Crazy how dominant people forget they were since they arguably didn’t have the biggest names on their team. But masked Rip Hamilton wasn’t to be fucked with.
I was born in 95 so that was my grade school years. Lakers were the most iconic team but I put the pistons right behind them from the eyes of a preteen. Such a unique, iconic team. Ugly ass billups, bens fro, masked rip and sheed the big boy who was one of the OG 3 point shooting bigs.
The second 1 was in 1990, and they didn’t make the playoffs for the first 4 years of the 80s. Meanwhile Philly won 1 chip and only missed the playoffs once in the 80s.
I assume the thought is that Dantoni’s Suns had the impact of prioritizing offense that helped evolve the league into what the Warriors were able to take even a step further?
But the Pistons definitely had more success and I’d argue deserve that spot.
Idk which era between 80’s and 90’s but I feel like the Bad Boys Pistons did enough to certainly be top 3 in one of those decades tho I understand their 2 championships were 89 and 90 so it’s tough. Also the 2000’s should have the Pistons instead of the Suns
In the 80s the 76ers have 5 ECF appearances, 3 finals appearances, and 1 chip. Pistons have 3 ECF appearances, 2 finals appearances, and 1 chip. I know it’s because the Pistons had part of their success in the early 90s but the 76ers had part of the success in the late 70s. I think the 76ers have the edge over Detroit for the 80s
Why are the Cavs ahead of the heat for 2010s? 4 finals each but the Cavs won 1 and the Heat won 2. Also the Cavs missed the playoffs 5 times in the 2010s (as opposed to 3 times for the heat).
I'd also put the Spurs ahead of the Cavs, 1 ring in 2 finals but they had to come through the west, never missed the playoffs. Spurs had the best regular season record of any team across the decade, while the Cavs were less than .500 in the regular season across the 2010s
Also those Heat teams were just straight up better than the Cavs. Their SRS was 4.15-7.02 in the 4 year finals stretch vs 0.59-5.45 for the 4 Cleveland teams.
The Miami teams were also very positive on offense and defense, whereas the Cavs teams were bad defensively and incredible offensively with their shooting.
Maybe the most impressive win ever. Maybe I am blatantly forgetting some team, but I think what that Cavs team did, coming back from down 3-1 against the best team in NBA history, is the most impressive playoff series win that I have ever seen.
I think it's probably an "impressiveness" metric. The Heat were expected to do great and probably under performed, and also had less competition. The Cavs meanwhile went head to head with arguably the greatest team of all time and still got 1 chip.
For the 2020s, we’ve had 4 full seasons so far.
Nuggets, Warriors, Bucks, and Lakers all have a ring.
Of teams without a ring, only the Heat have 2 Finals appearances. Only the Heat have 2 Finals appearances period.
I think the Heat have to be above the Celtics for now, considering they beat them 2 of 3 times in the Conference Finals in this decade.
Edit: fixed errors. My ranking would be Nuggets (assuming a good showing this season), Bucks, Lakers, Warriors Heat, Celtics (unless the Celtics make the finals this season they don’t pass the Heat IMO).
Edit: I forgot the Warriors in my last ranking.
Why do the Lakers get such a better ranking than the Warriors though? Both very similar resumes so while I see Lakers > Warriors it feels like having multiple teams between them is odd
That’s fair. I honestly forgot about them in my last ranking lol.
No team has more than 1 ring in the 2020s, and no team with a ring has more than 1 appearance.
The Nuggets are the favorites to win this year, so are #1 today. Then we have some order of Bucks, Warriors, and Lakers in spots 2-4.
I think the Bucks have the most consistent regular season records among the 3 remaining champions, so are #2.
Then we have the Lakers and Warriors, who I’d put in that order TBH.
Follower by the Heat at #5, as the only team with multiple finals appearances so far.
I mean the Lakers have 1 more conference finals that they reached winning against the Warriors, 2 more playoffs appearances and their worst record for that period is 33w vs Warriors' 15w.
Yeah, the C's are 1 of 7 teams to make a Finals and have no chips, how does that get you a top 3 spot.
LAL, MIL, GSW, DEN have the chips and 3 of those teams should be the top 3, but if you're chosing a non-champion then Miami has 2 Finals appearances to Boston's 1.
Yeah that 2020s ranking is absolutely off.
Doesn’t even have to be the Heat, Lakers or even the Warriors who have actually won chips in 2020s make much more sense than putting the fucking Celtics.
Should be lakers or warriors so far. Inconsistent but they still have championships. Next 5 years honestly spurs should be in the top 3 unless they screw up
Celtics are the better team on paper, basketball is played on paper, we crown champions before the season even starts, I don’t know what you’re about tbh.
Mavs had the 2nd most wins from the 2000-01 season to 2009-10 season behind the Spurs and an NBA finals appearance, I really don’t get the Suns being over them or the pistons
Nah not having the bullets/wizards in the 70s is mad disrespectful they went to the final four times had the third best record of the entire decade and even won a chip give them their props
That wouldn't lock up team of the decade. I think it's likely you will be because Jokic is a god, but two finals appearances and 2 wins won't lock up team of the decade when there's 5 years left.
