NBA Most Valuable Player

The NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1955–56 season to the best performing player of the regular season. Since the 2022–23 season, winners receive the Michael Jordan Trophy, named after the five-time MVP. A total of 36 players have won the award.

Prior to 2021, the winner received the Maurice Podoloff Trophy, which was named in honor of the first commissioner (then president) of the NBA, who served from 1946 until 1963. With the switch to the Michael Jordan Trophy, his name was moved to a new Maurice Podoloff Trophy given to the team with the best regular season record.

Until the , the MVP was selected by a vote of NBA players. Since the , the award is decided by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Each member of the voting panel casts a vote for first to fifth place selections. Each first-place vote is worth 10 points; each second-place vote is worth seven; each third-place vote is worth five, fourth-place is worth three and fifth-place is worth one. Starting from 2010, one ballot was cast by fans through online voting. The player with the highest point total wins the award. As of the , the current holder of the award is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Every player who has won this award and deemed eligible for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has been inducted. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won the award a record six times. He is also the only player to win the award despite his team not making the playoffs, in the . Both Bill Russell and Michael Jordan won the award five times, while Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James won the award four times. Russell and James are the only players to have won the award four times in five seasons. Moses Malone, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Nikola Jokić each won the award three times, while Bob Pettit, Karl Malone, Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, Stephen Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won it twice. Russell, Chamberlain, and Bird are the only players to win the award in three consecutive years. Only two rookies have won the award: Chamberlain () and Wes Unseld (1968–69). Eight players who won MVP (combining for thirteen total awards) are considered "international players" by the NBA: Hakeem Olajuwon of Nigeria, Duncan of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Nash of Canada, Dirk Nowitzki of Germany, Antetokounmpo of Greece, Nikola Jokić of Serbia, Joel Embiid of Cameroon, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Canada.

Stephen Curry (2015–16) is the only player to have won the award unanimously. Shaquille O'Neal (1999–2000) and LeBron James (2012–13) are the only two players to have fallen one vote shy of a unanimous selection, both receiving 120 of 121 votes. Since the , only three players have been named MVP for a season in which their team failed to win at least 50 regular season games—Moses Malone (twice, and ), Russell Westbrook () and Nikola Jokić ().Except for seasons affected by lockouts and COVID-19, when the schedule was shortened from the norm of 82 games. Karl Malone won in 1998–99 when Utah was 37–13 in 50 games, which projected to 60 wins in 82 games. James won in 2011–12 when the Miami Heat were 46–20 in 66 games, which projected to 57 wins. Nikola Jokić won in 2020–21 when Denver was 47–25 in 72 games, which projected to 54 wins in 82 games.

As part of efforts to reduce load management for star players in the league, effective with the 2023–24 season, when a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the league and its players' union took effect, players must appear in at least 65 games to be eligible for most regular-season awards and honors, including MVP. To receive credit for a game for purposes of award eligibility, a player must have been credited with at least 20 minutes played. However, two "near misses", in which the player appeared for 15 to 19 minutes, can be included in the 65-game count. Protections also exist for players who suffer season-ending injuries, who are eligible with 62 credited games, and those affected by what the CBA calls "bad faith circumstances". The games played requirement specifically applies to the MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Most Improved Player awards, as well as the All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams.

Winners

^Denotes player who is still active in the NBA *Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame†Not yet eligible for Hall of Fame consideration§1st time eligible for Hall of Fame in 2027 ‡Denotes player whose team won championship that yearPlayer (#)Denotes the number of times the player had been named MVP at that timeTeam (#)Denotes the number of times a player from this team had won at that time

