In The Athletic's 2025 Anonymous NBA Player Poll, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the clear MVP favorite, while Tyrese Haliburton was voted the most overrated player and Cade Cunningham the most underrated.
Sam Amick and Josh Robbins of The Athletic have released the 2025 edition of the Anonymous NBA Player Poll, where players shared their opinions on a wide range of topics — from best and worst franchises and coaches, to the league changes.
One of the most intriguing questions centered around the MVP race. Among 155 voters, a strong majority — 56.1% — selected Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as their choice for the 2024–25 NBA MVP.
Nikola Jokic received 37.4% of the votes, while Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James each collected 1.9%. Although LeBron received votes, he won't be among the winners.
The NBA has already announced the official MVP finalists: SGA, Jokic, and Antetokounmpo.
Players who picked Shai for MVP praised his consistency and leadership:
- "Consistency. He also stands out on a team, which is so great. That's why he would be the MVP for me this year."
- "He's efficient. His team plays much better with him on the court. He's the culture — the culture is kind of based on him — and they're the best in the league."
- "I'll give it to Shai just because last year, and the past few years, it has been Jokic. But they're both playing at an incredible level right now. Just passing it along to the next generation, and Shai is the next generation."
Advocating for Jokic, one of the strongest responses was:
- "He's averaging a 30-point triple-double. It's stupid. There's no way you don't give it to him."
The poll also revealed broader league opinions:
- Championship favorites: 57.7% of players picked the Boston Celtics to win the 2025 NBA title (137 votes).
- Future face of the NBA: 54.3% believe Victor Wembanyama will be the face of the league five years from now (138 votes).
- Most overrated player: Tyrese Haliburton topped the list with 14.4% (90 votes), followed by Rudy Gobert (10.0%) and Trae Young (8.9%).
- Most underrated player: Cade Cunningham led the voting with 8.8% (136 votes), just ahead of Derrick White (7.4%).
All categories can be found here.
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