Who won the 2026 NBA Finals MVP?

Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks won the 2026 NBA Finals MVP. The Knicks won the title, their first championship since 1973, ending a 53-year wait.

How is the Finals MVP decided?

A panel of about 11 sportswriters and broadcasters votes immediately after the final game of the Finals. Each first-place vote is worth one point and the player with the most points receives the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award.

Has any player won the Finals MVP from the losing team?

Yes, exactly once: Jerry West in 1969, the inaugural year of the award, when the Lakers lost the series to the Celtics.

NBA Finals MVP 2026: Winner, Voting, Highlights

The 2026 Finals are done: the Knicks won the title and Jalen Brunson took Finals MVP. Includes voting rules and recent winners.

The 2026 Finals MVP: Jalen Brunson

The 2026 NBA Finals are in the books. The New York Knicks won the championship and Jalen Brunson was named Finals MVP, taking home the Bill Russell trophy. It is the Knicks' first title since 1973, ending a 53-year wait. Brunson was New York's first option in crunch time and the focal point of the opponent's defensive game plan for the entire series, and he finished the job at home.

Why Brunson won it

Finals MVP looks only at the series, not the season. The case usually comes down to three things:

Clutch scoring: production with the game on the line in the final minutes.
Changing the series: forcing the opponent to rework its defensive scheme.
Consistency: no prolonged cold stretches across up to seven games.

Brunson led the Knicks in all three, so even with other scoring options on the roster, the first-place votes consolidated around him.

Voting rules and voters

The Finals MVP is chosen by a panel of about 11 sportswriters and broadcasters who cover the series. Voting takes place immediately after the final game. Each panelist submits a first choice worth one point, and the player with the most points wins. The trophy has carried Bill Russell's name since 2009. It has almost always gone to a player on the winning team, the sole exception being Jerry West in 1969.

Recent Finals MVP winners

2026: Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
2025: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
2024: Jaylen Brown (Celtics)
2023: Nikola Jokić (Nuggets)
2022: Stephen Curry (Warriors)

SGA's 2025 award came alongside the regular-season MVP — the 16th and most recent same-season double since the Finals MVP was created in 1969.

For the full breakdown of the 2026 title run, see the NBA Championship Deep Dive Series in the related hubs below. You can also browse the all-time list, the voting rules, and how Finals MVP differs from regular-season MVP.