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NBA conference finals

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The NBA conference finals are the Eastern and Western Conference championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA), a major professional basketball league in North America. The NBA was founded in 1946 as the Basketball Association of America (BAA).[1] The NBA adopted its current name at the start of the 1949–50 season when the BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL).[2] The league currently consists of 30 teams, of which 29 are located in the United States and 1 in Canada. Each team plays 82 games in the regular season.[A] After the regular season, eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs. At the end of the playoffs, the top two teams play each other in the conference finals, to determine the conference champions from each side, who then proceed to play in the NBA Finals. Trophies were given to each conference winner starting in 2001. In 2022, they were named the Bob Cousy Trophy for the Eastern Conference and the Oscar Robertson Trophy for the Western Conference. Also that year, the league started naming an NBA conference finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) for each conference.[3]

Overview

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Initially, the BAA teams were aligned into the Eastern Division and the Western Division. The Divisional Finals were first played in 1949, the league's third season. The first two seasons used a playoffs format where Eastern and Western Division teams would face each other before the BAA Finals. Hence, there were no divisional finals. In the 1949–50 season, the league realigned itself to three divisions, with the addition of the Central Division. However, the arrangement was only used for one season, and the league returned to the two-division format in 1951. The two divisions' format remained until 1970 when the NBA realigned itself into two conferences with two divisions each, which led to the renaming to conference finals.

The finals were a best-of-3 series from 1949 to 1950, a best-of-5 series from 1951 to 1956, and a best-of-7 series since 1957. The conference finals are currently played in a best-of-7 series like the NBA playoffs and Finals. The two series are played in late May each year after the first and second rounds of the Playoffs and before the Finals. After the conference finals, winners are presented with a silver trophy, caps, and T-shirts and advance to the NBA Finals. The trophies have a slightly different base for each conference to help distinguish one from the other; the silver basketball on the Eastern Conference trophy sits on three pegs, while the Western Conference trophy has the basketball on intercrossing circular rings.

The Los Angeles Lakers have won the most conference titles with 19. They have also made 23 appearances in the conference finals, more than any other team, which included eight consecutive appearances in the Western Conference finals from 1982 to 1989. The Boston Celtics have won 11 conference championships, the second most of any team. 22 of the 30 active franchises have won at least one conference title. The Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers have each played in at least one conference finals (Atlanta and Sacramento have played in two), but they have each failed to win their respective conference title. Two other franchises, the Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans, have never appeared in the conference finals.

Conference trophies

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The NBA first awarded conference championship trophies in 2001.[4] In 2022, both were redesigned, with the Eastern and Western Conference trophies being renamed after Bob Cousy and Oscar Robertson, respectively, who were instrumental in developing and advancing the players' labor union, the National Basketball Players Association. The two redesigned trophies each feature a silver basketball with its respective conference finals logo on the underside. The silver basketball is quartered into four sections, representing the winning team first qualifying for the playoffs and then advancing through the three playoff rounds. In that same year, the NBA began awarding Conference Finals MVPs to the best-performing player of each Conference Finals: the Larry Bird Eastern Conference finals Most Valuable Player Award and the Magic Johnson Western Conference finals Most Valuable Player Award, named for the two players credited for building the league up to greater popularity in the 1980s. The MVP trophies follow a design similar to that of the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP trophy, only the ball on each trophy will be silver and would be smaller versions of the Conference Championship trophies in how they sit on the base.[5]

Key

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NBA champion, winner of the NBA Finals
Team with the best regular season record, or tie for best

