2025 NBA Finals MVP odds: Can Gilgeous-Alexander pull off MVP trifecta?
The NBA regular-season MVP will look to pull off the double dip in the Finals.
Oklahoma City and Indiana are set to face off in this year's NBA Finals, after each team somewhat breezed through their respective playoff matchups, with both going 12-4 so far in the postseason.
Now, the Larry O'Brien Trophy is on the line, as well as the Bill Russell Finals MVP award.
Will league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander complete the MVP sweep? Let's check out the odds at DraftKings Sportsbook as of June 9.
2025 NBA Finals MVP
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: -475 (bet $10 to win $12.11 total)Tyrese Haliburton: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)Pascal Siakam: +1900 (bet $10 to win $200 total)Jalen Williams: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)Chet Holmgren: +8000 (bet $10 to win $810 total)
SGA is heavily favored to take home the hardware, not only because he is the league MVP, but because his Thunder are heavily favored to win the Finals, at -525.
Only once has a player won Finals MVP while playing on the losing team: the Lakers' Jerry West in 1969.
In NBA history, 10 players have won both regular-season MVP and Finals MVP. That list includes LeBron James (2012, 2013), Tim Duncan (2003), Shaquille O'Neal (2000), Hakeem Olajuwon (1994), Michael Jordan (1991, 1992, 1996, 1998), Magic Johnson (1987), Larry Bird (1984, 1986), Moses Malone (1983), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1971) and Willis Reed (1970).
As noted, Jordan accomplished the feat four times, the most in league history, followed by James and Bird, who both did it twice.
However, SGA does have a chance to make some history this year. He could become the first player in NBA history to win regular-season MVP, Western Conference finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP.
The Earvin "Magic" Johnson Trophy (West finals MVP) and Larry Bird Trophy (East finals MVP) have only been in existence for four years, meaning the likes of Jordan, Abdul-Jabbar and others from the list above (everyone except James) never had a chance to win it during their playing days.
Nikola Jokić came closest to pulling it off in 2023, when he won Western Conference finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP. However, Joel Embiid won regular-season MVP that year.
As for other names on the oddsboard, Pascal Siakam was named Eastern Conference finals MVP, meaning he still has a chance to win two MVP awards in one season if his Pacers can pull off the upset — or, if he goes Jerry West-mode.
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NBA Trade Idea Gives Warriors' Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler New All-Star Teammate
NBA Trade Idea Gives Warriors' Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler New All-Star Teammate originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Golden State Warriors made a blockbuster trade in February, acquiring six-time NBA All-Star Jimmy Butler from the Miami Heat. Advertisement The Butler trade saved the Warriors' season. Golden State acquired Butler on Feb. 6. The team lost to the Los Angeles Lakers that night, dropping their record to 25-26. The Warriors went on a major run after Butler made his Dubs debut, going 23-7. Golden State finished the season as the seventh seed in the Western Conference and faced the Houston Rockets in the first round of the 2025 playoffs. Behind Butler and Steph Curry, the Warriors beat the Rockets in seven games. However, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated Golden State in the second round in five games. Curry suffered a Grade 1 left hamstring strain in Game 1 and missed the rest of the series. Golden State Warriors stars Steph Curry (right) and Jimmy Butler get a new center in this NBA trade idea. Troy Taormina-Imagn Images Many people believe Curry and Butler need another All-Star scorer next to them to compete for the championship next season, which is why Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report proposed that the Warriors trade for Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic this offseason. Advertisement Bailey proposed the Dubs trade Moses Moody and Buddy Hield to the Bulls for Vucevic, the No. 45 pick in this year's draft and a 2028 second-round pick. "For the Warriors, this is a bit of a desperation move, since Vucevic is 34 and on an expiring contract," Bailey wrote. "His long-term value is nowhere near Moody's (hence, Chicago's inclusion of some draft capital). "But they were woefully thin at the 5 in 2024-25. And even at this age, Vuc is a starting center who can pass, space the floor and fit into Golden State's read-and-react system." Vucevic is a two-time All-Star. He averaged 18.5 points and 10.1 rebounds for the Bulls this season while shooting 53.0% from the field, 40.2% from 3 and 80.5% from the foul line. Advertisement The 34-year-old Vucevic will make $21.5 million next season in the final year of his contract. Vucevic has played for the Philadelphia 76ers, Orlando Magic and Bulls. He has career averages of 17.2 points and 10.5 rebounds. Related: NBA Trade Idea Sends Warriors Forward to Bulls This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
