What is the NBA MVP?
The Most Valuable Player (MVP) award is an annual accolade bestowed upon the player distinguished as the best performer during the regular season.
Since the inception of the NBA back in the 1955-56 season, the MVP award has held great prestige and remains one of the most coveted honours in the NBA each year. Season after season, elite NBA players deliver exceptional performances in the hopes of securing the newly rebranded Michael Jordan Trophy.
For over six decades, the NBA’s MVP Trophy bore the name of Maurice Podoloff, the league’s inaugural commissioner. In addition to his role as the league’s first commissioner, Podoloff served as the NBA’s president from 1946 to 1963.
How is the NBA MVP Determined?
Before the 1979-80 season, NBA players were responsible for determining the award recipient. However, from the 1979-80 NBA season onwards, the award became the prerogative of a panel consisting of sportswriters and broadcasters from the United States and Canada, renowned for their close coverage of the league.
Each member of this voting panel submits their selections, ranking players from first to fifth place. Notably, a first-place vote carries a weight of 10 points; a second-place vote is valued at seven points; a third-place vote is assigned five points; a fourth-place vote merits three points, and a fifth-place vote is worth one point.
Since 2010, fans have been granted the opportunity to submit a single ballot through online voting. Ultimately, the player who amasses the highest point total is honoured with the award.
As of the 2023-24 season, players must make appearances in a minimum of 65 games to qualify for consideration for the Michael Jordan Trophy. It’s common practice for teams, particularly when negotiating with superstar players, to offer financial incentives if they secure the league MVP title.
What Impact Does Winning MVP Have on Players?
Securing the MVP title in the NBA, widely regarded as the most skilful and fiercely competitive basketball league, is a truly remarkable feat. It stands as one of the most distinguished individual accolades across all sports, a testament to the countless hours each player dedicates to honing their skills in the gym and on the court.
As a career milestone, the MVP status is highly coveted but it’s also the kind of award that significantly bolsters a player’s confidence.
Every player who has received this award and met the criteria for eligibility in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has been successfully inducted. Although players don’t receive direct monetary rewards from the NBA, the league does extend the gesture of gifting each recipient a Kia vehicle, thanks to Kia’s status as an official sponsor of both the award and the NBA.
The most substantial financial incentives often arise from endorsement deals, which can sometimes surpass the value of a player’s NBA contract. For example, recent NBA MVP Joel Embiid reportedly secured a lucrative shoe contract with Sketchers.
Before Embiid’s MVP honour, Nikola Jokic proudly lifted the MVP trophy. The scale of his win was significant too as the Denver Nuggets icon landed significant partnerships with brands like Nike. Other notable players like LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and Kobe Bryant have also signed up for major shoe deals with leading corporations.
Recent NBA MVPs
Here’s a comprehensive table featuring the MVPs of the last decade:
| Year | Player | Team |
| 2022-23 | Joel Embiid | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 2021-22 | Nikola Jokic | Denver Nuggets |
| 2020-21 | Nikola Jokic | Denver Nuggets |
| 2019-20 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 2018-19 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 2017-18 | James Harden | Houston Rockets |
| 2016-17 | Russell Westbrook | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| 2015-16 | Stephen Curry | Golden State Warriors |
| 2014-15 | Stephen Curry | Golden State Warriors |
| 2013-14 | Kevin Durant | Oklahoma City Thunder |
At specific junctures, certain superstar players elevate their game to a level where they manage to secure multiple MVPs in consecutive seasons – an astonishing achievement that should never be underestimated.
In recent years, Nikola Jokic claimed the NBA MVP titles in both the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. Prior to Jokic’s back-to-back wins, Giannis Antetokounmpo, the cornerstone player for the Milwaukee Bucks, was honoured with the award in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.
In the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons, sharpshooter Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors emerged as the NBA MVP for consecutive years. LeBron James also earned back-to-back MVP accolades in the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons, as well as in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons while with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Notably, LeBron James holds the distinction of being the only player in league history to secure the award four times within five years.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the record for winning the award a remarkable six times. Meanwhile, legends like Michael Jordan and Bill Russell are renowned for both having achieved MVP honours on five separate occasions.
Other stars such as LeBron James and Wilt Chamberlain have each claimed the award four times, whilst Los Angeles Lakers legend Irving “Magic” Johnson, his long-standing rival Larry Bird, and Moses Malone all trail slightly behind having received the accolade three times, respectively. The list of NBA players who have won the award twice includes:
- Nikola Jokic
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- Stephen Curry
- Steve Nash
- Tim Duncan
- Karl Malone
- Bob Petitt
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