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NBA Finals history: Full List of NBA champions through the years

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers will look the join this illustrious list of NBA champions.
Michael Jordan (L) and Chicago Bulls head coach Ph
Michael Jordan (L) and Chicago Bulls head coach Ph | JEFF HAYNES/GettyImages

The 2025 NBA Finals are set, and it's a great matchup between two attempted first-timers. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers have zero NBA championships between them. There will be moans and groans about "small markets" and "no star-power," but those folks hate basketball. This is what it's all about.

Indiana has been in the NBA since the the 70s, going on 50 years without a ring (those three ABA championships belong to a different era). OKC is much newer, but Sam Presti's patient rebuild has led to what is the closest to a juggernaut we've seen since the Steph-led Warriors fell off. The Thunder still need to prove it on the Finals stage, of course, but this team is built to win games — a lot of 'em — for years to come.

As we all prepare for a thrilling clash of styles between All-NBA point guards and high-paced offenses, let's dive into the annals of NBA history for a bit of context. Here are all the champs (and who they beat) since the NBA was incepted in the 1940s.

Every NBA Finals champion in league history

Year

Champion

Runner-up

1947

Philadelphia Warriors

Chicago Stags

1948

Baltimore Bullets

Philadelphia Warriors

1949

Minneapolis Lakers

Washington Capitols

1950

Minneapolis Lakers

Syracuse Nationals

1951

Rochester Royals

New York Knicks

1952

Minneapolis Lakers

New York Knicks

1953

Minneapolis Lakers

New York Knicks

1954

Minneapolis Lakers

Syracuse Nationals

1955

Syracuse Nationals

Ft. Wayne Pistons

1956

Philadelphia Warriors

Ft. Wayne Pistons

1957

Boston Celtics

St. Louis Hawks

1958

St. Louis Hawks

Boston Celtics

1959

Boston Celtics

Minneapolis Lakers

1960

Boston Celtics

St. Louis Hawks

1961

Boston Celtics

St. Louis Hawks

1962

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1963

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1964

Boston Celtics

San Francisco Warriors

1965

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1966

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1967

Philadelphia 76ers

San Francisco Warriors

1968

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1969

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1970

New York Knicks

Los Angeles Lakers

1971

Milwaukee Bucks

Baltimore Bullets

1972

Los Angeles Lakers

New York Knicks

1973

New York Knicks

Los Angeles Lakers

1974

Boston Celtics

Milwaukee Bucks

1975

Golden State Warriors

Washington Bullets

1976

Boston Celtics

Phoenix Suns

1977

Portland Trail Blazers

Philadelphia 76ers

1978

Washington Bullets

Seattle SuperSonics

1979

Seattle SuperSonics

Washington Bullets

1980

Los Angeles Lakers

Philadelphia 76ers

1981

Boston Celtics

Houston Rockets

1982

Los Angeles Lakers

Philadelphia 76ers

1983

Philadelphia 76ers

Los Angeles Lakers

1984

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

1985

Los Angeles Lakers

Boston Celtics

1986

Boston Celtics

Houston Rockets

1987

Los Angeles Lakers

Boston Celtics

1988

Los Angeles Lakers

Detroit Pistons

1989

Detroit Pistons

Los Angeles Lakers

1990

Detroit Pistons

Portland Trail Blazers

1991

Chicago Bulls

Los Angeles Lakers

1992

Chicago Bulls

Portland Trail Blazers

1993

Chicago Bulls

Phoenix Suns

1994

Houston Rockets

New York Knicks

1995

Houston Rockets

Orlando Magic

1996

Chicago Bulls

Seattle SuperSonics

1997

Chicago Bulls

Utah Jazz

1998

Chicago Bulls

Utah Jazz

1999

San Antonio Spurs

New York Knicks

2000

Los Angeles Lakers

Indiana Pacers

2001

Los Angeles Lakers

Philadelphia 76ers

2002

Los Angeles Lakers

New Jersey Nets

2003

San Antonio Spurs

New Jersey Nets

2004

Detroit Pistons

Los Angeles Lakers

2005

San Antonio Spurs

Detroit Pistons

2006

Miami Heat

Dallas Mavericks

2007

San Antonio Spurs

Cleveland Cavaliers

2008

Boston Celtics

Los Angeles Lakers

2009

Los Angeles Lakers

Orlando Magic

2010

Los Angeles Lakers

Boston Celtics

2011

Dallas Mavericks

Miami Heat

2012

Miami Heat

Oklahoma City Thunder

2013

Miami Heat

San Antonio Spurs

2014

San Antonio Spurs

Miami Heat

2015

Golden State Warriors

Cleveland Cavaliers

2016

Cleveland Cavaliers

Golden State Warriors

2017

Golden State Warriors

Cleveland Cavaliers

2018

Golden State Warriors

Cleveland Cavaliers

2019

Toronto Raptors

Golden State Warriors

2020

Los Angeles Lakers

Miami Heat

2021

Milwaukee Bucks

Phoenix Suns

2022

Golden State Warriors

Boston Celtics

2023

Denver Nuggets

Miami Heat

2024

Boston Celtics

Dallas Mavericks

My main takeaway here is the degradation of NBA team names since 1947. Chicago Stags is 10,000X better than Chicago Bulls. Sorry. We just don't get teams in Rochester or Fort Wayne anymore either. It's a real shame. This is what corperate greed has taken from us. Just remember: the Knicks' first Finals appearance was a fat loss to the Rochester Royals.

Another big takeaway: not sure how Lakers fans can really sit here and talk like it's an even battle with the Celtics historically. I know the numbers even out in the end, but Boston spend the first couple decades of NBA basketball just mollywhopping L.A. in the Finals every year. Tough scene.

A new team will join the championship ranks this summer, as both Indiana and OKC are looking to add their first Larry O'Brein trophy. We are going to witness history either way, folks, so appreciate it while it's here.

Which NBA teams have the most NBA championships?

Rank

Team

Championships

1

Boston Celtics

18

2

Los Angeles Lakers

17

3

Golden State Warriors

7

4

Chicago Bulls

6

5

San Antonio Spurs

5

Boston took the crown last summer. It might be a while before the Lakers can punch back. Credit where it's due to San Antonio, though. Four of our largest media markets, franchises dominated by star-power and untold glitz... and the San Antonio Spurs. Those Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili teams were magical.