WASHINGTON, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash received the NBA's Most Valuable Player in Phoenix Sunday for the second straight season, becoming the first point guard since Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson to take home the award in consecutive campaigns.
Johnson accomplished the feat following the 1988-1989 and 1989-90 seasons. Nash and San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan, who took home the award in 2002 and 2003, have won four out of the last five MVP honors.
Nash won the award with 57 first-place votes for 924 total points. Cleveland Cavaliers guard LeBron James finished second with 16-first place votes and a total of 688 points. Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks finished third with 14-first place votes and 544 points.
Nash barely beat Miami Heat center Shaquille O'Neal in the fourth-closest MVP vote last season.
A year after leading Phoenix to a franchise record-tying 62 wins and averaging a league-leading 11.5 assists, Nash dazzled voters with not just his statistics, but his ability to carry a team that played all but three regular-season games without injured star forward Amare Stoudemire.
Nash, 32, led the Suns to 54 wins and their first repeat division title with just Shawn Marion and Leandro Barbosa back for a full season. Nash's unselfish nature and great court vision allowed role players Boris Diaw, Raja Bell and Tim Thomas to shine.
Nash also recorded career highs in scoring (18.8 ppg), rebounding (4.2 rpg), field-goal percentage (.512) and free-throw percentage (NBA-best .921). The All-Star also dished out a league-leading 10.5 assists per game and drained 43.9 percent of his three-point attempts.
The Suns advanced to the second round of the playoffs on Saturday, beating the Los Angeles Lakers 121-90 in Game 7 of their Western Conference quarterfinal series. The second-seeded Suns blanketed LA's Bryant and became the eighth team in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 series deficit to advance.
Phoenix will face the Los Angeles Clippers in the conference semifinals, starting Monday at US Airways Center. Enditem
NBA most valuable player voting
WASHINGTON, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Following are the NBA Most Valuable Player voting this season (first-place votes in parentheses):
Player, Team Points
Steve Nash, Phoenix (57) 924
LeBron James, Cleveland (16) 688
Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas (14) 544
Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers (22) 483
Chauncey Billups, Detroit 430
Dwyane Wade, Miami 87
Elton Brand, L.A. Clippers (1) 50
Tim Duncan, San Antonio 33
Tony Parker, San Antonio 9
Allen Iverson, Philadelphia 1
Shawn Marion, Phoenix 1
NBA Most Most Valuable Player awards
WASHINGTON, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Following are the NBA Most Most Valuable Player awards since 1956 when the award was presented:
6: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1971-72, 1974, 1976-77, 1980)
5: Bill Russell (1958, 1961-63, 1965); Michael Jordan (1988,1991-92, 1996, 1998)
4: Wilt Chamberlain (1960, 1966-68)
3: Larry Bird (1984-86); Magic Johnson (1987, 1989-90); Moses Malone (1979, 1982-83)
2: Tim Duncan (2002-03); Karl Malone (1997, 1999); Steve Nash(2005-06); Bob Pettit (1956, 1959).
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