2000 NBA Most Valuable Player: Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)

The 2000 NBA Most Valuable Player was Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers. According to the NBA's official list of MVP winners, the award for 2000 went to him.

Award at a Glance

Field	Detail
Year	2000
Award	NBA Most Valuable Player
Winner	Shaquille O'Neal
Team	Los Angeles Lakers
Career wins	1st

Why It Mattered

The 2000 MVP honored the most dominant and consistent player across the full 82-game regular season. Shaquille O'Neal earned it on the strength of his season-long body of work with the Los Angeles Lakers.

On the all-time NBA Most Valuable Player list, 2000 is Shaquille O'Neal's single appearance — a one-season peak rather than a repeated reign.

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The Other Award That Year

Two individual prizes were handed out in 2000: the NBA Most Valuable Player and the Finals MVP.

• This page's award (NBA Most Valuable Player): Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
• The same year's other award (Finals MVP): Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)

They went to different players — a clean reminder that "best over a whole season" and "most decisive when it mattered most" are two separate questions.

For the distinction between the two awards, see Finals MVP vs MVP.

Year-by-Year Timeline

• Next (2001): Allen Iverson (Philadelphia 76ers) → 2001 NBA Most Valuable Player
• Previous (1999): Karl Malone (Utah Jazz) → 1999 NBA Most Valuable Player

Related Reading

• Complete List of NBA Finals MVPs (1969–2026)
• The History of the Finals MVP Award
• What Is the NBA Finals MVP Award?
• NBA MVP vs Finals MVP: What's the Difference?
• Shaquille O'Neal honor timeline
• 2000 NBA Finals MVP: Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)

Sources

Year, winner and team data on this page were verified against the NBA's official MVP winners list (NBA.com history mvp-winners) and Basketball-Reference public records, cross-checked against this site's two internal reference lists (last verified 2026-08-15).

FMVP Club — Independent fan site, not affiliated with the NBA.

Related Reading

• 2000 NBA Finals MVP: Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
• 2001 NBA Finals MVP: Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
• 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
• Shaquille O'Neal: Hard Work and Role Model— The Weight of a Giant, Carried by Himself