The Most Valued Player in the NBA is awarded the trophy for his best performance throughout the regular season.
Inaugurated in the 1955-56 season, the first NBA MVP award was given to the St. Louis Hawks' (Currently known as Atlanta Hawks) center, Robert E. Lee Pettit Jr. (known as Bob Pettit).
Since then, the NBA MVP race began, where players like Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, LeBron James, etc., made their name with multiple title wins.
That said, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the most NBA MVP awards record with six titles. He was awarded the titles in 1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, and 1980.
As of the 2022-23 season, the NBA MVP winners will receive the Michael Jordan Trophy in honor of considerably the best NBA player in history.
After the regular season, the 76ers' center, Joel Hans Embiid, was named the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 2023.
Embiid was named the NBA scoring champion in April 2023, averaging 33.1 points per game for a consecutive second season. The following month, he won the MVP award, becoming the team's fifth player to capture the honor.
The Cameroon native Embiid was drafted 3rd overall by the team in the 2014 NBA draft. He could not play his first two seasons due to a broken navicular bone in his foot.
Besides the MVP award, Joel has been the NBA All-Star six times from 2018 to 2023 and was named to the All-NBA First Team in 2023.
The 2023 NBA Champion Nikola Jokic has been honored with the NBA MVP award twice in 2021 and 2022 due to his outstanding performance in the Nuggets during the regular seasons.
After the Nuggets' victory over the Miami Heat during the 2022-23 season, Nikola was named the Most Valued Player of the NBA Finals in 2023.
Being picked 41st overall in the 2014 NBA draft by the Nuggets, Jokic became the NBA All-Star five times from 2019 to 2023.
Also, he was named to the All-NBA First Team thrice in 2019, 2021, and 2022 and the All-NBA Second Team twice in 2020 and 2023.
Giannis Sina Ugo Antetokounmpo is a Greek-Nigerian 2021 NBA Champion who was named the NBA MVP twice in 2019 and 2020 as the Bucks's power forward.
The Athens, Greece native Giannis was drafted 15th overall in the 2013 NBA draft by the Bucks and has since been the NBA All-Star seven times from 2017 to 2023.
In addition, he was named to the All-NBA First and Second Teams five times and twice, respectively, in 2019-2023 and 2017 and 2018.
Besides being the 2020 NBA MVP, Giannis was awarded the 2020 NBA Defensive Player of the Year. He is the only third player in history to win these awards and an NBA Finals MVP title (2021).
Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon were the first and second players to do so in 1988 and 1994, respectively.
The Los Angeles, California native James Edward Harden Jr. plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA.
As a Houston Rockets player, Harden was honored with the 2018 NBA Most Valued Player award. He played for the team from 2012 to 2021.
Before the Rockets, James played for the Oklahoma City Thunder after being drafted 3rd overall by the team in the 2009 NBA draft.
During the final season with the Thunder, he was named the NBA Sixth Man of the Year after averaging 16.8 points, 3.7 assists, and 4.1 rebounds per 62 games played.
In addition, he is a ten-time NBA All-Star from 2013-2022 and has led the NBA in scoring thrice from 2018-2020.
The Los Angeles Clippers point guard Russell Westbrook II won the NBA MVP award in 2017, with the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2008 to 2019.
Westbrook was picked 4th overall in the 2008 NBA draft by the Thunder and has since played for five NBA teams.
From 2011 to 2013 and 2015 to 2020, he became the NBA All-Star nine times and was named the NBA All-Star Game MVP twice in 2015 and 2016.
Westbrook led the NBA in scoring two times in 2015 and 2017 and was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021.
Furthermore, he was named to the All-NBA First, Second, and Third Teams nine times throughout his time with the Thunder and the Rockets from 2008 to 2020.
The four-time NBA Champion and the highest-paid NBA player, Stephen Curry, has won the NBA MVP award twice in 2015 and 2016.
Besides, he was honored with the NBA Finals MVP in 2022 and named to the NBA All-Star Team nine times from 2014-2019 and 2021-2023.
This 2022 NBA All-Star Game MVP is among the few on the list of NBA MVPs with two trophies. He has been named to the All-NBA First Team four times in 2015, 2016, 2019, and 2021.
