The NBA has seen its fair share of dominant players in history. Usually, the NBA has many dominant players in one season, but only one can win the MVP award. For long stretches of time, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James owned the MVP awards, winning a combined 20 MVPs among the four. With such dominant players at the helm of the NBA, other dominant players got 2nd or 3rd place in MVP voting. These are the best NBA players to never win MVP.
Jerry West
Starting in the late 1960s, Jerry West could easily be considered one of the best players to never win MVP. West had a dominant run in the NBA from 1969 to 1972, finishing with 31.2 points per game, which led the NBA that season.
Ultimately, West would finish as the runner-up in MVP voting that season, as well as three other seasons, unfortunately finishing as the runner-up four times in his career without an MVP award. West had a dominant run from 1969-72 that many believe should have finished with at least one MVP award. Nevertheless, Jerry West tops our list as one of the best NBA players to never win an MVP.
Scottie Pippen
Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen are known as the best one-two duo in NBA history. Nicknamed “Batman and Robin”, Jordan and Pippen won six NBA championships together. While Scottie lived in Jordan's shadow, it can be easy to overlook how good of a player he was. Pippen was one of the best defenders in the NBA in his prime, and he played the facilitator role perfectly to make Jordan shine.
While Pippen had a wildly successful career and is now in the Hall of Fame, he can still be considered one of the best NBA players to never win an MVP. He finished top five in MVP voting twice in his career, but could never get out of the shadow of Michael Jordan.
Chris Paul
A more recent addition to the list, Chris Paul is one of the best point guards in NBA history and will for sure have a spot in the Hall of Fame one day. Although he technically still plays and could still win an MVP, his better days are behind him as he is nearing 40 years old. Chris Paul is also widely regarded as one of the best NBA players who has never won a championship.
Chris Paul is one of the best passers in NBA history and led the league in assists in five total seasons. Paul started his career as the Rookie of the Year in 2006 and didn’t slow down from there.
The closest Chris Paul ever got to winning an MVP was in 2008, when he finished second to the legendary Kobe Bryant. He would finish top five in MVP voting five times in his career, and he is my top pick for the best NBA player to never win an MVP.
Dwayne Wade
A star member of the “Big Three” in Miami, Dwayne Wade is a key addition to the list of top NBA players to have never won an MVP. Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh ran Miami in the early 2010s, winning back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013.
The prime of Wade’s personal career came in 2009 when he led the NBA in points per game with 30.2 per game, and yet he still fell short in third place in MVP voting. Wade played during the prime eras of Dirk Nowitzki, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Tim Duncan, making it virtually impossible to ever win an MVP. Although a three-time NBA champion, Dwyane Wade never got the personal achievement of winning an MVP.
Kawhi Leonard
The one remaining member of this list who actually has a chance to still win an MVP, Kawhi Leonard, is still only 33 years old and still has time to remove himself from this list. Still, as it stands, Kawhi Leonard is one of the best NBA players to never win an MVP.
The biggest knock on Leonard’s career has been his health. If he had played more full seasons, perhaps he would have had an MVP under his belt. His closest season was in 2016 when he finished second in MVP voting to Stephen Curry, who helped the Warriors win an NBA record 73 games that season. Still, Leonard is widely regarded as one of the best two-way players in NBA history, and he still is one of the best players never to win MVP in the NBA. Although he still has some years left to get it done. Leonard is having another good season this year, and you can keep up with the latest NBA scores odds on Bet US.