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Nikola Jokic has joined an elite club today after the NBA announced he's won the third MVP of his career. The Serbian center quietly became one of the best players in the world as the years went by. This season was no exception and Jokic won another trophy with the Denver Nuggets.
Winning an NBA MVP is a hard job for many players. Now, when we talk about winning three of them, the job gets extremely hard. Jokic became only the ninth player to achieve this feat, joining eight legends that left a huge mark on the game.
Today, we're going to take a look at all the players who have managed to win at least three NBA MVPs during their careers.
Every NBA player with 3 or more MVP awards
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Moses Malone
The Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers legend was one of the best players in his position during his best days. Malone won his first award in the 1978-79 season, averaging 24.8 points, 17.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.
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A couple of seasons later in 1981-82, he would get his second MVP trophy, posting 31.1 points, 14.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists.
And the next year, he would win his third and final award, recording 24.5 points, 15.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists with the 76ers.
Magic Johnson
Magic Johnson dominated the NBA MVP scene in the late 80s, winning three awards in a span of five years. The Los Angeles Lakers legend bagged his first award in 1987, averaging 23.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 12.2 assists per game.
Two years later, Magic would get his second award after posting 22.5 points, 7.9 rebounds and 12.8 rebounds per outing.
Then, in 1990, he would get the third MVP of his career, averaging 22.3 points, 6.6 rebounds and 11.5 assists per game with the Purple and Gold.
Larry Bird
Larry Bird owns a terrific record in the NBA as the last person to win three consecutive MVP awards. The Boston Celtics legend took over from Moses Malone, winning three straight MVP awards from 1984 through 1986.
During his first triumphant campaign, Bird averaged 24.2 points, 10.1 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game. The following season, he would go for 28.7 points, 10.5 rebounds and 6.6 assists per outing.
To complete the three-peat, Larry Legend posted 25.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 6.8 per game. In addition to the individual accolades, Bird led the Celtics two NBA championships during this time.
Nikola Jokic
Nikola Jokic joined this exclusive list after beating Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Doncic, respectively, to reclaim the throne Joel Embiid took away from him last season.
During the 2020-21 NBA season, Jokic would take over Giannis Antetokounmpo, winning his first Most Valuable Player award after averaging 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists. In the next campaign, he improved the first two stats, which grew to 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, while dishing 7.9 assists per outing.
This season, he nearly averaged a triple-double, posting 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists per game.
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain is one of the three NBA players who won three consecutive MVP awards. His first award came as a rookie when he was a member of the Philadelphia Warriors in 1960, averaging 37.6 points, 27.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
Six years later, now with the 76ers, Wilt would bag his second award, posting 33.5 points, 24.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists per contest.
The following season, his scoring production dipped a little bit, dropping 24.1 points. His rebounding stats were still outstanding, though, with Wilt averaging 24.2 boards per game and 7.8 assists. His final award arrived one season later, where he averaged 24.3 points, 23.8 rebounds and 8.6 assists per match,
Bill Russell
Bill Russell was the player who inaugurated the three-peat MVP club during his magical days with the legendary Boston Celtics. The late center captured his first trophy in 1958, averaging 16.6 points, 22.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.
In 1961, he would bag his second MVP, posting 16.9 points, 23.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists for the Celtics. Russell's points and assists would get better the next season, recording 18.9 points, 23.6 rebounds and 4.5 dimes per match.
For his fourth Most Valuable Player award, he would average 16.8 points, 23.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists with the Celts in the 1964-65 season.
LeBron James
Before Jokic made his way to this list, LeBron James remained the most recent member of the club. The King has won four MVP awards during his career, and if it wasn't for a young Derrick Rose, he could have gotten five consecutive trophies.
James' first MVP-winning season came in 2009 when he posted 28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 8.6 assists for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The next season, his scoring average went higher, recording 29.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.6 assists per matchup.
Two years later, after taking his talents to the Miami Heat, James would get his third award after averaging 27.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists per outing. The following year, he would average 26.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.3 assists per match with the Floridian team.
Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan must have done something remarkable if the NBA named its top trophy after him. The Chicago Bulls legend believed he was deserving of this award on more occasions, but he still managed to get five of them during his illustrious career.
Jordan would become the Most Valuable Player for the first time in 1988, averaging 35.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game. His Airness then had to wait three years to win the coveted prize for a second time. He averaged 31.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game. The next year, Jordan would repeat as MVP, posting 30.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists with the Chicago Bulls.
Four years later, amid his second three-peat, Jordan would average 37.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists per outing en route to another award. Two years later he would win his fifth and final MVP award, averaging 28.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
No matter how hard he tried, Michael Jordan could never emulate Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who still owns the record for the most MVP awards in NBA history. The Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers legend won six of these awards, starting in 1971.
Kareem averaged 31.7 points, 16.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game for the Bucks that year. The following season, he improved those numbers, scoring 34.8 points per game, grabbing 16.6 rebounds and dishing out 4.6 assists. During the 1973-74 season, the six-time NBA champion won his third MVP award, posting 27.0 points, 14.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game.
He would win three more awards with the Lakers, starting in 1976, where he averaged 27.7 points, 16.9 rebounds and 5.0 assists. The following year, Abdul-Jabbar would score 26.2 points, 13.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists per match with the Purple and Gold. His sixth and final award came in 1980, where he averaged 24.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
