Winning personal accolades is something most players pursue, even though they may argue that an NBA Championship is way more important than winning the league’s MVP or Defensive Player of the Year awards.
- 15. Kevin Durant: 7 Trophies
- 14. Hakeem Olajuwon: 7 Trophies
- 13. Willis Reed: 7 Trophies
- 12. Bob Pettit: 8 Trophies
- 11. Bob Cousy: 9 Trophies
- 10. Wilt Chamberlain: 9 Trophies
- 9. Larry Bird: 11 Trophies
- 8. Shaquille O’Neal: 12 Trophies
- 7. Kobe Bryant: 12 Trophies
- 6. Tim Duncan: 12 Trophies
- 5. Magic Johnson: 13 Trophies
- 4. LeBron James: 14 Trophies
- 3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 15 Trophies
- 2. Bill Russell: 17 Trophies
- 1. Michael Jordan: 22 Trophies
When we enter the GOAT debate, silverware is always a major factor that comes to mind, although most people just talk about NBA Championships or MVPs and tend to forget about other accolades.
Over the course of history, a handful of players have been true winners since day one, climbing the GOAT ladder and inking their signature in history books for good. Today, we’re going to honor some of them, letting you know about the top 15 players with the most trophies ever.
Honorable Mention: Oscar Robertson (6), Moses Malone (5), Stephen Curry (5), Dave Cowens (5), Bill Walton (5)
15. Kevin Durant: 7 Trophies
You may love him or hate him, but you just can’t deny the fact that Kevin Durant is one of the best players this game has ever seen, especially now that he’s even grown to be as good as a defender as he is in the offensive end.
Throughout his career, Durant has won 2 NBA Championships, 2 Finals MVPs, 1 Rookie of the Year Award, 1 MVP Award, and 1 All-Star MVP, and he’s already a lock to make it to the Hall of Fame when he calls it a day.
14. Hakeem Olajuwon: 7 Trophies
We just don’t talk about Hakeem ‘The Dream’ Olajuwon enough nowadays, as people tend to forget how good and dominant he was in both sides of the hardwood during his prime with the Rockets.
Olajuwon is arguably the greatest player in Houston Rockets history and a top 5 center in the history of the game. Through 17 years, the Dream won 1 MVP Award, 2 Defensive Player of the Year Awards, 2 NBA Championships, and 2 Finals MVPs.
13. Willis Reed: 7 Trophies
Most young fans may not remember about Willis Reed, AKA ‘The Captain’, but the leftie big man is a top 5 player in New York Knicks history, and that’s why he made it to this privileged list of ballers.
Back in the day, there was no stopping Reed down low and even though he only played for 9 seasons, he managed to win the Rookie of the Year Award, 1 MVP Award, 2 NBA Championships, 2 Finals MVPs and 1 All-Star MVP.
12. Bob Pettit: 8 Trophies
Yet another Hall of Famer makes our list, with Bob Pettit being one of the most prolific and dominant scorers of basketball’s early stages, averaging 26.4 points and 16.2 rebounds throughout his career.
Over a 10 year span, “The Bombardier from Baton Rouge” was completely unstoppable, leading the St. Louis Hawks to 1 Championship while also winning the Rookie of the Year Award, 4 All-Star MVPs and a 2 MVP Awards.
11. Bob Cousy: 9 Trophies
Bob Cousy is one of the winningest players in NBA history, obviously because he played on an era where the league wasn’t really that competitive and he had the chance to play next to Bill Russell.
Cousy was able to win 6 Championships while running the point for the Boston Celtics, also winning 1 MVP Award and 2 All-Star MVPs, eventually winding up in the Hall Of Fame as well.
10. Wilt Chamberlain: 9 Trophies
Even though Wilt Chamberlain owns a lot of NBA records, he doesn’t have that much silverware to brag about if you take into notice the fact that he was bigger, stronger and more athletic than pretty much every human in the world during his prime.
Still, Wilt the Stilt managed to put his hands on a handful of trophies, winning two NBA Championships, 4 MVPs, the Rookie of the Year Award and 1 Finals MVP, but somehow it feels like he should’ve won more.
