The NBA is recognizing the best to ever do it in a big way.
On Tuesday morning, the league officially announced the rebranding of several annual awards, including the new “Michael Jordan Trophy” that will be awarded to the regular season MVP winner.
Jordan is joined by other NBA legends like Hakeem Olajuwon (DPOY), Wilt Chamberlain (ROY), George Mikan (Most Improved Player), and John Havlicek (Sixth Man) in being the face of an annual award. The NBA has also added a new clutch award that will be named after Jerry West (and I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before DeMar DeRozan has one of those on his shelf).
The “Michael Jordan Trophy” has been designed to symbolize many of the GOAT’s greatest accomplishments. For example, the five-sided base is a nod to his own five MVPs (which sits behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the most in league history) and the 23-point faceted ball signifies his iconic jersey number.
The NBA outlined each of the incredible details in the image here:
The most renowned face to ever step foot on a basketball court, we knew it was only a matter of time before the NBA gave Jordan some special recognition. And I think we can all agree that there is no better way to remember what he meant for the game than naming him the eternal MVP.
Congrats to the GOAT!