Looks like this "votes count twice" campaign is really pumping up the numbers. There's already 6 players with at least 2 million votes (which I believe is a record), and it looks like there could end up being a few more too. maybe 8-10 when all is said and done.
Kind of interesting looking at historical results. It looks like Magic Johnson was the first to break 1m in '86, Michael Jordan was the first player to break 2m in '97, nobody broke it again until Vince Carter in 2004. After that there were multiple players every year getting 2m+ votes until 2012 (lockout). Then from 2012-2017 there were no 2m+ vote getters, while last year there were 5.
Dwight Howard is the only player to crack 3m, which he did in 2009
Voting differences from year to year is interesting. '89 , '90, and '91 for example. Jordan was the top vote getter all those years, but he went from 1m in '89 to 320k im '90 back up to 1.2m in '91. What happened in '90 for such a low voter turnout? It wasn't just Jordan's votes that were down that year, it was everybody.
'91-'93, Jordan was the only one to break 1m. So '94 with no Jordan it makes sense voting is down with no player at 1m+. But '95 (before Jordan's return) things are better than ever with 6 players at 1m+. '96 (Jordan full return) every starter has 1m+ and same thing in '97 but with Jordan breaking 2m, hitting 2.451m). But then in '98, Jordan is the only player to break 1m and barely does so at 1.028m. So what happened in '98? This was before the lockout, so I it's not like fans were sour about it. No voting in '99 (lockout), but then in 2000 everything is back to normal (9 players at 1m+).
So what was happening in '90 and '98? Did the NBA just not promote voting or try some new format that didn't work?
Also interesting the drop off from 2012-2017 with no 2m+ vote getters. Multiple 2m+ vote getters every year from '05-'11. The Heat superteam formed in 2011, and there was only a slight dip in LeBron and Wade's votes (still at 2m+ though), Bosh took a bigger hit, seeing his votes drop by about 50%. Thought the superteam would actually give him more votes, probably had all of Canada voting for him before though which is probably what hurt him. Felt like the NBA was as popular as ever from '12-'17, so surprised voting was low. One theory I have is lack of a foreign superstar to drive international participation. Yao was a big vote getter up until 2011, then votes dropped (but also lockout). 2018 when voting picks back up (new format) you had strong voting for Giannis, Embiid, Porzingis.