2023 NBA MVP Ladder: Joel Embiid set himself apart in final stretch

The time has arrived for the regular season to come to a close and NBA voters to make their final picks for this season’s awards.

While I don’t officially have a vote, I have been tracking this year’s MVP race from the very beginning and believe I have a good read on who should come out on top in a race with a familiar top-3 of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic.

This is my ninth MVP ladder of the 2022-23 season and will be the last, as I don’t foresee anything happening between Friday and Sunday to change these results.

First, here’s a glance at previous ladders and who led at the time:

Vol. 1 (Giannis Antetokounmpo) | Vol. 2 (Jayson Tatum) |

Vol. 3 (Tatum) | Vol. 4 (Tatum) | Vol. 5 (Luka Doncic) |

Vol. 6 (Nikola Jokic) | Vol. 7 (Jokic) | Vol. 8 (Embiid)

PPG: 25.1 | RPG: 10.0 | APG: 4.1

GP: 77 | WS/48: .144 (52nd)

Record: 47-33 (5-2)

Two other names I considered for this spot were Randle’s teammate Jalen Brunson and Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox. I didn’t go Fox because the Kings are represented elsewhere and I think a Knick deserves a spot for the season they’re having. Ultimately I went Randle because of superior on/off defensive numbers and better availability.

Previous: 9th

PPG: 22.9 | RPG: 5.9 | APG: 5.3 | SPG: 1.8

GP: 64 | WS/48: .277 (2nd)

Record: 43-37 (4-3)

Butler is quietly having the best season of his career, shooting better than 50% from the field for the first time ever. His Heat have mostly been on cruise control this season, but they’ve really cranked things up over the last month and might lock up a playoff spot to avoid the play-in tournament before it’s all said and done. Butler has been the biggest constant.

Previous: 10th

PPG: 28.3 | RPG: 4.3 | APG: 4.4 | SPG: 1.5

GP: 68 | WS/48: .176 (26th)

Record: 51-30 (6-2)

Mitchell has been busy putting the closing touches on a phenomenal debut season in Cleveland, posting four straight 40-point games going into Friday. Cleveland still boasts the league’s best defensive rating, and that’s ultimately the team’s calling card — not Mitchell’s offense. But when it’s time for someone to put up points for the Cavs, there’s no question who they’re going to.

Previous: 8th

PPG: 32.7 | RPG: 8.7 | APG: 8.1 | SPG: 1.4

GP: 65 | WS/48: .206 (11th)

Record: 38-42 (2-6)

Sixth and seventh place come down to Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for me — players battling for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. And right now, it belongs to OKC. It feels wrong dropping Doncic this far considering the type of season he’s having, but I simply can’t reward him on an 11th-place team — especially one year removed from the conference finals. Even if it isn’t his fault.

Previous: 5th

PPG: 31.4 | RPG: 4.8 | APG: 5.5 | SPG: 1.6 | BPG: 1.0

GP: 68 | WS/48: .225 (5th)

Record: 39-42 (4-6)

SGA might have been higher if OKC had a stronger finish to the season, but the Thunder have been just 3-6 since the last ladder (2-5 in games with SGA) and they’re in dander of ceding their spot in the play-in to Dallas. Still, it’s impressive that they’re even in this position considering how young and inexperienced this roster is, and that’s all thanks to Gilgeous-Alexander.

Previous: 7th

PPG: 19.2 | RPG: 12.4 | APG: 7.3

GP: 78 | WS/48: .221 (6th)

Record: 48-32 (5-4)

By season’s end, Sabonis could end up as the only MVP candidate to have played in 80 games this year, which is incredible in itself. What he’s done in that sample is just as impressive, anchoring a surprising No. 1 Sacramento offense with amazing efficiency as both a scorer and a facilitator.

Previous: 6th

PPG: 30.2 | RPG: 8.8 | APG: 4.6 | SPG: 1.1

GP: 73 | WS/48: .185 (22nd)

Record: 55-25 (6-2)

Tatum deserves a ton a credit as the only 30-point scorer in the league to have played at least 70 games. It’s easy to overlook his candidacy as someone playing on what was thought to be a loaded team entering the season, but the Celtics have quietly exceeded expectations, posting the NBA’s second-best record under a rookie head coach.

Previous: 4th

PPG: 24.8 | RPG: 11.9 | APG: 9.8 | SPG: 1.3

GP: 68 | WS/48: .310 (1st)

Record: 52-28 (4-4)

Jokic slips to third on the final ladder mostly due to missed time over the last two weeks. He’s missed four of Denver’s last eight games, and with the conference locked up, the team could decide to sit him for the final two as well. But make no mistake, Jokic will be deserving of every first-place vote he gets. He’s nearly averaging a triple-double and this was the most efficient season of his career.

Previous: 2nd

PPG: 31.1 | RPG: 11.8 | APG: 5.7

GP: 63 | WS/48: .207 (9th)

Record: 58-22 (7-2)

Antetokounmpo has been so consistently good for so long that it’s easy to take for granted what he’s doing this season, but he’s averaging the most points he’s ever scored in his career. A strong close to the season and winning a tougher Eastern Conference pushes him past Jokic for me, but he comes up short of the MVP because of how strong his team has been without him.

Previous: 3rd

PPG: 33.1 | RPG: 10.2 | APG: 4.2 | SPG: 1.0 | BPG: 1.7

GP: 66 | WS/48: .258 (3rd)

Record: 52-28 (4-5)

For much of the season, Embiid was playing catch up because of missed time in the beginning. But his play was always MVP-worthy, and as Antetokounmpo and Jokic missed time down the stretch, Embiid set himself apart, getting it done on both offense and defense to guide Philadelphia to wins.

After my last ladder, I still thought there was time for Jokic or Antetokounmpo to make a case for themselves, but neither did. The Sixers and Nuggets have identical records. I thought Embiid’s 52 points Tuesday against the Celtics was the award-sealing performance for the league’s leading scorer.

Previous: 1st