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Teams in the NBA go into each season with title hopes. Winning is one of the main goals of any competitive sport, if not the only goal. As far as basketball goes, the NBA is one of the premier events and the NBA Finals is the holy grail of title hopefuls year after year.
There are some teams in particular that leave their mark upon history. Teams that were built to stand the test of time and compete to produce some of the greatest moments in the history of the league. These are the dynasties.
The NBA has seen dynasties rise and fall, be it the Minneapolis Lakers in the 50's or the Golden State Warriors who dominated the second half of the 2010's. The very nature of dynasties is to end. However, the success they enjoy in that time immortalizes them in the record books.
Looking at the NBA dynasties in the league's history, in this article we list the only five teams to appear in four consecutive NBA Finals.
#1 LA Lakers
The LA Lakers are among one of the most storied franchises in the NBA. Being a part of the league since its inception, the Lakers have excelled across several decades, amassing 17 NBA Championships in the process.
The franchise saw its most successful NBA Finals runs in the 1980's. Led by a trio of Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy, the LA Lakers became one of the most exciting and successful franchises in the NBA.
With a style of play that suited their Hollywood background, the Lakers appeared in four consecutive NBA Finals from 1982-1985.
With coach Pat Riley, the Lakers would win two out of those four appearances. They won their first ring of the four year streak against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Sixers would get them back immediately, sweeping them in the Finals with the addition of Moses Malone to their ranks.
The second win came against their age-old rivals, the Boston Celtics. Although the Celtics beat them in 1984, the Lakers would get them back in 1985 by beating them 4-2.
With that victory in 1985, the Lakers capped off their tremendous streak in the NBA Finals. Magic and the LA Lakers went on to win two more titles in the latter part of the decade, successfully repeating championships in 1987 and 1988.
#2 Miami Heat
The Miami Heat franchise came into being during the 1988-89 season as an expansion team in the NBA. After hiring Pat Riley as team president, the Heat enjoyed much success entering playoff contention with stars like Tim Hardaway and Alonzo Mourning.
Miami won its first championship in 2006 led by the duo of Dwyane Wade and the league's most dominant force, Shaquille O'Neal. However, their most impressive run in the Finals came during their "Big Three" era.
After the additions of All-Stars LeBron James and Chris Bosh, the Miami Heat went on to appear in four consecutive NBA Finals between 2011-2014. With a trio that was at the peak of their powers, the Heat would produce two NBA titles in that period of time.
In their first season in the "Big Three" era, the Heat produced instant success by making it to the Finals. However, faced up against the Dallas Mavericks led by Dirk Nowitzki, the Heat would lose in six games on the back of one of the greatest playoff runs in NBA history.
The Heat followed up this season with consecutive victories against the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012 and the San Antonio Spurs in 2013.
However, as all dynasties do, the Heat's epic run in the Finals came to an end. In 2014, the Spurs faced them again and beat them on the back of a stellar performance by the young Kawhi Leonard.
While the Heat continued to be in playoff contention, LeBron James left the franchise to return home to Cleveland. Miami wouldn't see another NBA Finals appearance until 2020 where they were led by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
#3 Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers were formed in 1970 as an expansion team in the NBA. While they did win a few playoff series, there was no consistent streak of playoff contention.
After drafting LeBron James in 2003, the Cavaliers became a regular playoff team by 2005. LeBron and Zydrunas Ilgauskas would also take the franchise to their first NBA Finals in 2007 where they would get swept by the Spurs.
After LeBron's departure, the franchise fell to the bottom of the table again. However, after LeBron's return in 2015, Cleveland saw a resurrection in their culture.
With LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love serving as the Big Three, the Cavaliers would enjoy four consecutive Finals appearances. One of which resulted in one of the greatest comeback victories in league history.
Between 2015-2018, the Cavaliers were a dominant presence in the Eastern Conference. Served by their Big Three, the Cavaliers won their first title in franchise history in 2016 against the Golden State Warriors.
However, the Warriors proved to be too much going forward. After their first loss to the Warriors in 2015, the Cavs enjoyed a redemption win the following season. The Cavaliers made a fairytale comeback from being down 3-1 to winning the Finals in Game Seven.
But between 2017-2018, the Cavs saw the departure of Kyrie Irving and injuries to Kevin Love.
When LeBron brought the team to their last finals appearance in 2018, the team was swept by the Warriors. That capped off the Cavaliers' epic streak in the Finals and LeBron's unreal eight consecutive Finals appearances.
#4 Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors have been a part of the NBA since 1962, and were named the San Francisco Warriors at the time. The team was originally based in Philadelphia in 1946 but moved out to San Francisco in 1962. The franchise has a history of winning championships served by players across eras such as Paul Arizin, Wilt Chamberlain and Rick Barry, among others.
The Warriors' most successful dynasty, however, was in the second half of the 2010's. Served by a trio of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, the Golden State Warriors under coach Steve Kerr, changed the face of basketball.
Golden State enjoyed five consecutive NBA Finals appearances between 2015-2019. They have won three of those five, two of which were consecutive titles from 2017-2018.
After winning the NBA championship in 2015 against the Cavaliers, the Warriors followed it up with the best regular-season record of all time with 73-9 in the next season. However, an upset in the Finals saw them lose to the Cavs in seven games.
The Warriors would then add Kevin Durant to their ranks for the 2017-18 season and the team would go on to win consecutive championships with Durant.
Their epic run came to an end in 2019 when they faced the Toronto Raptors, led by Kawhi Leonard and Kyle Lowry. A series of injuries sidelined Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant from the Finals as the Raptors took the Finals win in six games.
The Warriors entered the conversation for one of the greatest dynasties of all time. With the 2021-22 season approaching and the return of Klay Thompson to the lineup, the franchise is looking to revive its championship culture.
#5 Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics have been a part of the league since its inception. With a culture of dominating, the Celtics have the best NBA Finals record in league history. Tied for most titles in the NBA with the Lakers, the Celtics are 17-4 in the NBA Finals.
With a history of great dynasties in the franchise, the first Celtics dynasty was perhaps the greatest of all time. With a streak of 10 consecutive NBA Finals appearances, the Celtics walked away with nine titles, eight of which were consecutive. Led by Bill Russell and Bob Cousy, the Celtics dominated the league from 1957-1969 as Russell ended his career with 11 championships.
Their streak of Finals appearances began with their win in 1957 against the St. Louis Hawks. After losing the following year to the Hawks, the Celtics went on their eight title winning streak.
However, this isn't the only time a Boston dynasty has enjoyed four consecutive Finals appearances. In the 1980's, the Celtics were led to four consecutive NBA Finals between 1984-1987 by Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish.
The Celtics went on to win two of these four title runs. After beating the Lakers in their first matchup in 1984, the Lakers would return the favor by winning the title the following season. However, the Celtics' run in the Finals would continue as they beat the Houston Rockets in 1986 in six games.
Boston capped off their streak after a loss in the 1987 NBA Finals to the LA Lakers. With this loss, the franchise wouldn't see another successful NBA Finals until the 2007-08 season, where they beat the Lakers in six games.
Guess the Lakers players!