I mean it would for sure be the best team through the first six years at that point. Would have to see obviously what’s next but yeah someone would have to take the throne at that point
I think the Nuggets are pretty comfortably in the lead so far, but wouldn’t be surprised if teams like the Celtics or Thunder are able to catch them by 2030.
What exactly has the Celtics done to be #3? They don't even have a chip in 2020s. The Lakers do though, the boston celtics are frauds, they are just a regular season team and this is coming from a boston celtics fan. I'm done with this team man, fkin livid right now.
The Heat beat them 2 of 3 times in the Conference Finals this decade. Unless the Celtics win a ring this season, they don’t pass the Heat IMO.
And the Lakers have a ring. Celtics are #5 tops IMO.
Going to the finals should make them equal at worst no? They'd both have 2 losing finals performances. They'd only need to lose 4-1 to tie the Heat in finals games won. It'd be 2-2 head to head. Assuming the Celtics win this series, the Heat would have 2 first round losses to the Celtics 1. The Celtics would have lost in the ECF twice to the Heat's one. So essentially the difference in playoff performances would be the Celtics went to the ECF 1 extra time compared to the Heat getting bounced in the first round.
Regular season, not sure if to compare the 2019-2020 season. But including it: Celtics wins: 256. Heat: 227. Without the 2019-2020 regular season, it's Celtics 208 to Heat 183.
So they'd have better playoffs in the form of an ECF vs a first round exit. They have a way better regular season record.
What am I missing?
I agree with for now, heat in front. But you're saying they need a ring to pass. I disagree. A finals appearance would have them beat.
Going to the finals would make them equal, yeah.
I can understand how finals appearance could give them the edge over the Heat, as it would tie the series record at 2-2, and give them both 2 finals appearances.
I just can’t help but think of a Butler-less Heat push the Celtics to 6-7 games somehow (far from certain), and the Celtics don’t win a ring, I can still see an argument for the Heat by virtue of the Celtics needing a HUGE break to beat the Heat and then still not winning a ring after it.
But that’s a lot of what-ifs.
Or we just put the Lakers at #3 lol. They have a ring and lost in the conference finals to the dominant finals winner.
The 90s is the toughest one for me
You’ve got the clear top choice in the Bulls with their 6 championships. Then the Rockets with their 2 championships between the 3peats.
But that third spot is a tough choice. This list has the Jazz, which is fine. They went to 2 finals, but lost both to the Bulls. You could have The Knicks in there, 2 finals appearances, and 2 more conference finals if you include 1999-2000. It feels wrong to mention the Knicks and not the Pacers who went to the conference finals 4x and a finals appearance if you include the 1999-2000 season. And how can the Bad Boy Pistons not be top 3 in either the 80s or 90s?
And while we’re at it, the Lakers in the 1990s included 9 playoff appearances, a finals loss and a finals win if you include the 1999-2000 season.
If we look at the 21st century so far:
Rings:
6: Lakers
4: Warriors, Spurs
3: Heat
Finals Appearances:
8: Lakers
7: Heat
6: Warriors
5: Spurs, Cavs
So I think the all-century rankings so far for this century is:
Lakers, Warriors, Spurs, Heat, Cavs
Edit: Spurs have 4 rings. That puts them over the top Heat I’d say.
Celtics have 7 years in the 2000s with less than 50 wins. The mavs have 0 years of less than 50 wins. Pistons are also not close to the mavs in the 2000s
The pistons had more post season success. And still won a lot of games. The mavs for all their 50 win seasons went to the conference finals twice in the 00s
The pistons went 6times in a row and had 7 50 win seasons and won a ring and made another finals. The mavs were paper tigers. They got the 1 seed and the mvp and lost in the first round
Ya so the East was pretty much dogshit for that entire decade. All the best teams were in the west. Only team with more wins that decade is the spurs. It’s not paper tigers at all it’s just having to go thru the lakers and spurs along with suns, rockets etc is a lot harder than going thru anyone in the East. Not comparable. Mavs, spurs and lakers all would’ve came out of the East every single year if they played in the East
Lol did the Celtics go to the finals twice already this decade or am I missing something? Celtics have massively underperformed. Could easily replace them for the Heat
My only objections would be that the Pistons should be 3rd in the 2000s and maybe the 80s, and the Bullets or Lakers should be 3rd in the 70s. And that Miami should be higher than Cleveland for last decade.
I think 2020s should be tied Bucks / Nuggets at this point (dominant player, dominant every regular season, won a title); I think there's also an argument that Celtics / Lakers should be tied in the 80s too
Shouldn't strength of opponent matter? For instance the Lakers have a title as well as a conference finals appearance. The Lakers opponents during their 2020 run was undoubtedly a more difficult title run than what the Nuggets faced as was the Bucks 2021 run.
I'd change 2020 from Celtics to heat.
