Who Has the Most MVPs in the NBA?

We take a look at which NBA players have the most MVPs under their belts.

Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time. He was a dominant force on the court, winning six NBA Finals MVPs and five regular season MVPs. Jordan also holds the record for the most points scored in a single season.

MVPs

Michael Jordan is widely considered to be the greatest basketball player of all time. During his storied career, he won six NBA Championships with the Chicago Bulls and was named MVP a record six times. He is also a two-time Olympic gold medalist and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

Although there have been many great players in the NBA, no one has matches Jordan’s accomplishments. He is the only player in history to win MVP honors in each of his first four seasons and he is the only player to ever win back-to-back MVP awards four times. He also holds the record for most consecutive seasons (10) with at least 2,000 points scored.

Jordan’s individual accomplishments are just as impressive as his team successes. He was named Rookie of the Year in 1985 and went on to lead the league in scoring a record 10 times. He was also named Defensive Player of the Year in 1988 and holds the NBA records for highest career scoring average (30.12 points per game) and most steals in a season (252).

Championships

Jordan is a five-time NBA MVP, six-time NBA Finals MVP, and ten-time All-NBA First Team selection. He was also a member of the 1992 United States Olympic “Dream Team” that won the gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Jordan’s individual accomplishments and career achievements include becoming the NBA’s all-time scoring leader, appearing on the ten lists of the greatest athletes of the 20th century by ESPN, being named as one of America’s Greatest Living Legends by CNN in 2003, and earning inductions into the Basketball Hall of Fame (in 2009) and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (in 2010).

Other awards

In addition to his five MVP awards, Jordan was a 14-time All-Star, six-time NBA Finals MVP, ten-time scoring champion, nine-time All-Defensive First Team selection, and the 1988 Defensive Player of the Year. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009. Jordan is also considered one of the best defensive players in NBA history. In 1991, he received the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award.

LeBron James

LeBron James is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely considered one of the greatest NBA players in history, James is frequently compared to Michael Jordan in debates over the greatest basketball player of all time. He has won four NBA championships, four NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, four Finals MVP Awards, and two Olympic gold medals.

MVPs

MVPs
LeBron James has the most MVPs in the NBA with four. He won his first MVP in 2009, and then again in 2010, 2012 and 2013. Kobe Bryant has the second most MVPs with two, while Michael Jordan, Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain all have one.

Championships

In his 16 seasons in the NBA, LeBron James has won many awards. He is a four-time MVP, a three-time champion, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist. He is also a 14-time All-Star and a 10-time All-NBA selection. Below is a list of all of LeBron’s accomplishments.

4× NBA Most Valuable Player (2009, 2010, 2012, 2013)
3× NBA champion (2012, 2013, 2016)
2× NBA Finals MVP (2012, 2013)
NBA Rookie of the Year (2004)
14× NBA All-Star (2005–2018)
3× NBA All-Star Game MVP (2006, 2008, 2018)
10× All-NBA First Team (2006, 2008–2017)
2× All-NBA Second Team (2005, 2007)
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (2009–2013)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2004)

Other awards

LeBron James has won many awards throughout his career. In addition to being a four-time NBA MVP, he was also named NBA Rookie of the Year in 2004, and he has been selected to the All-NBA First Team twelve times and the All-Defensive First Team six times. He has also won two Olympic gold medals as a member of the U.S. men’s national basketball team.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American former professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. A member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two as an assistant coach, Abdul-Jabbar twice was voted NBA Finals MVP. In 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. NBA coach Pat Riley and players Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan have called him the greatest basketball player of all time.

MVPs

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American retired professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. A member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two as an assistant coach, Abdul-Jabbar twice was voted NBA Finals MVP. In 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. NBA coach Pat Riley and players LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal have called him the greatest basketball player of all time.

After winning 72 consecutive basketball games on his high school team in New York City, Abdul-Jabbar accepted a scholarship to play for John Wooden and Bill Walton at UCLA. He played on three consecutive national championship teams (1967–69), and his college career culminated with a win over Archie Dees’s Purdue team in the 1969 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament—the Bruins’ first undefeated season in 63 years. Wooden considered Abdul-Jabbar to be the greatest player he ever coached, and Walton once remarked that he “would pay to see Kareem play.”

