"Magic Johnson Trophy" redirects here. For the Professional Basketball Writers Association award for dealing with media and public, see Magic Johnson Award.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) annually honors the most valuable players (MVPs) of both of its conference finals.[1] Presented since the 2022 playoffs, the awards are decided by a panel of media members, who cast votes after the conclusion of the conference finals. The person with the highest number of votes in each conference wins the award. The Larry Bird Trophy is awarded to the MVP from the Eastern Conference and the Earvin "Magic" Johnson Trophy for the Western Conference.[2] Their namesakes, Hall of Fame players Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, both made their NBA debuts in 1979, and their bi-coastal rivalry in the 1980s helped revive and popularize the league.[1][3][4] The inaugural recipients were Jayson Tatum (Eastern Conference), and Stephen Curry (Western Conference).