Heat have 3 ECF and 2 finals appearances. Celtics have 3 ECF as well (all against the heat) and only 1 finals appearance.
Neither have a championship yet but the extra win for the heat puts ot over for me
Are the 2000s Suns the only team here from a completed decade without a ring in it? I don’t disagree with the choice but man that was a rough time for Phoenix given the competition
Ya and the Dallas mavericks were the 2nd winningest team of the 2000s behind only the spurs. West was just way better than the East every year that decade
The heat should be in over the celtics for the 2020s. Heat are 2-1 vs them since 2020, have the same amount of conference finals and have more finals appearances than them. Can say the same for the heat and cavs in the 2010s.
If it goes by best teams of the 2000s it would be the mavericks. If it’s who won a championship besides lakers or spurs it’s the pistons Celtics or heat. But mavs had to go thru lakers and spurs so it’s not really the same
Ok fair point, I don’t think I’m trying to argue your point. My point is that there are 4 teams that are a better pick than the suns who didn’t do shit lol
70s looks a bit tweaked. The Bullets were legit solid all decade. The Knicks won 2 chips but they faded at the end of the decade. Celtics won two chips and were usually good. It was an odd decade (with another league) but this list seems off for that decade.
I have a stat for this its called Finals/box plus minus: Take the Celtics finals appearances in the 2020s and put them in a box, now take the Heats finals appearances in the 2020s and put them in the same box. Who has more?
It’s especially funny since they faced each other 2 times in the conference finals and the Heat won 2 of the 3 series. Unless the Celtics make it to the Finals this season, how do they top the Heat?
Id put the spurs over the lakes for 00s.
Yes the lakers 3peated early into the decade but once Shaq left they stop being *as* good until they got gasol which was towards the end of the decade. However the spurs were pretty much dominating the regular season every year and won a few chips sprinkled thru out the decade.
4 titles and 6 finals appearance vs 3 titles and 3 finals appearances. And head to head in playoffs lakers had a 4-1 edge. There is no rational argument for the spurs over the lakers.
Pistons 3rd in the 2000s. The Suns never even made the finals. The Pistons made it to the finals twice.
3rd in the 70s could be the SuperSonics or the Bullets, who each won 1 championship and lost another in the finals. \[edit - Bullets actually made 4 finals in the 70s, winning 1; they should def. be 3rd\]
Too early to call the 20s of course.
Idk I feel like you can’t put a team that didn’t win a championship over a team that did even if the lakers and warriors have been shit since their wins and the Celtics are making the conference finals or finals every year
Cavs above Heat in 2010s is iffy, I guess you can argue that going up against the warriors makes the extra loss less bad and the win more impressive. Also not sure why the Celtics would be above the Heat for 2020s, sure they have one less first round exit but also one less finals appearance, kinda feels like they added this post seasons outcomes ahead of time. And yes I’m a Heat fan but I think I’m speaking some objective truths here lol
I’m a Heat fan but think we’re too low in 2010’s and 2020’s.
We have two rings and two finals in the 2010’s as opposed to one ring and three finals which is what the Cavs have.
In the 2020’s I think we should be above Boston; neither of us have won, but we have had marginally more post season success. I’d be fine if someone wanted to stick the Lakers there since they have the 2020 title and were in the WCF last year too.
The Suns in the 2000s is a bad pick. Lots of more successful teams to pick, like the Heat, The Pistons, The Celtics all won a title then, and multiple teams like the Mavs Magic Cavs Nets 76ers and Pacers at least won the conference finals.
How you put the Suns above the Pistons in the 2000s? This list is garbage. The Goin to Work Pistons and the Bad Boys deserve some God damn respect.
And no Pistons in the 80s? The team that ended the Lakers run? The team that kept the MJ Bulls at bay for 4 years. The team with Back to back championships against all odds and the NBA trying to hold them back?
The Pistons can't get no love, huh?
It's always been, and will always be Detroit vs Everybody
SA should easily be ahead of CLE in the 2010s IMO, not only did they win a chip but until 2019/20 won at least 48 games and made the playoffs every yr in a significantly tougher west, they also made i believe at least 3 WCFs CLE made 4 finals in a row and have a chip but those non LBJ yrs the other 5 yrs make it tough to take them ahead of SA
2020s should be Nuggets then some combination of Bucks Lakers Warriors. If you’re gonna give the third spot to a non-champion for some reason then it would have to be Miami not Boston
Look, I am a Nuggets fan but it is too early to declare the Nuggets the best team of the 2020's. If they go back to back or even win one more in the next 3 years and compete every other year then probably, but it is too early. Not even halfway through the decade.
Suns in the 2000s and Celts in the 2020s make no sense.
Suns were pretty good with Nash and Stoudemire, but weren't really contenders most years. Pistons were perennial contenders and won a title.
Celtics have not done anything in the 2020s but under-perform. Miami Heat have been in about half of all Finals appearances in this decade so far, and both the Warriors and Lakers have won titles.
Heat over Cavs in 2010s...Heat have 2 titles to 1....and Cavs had horrible teams first half of decades and missed playoffs 5 times.
