:mrgreen:
Source: Nash to be MVP
Suns guard would be 9th player to win award in consecutive
seasons
Paul Coro
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 26, 2006 12:00 AM
Suns star Steve Nash will be named the NBA's Most Valuable
Player for a second straight season, according to a league
source familiar with the voting.
The announcement may not come for two weeks, like last
season's May 8 ceremony. The votes have been tabulated in
what was expected to be a close race with LeBron James, Dirk
Nowitzki, Chauncey Billups and Kobe Bryant.
Nash won the fourth-closest MVP vote last year, edging
Shaquille O'Neal a year after Nash was not even an All-Star.
Nash, 32, impressed voters this season by posting career
highs in scoring (18.8 points per game), rebounding (4.2 per
game), field goal percentage (.512) and free-throw
percentage (NBA-best .921). He led the league in assists
again with 10.5 per game and finished sixth in three-point
shooting (43.9 percent).
After Amaré Stoudemire's knee surgery deprived the Suns of
their top scorer, Nash led the team to 54 wins and its first
repeat division title with only Shawn Marion and Leandro
Barbosa back for a full season.
Nash would be the first international and Suns player to win
twice.
Only eight previous players repeated as MVP winners. Magic
Johnson was the only point guard to do so.
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns...6nash0426.html