The Akron, Ohio native Curry is in his 15th season with the Warriors since being drafted 7th overall by the team in the 2009 NBA draft.
The Washington, D.C., native Kevin Wayne Durant has played power forward for the Phoenix Suns in the NBA since 2023.
Before the Suns, Durant played for three NBA teams since being drafted 2nd overall in the 2007 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics (currently known as Oklahoma City Thunder).
He won the NBA Most Valued Player award in 2014 while with the Thunder from 2007 to 2016. He ranked 7th in the NBA's all-time Playoff scoring list in 2023.
The two-time NBA Champion Durant was the NBA All-Star thirteen times in 2010-2019 and 2021-2023. He led the NBA in scoring four times in 2010-2012 and 2014.
The Los Angeles Lakers' small forward, LeBron James, has four NBA MVP titles and four NBA Finals MVP awards.
He won two of the NBA MVPs in 2009 and 2010 with the Cavs and another two in 2012 and 2013 with the Heat.
The Akron, Ohio native James was picked 1st overall in the 2003 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he spent his first seven seasons in the league from 2003 to 2010.
After spending four seasons with the Heat, he returned to the Cavs, winning two NBA Championships and two additional NBA MVP awards.
Besides, he was a nineteen-time NBA All-Star from 2005-2023 and was named to the All-NBA First Team thirteen times in 2006, 2008-2018, and 2020.
The former Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard, Kobe Bean Bryant, was awarded the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player award.
Bryant spent his 20-year NBA career with the Lakers, leading the team to five NBA Championship wins in 2000-2002 and 2009-2010.
He was named the NBA Finals MVP twice in 2009 and 2010 and was named to the NBA All-Star Team eighteen times in 1998 and 2000-2016.
Besides, Kobe became the NBA All-Star Game MVP four times and led the league in scoring twice in 2006 and 2007.
The 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft, Kobe retired in 2016, ending an incredible journey with an average of 25 points, 4.7 assists, and 5.2 rebounds per game.
The 2011 NBA champion Dirk Werner Nowitzki has served as a special advisor for the NBA's Dallas Mavericks since 2021, two years after retirement in 2019.
The 2023 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Nowitzki won the NBA MVP award in 2007. He was the NBA Finals MVP in 2011.
Dirk spent his entire 21-year career in the league with the Dallas Mavericks since being drafted 9th overall in the 1998 NBA draft.
He was named the NBA All-Star fourteen times in 2002-2012, 2014, 2015, and 2019, and is the 2006 NBA Three-Point Contest Champion.
The West German native Nowitzki was named to the All-NBA First Team four times in 2005-2007 and 2009 and was included in the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021.
Stephen John Nash is a former Canadian professional point guard who was the head coach of the NBA's Brooklyn Nets from 2020 to 2022.
Nash spent 18 seasons in the NBA, playing for three different teams since being drafted 15th overall in the 19996 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns.
After two seasons, Nash was traded to the Mavericks, where he played until 2004, making a return to the Suns.
While with the Suns from 2004 to 2012, he won the NBA Most Valuable Player award twice, in 2005 and 2006.
In addition, he led the NBA in assists five times in 2005-2007, 2010, and 2011 and was named the NBA All-Star eight times in 2002, 2003, 2005-2008, 2010, and 2012.
The former professional American basketball power forward Kevin Maurice Garnett played 21 seasons in the NBA for the Timberwolves from 1995 to 2007 before moving to the Celtics.
The 2008 NBA Champion Garnett won the NBA Most Valuable Player reward in 2004 and the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award in 2008.
He is among the five NBA players with both awards as of 2020. Also, he was named the NBA All-Star fifteen times and the NBA All-Star Game MVP once in 2003.
In addition, Garnett led the NBA in rebounding four times from 2004 to 2007 and was named to the All-NBA First, Second, and Third Teams nine times from 2000 to 2008.
The five-time NBA Champion Timothy Theodore Duncan is a former NBA player who spent his entire 19-year career with the San Antonio Spurs.
The 2020 Hall of Fame inductee Duncan was picked 1st overall in the 1997 NBA draft by the team. He has led the team to five championship triumphs, winning three NBA Finals MVPs.