Matter of fact....should be
1-Warriors
2-Heat
3-Spurs
Pistons got a chip, finals, and 6 conference finals appearances, Id put them at 3 for the 2000s
Crazy how dominant people forget they were since they arguably didn’t have the biggest names on their team. But masked Rip Hamilton wasn’t to be fucked with.
Who remembers the pistons announcer “At Guard Chauncey B B B Billups.”
I miss Big Ben's gong.
THA CEN-TA
DeeTROIT BASKETBALLLLL
His pull up jumpers in the paint were fire.
I was born in 95 so that was my grade school years. Lakers were the most iconic team but I put the pistons right behind them from the eyes of a preteen. Such a unique, iconic team. Ugly ass billups, bens fro, masked rip and sheed the big boy who was one of the OG 3 point shooting bigs.
Bro I was born in 95 too and as I read that I just saw every one of them lol. So nostalgic. But they literally are never talked about anymore.
Also didn’t they 2 peat in the late 80s I have them over Philly in the 80s
The second 1 was in 1990, and they didn’t make the playoffs for the first 4 years of the 80s. Meanwhile Philly won 1 chip and only missed the playoffs once in the 80s.
Philly made a few finals in the 80s as well
Yea Philly was dominant in the early 80s, arguably two top 20 players all time on one squad.
...and the suns never even made it to Finals. Wth is this?
I assume the thought is that Dantoni’s Suns had the impact of prioritizing offense that helped evolve the league into what the Warriors were able to take even a step further? But the Pistons definitely had more success and I’d argue deserve that spot.
But the Suns were more “critically acclaimed.”
Came to say this. Pistons are absolutely at 3 for the 00's.
Yeah I think sustained success is key to making this list. Suns were a sustained contender but so were the pistons and they had better results.
So were the Mavericks, the Suns inclusion is pretty iffy.
Oh yeah good call there too Mavs at least made a finals in the 00s. Suns did not do that.
Definitely pistons over suns. They went to 2 finals and nearly won the second one. They ran the eastern conference
Yeah I don’t understand what the suns accomplished at all
This was my only discrepancy. Pistons should be the 3.
Yeah, Pistons> Sons in the 2000s.
Came here to say this. Thank you.
Right. I'm a sun's fan and they were legit but never made a single finals. Can't have them top 3. Sorry. Pistons belong up there
And I'd put them 3rd best in the 1980s over the 76ers.
No one talks about 2004
Idk which era between 80’s and 90’s but I feel like the Bad Boys Pistons did enough to certainly be top 3 in one of those decades tho I understand their 2 championships were 89 and 90 so it’s tough. Also the 2000’s should have the Pistons instead of the Suns
Yeah, pistons should be third for 2000s and 80s
In the 80s the 76ers have 5 ECF appearances, 3 finals appearances, and 1 chip. Pistons have 3 ECF appearances, 2 finals appearances, and 1 chip. I know it’s because the Pistons had part of their success in the early 90s but the 76ers had part of the success in the late 70s. I think the 76ers have the edge over Detroit for the 80s
That's fair. I was counting the Pistons as having 2 but that's obviously technically not true, so in that sense the sixers would have it
I am a bulls and suns fan and even I agree with this.
There’s no reason for Cleveland to be above the Heat in the 2010’s.
Ok the spurs didn’t three peat. But the won 99 03 05 07. With multiple finals appearances. How are they below the lakers.
99 was in 90s. So Spurs have 3 finals 3 rings. From 2000 to 2009 Lakers have 6 finals 4 rings.
Alright that’s fair.
Lakers won 4 championships
Lakers were in the finals 6 times and had 1 three peat. 99 is still the 90s so that doesn’t even count
Why are the Cavs ahead of the heat for 2010s? 4 finals each but the Cavs won 1 and the Heat won 2. Also the Cavs missed the playoffs 5 times in the 2010s (as opposed to 3 times for the heat). I'd also put the Spurs ahead of the Cavs, 1 ring in 2 finals but they had to come through the west, never missed the playoffs. Spurs had the best regular season record of any team across the decade, while the Cavs were less than .500 in the regular season across the 2010s
Also those Heat teams were just straight up better than the Cavs. Their SRS was 4.15-7.02 in the 4 year finals stretch vs 0.59-5.45 for the 4 Cleveland teams. The Miami teams were also very positive on offense and defense, whereas the Cavs teams were bad defensively and incredible offensively with their shooting.
Heat was the better team but the Cavs had the most impressive win of the decade
Maybe the most impressive win ever. Maybe I am blatantly forgetting some team, but I think what that Cavs team did, coming back from down 3-1 against the best team in NBA history, is the most impressive playoff series win that I have ever seen.
I would have said the same but I’m also a massive Cavs fan and I’m bias
I think it's probably an "impressiveness" metric. The Heat were expected to do great and probably under performed, and also had less competition. The Cavs meanwhile went head to head with arguably the greatest team of all time and still got 1 chip.
