NBA MVP Each Year: The Complete List of Winners and Their Historic Seasons
As I sit down to compile this comprehensive look at NBA MVP winners throughout history, I can't help but reflect on how this award has evolved alongside the game itself. Having followed basketball for over two decades, I've witnessed firsthand how the criteria for what makes an MVP has shifted, how voter preferences have changed, and how certain seasons stand out as truly historic. The MVP award represents more than just statistics—it captures narratives, team success, and those magical seasons where everything aligns for a player. This year, as we consider what might be the Soaring Falcons' first MVP candidate in recent memory, it feels like the perfect moment to walk through this remarkable history.
The journey begins in 1956 when Bob Pettite of the St. Louis Hawks claimed the first official Maurice Podoloff Trophy. Back then, the game moved at a different pace, and Pettite's averages of 25.7 points and 16.2 rebounds per game would still be impressive today. What many forget is that he led his team to the Western Division title while shooting 42.9% from the field—a remarkable percentage for that era. The following years saw legends like Bill Russell redefine what value meant, emphasizing defense and leadership in ways that statistics alone couldn't capture. Russell's 1961 MVP season particularly stands out in my memory, not just for his 16.9 points and 23.9 rebounds per game, but for how he anchored the Celtics' defense that held opponents to just 111.2 points per 100 possessions—an incredible figure for that time.
Moving into the 70s and 80s, the game transformed with the arrival of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who won a record six MVP awards. His 1971 season with the Bucks remains one of the most dominant individual campaigns I've ever studied, where he averaged 31.7 points while leading Milwaukee to 66 wins. Then came the Magic Johnson-Larry Bird rivalry that saved the league, with both players collecting three MVPs each during the 80s. I've always been partial to Bird's 1984-85 season where he posted 28.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 6.6 assists while shooting 52.2% from the field—numbers that would make him a strong candidate even in today's game.
The Michael Jordan era brought a new dimension to the MVP conversation. While His Airness "only" won five MVPs, his 1988 and 1996 seasons represent what I consider the gold standard for two-way dominance. In 1996, he led the Bulls to 72 wins while averaging 30.4 points and making First Team All-Defense—a combination we rarely see today. The late 90s introduced Tim Duncan's fundamental brilliance, while the 2000s gave us Shaquille O'Neal's overwhelming force and Steve Nash's revolutionary playmaking. Nash's back-to-back MVPs in 2005 and 2006 sparked endless debates about whether a player who averaged "only" 18.8 points could truly be the league's most valuable, but having rewatched those Suns teams recently, I'm convinced his impact transcended traditional statistics.
LeBron James' four MVPs between 2009 and 2013 demonstrated unprecedented consistency, but for pure individual brilliance, I'd argue his 2012-13 season with Miami was his masterpiece—shooting 56.5% from the field while leading the Heat to 66 wins and making 129 three-pointers at a 40.6% clip. The recent stretch has been dominated by Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic, with Jokic's 2022 season producing perhaps the most efficient stat line in history: 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, and 7.9 assists on 58.3% shooting.
Which brings us to this current season and the Soaring Falcons' emerging candidate. While it's too early to declare anyone the frontrunner, what I'm seeing from their star player echoes some of these historic campaigns. Through 47 games, he's averaging 28.3 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.7 assists while leading his team to a 34-13 record. The advanced metrics love him too—he's posting a Player Efficiency Rating of 31.2 and has accumulated 8.3 Win Shares already. More importantly, he's lifted his team in clutch situations, with the Falcons going 15-3 in games decided by five points or less. Having watched nearly every Falcons game this season, I can attest to how he's transformed their offense, creating opportunities where none seemed to exist and making his teammates significantly better—the true mark of an MVP.
Looking across NBA history, certain patterns emerge in MVP selections. Voters traditionally favor players from top-seeded teams, with 43 of the last 50 winners coming from teams that finished first or second in their conference. Offensive numbers typically outweigh defensive impact, though exceptions like Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon prove that two-way dominance can break through. The narrative component cannot be overstated either—stories matter almost as much as statistics. This year's Falcons candidate benefits from the compelling story of a previously middling franchise rising to contention behind one player's exceptional performance.
As we consider where this season might land in the historical context, I'm reminded that MVPs become part of basketball's permanent legacy. From Pettite to Jokic, each winner represents not just individual excellence but the evolution of the game itself. The Falcons' potential first MVP would join this prestigious lineage during what I believe is one of the most competitive MVP races in recent memory, with at least four legitimate candidates separated by the thinnest of margins. Whatever happens, this season will add another chapter to the rich history of the NBA's most coveted individual honor, continuing a tradition that connects generations of basketball greatness.
