Updated 17 Aug 2023 1:08 pm:
The NBA is one of the major U.S Sports and it enjoys a lot of followership and fanfare. It is also not dissimilar to other major leagues in how it is dominated by a couple or group of franchises.
At the start of every NBA season, only a few teams are in with a shout of winning the title at the end of the season.
These teams have established themselves as the perennial title favorites and these teams have matched the expectations of their fans.
The LA Lakers and Boston Celtics are top of the pile with seventeen trophies to their names respectively. And ahead of the new season, the Denver Nuggets are favorites to win the title, at least according to what the sportsbooks are projecting.
The Boston Celtics are also in with a shout. So if betting is up on your street, you can back them on any Sportsbook to win the title next season. If you also consider their rich winning history, you may want to back the seventeen-time champions.
However, if you are not too sure about their chances of going all the way, you can claim any of the numerous NBA betting promotions for a much more enjoyable short-term wager.
There are numerous NBA betting promos offered by betting sites during the course of the regular season and Playoff period, and you can claim any one that suits your basketball betting needs.
The Chicago Bulls have claimed six titles, while the Golden State Warriors have seven. But which is the most successful team in the history of the NBA?
In this article, we will find out the team with the most NBA titles.
Milwaukee Bucks: Two Titles (1971, 2021)
The Milwaukee Bucks are one of two NBA franchises that have won the NBA Championship two times in their history.
Their first title came in 1971 in a season that saw Kareem Abdul-Jabber win his first three Most Valuable Player titles with the Bucks.
Playing under the tutelage of Larry Costello, the Milwaukee outfit, defeated the Baltimore Bullets for their first-ever title.
However, they had to wait for 50 years for another title. Led by Giannis Antetokoumpo with support from Khris Middleton they claimed the title again in 2021.
The win was even more impressive considering that they were up against a Suns team that was really good. The Suns took the first two games but the Bucks clawed their way back to win the series.
Houston Rockets: Two titles (1994,1995)
Houston Rockets is another team to have claimed the coveted title twice in their history. The team had to wait for 27 years after it was established to claim its first title.
In 1994, they claimed their first-ever title in a hard-fought final series which they eventually won 4-3 beating the New York Knicks.
They were signs of great things to come when the Rockets started the season 15-0. They went all the way that season to claim the title.
A season after, they claimed their second title, sweeping away the Orlando Magic 4-0 in the finals.
Hakeem Olajuwon was very instrumental in their triumphs in those two seasons. However, he could not help the Rockets add to their NBA title hauls before he left the team.
New York Knicks: Two titles (1970, 1973)
The New York Knicks have been competing in the NBA since 1949, meaning that they have played 74 seasons in the league.
The Knicks are one of the richest franchises in the league, and they are still based in their original city, New York.
Between 1951 and 1953, the New York Knicks made it to the NBA finals for three consecutive seasons, but they lost on each occasion.
But fortune smiled on them in 1970 the year of their first NBA title. They scraped through a closely fought final against the LA Lakers 4-3 to claim their maiden title.
Another followed in 1973, and the opponents again were the Lakers. Just like the meeting in 1973, the Knicks won again, but this time they blew away their foes 4-1.
Since then, the Knicks have not been close to claiming another title.
Miami Heats: Three titles (2006, 2012, 2013 )
The Miami Heat was established in 1988, and despite being a young team they have gone on to be one of the most respected franchises in the league.
The first of their three titles came in 2006, with a further two coming back-to-back in 2012 and 2013.
Going into the finals, the Dallas Mavericks were favored to win the title over the Heats. But the Miami franchise had other plans, as they won the title in six games. In the process, they became only the third team after the Boston Celtics in 1969, and the Trail Blazers in 1977 to win a series after trailing 0-2 in a finals series.
In 2012 and 2013 they won again, and LeBron James was central to their victories in those two years. In 2012, the Heats blew away the Oklahoma City Thunders 4-1. James was named the finals MVP. The 2012 was the Heats’ third final appearance.
In 2013, the Heats were the favourites and they did not disappoint. Although they had to go all the way to game seven before beating the San Antonio Spurs.
