Image via Complex Original
Winning back-to-back NBA Most Valuable Player awards—as Steph Curry did Tuesday—is rare but not unique. There are actually 11 players, not including Curry, who have been named NBA MVP in consecutive seasons. It happened as recently as just a few years ago when LeBron James claimed the honor in both 2012 and 2013.
What is unique, however, is that Curry claimed this year’s MVP award in unanimous fashion. The amiable, engrossing Warriors point guard received all 131 first-place votes, which is something that no other NBA player has ever done. Not MJ or LeBron. Not Magic or Bird. Not Kobe or Shaq. There was always at least one dissenter during the MVP voting process.
Only the 28-year-old, 190-pound guard who was overlooked coming out of high school, overlooked coming out of Davidson, and overlooked by his former head coach Mark Jackson during his early years in the NBA was able to so clearly impress an entire panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. It's pretty amazing to think that, over the last 60-plus years, Curry is the first and only player to accomplish what he just accomplished.
In honor of Curry's historic moment—it feels like he's starting to make history every day now, doesn't it?—we decided to take a look back to see how close some of the NBA's other biggest superstars came to winning unanimous NBA MVP awards during their playing days. Scroll down to see for yourself.
Michael Jordan
Year: 1996
Stats: 30.4 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 4.3 APG
First-Place MVP Votes:109 of 113
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Penny Hardaway (2 votes), HakeemOlajuwon (1), Karl Malone (1)
LeBron James
Year: 2013
Stats: 26.8 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 7.3 APG
First-Place MVP Votes:120 of 121
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner?Carmelo Anthony (1 vote)
Magic Johnson
Year: 1987
Stats: 23.9 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 12.2 APG
First-Place MVP Votes: 65 of 76
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Michael Jordan (10 votes), Larry Bird (1)
Larry Bird
Years: 1985 and 1986
Stats: 28.7 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 6.6 APG (1985) and 25.8 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 6.8 APG (1986)
First-Place MVP Votes:73 of 78 and 73 of 78
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Terry Cummings (2 votes), Michael Jordan (2), Magic Johnson (1) in 1985 and Dominique Wilkins (5) in 1986
Wilt Chamberlain
Year: 1967
Stats: 24.1 PPG, 24.2 RPG, 7.8 APG
First-Place MVP Votes:80 of 105
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Nate Thurmond (15 votes), Bill Russell (5), Oscar Robertson (3), Rick Barry (2)
Shaquille O’Neal
Year: 2000
Stats: 29.7 PPG, 13.6 RPG, 3.8 APG
First-Place MVP Votes: 120 of 121
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Allen Iverson (1 vote)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Year: 1971
Stats: 31.7 PPG, 16.0 RPG, 3.3 APG
First-Place MVP Votes: 133 of 153
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Dave Bing (6 votes), Willis Reed (5), Oscar Robertson (5), Jerry West (4)
Kobe Bryant
Year: 2008
Stats: 28.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 5.4 APG
First-Place MVP Votes: 82 of 126
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Chris Paul (28 votes), Kevin Garnett (15), LeBron James (1)
Bill Russell
Year: 1963
Stats: 16.8 PPG, 23.6 RPG, 4.5 APG
First-Place MVP Votes:56 of 122
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Elgin Baylor (19 votes), Oscar Robertson (13), Bob Pettit (3), Jerry West (2), Red Kerr (1), Terry Dischinger (1)
Kevin Garnett
Year: 2004
Stats: 24.2 PPG, 13.9 RPG, 5.0 APG
First-Place MVP Votes: 120 of 123
Who Stopped Him From Being the Unanimous Winner? Jermaine O'Neal (2 votes), Peja Stojakovic (1)