Abdul-Jabbar was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the first overall pick in the 1969 NBA draft. In 1971, he took over as starting center from Lew Alcindor (who had changed his name to Kareem four years earlier), leading the Bucks to an NBA championship in 1971–72 while earning Finals MVP honors, becoming only the second rookie after Wilt Chamberlain to achieve this feat. He remains the only player who has been voted MVP in each of his first 10 seasons before being named co-MVP with close friend Magic Johnson for their shared 1982–83 season. As of 2019–20, he is ranked third all time in points scored (38,387), games played (1,560), minutes played (57,446) and blocked shots (3,189). He has also been honored with 14 All-Star Game selections—more than any other player except for Kobe Bryant—and 11 All-Defensive team selections; both are records for centers early 21st century.

Championships

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American former professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. A member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two more as an assistant coach, Abdul-Jabbar twice was voted NBA Finals MVP. In 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. NBA coach Pat Riley and players LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal have called him the greatest basketball player of all time.

Abdul-Jabbar has also been an important figure off the court. His political activism includes contributions to causes such as the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, and UNICEF. Since retiring from basketball, he has been a best-selling author, public speaker, and entrepreneur.

Other awards

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has not only the most MVP awards in the NBA, but he also has the most Defensive Player of the Year awards and the most All-Star game appearances. He is also a six-time champion, a five-time NBA Finals MVP, and a three-time All-Star game MVP.

Bill Russell

Bill Russell has the most MVPs in the NBA with 11. He is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won eleven NBA championships during his thirteen-year career.

MVPs

Bill Russell is an American retired professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Valuable Player and a twelve-time All-Star, he was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won eleven NBA championships during his thirteen-year career. Russell and Henri Richard of the Montreal Canadiens are tied for the record of the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league. Russell led the University of San Francisco to two consecutive NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, and he captained the gold-medal winning U.S. national team at the 1956 Summer Olympics.

In retirement, Russell served as head coach of the Celtics (1966–69), becoming one of only two players-turned-coaches to win an NBA championship. He also acted in movies and on television, most notably playing for Coach Calhoun in The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh in 1979. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1974 and was voted one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History by the NBA in 1996, one of only four players to receive that honor that year.

Championships

Bill Russell is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Valuable Player and a twelve-time All-Star, he was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty, winning eleven NBA championships during his thirteen-year career. Russell and Henri Richard of the Montreal Canadiens are tied for the record of the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league.

Other awards

In addition to his five MVPs, Bill Russell holds the record for the most championships (11), was a 12-time All-Star, and was named to the All-Defensive First Team 10 times. He was also named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996, and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1974.

Magic Johnson

Magic Johnson is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 13 seasons. After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the Lakers. He won a championship and an NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) in his rookie season, and won four more championships with the Lakers during the 1980s. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had contracted HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996, at age 36, to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time.

MVPs

Johnson was the National Basketball Association (NBA)’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times (1989, 1990, 1996), an All-Star twelve times, and the NBA Finals MVP in both 1980 and 1982. He won Olympic gold medals as a member of the 1992 United States men’s Olympic basketball team (“The Dream Team”) and the 1996 United States men’s Olympic basketball team (“The Dirty Dozen”). He was a member of five NBA championship teams–1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988–and is considered one of the greatest playmakers of all time. Johnson was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996, and elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.

Championships

Born in Lansing, Michigan, Earvin “Magic” Johnson played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers for 13 seasons. He helped the team to five NBA championships and was named MVP three times. He also won an Olympic gold medal as part of the “Dream Team” in 1992. After retiring from basketball, Johnson became a successful businessman, investing in movies, restaurants, and fitness clubs. He also works as a motivational speaker and philanthropist.

Other awards

The NBA Finals MVP Award is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1969 NBA Finals. The award is decided by a panel of eleven media members, who cast votes after the conclusion of the Finals. The person with the highest number of votes wins the award. The award was originally awarded to the player on the winning team with the best regular season record, but it is now awarded to the best player in the entire playoffs, regardless of which team wins.

In 1984, Larry Bird became the only player in NBA history to be named Finals MVP three times (he also won in 1986 and 1987). Magic Johnson is the only other player to have won the award multiple times, having done so on four occasions (1980, 1982, 1987, and 1988). Michael Jordan was named Finals MVP for a record six times (1991–93, 1996–98). LeBron James has won four times (2012–13, 2016–17) and Kawhi Leonard has won two times (2019–20).