2000 Regular-Season MVP: The Coronation of a Peak Year

In the 1999-2000 season, Shaquille O'Neal delivered the most dominant regular-season performance of his career and was named MVP almost without dispute. It was the only regular-season MVP of his career, yet it landed exactly at his peak — seamlessly followed by the three-peat and three straight FMVPs that opened a perfect dynasty year one.

That season Shaq averaged 29.7 points, 13.6 rebounds and 3.0 blocks, shooting 57.4%. On defense he was among the league's best rim protectors; on offense he was every team's nightmare — you knew the ball was going to him, and you still couldn't stop it. His MVP vote share led the league with little suspense: when a center maxes out scoring, rebounding and defensive impact while leading his team near the top of the West, the argument disappears.

The MVP meant something special to Shaq. In Orlando he was a genius No. 1 pick and a draw, but often tagged "more talent than maturity." In L.A., as Kobe grew and Phil Jackson brought the triangle, Shaq fused body and skill into the sharpest weapon. The 2000 MVP crowned the transformation "from prodigy to king."

Notably, 2000 was also the year he swept both regular-season and Finals MVP — the start of a "double MVP year" fans would repeat for years. For a center known for power, putting MVP on the résumé meant he was no longer just "the best dunker," but the most valuable player of that season.

Years later, 2000 Shaq looks like a watershed: before, atalented prodigy; after, a ruler with MVP and three-peat credentials entering the all-time center conversation. That regular-season MVP was the signal the legend had truly begun.

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• 2002 NBA Finals MVP: Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
• Shaquille O'Neal: Glory and Idol— When the Strongest Giant Became the Most Likable Symbol