
I agree with the top 6 choices (in whatever order) but I would have Luka at #1. I think things are set up for him this year.
Jokic is the most dominant advanced statistics player in the league, although Shai was close last year and Embiid could even top Jokic if Embiid stays healthy.
Kareem won 5 MVPs with only one ring, so Jokic is beyond any further "historic precedent" arguments like the one that cost him his third straight award two seasons ago.
Shai was runner-up last year and has to be considered one of the clear favorites.
Embiid and Giannis, previous award winners, should be very much in the mix if healthy.
If Minnesota can duplicate its success from last year then Edwards, one of the newer "it" guys in the league, could take the hardware.
Brunson is a fearless "little man" who is easy to root for IMO. And he plays in New York City. So if the Knicks are strong this year, he's likely to get a massive media push for MVP.
Wemby seems a little misplaced here because of the Spurs record last season. But he is such an anomaly that the Spurs might be able to improve significantly this season, and if they do he may well enter the conversation.
Tatum at 9 makes sense to me. I don't think Tatum is better than 2008 Garnett (DPOY, 3rd in MVP voting) and Garnett appeared to be held back that year by being on a very strong team with other good players as well as by his meh base stats (18/9), although his advanced stats were strong.
Boston won 9 more games that season than MVP Kobe's Lakers yet KG did not get the nod.
We saw a similar dynamic with last year's Celtics and I believe we are likely to see it again this season.
Unlike Tatum, Garnett had already established himself as an MVP-level talent with the Wolves by winning the award in 2004. But that pedigree wasn't enough to put him over the top with the league-leading Celtics in 2008.