NBA MVP straw poll: Wemby closes the gap in our final award update

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander remains the leader in ESPN’s final NBA MVP straw poll, but Victor Wembanyama has closed the gap enough to make the finish one of the league’s biggest late-season storylines.

ESPN’s third and final straw poll for the 2025-26 season gave Gilgeous-Alexander 88 of 100 first-place votes and 958 total points. Wembanyama finished second with 8 first-place votes and 644 points.

Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic also remained in the mix, but the latest update suggests the race has narrowed to a two-player conversation. That marks a late push for Wembanyama after NBA.com’s March 27 Kia MVP Ladder had already moved him to No. 1.

The contrast between the two polls is part of what has made the award race so closely watched. ESPN’s straw poll reflects a broad media consensus, while the NBA’s own ladder showed how much momentum Wembanyama has built down the stretch.

Even so, the final ESPN snapshot leaves Gilgeous-Alexander in front as the regular season closes. The actual award vote could still produce its own surprises, but for now the straw poll points to SGA as the favorite and Wembanyama as the strongest challenger.