NBA's Best Individual Seasons

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Nov 17, 2008

NBA's Best Individual Seasons

Wilt Chamberlain

Chamberlain averaged 50.4 points and 25.7 rebounds for the Warriors in their last season in Philadelphia before moving to San Francisco.

Charles Barkley

The first player to win an MVP award one year after being traded, Barkley averaged 25.6 points, 12.2 rebounds and a career-high 5.1 assists in leading Phoenix to its first NBA Finals appearance since 1976.

Michael Jordan

Jordan won his second MVP award by averaging 31.5 points on 53.9 percent shooting during the regular season, and his first Finals MVP award after scoring 31.2 points per game against the Lakers.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Abdul-Jabbar (left) won the MVP award in his second season, averaging an NBA-high 31.7 points and 16.0 rebounds. He also was named Finals MVP after averaging 26.6 points and 17.0 rebounds in the Bucks' championship run.

Oscar Robertson

In his second NBA season, Robertson averaged 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and a league-leading 11.4 assists for the Cincinnati Royals. He is the only player to average a triple-double for a season.

Shaquille O'Neal

O'Neal earned league MVP, Finals MVP and All-Star MVP honors while scoring a career-high 29.7 points and pulling down 13.6 rebounds en route to the NBA title.

Magic Johnson

Johnson led the Lakers to the NBA Finals while averaging 18.3 points and 12.6 assists. He averaged over 15 assists in the Lakers' six-game Finals win over the Celtics.

Larry Bird

Bird averaged 25.8 points to win his third-straight MVP award, a feat only matched by Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. He went on to win the NBA Finals MVP, too, as the Celtics won their third championship in six years.<br><br>Send comments to siwriters@simail.com