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James, 28, became the youngest player in NBA history to win four MVPs after receiving 120 of 121 first-place votes by league media members and analysts. The lone other first-place vote went to Knicks star Carmelo Anthony.

It was the second time a player fell one vote short of an unanimous MVP selection, with Shaquille O'Neal also receiving 120 of 121 first-place votes in 1999-2000.

"It's probably a writer out of New York that didn't give me the vote," James said during Sunday's award ceremony at AmericanAirlines Arena. "I know the history between the Heat and the Knicks. So I get it."

A league spokesman said Sunday the NBA does not release the names of award voters or their ballots. But coming up short of a unanimous selection didn't overshadow a historic feat for James, who joined Michael Jordan, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain as the only players in NBA history to win at least four MVP awards.

James also joined Russell as the only players to win the award four times in five seasons. And it was the third MVP trophy James has collected in the span of 12 months. After winning the MVP last season in May, James said he would trade in his third Maurice Podoloff trophy for a first championship. Two months later, he led the Heat to a title and was named Finals MVP after beating Oklahoma City.

Thunder forward Kevin Durant finished second to James in MVP voting for the second straight year, with Anthony third, Chris Paul fourth and Kobe Bryant fifth in votes.

James is coming off the most efficient season he's ever had after shooting a career-high 56.5 percent from the field and 40.6 percent from 3-point range. He averaged 26.8 points, a career-high 8.0 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game.

Now, James has his sights set on another evasive honor: Defensive Player of the Year. James was upset two weeks ago when he finished second for the second time in his career for that distinction. Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol was named defensive player of the year.

"I tried harder to win defensive player of the year than I did MVP," James said. "That's my goal. Coach (Erik Spoelstra) had me guarding every position. We'll try again next year."

But before that, James will try help the Heat defend their title when they open Game 1 of their second-round series against the Chicago Bulls on Monday. The Heat haven't played since they completed a four-game sweep of the Milwaukee Bucks on April 28 in the opening round.

"I've been anxious for a while," James said Sunday. "But I'm just excited to get back to basketball right now."