Finishing an NBA season by being named the Most Improved Player (MIP) or Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an achievement that all basketball players strive for.
The awards give recognition for a player’s outstanding contribution to the season and the battle to be handed the awards are usually fierce.
Jayson Tatum is in the MVP race this season, his Boston Celtics side are currently sat pretty in second place in the Eastern Conference.
It’s a great honour for players to be awarded either the MIP or MVP award but one player has won both.
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo has been a shining light in the NBA since he arrived in 2013.
The ‘Greek Freak’ as he is often referred to was selected as the 15th first-round pick in the NBA Draft.
Antetokounmpo continues to show season after season why he is one of the very best. Giannis recently hit out at Kendrick Perkins criticism of him.
Giannis was named MIP in the Bucks 2017 season where he averaged 22.7 points per game. This helped the Bucks to secure a winning record (42-40) for the first time since 2010.
It would only take two more years for 6ft 11′ power forward to be named the league’s MVP. He became only the second Bucks payer to be given the award after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
He then etched his name into the history books once more when in September 2020 he won his second consecutive Most Valuable Player award.
Giannis averaged 29.5 points, 13.6 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game in the 2019 season which saw him righty handed the prize.
Giannis is currently in this year’s MVP race, and has shone with some recent standout performances including a triple-double against the Washington Wizards.
Despite Giannis being the only player to win both the MIP and MVP awards a host of other players have rightly been recognised for their starring season performances.
The MIP award is annually given to the player who has shown the most improvement from one season to another.
Here is a look at some of the recent winners of the MIP award.
| Winner | Year |
| Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers’) | 2024 |
| Lauri Markkanen (Utah Jazz) | 2023 |
| Ja Morant (Memphis Grizzlies) | 2022 |
Of the recent three winners Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies has the best chance of following in the footsteps of Giannis by winning both the MIP and MVP awards.
The Grizzlies have started this season strongly and currently sit third in the Western Conference with a record of 14-8.
The guard has averaged over 25 points per game in his last three seasons and is currently averaging 22 this season.
The ability of Morant is unquestionable, however, he will need to prove that he can lead the Grizzlies to playoff success if he is to challenge at the highest level for the MVP award.
Since Morant arrived at the Grizzlies they are yet to make it beyond a Conference Semifinals.
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