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The 27-year-old Ljubljana native got 408 of a possible 1,134 points, receiving 65 first-place votes from a panel of 126 sports writers and broadcasters from the US and Canada covering the world's strongest basketball league.

Dragić left behind the versatile guard Lance Stephenson of the Indiana Pacers (158 points) and Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans (155 points), one of the league's best young players.

Playing his sixth season in the NBA, Dragić averaged a career-best 20.3 points to go with 5.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds, while the Suns finished one game shy of a play-off spot, defying all expectations.

Dragić is the third Sun to win the award, joining Kevin Johnson (1988/89) and Boris Diaw (2005/06).

He also received international recognition this season, making the all-tournament team of 2013 EuroBasket in Slovenia and being voted the fifth best European player in a poll carried out by FIBA Europe.