Fansided

Ranking every NBA Champion from No. 72 to No. 1 — The Definitive List

By Staff

TORONTO, CANADA - MAY 30: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors DeMarcus Cousins #0 of the Golden State Warriors and Serge Ibaka #9 of the Toronto Raptors defend their positions during Game One of the NBA Finals on May 30, 2019 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images)
TORONTO, CANADA - MAY 30: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors DeMarcus Cousins #0 of the Golden State Warriors and Serge Ibaka #9 of the Toronto Raptors defend their positions during Game One of the NBA Finals on May 30, 2019 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 16: San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) takes a jumpshot over Los Angeles Clippers power forward Blake Griffin (32) during the Los Angeles Clippers 115-92 victory over the San Antonio Spurs at the Staples Center at the Staples Center on December 16, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Chris Elise/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 16: San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) takes a jumpshot over Los Angeles Clippers power forward Blake Griffin (32) during the Los Angeles Clippers 115-92 victory over the San Antonio Spurs at the Staples Center at the Staples Center on December 16, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Chris Elise/Getty Images) /

16. 2013-14 San Antonio Spurs

A year after getting handed its first-ever NBA Finals defeat, most notably as the first victim of LeBron’s Miami Heat dream team, the Spurs were out for blood. After posting the best record in basketball by a healthy margin (the Pacers had the league’s second-best record trailing behind by six-games), San Antonio only suffered one real hiccup on its way to a sixth NBA title.

Outside of the Spurs claiming their fifth in the last 15 years, the most notable part of this season was the only hiccup San Antonio experienced. The first round series against the Dallas Mavericks was a seven-game instant classic that almost derailed what ended up being one of the Spurs most memorable seasons ever. It’s arguably the last time we truly got to see peak Playoff Dirk and it was a scare that you could say helped harden the Spurs for the remainder of their title run.

This is also the series that announced the arrival of Kawhi Leonard. He won Finals MVP for his dominance of LeBron James the entire series, and it established him as a two-way superstar that we would become more and more familiar with over the next handful of years. Kawhi’s arrival as a Star in the league was one of the reasons the Spurs only needed five games to dispatch the Heat. A lasting image from this Finals, in addition to all of the usual Spurs pomp and circumstance, is a cramped up LeBron being carried off the court in San Antonio after the air conditioning inside AT&T Arena broke during Game 1.

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