Top 5 NBA players who could've won the MVP award but didn't

#3 Kobe Bryant – 2005-06

While Steve Nash obviously deserved the award on the basis of being on the better team, the Suns finished fourth in the Conference with the LA Lakers finishing ninth. Shaquille O’Neal had joined the Miami Heat and the Lakers were not title contenders. Bryant was still the best player in the league by a comprehensive margin. He won the scoring award and had a stat-line of 35.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists. In comparison, Steve Nash led the league in assists but had 18.8 points per game, and shot at almost 44% from the three-point zone. Again, the fact that Bryant was on a weaker team led to the surprise selection.

Steve Nash during Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Five ..

#2 LeBron James – 2010-11

Derrick Rose improved his scoring to average more than 25 points per game for the first time in his career. However, he only won the award because LeBron James had made his intentions known to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers. While Rose had marginal leads in assists and three-point shooting, LeBron was comprehensively the better player overall during the regular season.

Former NBA MVP Derrick Rose signing with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Story on ESPN: https://t.co/HfXT5Hh4tW

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 8, 2018

He had a stat-line of 26.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists compared to Rose’s 25 points, 4.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists, and trailed James in blocks, steals, minutes, field goal percentage, effective field goal percentage, box plus-minus, PER and net rating. LeBron had won two straight MVPs and clearly deserved a third one as well.

#1 Oscar Robertson and Wilt Chamberlain – 1961-63

Bill Russell won the 1961-62 MVP award and followed it up with two more in the coming seasons. However, Wilt Chamberlain’s statistics were by far better, with Oscar Robertson also posting what was the first ever triple-double season in the NBA. The Celtics dynasty was only finding steam when Russell went on to win two more lopsided MVP voting contests the following seasons.

2019 NBA All-Star Game

He finished with a stat line of 18.9 points, 23.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists but did not lead in either of those categories, with Wilt Chamberlain posting superhuman figures of 50.4 points and 25.7 rebounds. Robertson’s stat line had 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists, and either of those two would have had a better chance of winning the award under the new voting system.