How Many MVPs Does Michael Jordan Have? 5 MVPs and 6 Finals MVPs
How many MVPs does Michael Jordan have? Five regular season MVP awards, won in 1988, 1991, 1992, 1996 and 1998. All 5 came with the Chicago Bulls.
He also won 6 Finals MVPs and 3 All-Star Game MVPs. That makes 14 MVP awards in all, more than any other NBA player. Since December 2022, the league’s MVP trophy has carried his name: the Michael Jordan Trophy.
Every MVP vote of Jordan’s career
He finished in the top 3 of the MVP vote 10 times. Tap a season to see the finish and the awards he won that year.
Every MVP vote of his career
Tap a season to see where he finished. Pick an award to light up every season he won it.
- 5MVP
- 6Finals MVP
- 3All-Star MVP
- 14In all
Regular season MVP voting, Finals MVP, All-Star Game MVP and league awards. As of October 2026.
Jordan’s 5 MVP seasons
| Season | Bulls record | Points a game | First place votes | Second place | How the season ended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987-88 | 50-32 | 35.0 | 47 | Larry Bird | Lost to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference semifinals, 4-1 |
| 1990-91 | 61-21 | 31.5 | 77 | Magic Johnson | Won the title over the Lakers |
| 1991-92 | 67-15 | 30.1 | 80 | Clyde Drexler | Won the title over the Trail Blazers |
| 1995-96 | 72-10 | 30.4 | 109 of 113 | David Robinson | Won the title over the SuperSonics |
| 1997-98 | 62-20 | 28.7 | 92 | Karl Malone | Won the title over the Jazz |
Regular season record and scoring average, with the MVP vote. Data as of October 2026.
His first MVP came in 1987-88, when he led the league with 35.0 points a game. He was also named Defensive Player of the Year. No player had won both awards in the same season before.
Hakeem Olajuwon matched it in 1993-94, and Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2019-20.
In 1995-96, the Bulls went 72-10, and Jordan got 109 of the 113 first place votes. His last MVP came 2 years later, at 34. He took 92 first place votes to Karl Malone’s 20.
Top 3 finishes without the award
| Season | Jordan’s finish | MVP winner |
|---|---|---|
| 1986-87 | 2nd | Magic Johnson |
| 1988-89 | 2nd | Magic Johnson |
| 1989-90 | 3rd | Magic Johnson |
| 1992-93 | 3rd | Charles Barkley |
| 1996-97 | 2nd | Karl Malone |
Regular season MVP voting. Data as of October 2026.
The 1996-97 race was close. Malone got 986 points and 63 first place votes. Jordan got 957 points and 52 first place votes. The Bulls then beat Malone’s Jazz in the Finals.
Jordan’s 6 Finals MVPs
| Finals | Opponent | Series | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-1 | 31.2 | 6.6 | 11.4 |
| 1992 | Portland Trail Blazers | 4-2 | 35.8 | 4.8 | 6.5 |
| 1993 | Phoenix Suns | 4-2 | 41.0 | 8.5 | 6.3 |
| 1996 | Seattle SuperSonics | 4-2 | 27.3 | 5.3 | 4.2 |
| 1997 | Utah Jazz | 4-2 | 32.3 | 7.0 | 6.0 |
| 1998 | Utah Jazz | 4-2 | 33.5 | 4.0 | 2.3 |
Jordan’s averages for each game of the series. Data as of October 2026.
He reached the Finals 6 times and was Finals MVP every time. LeBron James is next on the list, with 4.
He averaged 41.0 points against Phoenix in 1993. It is still the highest average for any NBA Finals.
Jordan’s 3 All-Star Game MVPs
| Year | Host city |
|---|---|
| 1988 | Chicago |
| 1996 | San Antonio |
| 1998 | New York |
NBA All-Star Game MVP. Data as of October 2026.
Kobe Bryant and Bob Pettit have the most All-Star Game MVPs, with 4 each. Jordan is one of several players with 3.
When the MVP awards stacked up
Jordan won the MVP and the Finals MVP in the same season 4 times: 1990-91, 1991-92, 1995-96 and 1997-98. No other player has done it more than twice.
In 1995-96 and 1997-98, he added the All-Star Game MVP too. That gave him all 3 MVP awards in one season. Two other players have done that once each.
Willis Reed did it in 1969-70. Shaquille O’Neal did it in 1999-2000, when he shared the All-Star award with Tim Duncan.
How 14 MVP awards compare
| Player | MVP | Finals MVP | All-Star MVP | In all |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Jordan | 5 | 6 | 3 | 14 |
| LeBron James | 4 | 4 | 3 | 11 |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 6 | 2 | 0 | 8 |
| Magic Johnson | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 |
| Kobe Bryant | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 |
| Shaquille O’Neal | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| Larry Bird | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| Tim Duncan | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
| Bill Russell | 5 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
Regular season MVP, Finals MVP and All-Star Game MVP counts as of October 2026. The Finals MVP award began in 1969.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has the most regular season MVPs, with 6. Jordan and Bill Russell are next with 5 each. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won the last 2, in 2024-25 and 2025-26.
Away from the MVP awards, Jordan was Rookie of the Year in 1984-85. He also won 10 scoring titles, the most in NBA history.
For football, see how many MVPs Tom Brady has. For baseball, Barry Bonds holds the record on the most MLB MVPs list, and the World Series MVP list covers October. Every MVP page is on the MVP hub, and more basketball pages are on the NBA hub.
Michael Jordan MVP questions
How many Finals MVPs does Michael Jordan have?
Six, in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 and 1998. He won it in all 6 of his NBA Finals. No other player has more than 4.
Who has more MVPs, Michael Jordan or LeBron James?
Jordan has 5 regular season MVPs to LeBron’s 4, and 6 Finals MVPs to LeBron’s 4. Counting All-Star Game MVPs too, Jordan leads 14 to 11.
Who won the MVP over Michael Jordan in 1997?
Karl Malone of the Utah Jazz. Malone got 986 points in the vote and Jordan got 957. That June, Jordan’s Bulls beat Malone’s Jazz 4-2 in the Finals.
Was Michael Jordan ever a unanimous MVP?
No. His biggest win came in 1995-96, when he got 109 of the 113 first place votes. David Robinson finished second that year, with no first place votes.
What is the NBA MVP trophy called?
It is the Michael Jordan Trophy, a name the NBA gave it in December 2022. Before that, the trophy was named for Maurice Podoloff, the league’s first commissioner.
Sources
- Basketball-Reference: Michael Jordan career page, MVP voting and awards
- NBA.com: Players with multiple Finals MVPs
- Also used: Yahoo Sports for his MVP finishes, Fox Sports and NBC Sports Boston for the MVP lists, NBA.com and CBS Sports for the All-Star Game MVPs, NBA.com and NBC Sports Philadelphia for MVP and Finals MVP in the same season, the Associated Press via Deseret News, Audacy and WTTW, and KTVB
- Michael Jordan featured photo: Steve Lipofsky, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Last verified: October 17, 2026. We update this page after every NBA season.
