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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OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 07: Tim Duncan #21 and Tony Parker #9 of the San Antonio Spurs talks while there’s a break in the action against the Golden State Warriors during an NBA Basketball game at ORACLE Arena on April 7, 2016 in Oakland, 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 Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 07: Tim Duncan #21 and Tony Parker #9 of the San Antonio Spurs talks while there’s a break in the action against the Golden State Warriors during an NBA Basketball game at ORACLE Arena on April 7, 2016 in Oakland, 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 Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

11. 2006-07 San Antonio Spurs

Lost in the talk about dynasties and rivalries is just how good the Spurs vs. LeBron trilogy was. The 2007 NBA Finals was the first episode, in which the Spurs both welcomed LeBron to his first Finals and promptly let him know how much further he still had to go before the King had truly arrived.

Things were prompt because the series was a clean sweep, the last time such a thing would happen in the Finals until — coincidentally — the Cavaliers were swept by the Warriors in 2018.

Frankly, we should have seen it coming. The Spurs were the better team by a wide margin. They finished the regular season eight games better than the Cavaliers, who weren’t even the best team in the Eastern Conference that year. LeBron was the headline in Cleveland but his rag-tag team of Žydrūnas Ilgauskas, Larry Hughes, and Anderson Varejao ran into the iconic lineup of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker in their prime. It was a slaughter, something highlighted by the fact that the most memorable moment in the Spurs postseason run came in the Conference Semifinals against the Phoenix Suns.

That’s the infamous series in which David Stern suspended Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw — two of the Suns best players — for a crucial Game 5 and Phoenix never recovered. It’s the inverse of what the Spurs success, and one of the biggest What-If’s in recent NBA history, especially given how easily the Spurs dispatched the Jazz and Cavaliers in their last two series on the way to a fourth NBA Finals win.

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