The NBA MVP is a prestigious award given to the season’s best player. It is voted on by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters after the end of the regular season.
The panel ranks their top five picks for the honor, and points are given to the players based on their ranking. First-place choices receive 10 points, second place is worth seven points, third place is worth five points, fourth place earns three points, and one point is given to the last player on the list.
Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are among the legendary names who have won the prestigious NBA MVP trophy. Historically, the centers of the most successful team from that season have dominated the award, but guards and forwards have also earned their fair share of accolades.
List of NBA MVP Winners
Here’s the list of all the NBA MVP winners throughout the league’s history:
- 1956 | PF Bob Pettit
St. Louis Hawks - 1957 | PG Bob Cousy
Boston Celtics - 1958 | C Bill Russell
Boston Celtics - 1959 | PF Bob Pettit
St. Louis Hawks - 1960 | C Wilt Chamberlain
Philadelphia Warriors - 1961 | C Bill Russell
Boston Celtics - 1962 | C Bill Russell
Boston Celtics - 1963 | C Bill Russell
Boston Celtics - 1964 | PG Oscar Robertson
Cincinnati Royals - 1965 | C Bill Russell
Boston Celtics - 1966 | C Wilt Chamberlain
Philadelphia 76ers - 1967 | C Wilt Chamberlain
Philadelphia 76ers - 1968 | C Wilt Chamberlain
Philadelphia 76ers - 1969 | C Wes Unseld
Baltimore Bullets - 1970 | C Willis Reed
New York Knicks - 1971 | C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Milwaukee Bucks - 1972 | C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Milwaukee Bucks - 1973 | C Dave Cowens
Boston Celtics - 1974 | C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Milwaukee Bucks - 1975 | C Bob McAdoo
Buffalo Braves - 1976 | C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Los Angeles Lakers - 1977 | C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Los Angeles Lakers - 1978 | C Bill Walton
Portland Trail Blazers - 1979 | C Moses Malone
Houston Rockets - 1980 | C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Los Angeles Lakers - 1981 | SF Julius Erving
Philadelphia 76ers - 1982 | C Moses Malone
Houston Rockets - 1983 | C Moses Malone
Philadelphia 76ers - 1984 | SF Larry Bird
Boston Celtics - 1985 | SF Larry Bird
Boston Celtics - 1986 | SF Larry Bird
Boston Celtics - 1987 | PG Magic Johnson
Los Angeles Lakers - 1988 | SG Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls - 1989 | PG Magic Johnson
Los Angeles Lakers - 1990 | PG Magic Johnson
Los Angeles Lakers - 1991 | SG Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls - 1992 | SG Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls - 1993 | PF Charles Barkley
Phoenix Suns - 1994 | C Hakeem Olajuwon
Houston Rockets - 1995 | C David Robinson
San Antonio Spurs - 1996 | SG Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls - 1997 | PF Karl Malone
Utah Jazz - 1998 | SG Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls - 1999 | PF Karl Malone
Utah Jazz - 2000 | C Shaquille O’Neal
Los Angeles Lakers - 2001 | SG Allen Iverson
Philadelphia 76ers - 2002 | PF Tim Duncan
San Antonio Spurs - 2003 | PF Tim Duncan
San Antonio Spurs - 2004 | PF Kevin Garnett
Minnesota Timberwolves - 2005 | PG Steve Nash
Phoenix Suns - 2006 | PG Steve Nash
Phoenix Suns - 2007 | PF Dirk Nowitzki
Dallas Mavericks - 2008 | SG Kobe Bryant
Los Angeles Lakers - 2009 | SF LeBron James
Cleveland Cavaliers - 2010 | SF LeBron James
Cleveland Cavaliers - 2011 | PG Derrick Rose
Chicago Bulls - 2012 | SF LeBron James
Miami Heat - 2013 | SF LeBron James
Miami Heat - 2014 | SF Kevin Durant
Oklahoma City Thunder - 2015 | PG Stephen Curry
Golden State Warriors - 2016 | PG Stephen Curry
Golden State Warriors - 2017 | PG Russell Westbrook
Oklahoma City Thunder - 2018 | SG James Harden
Houston Rockets - 2019 | PF Giannis Antetokounmpo
Milwaukee Bucks - 2020 | PF Giannis Antetokounmpo
Milwaukee Bucks - 2021 | C Nikola Jokić
Denver Nuggets - 2022 | C Nikola Jokić
Denver Nuggets - 2023 | C Joel Embiid
Philadelphia 76ers - 2024 | C Nikola Jokić
Denver Nuggets - 2025 | PG Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Oklahoma City Thunder
Repeat Winner of NBA MVP Award
Every player dreams of holding the NBA MVP trophy at least once. But only some get to live it. While a few rare ones go on to win it on multiple occasions. Abdul-Jabbar has won the NBA MVP award six times, the most in NBA history.
Here’s the list of all the repeat NBA MVP winners throughout the award’s history:
- 6-time winner | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980 - 5-time winner | Michael Jordan
1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998 - 5-time winner | Bill Russell
1958, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1965 - 4-time winner | LeBron James
2009, 2010, 2012, 2013 - 4-time winner | Wilt Chamberlain
1960, 1966, 1967, 1968 - 3-time winner | Magic Johnson
1987, 1989, 1990 - 3-time winner | Larry Bird
1984, 1985, 1986 - 3-time winner | Moses Malone
1979, 1982, 1983 - 3-time winner | Nikola Jokić
2021, 2022, 2024 - 2-time winner | Tim Duncan
2002, 2003 - 2-time winner | Bob Pettit
1956, 1959 - 2-time winner | Karl Malone
1997, 1999 - 2-time winner | Steve Nash
2005, 2006 - 2-time winner | Stephen Curry
2015, 2016 - 2-time winner | Giannis Antetokounmpo
2019, 2020
Has Anyone Ever Won NBA MVP 3 Times in a Row?
Only three players have managed to win three consecutive NBA MVP trophies in history.
Russell became the first player to do so, winning the honor in 1961, 1962 and 1963. Chamberlain replicated the feat a few years later, securing the title in 1966, 1967 and 1968.
After over a decade, Bird won it in 1984, 1985 and 1986 to become the third and the last player to date to win the NBA MVP three times in a row.
Multiple players have come close to completing a three-peat of NBA MVPs, with Curry, Antetokounmpo and Jokić being the most recent candidates. However, none of the past and present players have gotten the job done for over 40 years.