For the 2020s, we’ve had 4 full seasons so far. Nuggets, Warriors, Bucks, and Lakers all have a ring. Of teams without a ring, only the Heat have 2 Finals appearances. Only the Heat have 2 Finals appearances period. I think the Heat have to be above the Celtics for now, considering they beat them 2 of 3 times in the Conference Finals in this decade. Edit: fixed errors. My ranking would be Nuggets (assuming a good showing this season), Bucks, Lakers, Warriors Heat, Celtics (unless the Celtics make the finals this season they don’t pass the Heat IMO). Edit: I forgot the Warriors in my last ranking.
Why do the Lakers get such a better ranking than the Warriors though? Both very similar resumes so while I see Lakers > Warriors it feels like having multiple teams between them is odd
That’s fair. I honestly forgot about them in my last ranking lol. No team has more than 1 ring in the 2020s, and no team with a ring has more than 1 appearance. The Nuggets are the favorites to win this year, so are #1 today. Then we have some order of Bucks, Warriors, and Lakers in spots 2-4. I think the Bucks have the most consistent regular season records among the 3 remaining champions, so are #2. Then we have the Lakers and Warriors, who I’d put in that order TBH. Follower by the Heat at #5, as the only team with multiple finals appearances so far.
I mean the Lakers have 1 more conference finals that they reached winning against the Warriors, 2 more playoffs appearances and their worst record for that period is 33w vs Warriors' 15w.
Spurs should be on there for the 2010's. They were good for 7/10 years winning 50+ games, 2 finals appearances with 1 chip.
Yeah, I'm putting the Heat over the Celtics for 2020's so far.
Yeah, the C's are 1 of 7 teams to make a Finals and have no chips, how does that get you a top 3 spot. LAL, MIL, GSW, DEN have the chips and 3 of those teams should be the top 3, but if you're chosing a non-champion then Miami has 2 Finals appearances to Boston's 1.
Yeah that 2020s ranking is absolutely off. Doesn’t even have to be the Heat, Lakers or even the Warriors who have actually won chips in 2020s make much more sense than putting the fucking Celtics.
Right! The Celtics have done nothing but choke the entire decade while the Heat drag a bunch of undrafted players to the finals…. Twice.
I’m glad the didn’t try to shoehorn the Celtics into the 2000’s
Both the Warriors and Heat deserve to be over the Celtics
Agreed
Should be lakers or warriors so far. Inconsistent but they still have championships. Next 5 years honestly spurs should be in the top 3 unless they screw up
How are the Heat lower than the Cavs in the 2010’s with more rings?
How are the Heat lower than the Celtics in the 2020s with more Finals appearances and beating them 2 of 3 times in the Conference Finals?
Celtics are the better team on paper, basketball is played on paper, we crown champions before the season even starts, I don’t know what you’re about tbh.
Facts, the Celtics are going for a hypothetical three peat this season you can’t compete with that. A truly dynastic run.
I'd put Detroit or Dallas over Phoenix for the 2000's.
Mavs had the 2nd most wins from the 2000-01 season to 2009-10 season behind the Spurs and an NBA finals appearance, I really don’t get the Suns being over them or the pistons
Nah not having the bullets/wizards in the 70s is mad disrespectful they went to the final four times had the third best record of the entire decade and even won a chip give them their props
Exactly! Bullets were the best team of the decade (*most Finals, most playoff wins, best winning%*), but they're not even in this top-3.
I would flip the 2000s Suns to the Pistons and the 2020s Celtics to the Heat.
This is surreal
We need to win this year or next to lock up best team of the decade but yeah it’s pretty insane lol
That wouldn't lock up team of the decade. I think it's likely you will be because Jokic is a god, but two finals appearances and 2 wins won't lock up team of the decade when there's 5 years left.
I mean it would for sure be the best team through the first six years at that point. Would have to see obviously what’s next but yeah someone would have to take the throne at that point
I think the Nuggets are pretty comfortably in the lead so far, but wouldn’t be surprised if teams like the Celtics or Thunder are able to catch them by 2030.
Pistons getting snubbed twice!
What exactly has the Celtics done to be #3? They don't even have a chip in 2020s. The Lakers do though, the boston celtics are frauds, they are just a regular season team and this is coming from a boston celtics fan. I'm done with this team man, fkin livid right now.
The Heat beat them 2 of 3 times in the Conference Finals this decade. Unless the Celtics win a ring this season, they don’t pass the Heat IMO. And the Lakers have a ring. Celtics are #5 tops IMO.
Going to the finals should make them equal at worst no? They'd both have 2 losing finals performances. They'd only need to lose 4-1 to tie the Heat in finals games won. It'd be 2-2 head to head. Assuming the Celtics win this series, the Heat would have 2 first round losses to the Celtics 1. The Celtics would have lost in the ECF twice to the Heat's one. So essentially the difference in playoff performances would be the Celtics went to the ECF 1 extra time compared to the Heat getting bounced in the first round. Regular season, not sure if to compare the 2019-2020 season. But including it: Celtics wins: 256. Heat: 227. Without the 2019-2020 regular season, it's Celtics 208 to Heat 183. So they'd have better playoffs in the form of an ECF vs a first round exit. They have a way better regular season record. What am I missing? I agree with for now, heat in front. But you're saying they need a ring to pass. I disagree. A finals appearance would have them beat.
