Nearly two months into the NBA season, surprise playoff contenders have emerged, shocking franchise drama has unfolded and a new class of rookies has already made an impact.
The top of the 2025-26 Most Valuable Player race, however, should look quite familiar.
For the sixth consecutive edition of ESPN's NBA MVP straw poll -- a poll of 100 media members that mimics the league's postseason award balloting -- voting has resulted in Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic leading the field.
And for the third straight time, Gilgeous-Alexander (57 first-place votes, 865 total points) holds a clear but narrow lead over Jokic (42 first-place votes, 822 total points) and 13 other stars who received at least one vote in the poll conducted Monday and Tuesday.