Top 10 best players to never win the NBA MVP

Unlucky breaks, timing, coincidences. Many factors influence the failure to win the most prestigious individual award in the league, the NBA MVP (Most Valued Player), and these factors have left many past and future Hall of Famers empty-handed.

Players who, despite their on-court performances, would have deserved the highest recognition but ultimately saw it awarded to someone else.

Let’s discover who the Top 10 NBA players are who have never won the MVP award.

10. Patrick Ewing

He came close three times, but when you play in the same era as Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Karl Malone, it’s not surprising if you don’t end up with the MVP award.

Nevertheless, if the Knicks had a golden era, it was thanks to him: two Finals reached, records for most points, rebounds, blocks, steals, free throws, and games played. An indelible signature that looks down on everyone from the top of Madison Square Garden, where his number 33 jersey hangs.

9. Clyde Drexler

Strong, very strong, with so much talent and class. In 1992, he led the Blazers to the Finals and made it to the final head-to-head for the MVP title. It’s a shame he found Michael Jordan in his way.

The Bulls defeated the Blazers and Jordan won the title of the best player, leaving Drexler with nothing. His move to the Houston Rockets of Olajuwon, with whom he won the Larry O’Brien in 1995, saved him from being without a ring.

8. Elgin Baylor

Incredible but true, not only did Baylor never win an NBA title, but he also never won an MVP award.

Coming in second place twice in the MVP race, he had to surrender to the dominance of Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson, and Bill Russell, who respectively hold the record for most points in a game, the record for triple-doubles behind only Russell Westbrook, and the record for championships won.

Baylor’s average of 34 points and 19 rebounds per season wasn’t enough, numbers that today would almost certainly guarantee him the trophy.

7. Kevin McHale

A Wade before Wade. Not for his position on the court but for the unfortunate luck of playing with one of the greatest of all time. When your teammate is Larry Joe Bird, it’s difficult to bring home a high-profile individual award.

McHale was crucial to the Celtics’ victories in the 1980s, winning the Sixth Man of the Year award twice. His offensive prowess opened up many opportunities for his more famous teammate, but in the end, the MVP award went to the Indiana boy. Three times.

6. Isiah Thomas

Two titles leading the Bad Boys Pistons in an era dominated by Lakers and Boston were not enough to earn him a spot among the MVP holders.

Whether it was due to his personality, lack of media appeal, or simply having to compete against Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, Thomas never achieved the award or even came close to the top three positions.

He was satisfied with his two rings, the Finals MVP award, and the 23rd spot on the all-time shortest NBA players list, but a Maurice Podoloff Trophy would have surely been a nice addition.

5. John Havlicek

Eight titles and one Finals MVP, but no award as the regular season’s best player. Havlicek watched his teammates Russell and Cousy win the trophy and never managed to achieve it personally.

His best placement was a fourth place in the 1972 race, plus four consecutive inclusions in the NBA Top 10.

Although he is remembered as one of the all-time greats of the Massachusetts franchise, for whom he is also the all-time leading scorer, he has not added the Most Valuable Player award to his trophy case.

No big deal, he has eight rings to console himself and ranks 3rd among the most winning players of all time.

4. Dwyane Wade

The same story, amplified, as McHale’s. The first time he could have won it, three years after entering the league from Marquette University, he crossed paths with a Canadian gentleman who was about to win his second consecutive MVP. It was 2006, the Heat won the championship led by Wade, who won the Finals MVP award.

A few years later, he was joined by none other than LeBron James, probably at the peak of his form, to win a title. Needless to say, two individual titles for the Chosen One and one each for Durant and Rose. Wade, one of the greatest pure guards of all time, won three rings but no MVPs.

3. Scottie Pippen

At this point, completing the trio of Musketeers started with McHale and Wade, the second in command par excellence arrives.

Without Scottie Pippen, there would be no Michael Jordan.

Michael Jordan in The Last Dance

But if in the end you’re the second fiddle, it means that the first one is truly out of the ordinary. Same story here: absolute dominance of the Chicago Bulls, Pippen with impressive numbers that would surely have earned him the award if it weren’t for Jordan, but no dice, the award ended up in the hands of the North Carolina product five times.

2. John Stockton

Thanks to the “Stockton to Malone” duo, John became the NBA’s all-time leader in assists. But apparently, it wasn’t enough to dish out assists and be one of the best players in both his franchise and the entire league to win the MVP award.

15.806 assists weren’t enough, nor were the 3.265 steals. Perhaps if there had also been a “Malone to Stockton” to add some more points, we would be talking about a different story, but these are just assumptions.

1. Jerry West

Jerry West is the strongest NBA player of all time to have never won the MVP award. It’s no coincidence that he inspired the NBA logo, although the league did not admit it for a long time. In 1980, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame and the Lakers retired his jersey number 44.

He played his entire career for the Lakers, from 1960 to 1974, as a playmaker, winning an NBA title and a Finals MVP, but no regular season MVP award.

Despite being responsible for the Lakers’ great success during those years, Jerry West shared the stage with Bill Russell before and Chamberlain and Jabbar after, which prevented him from achieving the most coveted individual award.