Best NBA Players to Never Win MVP

These are the best NBA players to never win the MVP award.
The Top Ten
1 Dwyane Wade Dwyane Tyrone Wade Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association.

Best NBA Season: 2008-2009

30.2 points per game
5.0 rebounds per game
7.5 assists per game
1.3 blocks per game
2.2 steals per game

Team Record: 43-39

2 Jerry West Jerry Alan West was an American basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association.

As one of the greatest long-range shooters in history, he achieved amazing numbers before the three-point shot was instituted. It's not unrealistic to assume he would have made two or three "threes" per game, which would have brought his career numbers on par with Chamberlain and Jordan.

Best NBA Season: 1969-1970

31.2 points per game
4.6 rebounds per game
7.5 assists per game

Team Record: 46-36

Somehow, he averaged over 30 points and did not win MVP.

3 John Havlicek John Joseph "Hondo" Havlicek is a retired American professional basketball player who competed for 16 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA championships, four of them coming in his first four seasons.

Best NBA Season: 1970-1971

28.9 points per game
9.0 rebounds per game
7.5 assists per game

Team Record: 44-38

4 Elgin Baylor

He averaged a double-double and had the highest points per game average besides Wilt Chamberlain. Bill Russell won MVP with 18.9 points and 23.6 rebounds per game, which sounds good. But Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain also had double-doubles. (Wilt should have won with an insane 50.4 points and 25.6 rebounds per game.) The NBA's choice of Bill Russell was a poor one in my opinion, and you could argue that Elgin Baylor had better stats than Bill Russell (and obviously Wilt Chamberlain).

In the 1961-62 season, he had the highest scoring average in history for any player not named Wilt Chamberlain. Yes, it was higher than Michael Jordan's best season. Nobody remembers the guy who came in second.

5 Elvin Hayes Elvin Ernest Hayes is an American retired professional basketball player and radio analyst for his alma-mater Houston Cougars.

Best NBA Season: 1970-1971

28.7 points per game
16.6 rebounds per game
2.3 assists per game

Team Record: 40-42

6 Isiah Thomas Isiah Lord Thomas III is an American former basketball player who played professionally for the Detroit Pistons in the National Basketball Association.

Best NBA Season: 1984-1985

21.2 points per game
4.5 rebounds per game
13.9 assists per game
0.3 blocks per game
2.3 steals per game

Team Record: 46-36

7 John Stockton John Houston Stockton is an American retired professional basketball player. He spent his entire professional playing career as a point guard for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association, from 1984 to 2003. Stockton is regarded as one of the best point guards of all time, holding the NBA... read more

Best NBA Season: 1989-1990

17.2 points per game
2.6 rebounds per game
14.5 assists per game
0.2 blocks per game
2.7 steals per game

Team Record: 55-27

8 Patrick Ewing Patrick Aloysius Ewing (born August 5, 1962) is a Jamaican-American retired Hall of Fame basketball player and current head coach of the Georgetown University men's basketball team.

Best NBA Season: 1989-1990

28.6 points per game
10.9 rebounds per game
2.2 assists per game
4.0 blocks per game
1.0 steals per game

Team Record: 45-37

9 Chris Paul Christopher Emmanuel Paul is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association.

Best NBA Season: 2008-2009

22.8 points per game
5.5 rebounds per game
11.0 assists per game
0.1 blocks per game
2.8 steals per game

Team Record: 49-33

10 George Gervin George Gervin, nicknamed "The Iceman," is an American retired professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association and National Basketball Association for the Virginia Squires, San Antonio Spurs, and Chicago Bulls.

Best NBA Season: 1979-1980

33.1 points per game
5.2 rebounds per game
2.6 assists per game
1.0 blocks per game
1.4 steals per game

The Contenders
11 Chris Bosh Christopher Wesson Bosh is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association.
12 Dominique Wilkins Jacques Dominique Wilkins is an American retired professional basketball player who primarily played for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association.
13 Paul Pierce Paul Anthony Pierce is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association.

Best NBA season: 2002-03
26 points per game
7.3 rebounds per game
4.5 assists per game
2 steals per game
1 block per game

14 Tracy McGrady Tracy Lamar McGrady Jr. is an American retired professional basketball player who is best known for his career in the National Basketball Association, where he played as both a shooting guard and small forward.

Best NBA season: 2002-03
32 Points per game
6.5 rebounds per game
5.5 assists per game
1.7 steals per game
1 block per game
Team record: 42-40

15 Yao Ming Yao Ming is a Chinese basketball executive and retired professional basketball player who played for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association and the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association.
16 Clyde Drexler Clyde Austin "The Glide" Drexler is an American retired professional basketball player. During his career, he was a ten-time All-Star, and named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.
17 Rajon Rondo Rajon Pierre Rondo is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association.

Best NBA Season: 2011-12
12 points per game
5 rebounds per game
12 assists per game
2 steals per game
Team Record: 39-27 (lockout season)

In the playoffs, he ramped it up!
17.3 points per game
7 rebounds per game
12 assists per game
2.4 steals per game
He led the Celtics to within one win of the 2012 Finals.

18 Joe Dumars
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