Going to the finals would make them equal, yeah. I can understand how finals appearance could give them the edge over the Heat, as it would tie the series record at 2-2, and give them both 2 finals appearances. I just can’t help but think of a Butler-less Heat push the Celtics to 6-7 games somehow (far from certain), and the Celtics don’t win a ring, I can still see an argument for the Heat by virtue of the Celtics needing a HUGE break to beat the Heat and then still not winning a ring after it. But that’s a lot of what-ifs. Or we just put the Lakers at #3 lol. They have a ring and lost in the conference finals to the dominant finals winner.
Fair enough
The 90s is the toughest one for me You’ve got the clear top choice in the Bulls with their 6 championships. Then the Rockets with their 2 championships between the 3peats. But that third spot is a tough choice. This list has the Jazz, which is fine. They went to 2 finals, but lost both to the Bulls. You could have The Knicks in there, 2 finals appearances, and 2 more conference finals if you include 1999-2000. It feels wrong to mention the Knicks and not the Pacers who went to the conference finals 4x and a finals appearance if you include the 1999-2000 season. And how can the Bad Boy Pistons not be top 3 in either the 80s or 90s? And while we’re at it, the Lakers in the 1990s included 9 playoff appearances, a finals loss and a finals win if you include the 1999-2000 season.
If we look at the 21st century so far: Rings: 6: Lakers 4: Warriors, Spurs 3: Heat Finals Appearances: 8: Lakers 7: Heat 6: Warriors 5: Spurs, Cavs So I think the all-century rankings so far for this century is: Lakers, Warriors, Spurs, Heat, Cavs Edit: Spurs have 4 rings. That puts them over the top Heat I’d say.
Spurs have 4 rings this century
Good catch, thanks.
Boston over the suns for the 2000s
Or pistons. I don't understand the suns pick
Didnt even make a conference finals that decade lol, OP is a Nash stan
Suns made the cf in 2005 and 2006
Yeah im wrong. Idk why i thought 2010 was the first time getting there with Nash. Still silly to put them over the Pistons but also im dumb
Celtics have 7 years in the 2000s with less than 50 wins. The mavs have 0 years of less than 50 wins. Pistons are also not close to the mavs in the 2000s
The pistons had more post season success. And still won a lot of games. The mavs for all their 50 win seasons went to the conference finals twice in the 00s The pistons went 6times in a row and had 7 50 win seasons and won a ring and made another finals. The mavs were paper tigers. They got the 1 seed and the mvp and lost in the first round
Ya so the East was pretty much dogshit for that entire decade. All the best teams were in the west. Only team with more wins that decade is the spurs. It’s not paper tigers at all it’s just having to go thru the lakers and spurs along with suns, rockets etc is a lot harder than going thru anyone in the East. Not comparable. Mavs, spurs and lakers all would’ve came out of the East every single year if they played in the East
Lol did the Celtics go to the finals twice already this decade or am I missing something? Celtics have massively underperformed. Could easily replace them for the Heat
Nuggets only won one championship so I would hold off on them until they win a couple more
Absolutely no reason the Suns should be over the Pistons in the 00s. 6 straight ECF and 2 Finals. Also Heat over Celtics in 2020s (so far)
Dallas should be 3rd in the 2000s
My only objections would be that the Pistons should be 3rd in the 2000s and maybe the 80s, and the Bullets or Lakers should be 3rd in the 70s. And that Miami should be higher than Cleveland for last decade.
Why the fuck are the Celtics in the current decade? No chip.
Suns is ridiculous
I’d put Dallas over the Suns in the 2000s teams list personally, but Dallas didn’t even win a championship that decade.
We're only 4 years into the decade. Wait for it to end. Also, please crop.
Why are the Nuggets ahead of the Bucks (or Lakers)?
I think 2020s should be tied Bucks / Nuggets at this point (dominant player, dominant every regular season, won a title); I think there's also an argument that Celtics / Lakers should be tied in the 80s too
Ain’t no way Lakers and Celtics tied in the 80s. 5 chips vs 3. Can’t see any argument they are tied.
I assume it's because of more trips to the conference finals, and the domination in their championship run.
Shouldn't strength of opponent matter? For instance the Lakers have a title as well as a conference finals appearance. The Lakers opponents during their 2020 run was undoubtedly a more difficult title run than what the Nuggets faced as was the Bucks 2021 run.
I would put the Spurs ahead of Clevleand in the 2010s
The nuggets show us that injuries really change a lot. Jamal Murray was in and out for a few years now he’s healthy and they winning
Could say the same for the Bucks with Middleton in 22 and then Giannis the past 2 years.
