NBA: Mavs Dirk Nowitzki Named NBA MVP

Nowitzki is the first European-born player to win the NBA MVP Award.

Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks was named the winner of the Maurice Podoloff Trophy as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the 2006-07 season. Photo: NBA.com

NEW YORK - Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks was named the winner of the Maurice Podoloff Trophy as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the 2006-07 season, the NBA announced today.

The nine-year NBA veteran totaled 1,138 points, including 83 first place votes, from a panel of 129 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada.

Players were awarded 10 points for each first-place vote, seven points for each second-place vote, five for third, three for fourth and one for each fifth-place vote received.

Rounding out the top five in voting for MVP were Phoenix’s Steve Nash (1,013 points/44 first-place votes), the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (521 points/two first-place votes), San Antonio’s Tim Duncan (286 points) and Cleveland’s LeBron James (183 points).

Nowitzki is the first European-born player to win the NBA MVP Award and joins Hakeem Olajuwon of the Houston Rockets (1993-94), Duncan (2001-02 and 2002-03) and Nash (2004-05 and 2005-06) on the list of international players that have captured the Podoloff Trophy.

The seven-foot forward led the Mavericks to the best-record (67-15, .817) in the NBA, tying for the sixth-best single-season winning percentage in NBA history.

Nowitzki averaged team highs of 24.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and a career-best 3.4 assists while setting career-highs in field goal percentage (.502), three-point field goal percentage (.416) and free throw percentage (.904). The Mavericks were an impressive 18-1 when he scored 30 or more points.

This season marked his sixth straight NBA All-Star Game appearance and his first start in the Game, a first for a Maverick. Nowitzki was named to the All-NBA First Team for the third consecutive year.

Nowitzki was the team leader as the Mavericks became the first team in NBA history to record three streaks of 12 or more wins (12, 13 and 17) and just the fourth team ever to have three double-digit winning streaks in the same season.

He was the only player in the league this season to shoot at least 50 percent from the field (.502), 40 percent from three-point range (.416) and 90 percent from the freethrow line (.904).

The NBA MVP trophy is named in honor of the late Maurice Podoloff, the first commissioner of the NBA who served from 1946 until his retirement in 1963.

2006-07 MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARD VOTING RESULTS

Player, Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Pts

Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas 83 39 7 - - 1138

Steve Nash, Phoenix 44 74 11 - - 1013

Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers 2 11 65 30 9 521

Tim Duncan, San Antonio - 3 25 39 23 286

LeBron James, Cleveland - - 11 31 35 183

Tracy McGrady, Houston - 2 6 16 18 110

Chris Bosh, Toronto - - 3 4 16 43

Gilbert Arenas, Washington - - 1 4 14 31

Kevin Garnett, Minnesota - - - 2 1 7

Carlos Boozer, Utah - - - 1 4 7

Chauncey Billups, Detroit - - - 1 1 4

Dwyane Wade, Miami - - - - 3 3

Shaquille O’Neal, Miami - - - 1 0 3

Amaré Stoudemire, Phoenix - - - - 2 2

Carmelo Anthony, Denver - - - - 1 1

Baron Davis, Golden State - - - - 1 1

Tony Parker, San Antonio - - - - 1 1

ALL-TIME NBA MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARD WINNERS

1955-56: Bob Pettit, St. Louis

1956-57: Bob Cousy, Boston

1957-58: Bill Russell, Boston

1958-59: Bob Pettit, St. Louis

1959-60: Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia

1960-61: Bill Russell, Boston

1961-62: Bill Russell, Boston

1962-63: Bill Russell, Boston

1963-64: Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati

1964-65: Bill Russell, Boston

1965-66: Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia

1966-67: Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia

1967-68: Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia

1968-69: Wes Unseld, Baltimore

1969-70: Willis Reed, New York

1970-71: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Milwaukee

1971-72: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Milwaukee

1972-73: Dave Cowens, Boston

1973-74: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Milwaukee

1974-75: Bob McAdoo, Buffalo

1975-76: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles

1976-77: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles

1977-78: Bill Walton, Portland

1978-79: Moses Malone, Houston

1979-80: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles

1980-81: Julius Erving, Philadelphia

1981-82: Moses Malone, Houston

1982-83: Moses Malone, Philadelphia

1983-84: Larry Bird, Boston

1984-85: Larry Bird, Boston

1985-86: Larry Bird, Boston

1986-87: Magic Johnson, LA Lakers

1987-88: Michael Jordan, Chicago

1988-89: Magic Johnson, LA Lakers

1989-90: Magic Johnson, LA Lakers

1990-91: Michael Jordan, Chicago

1991-92: Michael Jordan, Chicago

1992-93: Charles Barkley, Phoenix

1993-94: Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston

1994-95: David Robinson, San Antonio

1995-96: Michael Jordan, Chicago

1996-97: Karl Malone, Utah

1997-98: Michael Jordan, Chicago

1998-99: Karl Malone, Utah

1999-00: Shaquille O'Neal, LA Lakers

2000-01: Allen Iverson, Philadelphia

2001-02: Tim Duncan, San Antonio

2002-03: Tim Duncan, San Antonio

2003-04: Kevin Garnett, Minnesota

2004-05: Steve Nash, Phoenix

2005-06: Steve Nash, Phoenix

2006-07: Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas

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