The NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual NBA award given since the 1955–56 season to the best performing player of the regular season.
The NBA Most Valuable Player Award holders.
The winner receives the Maurice Podoloff Trophy, which is named in honor of the first commissioner (then president) of the NBA, who served from 1946 until 1963.
Until the 1979–80 season, the MVP was selected by a vote of NBA players.
Since the 1980–81 season, the award is decided by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada, each of whom 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 May 2022, the current holder of the award is Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets.
| Season | Player | Position | Nationality | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955–56 | Bob Pettit | Power Forward | United States | St. Louis Hawks |
| 1956–57 | Bob Cousy | Point Guard | United States | Boston Celtics |
| 1957–58 | Bill Russell | Center | United States | Boston Celtics (2) |
| 1958–59 | Bob Pettit (2) | Power Forward | United States | St. Louis Hawks (2) |
| 1959–60 | Wilt Chamberlain | Center | United States | Philadelphia Warriors |
| 1960–61 | Bill Russell (2) | Center | United States | Boston Celtics (3) |
| 1961–62 | Bill Russell (3) | Center | United States | Boston Celtics (4) |
| 1962–63 | Bill Russell (4) | Center | United States | Boston Celtics (5) |
| 1963–64 | Oscar Robertson | Point Guard | United States | Cincinnati Royals |
| 1964–65 | Bill Russell (5) | Center | United States | Boston Celtics (6) |
| 1965–66 | Wilt Chamberlain (2) | Center | United States | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 1966–67 | Wilt Chamberlain (3) | Center | United States | Philadelphia 76ers (2) |
| 1967–68 | Wilt Chamberlain (4) | Center | United States | Philadelphia 76ers (3) |
| 1968–69 | Wes Unseld | Center | United States | Baltimore Bullets |
| 1969–70 | Willis Reed | Center | United States | New York Knicks |
| 1970–71 | Lew Alcindor | Center | United States | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 1971–72 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (2) | Center | United States | Milwaukee Bucks (2) |
| 1972–73 | Dave Cowens | Center | United States | Boston Celtics (7) |
| 1973–74 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (3) | Center | United States | Milwaukee Bucks (3) |
| 1974–75 | Bob McAdoo | Power Forward | United States | Buffalo Braves |
| 1975–76 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (4) | Center | United States | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 1976–77 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (5) | Center | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (2) |
| 1977–78 | Bill Walton | Center | United States | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 1978–79 | Moses Malone | Center | United States | Houston Rockets |
| 1979–80 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6) | Center | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (3) |
| 1980–81 | Julius Erving | Small Forward | United States | Philadelphia 76ers (4) |
| 1981–82 | Moses Malone (2) | Center | United States | Houston Rockets (2) |
| 1982–83 | Moses Malone (3) | Center | United States | Philadelphia 76ers (5) |
| 1983–84 | Larry Bird | Small Forward | United States | Boston Celtics (8) |
| 1984–85 | Larry Bird (2) | Small Forward | United States | Boston Celtics (9) |
| 1985–86 | Larry Bird (3) | Small Forward | United States | Boston Celtics (10) |
| 1986–87 | Magic Johnson | Point Guard | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (4) |
| 1987–88 | Michael Jordan | Shooting Guard | United States | Chicago Bulls |
| 1988–89 | Magic Johnson (2) | Point Guard | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (5) |
| 1989–90 | Magic Johnson (3) | Point Guard | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (6) |
| 1990–91 | Michael Jordan (2) | Shooting Guard | United States | Chicago Bulls (2) |
| 1991–92 | Michael Jordan (3) | Shooting Guard | United States | Chicago Bulls (3) |
| 1992–93 | Charles Barkley | Power Forward | United States | Phoenix Suns |
| 1993–94 | Hakeem Olajuwon | Center | Nigeria | Houston Rockets (3) |
| 1994–95 | David Robinson | Center | United States | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1995–96 | Michael Jordan (4) | Shooting Guard | United States | Chicago Bulls (4) |
| 1996–97 | Karl Malone | Power Forward | United States | Utah Jazz |
| 1997–98 | Michael Jordan (5) | Shooting Guard | United States | Chicago Bulls (5) |
| 1998–99 | Karl Malone (2) | Power Forward | United States | Utah Jazz (2) |
| 1999–00 | Shaquille O’Neal | Center | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (7) |
| 2000–01 | Allen Iverson | Shooting Guard | United States | Philadelphia 76ers (6) |
| 2001–02 | Tim Duncan | Power Forward | San Antonio Spurs (2) |
| 2002–03 | Tim Duncan (2) | Power Forward | United States | San Antonio Spurs (3) |
| 2003–04 | Kevin Garnett | Power Forward | United States | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2004–05 | Steve Nash | Point Guard | Canada | Phoenix Suns (2) |
| 2005–06 | Steve Nash (2) | Point Guard | Canada | Phoenix Suns (3) |
| 2006–07 | Dirk Nowitzki | Power Forward | Germany | Dallas Mavericks |
| 2007–08 | Kobe Bryant | Shooting Guard | United States | Los Angeles Lakers (8) |
| 2008–09 | LeBron James | Small Forward | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2009–10 | LeBron James (2) | Small Forward | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers (2) |
| 2010–11 | Derrick Rose | Point Guard | United States | Chicago Bulls (6) |
| 2011–12 | LeBron James (3) | Small Forward | United States | Miami Heat |
| 2012–13 | LeBron James (4) | Small Forward | United States | Miami Heat (2) |
| 2013–14 | Kevin Durant | Small Forward | United States | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| 2014–15 | Stephen Curry | Point Guard | United States | Golden State Warriors (2) |
| 2015–16 | Stephen Curry (2) | Point Guard | United States | Golden State Warriors (3) |
| 2016–17 | Russell Westbrook | Point Guard | United States | Oklahoma City Thunder (2) |
| 2017–18 | James Harden | Shooting Guard | United States | Houston Rockets (4) |
| 2018–19 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Power Forward | Greece | Milwaukee Bucks (4) |
| 2019–20 | Giannis Antetokounmpo (2) | Power Forward | Greece | Milwaukee Bucks (5) |
| 2020–21 | Nikola Jokić | Center | Serbia | Denver Nuggets |
| 2021–22 | Nikola Jokić (2) | Center | Serbia | Denver Nuggets (2) |