Detroit Pistons: Three titles (1989,1990, 2004)
Before the start of the 1988/1989 season, the Detroit Pistons traded Adrian Dantley for Mark Aguirre, but that decision was heavily criticized by the fans.
In the 88/89 season, the Pistons claimed 63 victories, dismantling their year-old franchise record in the process. They eventually made it to the NBA finals against the Lakers again and they won 4-1 to claim their first championship title.
The Pistons defended their title the following season against the Chicago Bulls 4-3. In 2004, yet another title followed after they beat the LA Lakers in seven games.
Philadelphia 76ers: Three titles (1955, 1967, 1983)
The Philadelphia 76ers are one of the three teams to have claimed the NBA title three times. The first came in 1955 when they were still known as the Syracuse Nationals.
Their second title came in 1967, only four years after they were rechristened the Philadelphia 76ers. They defeated the San Francisco Warriors Warriors 4-2 in the finals.
In 1983, they claimed the third title with a 4-0 blow away of the illustrious LA Lakers.
San Antonio Spurs: Five titles (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2014)
The San Antonio Spurs have the second-longest NBA finals unbeaten streak after the Chicago Bulls. The Spurs have appeared in six finals and only lost one of those.
The franchise began enjoying some success in the NBA after Greg Popovich took the reins of the team halfway through the 1996/1997 season.
Popovich led the franchise to their first title in the 1998/1999 season with Tim Duncan leading the team on the court. To further solidify their position, they brought in Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker from Argentina and France respectively.
Those two helped the Spurs to three more titles in 2003, 2005, and 2007. The team defeated the New Jersey Nets, Detroit Pistons, and Cleveland Cavaliers respectively to claim the titles.
Chicago Bulls: Six titles ( 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998)
Despite not being close to both the Boston Celtics and the LA Lakers, the Bulls have a unique record that no franchise can boast. The Bulls are unbeaten in all the NBA finals they have appeared in. The Chicago Bulls are six from six NBA finals.
The fortunes of the Bulls began to change with the acquisition of Michael Jordan. Through the NBA Draft of 1984. Although it took the franchise some time to get going, once they got in their rhythm, they became almost unstoppable.
Between 1991 and 1993, the Chicago Bulls made it into three NBA finals, and needless to say, they won all three finals to claim a three-peat.
They repeated the three-peat heroics again between 1996 and 1998 to complete and historic six wins from six finals appearances.
The Golden State Warriors: Seven titles
The Golden State Warriors are another successful NBA franchise. The team has seven titles in its history beginning from the 1946/1947 season when they were still known as the Philadelphia Warriors.
They added another title in the 1955/1956 season before changing base to San Francisco in 1962.
They endured an 18-year trophy drought before they finally stopped the dry run in 1975 with a surprising but emphatic win against the Washington Bullets.
Another barren spell followed, but a certain talented Steph Curry came along and he helped the Warriors stem the tide.
Well-respected coach, Steve Kerr, soon followed and that was the combination of catalysts the Warriors would need to get going.
Curry’s style of play was a source of concern for opponents and he used it to great effect, helping the team to three more titles in 2015, 2016, and 2018.
In the 2021/2022 season, they added one more title to their trophy haul after they beat the Boston Celtics in six games.
Boston Celtics: Seventeen titles (1957,1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984, 1986, 2008)
Boston Celtics is one of two teams that stand clearly above the rest of the field in terms of NBA championships with seventeen titles. The Celtics are tied with the Los Angeles Lakers on Seventeen titles, but they did in far fewer NBA finals appearances.
The Celtics have their seventeen titles from twenty-two finals appearances while the LA Lakers needed 32 trips to the finals.
Their first title came in the 1956/1957 season and added another eight titles consecutively in the years between 1959 and 1966.
LA Lakers: Seventeen titles (1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1972, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2010, 2020)
Beyond the seventeen NBA titles they have to their name, the Lakers are the only team to have won at least a title in each of the previous four decades.
They were the first team in the history of the NBA to achieve a three-peat feat, winning the title between 1952 and 1954. They weren’t as successful in the 1960s.
However, they retired to winning ways in the 70s with two titles before going on to win five more in the 80s.
In the 90s they experienced a dry spell, but as the decade was winding down they started dominating the league and they achieved another three-peat between 2000 and 2002.
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