How Many Players Have Won Back-to-Back NBA MVP Awards?

The NBA MVP award is an annual accolade given to the best player in the National Basketball Association during that particular year. Players are awarded based on votes from media members and players, with first place receiving 10 points, second place 9 points, third 8 points, fourth 7 points and fifth 6-points.

The “nba back-to-back mvps” is a question where the answer is not known. At least 7 players have won back-to-back NBA MVP awards.

Back-to-back NBA Most Valuable Player Awards go to Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors | Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

35 different NBA players have received the prestigious Most Valuable Player title, including the first man to do so after the 1955-56 season, famous St. Louis Hawks forward Bob Pettit. 15 of the 35 have won the NBA MVP award numerous times, with Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic being the most recent. Assuming, of course, that you think the Woj bomb is real, which we do. And if that turns out not to be the case, we’ll make the necessary adjustments.

According to ESPN, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has been named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season. This week, a formal announcement is anticipated.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 9, 2022

Jokic becomes the 15th player in NBA history to earn multiple MVP honors, as well as the 13th to win back-to-back MVP trophies. However, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James each did it twice, making it a total of 15 times.

Here’s a rundown of all the occasions a player has won the NBA MVP in consecutive seasons, sometimes even back-to-back-to-back.

Russell, Bill (1961, 1962, 1963)

Bill Russell, the iconic Boston Celtics center, is the first on the list of individuals who went back-to-back. During Pettit and Celtics colleague Bob Cousy, the 11-time champion earned his first NBA MVP award following the 1957-58 season, becoming just the third player to do it.

Wilt Chamberlain won it for the first time in 1960, and Pettit won it for the second time in 1959. Russell, on the other hand, took up the trophy for the following three years, winning in 1961, 1962, and 1963. In 1965, he won it for the fifth and last time.

Chamberlain, Wilt (1966, 1967, 1968)

Wilt Chamberlain didn’t win another NBA MVP award for six years after winning his first in 1960 with the Philadelphia Warriors. But, like Russell, he dominated the award for three years as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers in the late 1960s, winning it in 1966, 1967, and 1968. Wilt also won his first of two NBA titles with the Sixers in 1967.

Abdul-Jabbar, Kareem (1971, 1972 – 1976, 1977)

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar still holds the record for most NBA MVP awards, with six, and was the first player to win the award back-to-back twice. When he won his first in 1971, the same year he led the Milwaukee Bucks to their first NBA championship, he was still known as Lew Alcindor. The next year, as Kareem, he received the prize.

In 1976, as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, Abdul-Jabbar won the award for the first time, his fourth overall. This win was important since the Lakers finished the season with a losing record of 40-42 and missed the playoffs. The next season, he led the club to an NBA-best 53-29 record and won his fifth NBA MVP award, matching Russell for the most in NBA history. With his sixth victory in 1980, Kareem established a new record.

Malone, Moses (1982, 1983)

While Moses Malone was not the first player to win NBA MVP for two different teams in consecutive years, he was the first and remains the only player to win the award for two different teams in consecutive years. He earned the award for the second time in 1982 with the Houston Rockets, and then again in 1983 with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Bird, Larry (1984, 1985, 1986)

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Following Malone’s back-to-back victories, Larry Bird held the NBA MVP award captive for the next three seasons, winning it in 1984, 1985, and 1986. Each season, his Celtics reached the NBA Finals, earning trophies in 1984 and 1986. In both series triumphs, Bird was also voted NBA Finals MVP.

Johnson, Magic (1989, 1990)

In 1987, Magic Johnson ended his rival’s NBA MVP run by becoming the first African-American to win the award. Michael Jordan won the title for the first time in 1988, but Magic Johnson won it again in 1989 and 1990. After contracting HIV, Johnson played for one more season before retiring for the first time in 1991.

Jordan Michael (1991, 1992)

Michael Jordan has five NBA MVP awards, tied with Bill Russell for second place. As previously stated, he originally earned the title in 1988, the same year he also won NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Jordan went back-to-back in 1991 and 1992, after Magic’s back-to-back run. During those seasons, he also guided the Chicago Bulls to their first two titles.

In 1996, His Airness received the prize for the fourth time, and then again in 1998, after the season of “The Last Dance.”

Duncan, Tim (2002, 2003)

In his fifth season with the San Antonio Spurs, Tim Duncan earned his first NBA MVP award. And that 2001-02 season was undoubtedly his greatest, as “The Big Fundamental” scored a career-high 25.5 points per game while also grabbing 12.7 rebounds and blocking 2.5 shots. In 2003, he received the award for the second of his five NBA championships.

Nash, Steve (2005, 2006)

While some may argue that Steve Nash deserved to win one, much alone back-to-back NBA MVP awards for the Phoenix Suns in 2005 and 2006, it occurred. Both years, Nash led the NBA in assists and guided the Suns to the Western Conference Finals. However, Phoenix was unable to reach the NBA Finals both times.

James, LeBron (2009, 2010 — 2012, 2013)

With the exception of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, LeBron James has won four NBA MVP trophies in a five-year period. LeBron accomplished it for two different clubs, just like Kareem. His first two championships came in 2009 and 2010, the last two seasons of his first Cleveland Cavaliers tenure.

In 2012 and 2013, the same two seasons in which he won his two NBA championships in South Beach, he went back-to-back.

Curry, Stephen (2015, 2016)

Stephen Curry earned his first NBA MVP award in 2015, the same year the Golden State Warriors won their first championship. In 2016, he won it again, as the Warriors established a new regular-season record with 73 wins. The Warriors, of course, were unable to complete the task, falling to LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals.

Antetokounmpo, Giannis (2019, 2020)

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo earned his first NBA MVP trophy in 2019 after averaging 27.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.3 steals two years after earning the NBA Most Improved Player title. When he won again in 2020, “The Greek Freak” helped the Bucks become the only team with numerous back-to-back NBA MVP winners, joining the Celtics and Lakers.

Jokic, Nikola (2021, 2022)

If ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski’s claim is correct, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic will become the 13th player in NBA history to earn back-to-back MVP trophies. This season, the Serbian sensation averaged 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, 7.9 assists, and 1.5 steals for the Nuggets.

Basketball Reference provided the statistics.

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How Many NBA Scoring Champions Have Won an NBA Championship in the Same Season?

The “who has the most finals mvps” is a question about how many players have won back-to-back NBA MVP Awards. The answer to this question is that there are 3 players who have done this.

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