Season Player Position Nationality Team * Power forward St. Louis Hawks * Point guard Boston Celtics * Center Boston Celtics (2) * (2) Power forward St. Louis Hawks (2) * Center Philadelphia Warriors ‡ * (2) Center Boston Celtics (3) ‡ * (3) Center Boston Celtics (4) ‡ * (4) Center Boston Celtics (5) * Point guard Cincinnati Royals ‡ * (5) Center Boston Celtics (6) * (2) Center Philadelphia 76ers ‡ * (3) Center Philadelphia 76ers (2) * (4) Center Philadelphia 76ers (3) * Center Baltimore Bullets ‡ * Center New York Knicks ‡ * Center Milwaukee Bucks * (2) Center Milwaukee Bucks (2) * Center Boston Celtics (7) * (3) Center Milwaukee Bucks (3) * Center Buffalo Braves * (4) Center Los Angeles Lakers * (5) Center Los Angeles Lakers (2) * Center Portland Trail Blazers * Center Houston Rockets ‡ * (6) Center Los Angeles Lakers (3) * Small forward Philadelphia 76ers (4) * (2) Center Houston Rockets (2) ‡ * (3) Center Philadelphia 76ers (5) ‡ * Small forward Boston Celtics (8) * (2) Small forward Boston Celtics (9) ‡ * (3) Small forward ‡ * Point guard Los Angeles Lakers (4) * Shooting guard Chicago Bulls * (2) Point guard Los Angeles Lakers (5) * (3) Point guard Los Angeles Lakers (6) ‡ * (2) Shooting guard Chicago Bulls (2) ‡ * (3) Shooting guard Chicago Bulls (3) * Power forward Phoenix Suns ‡ * Center Houston Rockets (3) * Center San Antonio Spurs ‡ * (4) Shooting guard Chicago Bulls (4) * Power forward Utah Jazz ‡ * (5) Shooting guard Chicago Bulls (5) * (2) Power forward Utah Jazz (2) ‡ * Center Los Angeles Lakers (7) * Shooting guard Philadelphia 76ers (6) * Power forward San Antonio Spurs (2) ‡ * (2) Power forward San Antonio Spurs (3) * Power forward Minnesota Timberwolves * Point guard Phoenix Suns (2) * (2) Point guard Phoenix Suns (3) * Power forward Dallas Mavericks * Shooting guard Los Angeles Lakers (8) ^ Small forward Cleveland Cavaliers ^ (2) Small forward Cleveland Cavaliers (2) § Point guard Chicago Bulls (6) ‡ ^ (3) Small forward Miami Heat ‡ ^ (4) Small forward Miami Heat (2) ^ Small forward Oklahoma City Thunder ‡ ^ Point guard Golden State Warriors (2) ^ (2) Point guard Golden State Warriors (3) † Point guard Oklahoma City Thunder (2) ^ Shooting guard Houston Rockets (4) ^ Power forward Milwaukee Bucks (4) ^ (2) Power forward Milwaukee Bucks (5) ^ Center Denver Nuggets ^ (2) Center Denver Nuggets (2) ^ Center Philadelphia 76ers (7) ^ (3) Center Denver Nuggets (3) ‡ ^ Point guard Oklahoma City Thunder (3) ^ (2) Point guard Oklahoma City Thunder (4)

Multi-time winners

AwardsPlayerTeam(s)Years6 Milwaukee Bucks (3) / Los Angeles Lakers (3), , , , , 5 Chicago Bulls, , , , Boston Celtics, , , , 4 Philadelphia Warriors (1) / Philadelphia 76ers (3), , , Cleveland Cavaliers (2) / Miami Heat (2), , , 3 Boston Celtics, , Los Angeles Lakers, , Denver Nuggets, , Houston Rockets (2) / Philadelphia 76ers (1), , 2 Milwaukee Bucks, Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, St. Louis Hawks,

Teams Awards Teams Years10Boston Celtics, , , , , , , , , 8Los Angeles Lakers, , , , , , , 7Philadelphia 76ers, , , , , , 6Chicago Bulls, , , , , 5Milwaukee Bucks, , , , 4Houston Rockets, , , Oklahoma City Thunder, , , 3Denver Nuggets, , Philadelphia / Golden State Warriors, , Phoenix Suns, , San Antonio Spurs, , 2St. Louis Hawks (now Atlanta Hawks), Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Utah Jazz, 1Baltimore Bullets (now Washington Wizards)Buffalo Braves (now Los Angeles Clippers)Cincinnati Royals (now Sacramento Kings)Dallas MavericksMinnesota TimberwolvesNew York KnicksPortland Trail Blazers0Brooklyn NetsNoneCharlotte HornetsDetroit PistonsIndiana PacersMemphis GrizzliesNew Orleans PelicansOrlando MagicToronto Raptors

By country +AwardsCountryYears59 United States–, –, –4 Canada, , , 3 Serbia, , 2 Greece, 1 Nigeria1 Germany1 Cameroon

NBA Most Valuable Player

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