Robert Zeglinski
June 3, 2024 8:00 am ET
Few stages in professional sports show as much spectacle as the NBA Finals. It is the premier stage in men’s basketball, a cornucopia of drama, flair, and awe-inspiring play from some of the greatest athletes on the planet. The Finals are a fixture in June expressly because of its cultural capital and capacity to take our breath away when we least expect it.
As the 2024 NBA Finals get underway later this week, we thought it’d be fair to look back upon the encyclopedic history of the league’s championship round. Over the years, we’ve seen so many incredible entries to Finals lore. From two tentpole stars putting the NBA on the map in the 1980s and an icon stomping his way through the 1990s to the “Chosen One” living up to the hype in the best possible way against one of the greatest teams ever assembled, there is no real shortage of classic Finals battles.
Here is For The Win’s ranking of the greatest NBA Finals series of all time (so far).
14
2005: San Antonio Spurs defeat Detroit Pistons in 7 games
Robin Buckson /The Detroit News
A series defined by double-digit blowouts to start turned into an instant classic by Game 5. In a back-and-forth affair, Robert Horry, a.k.a. “Big Shot Bob,” nailed the ice-cold, game-winning three in overtime.
From there, the Spurs outlasted reigning champion Detroit to earn the third title of the Tim Duncan era in Game 7.
13
2011: Dallas Mavericks defeat Miami Heat in 6 games
DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images
Behold! Dirk Nowitzki’s legacy series!
In what would turn out to be his last NBA Finals, the prolific sharpshooting German avenged a heartbreaking loss to the Heat half a decade earlier by taking down the NBA’s first true “superteam.” Despite Miami having LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, Dallas’ continuity, led by Nowitzki, was enough for the Mavericks to pull off the (somewhat) shocking upset and win the first title in franchise history.
This series’ profile is helped by the fact that only one game finished with a final double-digit deficit, along with an iconic Mavericks comeback in Game 2:
12
MPS-USA TODAY Sports
The first Finals in a little while without Michael Jordan featured two of the best big men of their generation: Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing. What a treat it was. A machine-like Olajuwon comfortably won Finals MVP after leading Houston on a comeback from 3-2, but Ewing’s efforts (especially 30 blocks in seven games!) were almost just as remarkable.
11
1977: Portland Trail Blazers defeat Philadelphia 76ers in 6 games
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Bill Walton’s crowning achievement as a player was all about how dynamic he was through adversity. The big man averaged nearly 20 points and 20 rebounds a game against Philadelphia and chipped in over five assists per outing thanks to his sublime playmaking chops. Julius Erving never stood a chance as Portland became the second NBA team ever to overcome a 2-0 series deficit and win the Finals.
10
1997: Chicago Bulls defeat Utah Jazz in 6 games
Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images
The first of two epic Finals tilts between the Bulls and Jazz was, unsurprisingly, a Michael Jordan showcase. League MVP Karl Malone was ultimately eclipsed by Jordan’s sheer brilliance in the Bulls’ triumph, who added a game-winning buzzer-beater and the “Flu Game” to his iconic playoff catalog during the series.
9
1980: Los Angeles Lakers defeat Philadelphia 76ers in 6 games
David Boss-USA TODAY Sports
Then-rookie Magic Johnson cemented his place as the new face of the NBA with this championship triumph. Even though the legendary Julius Erving played for the other team, it was Johnson who was the best player in the series. The point guard averaged nearly a 20-point triple-double in six games. Johnson’s heroics in a clinching Game 6 — where he started at center for an injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — remains one of the more famous moments in league history.
8
1988: Los Angeles Lakers defeat Detroit Pistons in 7 games
MPS-USA TODAY Sports
Pat Riley promised a repeat the summer prior and his Lakers delivered … by the skin of their teeth. A see-saw series was defined by James Worthy’s scoring touch and the uncanny resolve of Isiah Thomas, who scored 43 points in a gutsy Game 6 (including 25 in the third quarter) to keep Detroit’s season alive despite badly twisting his ankle. The Lakers just barely outlasted the Pistons in Game 7, putting a bow on their run in the 1980s with a fifth championship in nine seasons.