Washington Post
23 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Heading into US Open, McIlroy still looking for motivation after historic Masters win
OAKMONT, Pa. — Ever since Rory McIlroy checked the biggest box off his impressive golf to-do list, all he wanted was to enjoy it. Very quickly, he has discovered how harsh this game can be with his foot off the gas. Heading into the U.S. Open this week, McIlroy has been disabused of any notion that life once he completed the career Grand Slam with that win at the Masters in April would be smooth sailing. 'I think it's trying to have a little bit of amnesia and forget about what happened,' McIlroy said Tuesday when asked about the difficulties he has faced — on the golf course, at least — since donning the green jacket. 'Then, just trying to find the motivation to go back out there and work as hard as I've been working.' That edge has been tough to rediscover, buried somewhere beneath the satisfaction of finally conquering Augusta National to become only the sixth player to win all four majors in his career. He has celebrated by taking more trips, playing more tennis, hanging out at home and 'basically saying 'no' to every request that comes in.' His forays back to his day job — rough. McIlroy arrived at the PGA Championship a month after the Masters only to learn that the driver he'd been using for more than a year had been deemed nonconforming in a routine test. He hit only 46.4% of the fairways that week, tying him for 68th out of 74 players in that statistic who played four rounds. Those struggles with the new driver made him a nonfactor and he finished tied for 47th. 'It wasn't a big deal for Scottie, so it shouldn't have been a big deal for me,' McIlroy said, noting Scottie Scheffler received the same news about his own driver that week but went on to win the tournament . That the normally closely held news of McIlroy's illegal driver leaked to the media and Scheffler's did not annoyed McIlroy , and he said last week that was why he didn't speak to the media after all four rounds at Quail Hollow. That issue appears to be behind him. The driver? He says he's figured it out — 'I mean, come out and watch me hit balls, and you'll see,' he said — which means the answer must have come during his weekend off after rounds of 71-78 at the Canadian Open last week left him far short of making the cut. The 78 matched the second-worst score he's ever shot in a PGA Tour event. The next test starts Thursday at a brutal, brutish Oakmont course that McIlroy said might be playing easier than the last time he was here. No, he wasn't talking about 2016, when he missed the first of three straight U.S. Open cuts, but rather, last Monday, when he needed to go birdie-birdie down the finish to shoot 81 in a practice round. 'It didn't feel like I played that bad,' McIlroy said. 'It's much more benign right now than it was that Monday. They had the pins in dicey locations, and greens were running at 15 1/2 (compared to an estimated 14 1/2 for the tournament). It was nearly impossible. But yeah, this morning, it was a little softer.' Speaking of soft courses, McIlroy said he bristled at the reputation that began developing after his first major title, in 2011, when he demolished a rain-dampened Congressional with a U.S. Open-record score of 268 that still stands. His other majors — at Valhalla, Kiawah and Royal Liverpool — were also on soft courses. All that, plus his inability to capture the Masters, led critics to label him a player who couldn't conquer firm and fast. 'I didn't like that reputation because I felt like I was better than that reputation, so that's ego driven in some way,' McIlroy said. He tailored his game to handle the toughest conditions the majors can offer. He has runner-up finishes at the last two U.S. Opens as proof that project worked. But golf always presents new challenges. These days, McIlroy's is whether he can find that kind of fire — this week, next month, next year or beyond — now that he had made it over his biggest hump at the Masters. He served up one clue of where his head is when asked what his plan for the next five years might be. 'I don't have one. I have no idea,' he said. 'I'm sort of just taking it tournament by tournament at this point.' ___ AP golf:
New York Times
24 minutes ago
- New York Times
49ers' Trent Williams on his future: ‘Not going to retire with something left in the tank'
