a lot of turmoil coming out of the Mavericks camp with Doncic reportedly upset at the departure of Donnie Nelson and struggling to get along with Kristaps Porzingis. But the ultra-talented PG is arguably the best facilitator and scorer in the game now and he’ll be working under new HC Jason Kidd, a fantastic PG in his own day.

Joel Embiid (+700): Health is always the biggest issue with Embiid, who might have beaten out Jokic for MVP last year had he not missed 19 games last season. The big man played through a meniscus tear in the playoffs and that doesn’t bode well for his longevity heading into the 2021-22 season. But when he’s out there, Embiid arguably has the greatest impact of any player on both ends.

Steph Curry (+800): Curry had arguably the greatest shooting season of all time last year when he averaged 32 PPG and shot 48% from the field and 42% from 3-point range to carry an injury-diminished Warriors team. The Dubs have the No. 7 and No. 14 picks in the 2021 NBA Draft and will get Klay Thompson back after a two-year absence, which will only help Curry’s MVP case as the Warriors record is bound to improve.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (+800): The two-time MVP put up typically gaudy numbers (28.4 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 5.9 APG) last season, but voter fatigue played a role in Giannis missing out on a three-peat. The Bucks superstar also suffered a knee injury during the playoffs but should be back to full speed by the start of next season.

Kevin Durant (+800): While Durant may very well be the best player in the NBA today, he’s unlikely to go hard throughout the regular season, especially since the Nets can win games with Kyrie Irving and/or James Harden leading the way. Durant is a better bet to win Finals MVP next season than regular season MVP.

LeBron James (+1100): The last time there was a narrative about LeBron James being washed up, he bounced back with a massive season and barely lost out to Giannis in MVP voting. Expect James to work out like a madman this offseason and come into his age 37 season with plenty to prove.

Damian Lillard (+1100): Lillard was a marvel last season and throughout the playoffs, but the Blazers supporting cast and coaching staff disappointed once again. Portland switches to Chauncey Billups at head coach in a controversial move that is generating some pressure for Lillard to ask out of town.

Nikola Jokic (+1500): Jokic missed just one game last season and averaged 26.4 PPG, 10.9 RPG, and 8.4 APG on 60.3% eFG% with the best Player Efficiency Rating (PER) in the league. Jamal Murray (ACL) should miss the start of next season, so The Joker will have even more on his plate.

The Contenders

Trae Young (+1800): A stunning all-star snub, Young became a superstar during the 2021 playoffs and he should carry that confidence into next season. The durable young PG rarely misses games and is growing into his own as a leader for a surging Hawks club.

Devin Booker (+1800): While Chris Paul is the senior statesman, Devin Booker has been an incredible leader for the Suns during their first NBA Finals season since 1993. The 24-year-old might be ready to take the torch from CP3 if the veteran is able to win his first championship.

James Harden (+2500): When Kevin Durant was out, Harden carried the Nets for several weeks and was the MVP frontrunner before a hamstring injury derailed his season. He should be back to full speed by the start of next season and ready to facilitate at the head of the most dangerous offense in basketball.

Anthony Davis (+2500): Davis has proven to be extremely injury prone, and he’s also playing with one of the greatest ever in LeBron James. Unless LeBron gets injured and Davis stays upright all year, it’s hard to imagine him winning MVP.

Jayson Tatum (+2500): Tatum has become an unstoppable offensive force with great defensive potential and he should become more of a leader as his career progresses. With Ime Udoka taking over as head coach and Tatum fully recovered from COVID, the Celtics should make some noise next year.

Donovan Mitchell (+3000): Mitchell is a superstar with a knack for turning it up in big games. The Jazz could finish with the best regular season record once again and that would put their offensive leader at the front of the pack.

NBA MVP as a futures bet

The NBA MVP award is typically fairly easy to predict, but with the league currently loaded with super-duper-stars we saw a relative long shot win in 2021. Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic captured his first league MVP award, as he averaged 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game. The Joker had the 12th lowest odds to win the award at FanDuel Sportsbook ahead of the season at +3600.

Luka Doncic had entered the 2020-21 NBA season as the favorite to win league MVP. LeBron James had a significant stretch in the middle of the season where he owned the lowest odds. But Jokic was superb from start-to-finish.

Betting on the MVP winner is one of the more popular options for outright bets known as “Futures,” which are usually wagers on a season-long outcome such as the NBA champion, NBA division winner, or individual award winners. It’s also possible to bet Over or Under on Team Win totals, i.e. the number of games a team is expected to win during the regular season.

