Players with the most NBA championships

Besides the security that comes with the money, the ultimate goal of most players in the NBA is to win a title and the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy that comes with it. The number of titles is a representation of a player’s greatness.

From the 1960s when we had only eight teams and the Boston Celtics dominated year in year out to the modern era with 30 teams, we look of the players with the most titles since the birth of the NBA. While some were the real superstars on their teams, most were foot soldiers who did the mundane tasks on their respective teams that allowed the superstars to thrive.

5. Bob Cousy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen: Six titles

Bob Cousy was picked up by the Boston Celtics after refusing to report to the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. He won six titles with the Celtics while leading the league in assists through eight seasons. He earned his nickname, “Houdini of the Hardwood”, due to his sleek ball handling and passing skills. He was a 13-time All-Star who was also named to 12 All-NBA First and Second Teams. He won the 1957 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is arguably the best basketball player of all-time, given the circumstances. Formerly Lewis Alcindor, he played 20 seasons in the NBA. He spent six seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, where he won one title, and 14 with the Lakers, where he won five titles. He holds the NBA record for most points scored and career win shares. He had his trademark skyhook that proved impossible to defend.

Michael Jordan is the best basketball player of all-time. He is responsible for popularising the NBA around the world. He led the Chicago Bulls to two straight three-peats separated by a brief retirement during which he tried to play minor league baseball. Jordan retired for a second time in January 1999, but he returned for two more NBA seasons from 2001 to 2003 as a member of the Washington Wizards.

Scottie Pippen was the Robin to Jordan’s Batman. He is considered one of the best small forwards of all-time. He played 17 seasons in the NBA. Twelve of those seasons were spent with the Bulls, where he won all six of his titles =, while one was spent with the Houston Rockets and four were spent with the Portland Trail Blazers.

4. Jim Loscutoff, Frank Ramsey and Robert Horry: Seven titles

Jim Loscutoff played on seven Celtics championship teams between 1955 and 1964. His clutch free throw against the St. Louis Hawks gave the Celtics their first title. He played for nine seasons, all with the Celtics.

Frank Ramsey was another member and contributor of the Celtics dynasty. He played for nine seasons in Boston and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 1981. He was the NBA’s first sixth man.

Robert Horry is the only player not to have played on the Celtics in the 1960s to have won seven championships. He is one of two players to have won NBA championships with three different teams. He won two with the Houston Rockets, three with the Los Angeles Lakers and two with the San Antonio Spurs. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest clutch performers and winners in NBA history.

3. Tom Heinsohn, K.C. Jones, Satch Sanders and John Havlicek: Eight titles

Tom Heinsohn played in an NBA All-Star Game in his first year and he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year over teammate Bill Russell before winning his first championship ring. He was part of the Celtics dynasty and won eight NBA titles in nine years. He also coached the Celtics after hanging up his boots and won two titles as a coach. He was inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach.

K.C. Jones won eight titles with the Boston Celtics as a player and two as a head coach. He is the only African-American to win multiple NBA Finals as both a player and a head coach. He was Bill Russell’s teammate from college to the pros. He retired from playing when the Celtics lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1967 playoffs. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1989.

Satch Sanders was also a member of the Boston Celtics team that won eight straight titles. He spent his entire 13-year career with the team. After retiring as a player, he succeeded his former teammate, Tom Heinsohn, as the head coach of the Celtics. Sanders became the first African-American head coach of any sport in the Ivy League at Harvard and founded the Rookie Transition Program.

John Havlicek spent his entire 16-year career with the Boston Celtics. He is one of the greatest players in the history of the game and was inducted as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984. He is remembered for revolutionizing the sixth man role in the NBA. Havlicek is the team's all-time leader in points and games played.

2. Samuel Jones: 10 titles

Sam Jones was Bill Russell’s teammate for all 10 of his career NBA titles. Sam had 10 rings in his 12-year career, a career spent completely with the Celtics. Jones is a Hall of Famer and one of the NBA’s greatest players. He was one of the best shooting guards of the 1960s after Oscar Robertson, Jerry West and Hal Greer. Jones was especially noted for his great bank shot.

He was a clutch scorer, especially in the playoffs, and managed more than 15,000 career points. He was a five-time All-Star and a three-time All-NBA Second Team member.

1. Bill Russell: 11 titles

Bill Russell played in the NBA from 1956 to 1969. In the 13 seasons he played, he won the championship an insane 11 times. In his playing days, there were only 11 teams in the league. He was a beast on the defensive end and was the centre of the Celtics dynasty.

He is tied with Henri Richard of the National Hockey League for the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league.

Three of those championships were as a player/coach. He is widely considered one of the best players in NBA history. He was the first African-American to achieve superstar status in the NBA. The NBA finals MVP trophy is named after him.

Edited by Asher Fair