Futures Betting Preview for the 2019-20 NBA MVP Award

Only five weeks have passed since the Toronto Raptors stunned the basketball world to win the first NBA Finals championship in franchise history. In the meantime, let’s take a look at the 2020 NBA MVP odds and the sportsbooks‘ favorite to win the prestigious award.

2020 NBA MVP Awards

After a flurry of free agency signings shook up the league’s heirarchy for the first time in years – including Raptors’ savior Kawhi Leonard assembling his own super-team in L.A. with Paul George and the Clippers – hoop heads everywhere are already looking forward to the 2019-20 season. And in the ultimate superstar’s sport, sizing up the next season means taking a hard look at the latest 2020 NBA MVP odds to take home the NBA’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.

Following an eight-year run between 2008-09 and 2015-16 which saw LeBron James (four) and Steph Curry (two) combine to win six MVPs between them, the league has given way to greater parity in terms of the top individual honor.

Russell Westbrook parlayed his triple-double record into an MVP in 2016-17, James Harden broke basketball with his flop-to-free-throw and step-back three show in 2017-18, and last year Giannis Antetokounmpo cemented his status as the latest “most dominant player on the planet” in waiting.

The Freak’s the Favorite to Repeat

Despite that level of variety over the last three years though, it’s not exactly a surprise to see online sportsbook Bovada’s 2020 NBA MVP odds list making the “Greek Freak” as a heavy (+280) favorite over the field. At only 24 years young, Antetokounmpo put up 27.7 points per game (3rd in NBA), along with 12.5 rebounds (6th), and a Player Efficiency Rating (PER) of 30.95 (5th) to lead his Milwaukee Bucks to the precipice of the NBA Finals.

The Bucks took the first two games against the Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals, only to suffer a “mini-sweep” over the next four to lose 4-2.

Even so, Antetokounmpo announced himself as a force to be reckoned with going forward, securing 78 of the 101 first-place ballots in MVP voting to clinch a landslide victory over Harden.

Given his youth and deep motivation, especially after last year’s finish brought him frustratingly close to the Finals, Antetokounmpo is more than capable of joining the short list of big names like Kareem (6), Russell (5), Wilt (4), Moses (3), and Duncan (2) who have multiple MVP trophies on their mantle.

Parity Reigns Supreme After Superstar Reshuffling

Following the Freak is a who’s who of NBA elites, with former MVPs Curry (+500), James (+650), and Harden (+700) trailing relatively close behind.

But unlike James and Harden – who respectively lured fellow superstars Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook to their Lakers and Rockets to form formidable 1-2 tandems – Curry might have the inside track toward his third MVP.

Likely out for all of next year with an Achilles injury, a hobbled and humbled Kevin Durant made his expected departure to take center stage with the Brooklyn Nets. Meanwhile, Curry’s fellow “Splash Brother” Klay Thompson will also sit out indefinitely next season with a torn ACL. Remove valuable sixth man Andre Iguodala from the equation as well, and Curry will be a one-man band as he attempts to shoulder the load and carry his Golden State Warriors to their sixth consecutive NBA Finals appearance.

Given his solitary sniper status and the gaudy point totals he’ll be relied upon to rack up and give the depleted Dubs a chance – a hot-handed Curry shooting his way to a third MVP in six seasons wouldn’t exactly be a shocker.

James is fresh off of his most disappointing season in ages, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2005 and watching his hand-picked L.A. Lakers squad stumble to a 37-45 record. Therefore, the King should be ready to prove his doubters wrong in Year 2 of the Tinsel Town revival.

As for Harden, his offensive game often seems to be geared more towards winning the MVP than playoff success. So he’ll undoubtedly be in the mix like he always is.

All told, of the 24 players listed on Bovada’s 2020 NBA MVP odds board, six of them can be backed at 8 to 1 or better, and 10 are listed at 16 to 1 or better. That means the MVP race is wide open heading into 2019-20, so check out the table below to see how your favorite team’s top dog stacks up:

2020 NBA MVP Odds List