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Trent Williams has seen it all as he gets ready for his 16th NFL season, but he is admittedly new to the whole voluntary organized team activity thing he's participated in this offseason. The San Francisco 49ers' left tackle has been at team headquarters for a couple of weeks now, including Tuesday's start of the team's two-day mandatory minicamp. While he said he doesn't regret missing every non-mandatory session the past 10 years, he is very excited to have been around more this offseason. Advertisement 'You wouldn't think that this is a team that went 6-11 last year,' Williams said Tuesday. 'The confidence, the way the kids are flying around. … The new draft class to me looks like it has several steals, several great picks that are going to contribute. 'I was really pleased to see how the confidence and how the atmosphere is coming back and kind of being around the guys for the first time.' Wednesday's session is the last practice before the team parts ways until training camp in six weeks. Williams, who turns 37 next month, had mentioned last year that he would like to play until he is 40 years old, and pooh-poohed any talk of retirement. 'I didn't give it a lot of thought (this offseason), honestly,' Williams said. 'I just feel like I do myself and my teammates a disservice if I'm looking towards the end. I'm paid and people count on me to be here now and we've got goals and aspirations as a team. I just don't think putting brain power towards that helps us get to where we want to go. 'You know, when it happens, it happens. I feel like I'll know. One day I should know when it's getting (to be) that time and then I'll do the responsible thing and let them know early enough so that they can make the adjustments needed … (but) I'm definitely not going to retire with something left in the tank.' Williams said his ankle injury, which caused him to miss seven games last season, was completely healed by February. And 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said while he was thrilled Williams came to work early this year, the team will manage his workload. 'With age and the wear and tear and stuff, we just try to keep (his) legs fresher and stuff,' Shanahan said. 'I'll be shocked if we put him out there (Wednesday). He'll be good to go for (training) camp. … He's healthy and right where he needs to be.' Advertisement And he has always been a hard worker, even when he was training on his own in the offseason and not always at the facility. A player has to work year-round to be able to earn playing in 188 career games. 'I love Trent being around so people can see how much he does care about football, how much he does work at football,' Shanahan said. 'It's cool at his age and where he is at in his career for people to still see what he has to do to get ready. He has to do it for himself more than anything, but anytime you have the kind of credibility that someone like Trent has earned, anytime someone gets to watch him do that and watch what he puts into it will always help other people.' And it might help him earn another redo on his contract. While Williams' deal runs through 2026, only this next season is guaranteed at $21.1 million. Williams said that 'doesn't concern' him. 'I'm taking everything one year at a time,' Williams said. 'I feel like if my play warrants a new year or two on a deal or whatever, then I'm here for it. If not, then you know it'd be time to sail on into the sunset.' Williams did have to wave goodbye to some of his favorite teammates this offseason, as players like Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga, Aaron Banks and Charvarius Ward, among others, left for new teams, while Javon Hargrave and Leonard Floyd were cut and Deebo Samuel and Jordan Mason were traded. 'It's always tough,' Williams said, 'but it's my 16th year, so I understand how the business goes. Those guys are family, so you wanna see the best thing happen to them that puts them in the best situation. All of those guys, I am really, really happy for them. I think that they're really blessed. Like (Aaron) Banks getting compensated, Jaylon Moore getting compensated. It's a blessing that doesn't come often in this league. Advertisement 'I think Deebo found a home that he is going to flourish in.' Williams said he will miss those guys in the locker room and on the field, but is excited about one newcomer, former Philadelphia Eagles pass rusher Bryce Huff. 'He's gonna bring that speed demon off the edge, that guy that's gonna require a running back or a chip (blocker) opposite of Nick (Bosa),' Williams said. 'He adds that Dee Ford effect that they had in 2019 that took them to the Super Bowl. One of the reasons we had a really, really good defense for those couple years is having that guy who can actually make that quarterback step up by getting a good jump off the ball and bending the edge.' Williams also was happy to shake hands with the new Brock Purdy after the quarterback signed his new $265 million contract. 'He's one of the richest people I've ever met in person,' Williams, smiling, said. 'For me, it's just super, super fulfilling just to watch a guy like Brock. You talk about a Cinderella story, and this is the epitome of that, from making a few hundred thousand a year to making 50 million a year is astronomical. … And it couldn't have happened to a better guy.' More importantly, Williams said Purdy is 'the' guy. 'He is the guy for this franchise,' Williams said. 'This is just the tip of the iceberg. He's gonna get another contract. He's going to win a lot of football games. He's that good of a player. So super, super happy to see that happen for him. I love him like a brother, you know, so I couldn't be any happier.'
