One of the biggest concerns amongst fans, players, and media members in today’s game is centered around load management. You hear older generations of fans claim that this was never how it used to be and that stars would always do whatever it takes to be on the court every night. That statement may be annoying and overused, but it is also factually correct. Players took a sense of pride in being out there every night and putting on a show for the fans that may never see them again. Nowadays, organizations would rather protect their investments by managing how many games they play, and players would rather be safe than sorry.
As mentioned before, even past superstars and MVPs of the league took pride in being able to play all 82 games in a season. In NBA history, there have been 13 players to ever play all 82 games in a season and win the MVP award. Of those 13 players, only Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have been able to accomplish that feat more than once in their careers, and no MVP has played all 82 games since Kobe Bryant in 2008. As it becomes increasingly rare for an MVP to play all 82 games these days, we figured it was time to honor the ones that did it in the past.
Here are the only MVPs in NBA history to play all 82 games in a season.
Wilt Chamberlain – 1 Time
1967-68 MVP Stats: 24.3 PPG, 23.8 RPG, 8.6 APG
Wilt Chamberlain was the first MVP in NBA history to play in all 82 games in 1967-68 as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers. This was nothing new for the man who played the most minutes in a season numerous different times in his career. The 1968-69 season was a special one for Chamberlain as he collected his fourth and final career MVP. Chamberlain would lead the NBA in minutes played with 46.8 minutes per game, the eighth time he led the league in minutes. Chamberlain would also lead the NBA in total assists with 702.
The 1967-68 season was the ninth season in a row that Wilt would record a 20.0 PPG and 20.0 RPG season registering 24.3 PPG and 23.8 RPG. The Sixers would go on to win 62 games with Wilt as their leading scorer, rebounder, and playmaker. The Sixers would get 25.5 PPG and 24.2 RPG in a series win against the Knicks in the first round of the playoffs but would fall to Boston in Game 7 in the Division Finals. Chamberlain’s 1967-68 MVP season is one of the greatest MVP seasons in NBA history.
Wes Unseld – 1 Time
1968-69 MVP Stats: 13.8 PPG, 18.2 RPG, 2.6 APG
Wes Unseld’s 1968-69 MVP season is one of the NBA’s most interesting MVP seasons for a few reasons. The first is that Inseld was named MVP as a rookie, which is something that has only happened twice in NBA history. Wilt Chamberlain was the other occasion in 1959-60. The other reason is that Unseld’s 13.8 PPG makes him one of the lowest-scoring MVPs in NBA history as well, a theme that would follow him throughout his career.
Unseld was valued mostly due to his rebounding and defensive effort. Unseld would stand toe-to-toe with giants and give them the fight of their lives on the court. In his 1969 MVP campaign, Unseld recorded just 17 games with at least 20 points and zero games with over 30. He did, however, record 33 games with at least 20 rebounds and 59 games with at least 15 rebounds. Unseld’s MVP season is the last time we may ever see a rookie take home the award or average below 14.0 PPG.
Dave Cowens – 1 Time
1972-73 MVP Stats: 20.5 PPG, 16.2 RPG, 4.1 APG
The next player to play all 82 games in one MVP season is Dave Cowens, one of Boston’s most underrated stars ever. Cowens was just in his third season in the NBA when he was named MVP, and it would be the only season of the 11 he played in which he appeared in all 82 games in a season. Cowens would end up winning two NBA championships in his career with the Celtics as well as earning eight All-Star selections, three All-NBA Team selections, and three All-Defensive Team selections.
With both Cowens and John Havlicek on the court, the Celtics would win 68 games in 1972-73. Cowens and Havlicek were the only two Celtics to average at least 20.0 PPG and Cowens led the team in rebounding with 16.2 RPG. Cowens would have just nine games with at least 30 points during his MVP run, 17 games with at least 20 rebounds, and 50 games with at least 15 rebounds. Cowens’ MVP season has been the butt of jokes for some time now, but I think it’s time to start giving it a bit more credit.
Bob McAdoo – 1 Time
1974-75 MVP Stats: 34.5 PPG, 14.1 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.1 SPG, 2.1 BPG
The 1974-75 season would be the only time in 14 seasons that Bob McAdoo would play all 82 games in a season and he was rewarded with an MVP award. The 1974-75 season marked the third of McAdoo’s career with the Buffalo Braves and the second of three straight seasons in which he would win a scoring title. He would also lead the NBA in minutes played for 1974-75, seeing the court for 43.2 minutes per game.
McAdoo’s incredible performance would lead the Buffalo Braves to 49 wins and a trip to the NBA playoffs. They would lose their first matchup with the Washington Bullets in seven games. Despite the loss, McAdoo’s season was unforgettable as he recorded 21 40-point games and 58 30-point games on the season. He would also have 35 games with at least 15 rebounds, all while shooting 51.2% from the field and playing elite defense at his position.