9. Larry Bird: 11 Trophies
Larry Bird led the Boston Celtics through their second most successful era of all times, and he was one of the best players of the 80s and the most successful after Magic Johnson.
Moreover, Bird was considered to be the best small forward in the history of the game before LeBron James’ surge, as he won 3 NBA Championships, 2 Finals MVPs, the Rookie of the Year Award, 1 All-Star MVPs and 3 MVPs.
8. Shaquille O’Neal: 12 Trophies
Shaquille O’Neal was the most dominant big man in the history of the game and that’s not even close. There won’t be another guy with such a big frame and agile feet that could own the glass as he did.
Throughout his entire career, defenders were just scared to go at him, and who the hell could blame him? Over an 18 season span, he won 4 NBA Championships, 3 Finals MVPs, the Rookie of the Year, 3 All-Star MVPs and 1 MVP Award.
7. Kobe Bryant: 12 Trophies
Kobe Bryant will go down as the greatest player to ever wear the purple and gold, leading the team back to their former glory days following the post-Showtime era through 20 straight seasons.
Kobe drew a lot of hate from his doubters, but the Mamba didn’t care too much. And why would he? He led the Lakers to 5 NBA Championships, with 1 MVP Award, 4 All-Star MVPs, and 2 Finals MVPs as well.
6. Tim Duncan: 12 Trophies
Is there a better power forward in the history of the game than Tim Duncan? Only if you count him as a center, and he’d still have a lot of arguments to enter the conversation, at least to my eyes.
Duncan helped the San Antonio Spurs build a steady, consistent and reliable winning culture for almost two decades, leading the team to 5 NBA Championships with 2 MVPs, 3 Finals MVPs, 1 All-Star MVP and the Rookie of the Year Award.
5. Magic Johnson: 13 Trophies
Magic Johnson is almost unanimously the best point guard to ever lace them up, and truth to be told, his game would still be perfect for today’s NBA, being a 6’9’’ point forward that would make Ben Simmons look like Emmanuel Mudiay.
Johnson could do it all with the rock on his hands and it’s a shame his career had to come to such a sudden end. Even so, Magic won 5 NBA Championships, 3 MVPs, 2 All-Star MVPs, and 3 Finals MVPs.
4. LeBron James: 14 Trophies
LeBron James has a legit shot at continuing to climb this ladder, although he hasn’t been among the top candidates to take home the MVP for a couple of seasons now if anyone can pull it off, that’s the King.
James has made it to 8 straight NBA Finals, winning 3 of them with 4 MVPs, 3 Finals MVPs, 3 All-Star MVPs, and the Rookie of the Year Award, but, can he take the Lakers back to the ultimate stage?
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 15 Trophies
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar doesn’t get enough praise for what he did for the game despite being the league’s all-time leading scorer for years, and that will continue that way unless LeBron manages to stay healthy for another 4-5 years.
Abdul Jabbar was unstoppable down low during his prime, leading the Lakers next to Magic Johnson to one of the best sports eras in Los Angeles. Throughout his career, he won 6 NBA Championships, 6 MVPs, 2 Finals MVPs and the Rookie of the Year Award.
2. Bill Russell: 17 Trophies
As you may have noticed by now, I always take Bill Russell’s accomplishments with a grain of salt, as he played on a virtually non-competitive league with a team loaded with All-Stars and Hall of Famers.
Even so, he deserves a lot of respect for what he did for basketball early on, leading the Boston Celtics to 11 Championships in 13 seasons, also winning 5 MVPs and 1 All-Star MVP. 17 trophies in 13 seasons are not that bad at all.
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1. Michael Jordan: 22 Trophies
Obviously, the winningest player in the history of the game also has to be the GOAT. Michael Jeffrey Jordan, the one and only, the man that saved basketball. God himself, the best player ever.
Jordan was the most dominant player ever. He could do it all in both sides of the hardwood, and there’s never going to be someone like him. Throughout his career, he won 6 NBA Championships, 6 Finals MVPs, 5 MVPs, 1 Defensive Player of the Year, the Rookie of the Year Award and 3 All-Star MVPs.
