From Iverson to Harden, 7 NBA MVPs Who Never Won an NBA Championship

Joel Embiid is the MVP for the 2022/23 NBA season, beating his closest competitors, Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo, to become the first African-born player to win the award since Hakeem Olajuwon in 1994.

Several MVP winners did not win the title, with Antetokounmpo the last MVP to win an NBA championship.

Legendary stars like Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Stephen Curry, Larry Bird, and Tim Duncan won the MVP award and followed it up with an NBA title.

Fascinating facts about the 10 most successful NBA coaches in league history

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Sports Brief looks at the other MVPs who tried and failed to win an NBA title.

7. Steve Nash (2005, 2006)

Steve Nash won his first MVP award in 2005, averaging 15.5 points and a league-high 11.5 assists with the Phoenix Suns. He scooped the award the following season, carrying the Suns in the absence of Amar’e Stoudemire. Despite the individual accolades, Nash never really got over the hump in the playoffs, losing in the Western Conference finals twice, per the Athletic.

Nash played 18 seasons with the Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, and Los Angeles Lakers, and none of his teams reached the NBA Finals.

6. Russell Westbrook (2007)

Westbrook won his only MVP award in 2017 after averaging a triple-double, the second player to do so in NBA history. Oscar Robertson was the only player in league history to accomplish that feat over a full season. Westbrook now has 198 triple-doubles, the most in NBA history. In the 2020/21 season, he became the first player to average a triple-double for the fourth time in five seasons, per CBS Sports.

However, the only time he came close to winning a ring was in 2012 with the Oklahoma City Thunder. They lost in five games to the LeBron James-led Miami Heat. At 34, the veteran point guard is still waiting for his first title.

5. James Harden (2018)

Harden was Westbrook’s teammate in the 2011/2012 season. Harden was still coming off the bench and ended up winning the 6th Man of the Year award. Since then, he went on to become one of the best offensive stars of the decade, per SI. However, his impeccable run, including the 2018 MVP season, coincided with the rise and rise of the Golden State juggernaut.

His Houston Rockets team went toe to toe with the Warriors for a few seasons. Unfortunately for Harden, his team ended up on the losing side. The farthest the 33-year-old reached was the Western Conference Finals. He is looking to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to the title this season.

4. Derrick Rose (2011)

At 22, Rose was the youngest player ever to win the MVP award. However, injuries derailed a promising career. He has bounced around the league, mainly as a bench player. He was the second Bulls player to win the MVP award, after Jordan, per Sporting News.

3. Allen Iverson (2001)

Iverson is arguably the most talented player ever not to win an NBA title. His list of individual accolades is long; 11-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection, four-time scoring champion, and two-time All-Star MVP. Just like many players on this list, Iverson’s peak coincided with a dynasty demolishing every team on its path. In the 2000/2001 season, it was the Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant-led Los Angeles Lakers.

That season, Iverson led the Sixers to the NBA finals but lacked a supporting cast to take them over the hump. In fact, his team prevented the Lakers from winning the title with a perfect record. His influence on the sport is still being felt across the globe, per GQ.

2. Karl Malone (1997, 1999)

Just Like Iverson, Malone’s peak was met by the Chicago Bulls juggernaut led by none other than Michael Jordan in the late 1990s. Malone appeared in 14 All-Star Games and was an 11-time first-team All-NBA selection. In 18 seasons with the Jazz, the ‘Mailman’ played in all 82 regular-season games 10 times and never missed more than two games in any season.

His Jazz were beaten in the NBA Finals twice by Jordan’s Bulls. He was also part of the 2004 Lakers team that lost the 2004 NBA finals to the Detroit Pistons. However, he will go down as arguably the greatest power forward in NBA history, with only LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar having scored more points than him in NBA history.

1. Charles Barkley (1993)

Before he became the funny NBA analyst on television, Barkley was a force on the court. He played in an era dominated by the great Jordan. In fact, his MVP season saw him go head-to-head with 'His Airness' in the NBA finals.

Barkley's Phoenix Suns lost in six games in what was his only finals appearance, per Bleacher Report.

International winners of NBA MVP

He made history on Tuesday, becoming the sixth NBA player born outside the United States to win the award.

Hakeem Olajuwon, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Nikola Jokic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo are also on that listthe other international players to win the award.