Moses Malone – 1 Time
1978-79 MVP Stats: 24.8 PPG, 17.6 RPG, 1.8 APG, 1.0 SPG, 1.5 BPG
To this day, Moses Malone is one of the more underrated players in NBA history. He is a former three-time MVP and a Finals MVP, and an NBA champion with the 76ers in 1983. The only one of his three MVP seasons in which he played in all 82 games came in 1978-79 with the Houston Rockets, his first MVP season. Malone would have an incredible year while leading the league in minutes with 41.3 per game and winning his first of six career rebounding titles with 17.6 RPG.
Malone’s two-way output would earn the Rockets 47 wins on the season, but they were quickly swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Atlanta Hawks. Malone showed why they called him The Chairman Of The Boards during the 1978-79 season, registering 32 games with at least 20 rebounds and 58 games with at least 15 rebounds. He would also have 24 30-point games on the season and 61 games with at least 20 points. Malone would go down as the NBA’s all-time leader in offensive rebounds and one of the greatest centers in league history.
Julius Erving – 1 Time
1980-81 MVP Stats: 24.6 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 4.4 APG, 2.1 SPG, 1.8 BPG
For kids growing up in the 70s and 80s, there wasn’t anyone on the planet quite like Dr. J Julius Erving. The way he influenced the game and its impact is still felt today with the way he flew through the air on both sides of the ball and made it look so damn cool and easy in the process. Erving was an ABA champion and MVP who came over to the NBA when the league merged in 1976. He would help the Sixers advance to four NBA Finals in his career, with one NBA championship coming in 1983.
The 1980-81 MVP would be the first one that Erving took home in the NBA, along with three he won in the ABA. During the 1980-81 season, Erving would lead the Sixers to 62 wins and an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals. Erving’s season was spectacular as he recorded 22 games with at least 30 points scored, as well as 17 games with at least 10 rebounds. Where he really excelled was on the defensive end, where he averaged over 2.0 SPG and 1.5 BPG second of three straight seasons.
Larry Bird – 1 Time
1985-86 MVP Stats: 25.8 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 6.8 APG, 2.0 SPG, 0.6 BPG
When the 1985-86 season rolled around, Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics were locked into one of the greatest rivalries in sports history with the Lakers. Bird had won two straight MVP awards in 1984 and 1985 while winning an NBA championship and Finals MVP in 84’ but falling short in 85’. Cue the 1985-86 season when Bird would lead the Celtics to 67 wins and their third NBA championship of the decade, along with a three-peat as MVP, which nobody has repeated since.
Bird’s 1985-86 season was a special one to watch unfold as he went for his third straight MVP. Bird would record 21 30-point games and six 40-point games on the season, but it was his all-around play that caught everyone’s attention. Bird would have 14 games with at least 10 assists and 40 games with at least 10 rebounds. He would also add 26 games with at least three steals and seven games with at least three blocks.
Karl Malone – 1 Time
1996-97 MVP Stats: 27.4 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.4 SPG, 0.6 BPG
Karl Malone’s 1996-97 MVP award comes with a bit of controversy as many think it should have gone to Michael Jordan that season. Although Malone would lead Utah to the NBA Finals, Jordan would have the last laugh with an NBA championship. As for Malone, he led the Jazz to one of their best seasons in franchise history with 64 wins during the regular season. The 1996-97 season was just one of 10 seasons in which Malone would play every game and one of 17 seasons in which he would play at least 80 games.
Logging in just over 36.0 minutes per game, Malone would help the Jazz become the team to beat in the Western Conference. He would have 33 games with at least 30 points during the 1996-97 regular season and 43 games with at least 10 rebounds. Malone’s defense was some of the best in his career as well, with 14 games of three or more steals and 32 games with at least one block. Malone would never capture an NBA championship in his career, but he is still considered one of the greatest power forwards ever.
Tim Duncan – 1 Time
2001-02 MVP Stats: 25.5 PPG, 12.7 RPG, 3.7 APG, 0.7 SPG, 2.5 BPG
Tim Duncan had one of the greatest starts to his career that any player can claim in NBA history. Within two seasons, he had turned the Spurs into a real contender in the NBA and led them to their first championship in team history in just his second season. The 2001-02 season would be the first of two career MVP wins for Duncan as he would help the Spurs win five NBA championships and claim three Finals MVP awards as well in his 19 seasons with the Spurs.