Tim, the 1998 Rookie of the Year, was awarded the 2000 NBA All-Star Game co-MVP and won the NBA Most Valuable Player award twice in 2002 and 2003.
Besides being included in the All-NBA First Team ten times in 1998, 2000-2011, 2013, and 2015, Duncan was named the NBA All-Star fifteen times in 1998-2005, 2007, and 2013.
The Hampton, Virginia native and former NBA player Allen Ezail Iverson played shooting guard for 14 seasons in the league for four teams from 1996 to 2010.
Iverson was drafted 1st overall in the 1996 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, where he was awarded Rookie of the Year in 1997 and the NBA MVP award in 2001.
Following the 76ers, Iverson played two seasons with the Denver Nuggets, one season with the Detroit Piston, and three games for the Memphis Grizzlies before returning to the 76ers.
Throughout his 14-season career in the NBA, Allen became the NBA All-Star eleven times from 2000 to 2010 and was named the NBA All-Star Game MVP twice in 2001 and 2005.
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal, a Newark, New Jersey native, is a retired NBA player who was a four-time NBA champion in 2000-2002 and 2006.
Shaq was drafted 1st overall by the Orlando Magic during the 1992 NBA draft, and he played for the team until the 1996-97 season, earning the Rookie of the Year title in 1993.
He played center in the league, earning an NBA Most Valuable Player award in 2000 while with the Los Angeles Lakers from 1996 to 2004.
He spent his 19-year NBA career playing for six teams, including the Magic, Lakers, Heat, Suns, Cavaliers, and Celtics.
The 15-time NBA All-Star Shaq was awarded the NBA Finals MVP three times from 2000 to 2002. He led the NBA in scoring twice in 1995 and 2000.
The former professional American basketball player Karl Anthony Malone spent 19 seasons in the NBA playing power forward for two teams, the Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Playing the first 18 seasons for the Jazz, "The Mailman," Malone won the NBA Most Valuable Player award twice in 1997 and 1999.
Besides the MVP, Malone was named the NBA All-Star fourteen times in 1988-1998 and 2000-2002, earning the NBA All-Star Game MVP award twice in 1989 and 1993.
The Summerfield, Louisiana native Karl was picked 13th overall in the 1985 NBA draft by the Jazz. He holds the record for the most free throws made and attempted in the league.
Season - 1987-88, 1990-91, 1991-92, 1995-96, and 1997-98
Team - Chicago Bulls (Retired)
The greatest basketball player of all time by acclamation, Michael Jeffrey Jordan, is a former NBA player and an American businessman who played fifteen seasons in the league.
Throughout his fifteen seasons, he became the NBA champion six times, in 1991-1993 and 1996-1998, winning the NBA Finals MVP award each year.
Jordan was picked 3rd overall in the 1984 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, where he spent most of his career. While there, he won the NBA MVP award five times in 1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, and 1998.
Besides the MVPs, Michael has a documented miniseries on Netflix named The Last Dance, featuring his sixth NBA Championship win with the Bulls.
David Maurice Robinson is a former American professional basketball center who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA from 1989 to 2003.
The two-time NBA champion Robinson was drafted 1st overall by the Spurs in the 1987 NBA draft.
However, he officially joined the team in 1989 after completing his naval service in the U.S. Navy.
During his time in the league, he was named the Rookie of the Year in 1990 and awarded the NBA Most Valuable Player title in 1995.
Furthermore, Robinson became the NBA All-Star ten times in 1990-1996, 1998, 2000, and 2001 and was named to the All-NBA First Team four times in 1991, 1992, 1995, and 1996.
The former Nigerian-American NBA center Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon played in the league from 1984 to 2002 for the Houston Rockets and the Toronto Raptors.
Olajuwon played his first seventeen seasons with the Rockets while playing the last season with the Raptors.
During his time with the Rockets, he led the team to consecutive NBA championship wins in 1994 and 1995, earning the NBA Finals MVP both years.
The 2008 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, Hakeem, won the NBA Most Valuable Player title in 1994, alongside his first NBA Championship trophy.
He became the first NBA player of all time to win the Finals MVP, NBA MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season.
