MICHAEL Jordan is the new NBA MVP trophy’s namesake – but the Chicago Bulls legend didn’t want the bronze statue to resemble him.

Trophy designer Mark Smith said the six-time champion wanted the honor recipients to see themselves in the prize, not him.

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Michael Jordan didn’t want the new MVP trophy to look like him even though it bears his nameCredit: Getty

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The NBA unveiled the Michael Jordan trophy earlier this weekCredit: AP
The NBA revealed new end-of-season award trophies earlier this week, introducing a new player recognition: the Clutch Player of the Year.

All trophies have been named after the league’s all-time greats, and five of the six resemble their namesakes – but not the Michael Jordan trophy.

Smith, who’s worked with Jordan for the past 20 years, told The Charlotte Observer that the Bulls icon hoped to emphasize the universality of the accomplishment when designing the trophy.

“He was really keen on saying, ‘Look, what’s the name of the award? It’s Michael Jordan Most Valuable Player award for the NBA. That says it all. No matter what’s on top. That’s really it,’” Smith said.

“Then we talked back and forth about what the image should portray. It’s a universal theme of reaching for the stars.

“It’s literally at the top, at the peak moment and there’s literally nowhere up to go. You are literally at the zenith of your motion.

“This is straight out of his language, ‘The player should see themselves in this, not me.’

“When he said ‘not me’ it clicked right away. I said, ‘OK, this is a universal theme.

“This isn’t a man in a uniform. This is a human form reaching for that.’ And the story of raw-to-refined really became how to bring all that together.”

Jordan claimed the MVP award five times during his illustrious career, tied for the second most with the late Celtics legend Bill Russell.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has the most MVP titles in NBA history with six, winning three of them while with the Milwaukee Bucks and adding another three after joining the Los Angeles Lakers.

Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic is the reigning MVP after notching the prize in the past two seasons.