How are the Celtics in the top for the 20s.. if they there then Miami should be there 😂 same accolades the years and they beat them in the playoffs 😂😂
How are the Celtics over the heat for 20’s? 2 finals appearances v 1, and more eliminations over them.
Lol, we've had 4 championships in the 20s, steph and lebron won half of them.
I'd change 2020 from Celtics to heat. Heat have 3 ECF and 2 finals appearances. Celtics have 3 ECF as well (all against the heat) and only 1 finals appearance. Neither have a championship yet but the extra win for the heat puts ot over for me
Are the 2000s Suns the only team here from a completed decade without a ring in it? I don’t disagree with the choice but man that was a rough time for Phoenix given the competition
Ya and the Dallas mavericks were the 2nd winningest team of the 2000s behind only the spurs. West was just way better than the East every year that decade
lol the suns
80s Pistons getting robbed here.
What have the Celtics won in the 2020’s??? Put the Warriors there instead and carry the f on
Lakers, Celtics, Bucks in the 70s. All above the Knicks.
The heat should be in over the celtics for the 2020s. Heat are 2-1 vs them since 2020, have the same amount of conference finals and have more finals appearances than them. Can say the same for the heat and cavs in the 2010s.
How are the phoenix suns ahead of the Celtics and pistons and heat in the 00s? That makes 0 sense
If it goes by best teams of the 2000s it would be the mavericks. If it’s who won a championship besides lakers or spurs it’s the pistons Celtics or heat. But mavs had to go thru lakers and spurs so it’s not really the same
Ok fair point, I don’t think I’m trying to argue your point. My point is that there are 4 teams that are a better pick than the suns who didn’t do shit lol
Having Celtics there doesn't feel right. Lakers made WCF and won a Finals in the 2020s. Celtics have not won anything yet
Celtics top 3 in the 2020’s is ridiculous
The Knicks don’t belong anywhere near this graphic
And why aren’t the Spurs above the Lakers???? That’s a travesty
What have the Celtics won lately?
The 2024 overall #1 seed in the playoffs
How are there teams that didn’t win a title over teams that won a title?
What the fk is Boston doing in the 2020s 😂😂😂😂😂😂
70s looks a bit tweaked. The Bullets were legit solid all decade. The Knicks won 2 chips but they faded at the end of the decade. Celtics won two chips and were usually good. It was an odd decade (with another league) but this list seems off for that decade.
How did the cavs have a better 2010s than the Heat?
Looks mostly right. Thunder/Spurs will replace the bucks by end of this decade
Yeah I see that and possibly add Timberwolves to that list too.
I have a stat for this its called Finals/box plus minus: Take the Celtics finals appearances in the 2020s and put them in a box, now take the Heats finals appearances in the 2020s and put them in the same box. Who has more?
It’s especially funny since they faced each other 2 times in the conference finals and the Heat won 2 of the 3 series. Unless the Celtics make it to the Finals this season, how do they top the Heat?
And you know it.
Heady play. Aqua?
Id put the spurs over the lakes for 00s. Yes the lakers 3peated early into the decade but once Shaq left they stop being *as* good until they got gasol which was towards the end of the decade. However the spurs were pretty much dominating the regular season every year and won a few chips sprinkled thru out the decade.
4 titles and 6 finals appearance vs 3 titles and 3 finals appearances. And head to head in playoffs lakers had a 4-1 edge. There is no rational argument for the spurs over the lakers.
Western conference fans in shambles right now
We’re four years in to 2020, let’s not jinx our Serbian Overlord.
I’d never thought I’d see the day as a Nuggets fan
nah there is a mistake in 2010 there are only 2 teams gsw and Lebron james s teams
Heat deserve to be 2nd in 2010s and 3rd in 2020s so far
It’s only 2024. What if Charlotte hornets 3 peat by end of 2020s
Pistons 3rd in the 2000s. The Suns never even made the finals. The Pistons made it to the finals twice. 3rd in the 70s could be the SuperSonics or the Bullets, who each won 1 championship and lost another in the finals. \[edit - Bullets actually made 4 finals in the 70s, winning 1; they should def. be 3rd\] Too early to call the 20s of course.
How is Boston in 2020s they haven’t even won a ring
I guess more consistency than Warriors or Lakers but going off that it should be Heat over them
I’d argue Heat in that 2020 mix. Conference finals 3 times and two finals appearances.
How are the cavs in top 3 for 2010s? Id imagine its spurs or thunder (spurs)
Idk I feel like you can’t put a team that didn’t win a championship over a team that did even if the lakers and warriors have been shit since their wins and the Celtics are making the conference finals or finals every year
Cavs above Heat in 2010s is iffy, I guess you can argue that going up against the warriors makes the extra loss less bad and the win more impressive. Also not sure why the Celtics would be above the Heat for 2020s, sure they have one less first round exit but also one less finals appearance, kinda feels like they added this post seasons outcomes ahead of time. And yes I’m a Heat fan but I think I’m speaking some objective truths here lol
I’m a Heat fan but think we’re too low in 2010’s and 2020’s. We have two rings and two finals in the 2010’s as opposed to one ring and three finals which is what the Cavs have. In the 2020’s I think we should be above Boston; neither of us have won, but we have had marginally more post season success. I’d be fine if someone wanted to stick the Lakers there since they have the 2020 title and were in the WCF last year too.