Best NBA MVP betting site

Where you can bet on the MVP legally

Online sports betting is currently legal at a regulated sportsbook in the following states:

State	Law Passed?	Launch Date	Mobile Launch
Arizona Sports Betting	Yes	Pending	Pending
Arkansas Sports Betting	Yes	July 2019	NA
Colorado Sports Betting	Yes	May 2020	May 2020
Connecticut Sports Betting	Yes*	Pending	Pending
Delaware Sports Betting	Yes	June 2018	Pending
Florida Sports Betting	Yes*	Pending	Pending
Illinois Sports Betting	Yes	March 2020	August 2020
Indiana Sports Betting	Yes	September 2019	October 2019
Iowa Sports Betting	Yes	August 2019	August 2019
Maryland Sports Betting	Yes	Pending	Pending
Michigan Sports Betting	Yes	March 2020	January 2021
Mississippi Sports Betting	Yes	August 2018	August 2018
Montana Sports Betting	Yes	March 2020	March 2020
New Hampshire Sports Betting	Yes	August 2020	December 2019
New Jersey Sports Betting	Yes	June 2018	August 2018
New Mexico Sports Betting	No*	October 2018	NA
Nevada Sports Betting	Yes	1949	2010
New York Sports Betting	Yes	July 2019	Pending
North Carolina Sports Betting	Yes	March 2021	NA
Oregon Sports Betting	No*	August 2019	October 2019
Pennsylvania Sports Betting	Yes	November 2018	May 2019
Rhode Island Sports Betting	Yes	November 2018	September 2019
South Dakota Sports Betting	Yes	Pending	NA
Tennessee Sports Betting	Yes	November 2020	November 2020
Virginia Sports Betting	Yes	January 2021	January 2021
Washington, D.C. Sports Betting	Yes	May 2020	August 2020
West Virginia Sports Betting	Yes	August 2018	August 2019
Wyoming Sports Betting	Yes	Pending	Pending

Legislation is on the table in a number of states with more states sure to legalize sports betting in the upcoming years.

Residents of Colorado, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia have access to online sportsbooks, including the platforms created by industry titans DraftKings and FanDuel. William Hill and other online books also offer great opportunities to bet on NBA games and Futures.

In order to bet on MVP, users can click on the NBA tab and find the tab labeled “Futures” and move to “Player Futures.” Regular Season MVP should be one of the categories along with Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and more postseason awards.

Previous winners and trends

As mentioned above, only two MVP winners in the “modern era” have come from teams that won 50 games or fewer. Additionally, since 1985 only two MVPs have come from teams that failed to finish at least second in their conference.

So the starting point for choosing a good bet is finding the best player on a winning team. It’s no coincidence that Jokic and Embiid are two of the favorites now that we’re near the end of the season. The Nuggets are poised to grab a top 4 seed in the West, while the Sixers may grab that top seed in the East.

Remember that the MVP is a regular season award, so players that historically have come up short in the postseason like Jokic and Harden will always still have a seat at the MVP table.

That said, because the award is voted upon by sportswriters, a players’ body of work tends to put them over the top. Only four MVP winners were younger than 23 and the last rookie to win the MVP was Wes Unseld back in 1969.

Scoring is a key criteria for MVP, as the NBA’s leading scorer has won the award in four of the past five years.

While the Center position is fading in today’s small-ball NBA, that position leads the way in MVP awards with 25, although 22 of those came in the first 28 years of the award.

Over the last 14 years, guards have won the award eight times, signifying how the NBA has transitioned to a faster-paced, higher-scoring game. The past four guards to win (James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Steph Curry, and Derrick Rose) are not particularly renowned defenders. Posting gaudy offensive numbers can be enough to sway voters.

Shooting guards have won the fewest awards (eight) in the history of the MVP and Michael Jordan snagged five of those trophies.

Since the 1975-76 season, only two players have been named MVP in a season where their team failed to win 50 games. That includes Russell Westbrook in 2016-17, but it has become a rarity for a player from a mediocre team to win the award.

The Most Valuable Player (MVP) award is voted upon by a panel of 100 media members who are not affiliated with any NBA franchises. Each member of the panel casts a vote for first to fifth place selections. Each vote counts incrementally towards a players’ total, with first-place votes netting 10 points and fifth-place votes counting for only 1 point.

In the history of NBA MVP voting, only Curry (2015-16) has received every first-place vote from the entire panel to be named MVP unanimously. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won the award a record six times and LeBron has won four MVP awards, which makes him the leader among active players.