7
1970: New York Knicks defeat Los Angeles Lakers in 7 games
Manny Rubio-USA TODAY Sports
Over five decades later, the Knicks’ first championship remains the most important moment in franchise history. Not only did the Knicks manage to upend the stacked Lakers (Jerry West, Wilt Chamberlain, and Elgin Baylor on one team!), but they also did it on the strength of Willis Reed’s resolve. Reed tore a thigh muscle in Game 5 and somehow returned in Game 7. Though Reed was clearly a shell of himself (he made and took just two shots), his presence galvanized the Knicks enough to pull off the win.
His entrance to Game 7 alone should still give you chills:
6
1969: Boston Celtics defeat Los Angeles Lakers in 7 games
Darryl Norenberg-USA TODAY Sports
The Lakers and Celtics met in the Finals six times during the 1960s. The finale to this era of the Boston-Los Angeles rivalry was easily the most notable. Why? Because, for once, the Lakers entered the series as massive favorites thanks to the presence of Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, and Wilt Chamberlain. Meanwhile, the Celtics finished in fourth place in their own division and few even saw them returning to the Finals. Boston ultimately upset Los Angeles on the road in Game 7, and West remains the only player ever to win Finals MVP despite being part of the losing team.
5
1993: Chicago Bulls defeat Phoenix Suns in 6 games
Rob Schumacher/The Republic via USA TODAY NETWORK
Few series put one of Michael Jordan’s NBA relationships under the microscope quite like this series. After close friend Charles Barkley won the league MVP with Phoenix, Jordan took it upon himself to show up the player he thought unnecessarily captured the award over him. What ensued was a classic shootout between two generational stars. Jordan was ultimately that much better than Barkley, averaging over 41 points per game in a Bulls’ series victory that felt it like teetered in the balance every night against a formidable Suns squad.
It’s fitting that John Paxson, of all people, capped the win in Game 6:
4
1984: Boston Celtics defeat Los Angeles Lakers in 7 games
Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
After a few years of simmering hype, Magic Johnson’s Lakers finally faced Larry Bird’s Celtics in the Finals in 1984. And hoo boy, was it an emotional doozy. Boston won two classic overtime games in the early stages of the series before overcoming Los Angeles in an absolutely epic Game 7. What a terrific first episode in the most important NBA rivalry of the modern era.
3
2013: Miami Heat defeat San Antonio Spurs in 7 games
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
The 2013 Finals featured a clash of team-building philosophies. The Heat were a superteam built around the greatest free agency haul in NBA history with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. The Spurs were the emblem of consistent homegrown dominance, having successfully retooled a core around an aging Tim Duncan with the rise of a young Kawhi Leonard.
While San Antonio proved overwhelming at times, a key Bosh rebound led to Ray Allen saving the Heat’s season in Game 6. Miami eventually outlasted San Antonio in this all-out war of attrition that won’t soon be forgotten.
2
1998: Chicago Bulls defeat Utah Jazz in 6 games
Anne Ryan-USA TODAY
The arguable GOAT had one last trick in his bag. In a series that the Jazz really should’ve won considering a number of factors — Bulls’ fatigue, a disastrous Scottie Pippen back injury — Jordan did everything in his power to lift Chicago up off the mat. His final sequence in Game 6, featuring a driving layup, a steal off Karl Malone in the post, and the game-winning shot, is arguably the finest of his illustrious career.
It was a perfect way to cap off a run of six titles in eight seasons.
1
2016: Cleveland Cavaliers defeat Golden State Warriors in 7 games
Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
To date, this is the only 3-1 comeback in Finals history. Considering the caliber of the competition, it might be the greatest comeback in American sports history. Period. The 2016 Warriors broke the regular season record for wins with 73. They were an unmitigated juggernaut with superstars and depth galore. Yet, Draymond Green’s Game 5 suspension managed to flip this series on its head. Led by a sublime LeBron James and timely shotmaking from Kyrie Irving, the Cavaliers stormed back from the 3-1 deficit, eventually overcoming the Warriors on the road in a marvelous Game 7.
Oh, yeah, this was also the Cavaliers’ first title ever. Ho hum:
Anyone who believes James is the NBA’s GOAT will likely forever point to this series and this comeback, first and foremost.
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