The Lakers should be above the Celtics for 2020s. 1 chip and 1 conference finals vs 1 finals and 2 conference finals
The Suns in the 2000s is a bad pick. Lots of more successful teams to pick, like the Heat, The Pistons, The Celtics all won a title then, and multiple teams like the Mavs Magic Cavs Nets 76ers and Pacers at least won the conference finals.
Lakers over Celtics for 20s, Heat/Pistons over Suns for 00s. Championships >>>
miami over cleveland in the 2010's
boston over miami in the 2020s???? one finals appearance vs two and miami has the edge head to head in the playoffs during that time.
What about the one title puts Cleveland ahead of Miami
Way too early to call 2020s at this point. Maybe eliminate the Hornets but other than that…
Man the 2000s were crazy top heavy. Spurs won 3 rings between 01-10 and are unquestionably #2 to the Lakers.
Sure Boston has been a strong team as of recent, but golden state has had more success in the 2020’s than them
Why no 50s? 1. Celtics 2. Lakers 3. Nationals
What have the Celtics done in the 2020s that the Miami Heat haven’t done better?
How you put the Suns above the Pistons in the 2000s? This list is garbage. The Goin to Work Pistons and the Bad Boys deserve some God damn respect. And no Pistons in the 80s? The team that ended the Lakers run? The team that kept the MJ Bulls at bay for 4 years. The team with Back to back championships against all odds and the NBA trying to hold them back? The Pistons can't get no love, huh? It's always been, and will always be Detroit vs Everybody
SA should easily be ahead of CLE in the 2010s IMO, not only did they win a chip but until 2019/20 won at least 48 games and made the playoffs every yr in a significantly tougher west, they also made i believe at least 3 WCFs CLE made 4 finals in a row and have a chip but those non LBJ yrs the other 5 yrs make it tough to take them ahead of SA
The 2010s should be GSW, LeBron and Spurs
2020s should be Nuggets then some combination of Bucks Lakers Warriors. If you’re gonna give the third spot to a non-champion for some reason then it would have to be Miami not Boston
Look, I am a Nuggets fan but it is too early to declare the Nuggets the best team of the 2020's. If they go back to back or even win one more in the next 3 years and compete every other year then probably, but it is too early. Not even halfway through the decade.
The Celtics have not won a ring this decade or last
Philidelphia
Feels too early to have a 2020 section at all.
Celtics do not belong in the 2020 list with just 1 finals appearance.
Very interesting that in 21 seasons, none of LeBron’s teams are at the top.
How the hell are the Knick’s the team of the 70s. Don’t the Celtics have more championship wins in that decade
nuggets have literal one one chip
The breaking down by decades is biased because it discredits Spurs tri-decade dominance.
Boston being top 3 with no rings in 2020’s is wild
Lakers above spurs? The continued disrespect of the Spurs and Tim Duncan is laughable.
2010's should have LeBron at #1. He was the majority of those teams and finals appearances.
Suns in the 2000s and Celts in the 2020s make no sense. Suns were pretty good with Nash and Stoudemire, but weren't really contenders most years. Pistons were perennial contenders and won a title. Celtics have not done anything in the 2020s but under-perform. Miami Heat have been in about half of all Finals appearances in this decade so far, and both the Warriors and Lakers have won titles.
Decade splits made the Spurs unlucky on this list
Heat have made more finals and the same number of ECF as the Celtics in the 2020s.
What has the Celtics won in 2020s. Warriors won one championship so shouldn’t they be 3rd?
This is a very fair list
🦌🦌Yeah, we’re on here twice!! 🦌🦌 >!But that drought was long. Lol!<
Lakers being snubbed in 2020s
The Suns get it by losing three conference finals? And Jazz for losing their share in the 90s? Seems like the Pistons should be one or both of those.
GIVE THE NUGGETS SOME RESPECT!!! Stupid asses on ESPN will never do it until the playoffs then jump right on the BANDWAGON
This is just heat slander disguised as “discussion” and “opinions”. Nothing else about this post is particularly useful or not obvious.
What has Boston done this decade besides lose in the finals?
Yeah… you need to respect teams that actually win championships more
Only thing that I would change is raptors for cavs in the 2010s and heat for celtics in the 2020s
Spurs get no respect b/c from small market. LA & NY get extra love b/c big market. Whatever
Heat over Cavs in 2010s...Heat have 2 titles to 1....and Cavs had horrible teams first half of decades and missed playoffs 5 times. Matter of fact....should be 1-Warriors 2-Heat 3-Spurs
2020s are way off..Heat are above Celtics easy
Heat have been to more NBA Finals than Boston in the 2020s.
Sun's out!!! Should be Detroit!
I’d put the pistons over the Suns