Jokic named top current player, Wembanyama seen as 2030 top, Flagg ROY

A panel of 20 NBA coaches, executives and scouts polled by ESPN overwhelmingly named Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic the league's best player right now, while projecting a changing guard over the long term by selecting San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama as the most likely best player in 2030 and Dallas Mavericks newcomer Cooper Flagg as the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year. The results, released this week as part of ESPN's annual offseason survey and ranking packages, offered a mix of present-day consensus and divergent forecasts for the next half decade.

Jokic received 19 of 20 votes as the current top player, with Luka Doncic earning the lone dissenting vote, underscoring a widespread view among front office and scouting professionals that Jokic's blend of scoring, playmaking and rebounding sets the standard. The panel also favored Jokic in 2025-26 MVP projections, giving him seven votes; Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander received five votes, Doncic four, and Wembanyama two. Other single votes went to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Anthony Edwards.

When asked to look farther ahead, voters made Wembanyama the runaway choice for best player in 2030, with 16 of 20 votes. The...