Everyone knows Duncan’s game wasn’t flashy, but on both sides of the ball, there was nobody better for a period of time. Duncan had one of his best scoring seasons ever in 2001-02 with 20 games of over 30 points which included a 50-point performance. He would also have 25 games with at least 15 rebounds and 40 games with at least three blocks. He was one of the game’s best interior defenders while being one of the game’s toughest assignments on the other end.
Kevin Garnett – 1 Time
2003-04 MVP Stats: 24.2 PPG, 13.9 RPG, 5.0 APG, 1.5 SPG, 2.2 BPG
Kevin Garnett is still the best player in Minnesota Timberwolves’ greatest player in franchise history, and it isn’t particularly close. The main reason for that is the way Garnett put the team on his back during the 90s and 2000s and led them to their greatest heights as a team. The 2003-04 MVP campaign was the peak of his performance, being the clear overall best player in basketball for that season. Garnett would get strong consideration for Defensive Player of the Year on top of his MVP award and would help the Timberwolves reach the Western Conference Finals for the only time ever.
The Timberwolves would win 58 games that season behind Garnett’s rampant run through the NBA’s best competition. In winning his first of four straight rebounding titles, Garnett would have 33 games with 15 rebounds or more during the year. He would also have 16 games with at least three steals and 28 games with at least three blocks while becoming one of the most intimidating interior players of all time. Garnett would eventually get the championship he so desperately desired with the Celtics in 2008 as well as the Defensive Player of the Year award he had already deserved.
Kobe Bryant – 1 Time
2007-08 MVP Stats: 28.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.8 SPG, 0.5 BPG
Kobe Bryant is the last player in NBA history to have won MVP and played all 82 games in a season. That isn’t surprising, considering Kobe famously did everything he could do to be on the court every night. Despite the sacrifice he was willing to make, Bryant only played all 82 games four times in 20 seasons, which doesn’t seem like much but definitely does when it comes to the comparison to today’s stars.
Kobe and the Lakers would set out in 2008 looking to get back to the NBA Finals for the first time in four seasons. They would do so but only to fall short against the Celtics. Fresh off back-to-back scoring titles, Bryant kept up his torrid scoring with seven 40-point games that season and 36 games with at least 30 points. Bryant’s defense was also the best it had ever been, with 29 games while recording at least one block and 24 games with at least three steals.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 4 Times
1970-71 MVP Stats: 31.7 PPG, 16.0 RPG, 3.3 APG
1975-76 MVP Stats: 27.7 PPG, 16.9 RPG, 5.0 APG, 1.5 SPG, 4.1 BPG
1976-77 MVP Stats: 26.2 PPG, 13.3 RPG, 3.9 APG, 1.2 SPG, 3.2 BPG
1979-80 MVP Stats: 24.8 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.0 SPG, 3.4 BPG
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the only player in NBA history to win six MVP awards in his career. Being able to play all 82 games in four of those seasons was something truly magical to watch. Kareem won his first MVP with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1971, the same year in which he would win an NBA championship and Finals MVP with the team. It was also the first of two career scoring titles for Kareem that season.
Kareem would then go back-to-back as MVP while playing all 82 games in 1976 and 1977 with the Lakers. Over those two seasons, Kareem averaged 27.0 PPG, 15.1 RPG, and 3.7 BPG while winning a rebounding title and a blocks title in 1976. His final MVP while playing all 82 games came in 1980 with the Lakers, a season that resulted in an NBA championship. Kareem would win his fourth career blocks title that season, and it was his seventh straight season averaging at least 3.0 BPG.
Michael Jordan – 4 Times
1987-88 MVP Stats 35.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 5.9 APG, 3.2 SPG, 1.6 BPG
1990-91 MVP Stats: 31.5 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 5.5 APG, 2.7 SPG, 1.0 BPG
1995-96 MVP Stats: 30.4 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 4.3 APG, 2.2 SPG, 0.5 BPG
1997-98 MVP Stats: 28.7 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.7 SPG, 0.5 BPG
To end our list of the NBA players to win MVP while playing all 82 games in a season is the greatest player that ever lived, Michael Jordan. Jordan, of course, holds the NBA record for Finals MVP awards won with six and holds the highest number of MVPs and Finals MVPs combined. He got his MVP journey started in 1998 when he had one of the best MVP seasons ever. He won a Defensive Player of the Year award as well as a steals title and one of his 10 scoring titles, another NBA record he holds.
The next three times that Michael Jordan would play all 82 games and win MVP would all result in a scoring title, NBA championship, and Finals MVP for him. Jordan was no stranger to playing every game in a season, as he did it for nine of his 15 NBA seasons. He led the NBA in minutes played per game twice as well to go along with his three steals titles and the aforementioned 10 scoring titles. Jordan’s spot atop a list that includes playing every game and winning MVP is yet another testament to his obsession with winning basketball games and its legendary status in NBA history.
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