Conference

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Eastern Conference finals

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Year Champion Coach Result Runner-up Coach
1971 Baltimore Bullets Gene Shue 4–3 New York Knicks Red Holzman
1972 New York Knicks Red Holzman 4–1 Boston Celtics Tom Heinsohn
1973 New York Knicks Red Holzman 4–3 Boston Celtics Tom Heinsohn
1974 Boston Celtics Tom Heinsohn 4–1 New York Knicks Red Holzman
1975 Washington Bullets K. C. Jones 4–2 Boston Celtics Tom Heinsohn
1976 Boston Celtics Tom Heinsohn 4–2 Cleveland Cavaliers Bill Fitch
1977 Philadelphia 76ers Gene Shue 4–2 Houston Rockets Tom Nissalke
1978 Washington Bullets Dick Motta 4–2 Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham
1979 Washington Bullets Dick Motta 4–3 San Antonio Spurs Doug Moe
1980 Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham 4–1 Boston Celtics Bill Fitch
1981 Boston Celtics Bill Fitch 4–3 Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham
1982 Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham 4–3 Boston Celtics Bill Fitch
1983 Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham 4–1 Milwaukee Bucks Don Nelson
1984 Boston Celtics K. C. Jones 4–1 Milwaukee Bucks Don Nelson
1985 Boston Celtics K. C. Jones 4–1 Philadelphia 76ers Billy Cunningham
1986 Boston Celtics K. C. Jones 4–0 Milwaukee Bucks Don Nelson
1987 Boston Celtics K. C. Jones 4–3 Detroit Pistons Chuck Daly
1988 Detroit Pistons Chuck Daly 4–2 Boston Celtics K. C. Jones
1989 Detroit Pistons Chuck Daly 4–2 Chicago Bulls Doug Collins
1990 Detroit Pistons Chuck Daly 4–3 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson
1991 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson 4–0 Detroit Pistons Chuck Daly
1992 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson 4–2 Cleveland Cavaliers Lenny Wilkens
1993 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson 4–2 New York Knicks Pat Riley
1994 New York Knicks Pat Riley 4–3 Indiana Pacers Larry Brown
1995 Orlando Magic Brian Hill 4–3 Indiana Pacers Larry Brown
1996 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson 4–0 Orlando Magic Brian Hill
1997 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson 4–1 Miami Heat Pat Riley
1998 Chicago Bulls Phil Jackson 4–3 Indiana Pacers Larry Bird
1999 New York Knicks Jeff Van Gundy 4–2 Indiana Pacers Larry Bird
2000 Indiana Pacers Larry Bird 4–2 New York Knicks Jeff Van Gundy
2001 Philadelphia 76ers Larry Brown 4–3 Milwaukee Bucks George Karl
2002 New Jersey Nets Byron Scott 4–2 Boston Celtics Jim O'Brien
2003 New Jersey Nets Byron Scott 4–0 Detroit Pistons Rick Carlisle
2004 Detroit Pistons Larry Brown 4–2 Indiana Pacers Rick Carlisle
2005 Detroit Pistons Larry Brown 4–3 Miami Heat Stan Van Gundy
2006 Miami Heat Pat Riley 4–2 Detroit Pistons Flip Saunders
2007 Cleveland Cavaliers Mike Brown 4–2 Detroit Pistons Flip Saunders
2008 Boston Celtics Doc Rivers 4–2 Detroit Pistons Flip Saunders
2009 Orlando Magic Stan Van Gundy 4–2 Cleveland Cavaliers Mike Brown
2010 Boston Celtics Doc Rivers 4–2 Orlando Magic Stan Van Gundy
2011 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 4–1 Chicago Bulls Tom Thibodeau
2012 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 4–3 Boston Celtics Doc Rivers
2013 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 4–3 Indiana Pacers Frank Vogel
2014 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 4–2 Indiana Pacers Frank Vogel
2015 Cleveland Cavaliers David Blatt 4–0 Atlanta Hawks Mike Budenholzer
2016 Cleveland Cavaliers Tyronn Lue 4–2 Toronto Raptors Dwane Casey
2017 Cleveland Cavaliers Tyronn Lue 4–1 Boston Celtics Brad Stevens
2018 Cleveland Cavaliers Tyronn Lue 4–3 Boston Celtics Brad Stevens
2019 Toronto Raptors Nick Nurse 4–2 Milwaukee Bucks Mike Budenholzer
2020 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 4–2 Boston Celtics Brad Stevens
2021 Milwaukee Bucks Mike Budenholzer 4–2 Atlanta Hawks Nate McMillan
2022 Boston Celtics Ime Udoka 4–3 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra
2023 Miami Heat Erik Spoelstra 4–3 Boston Celtics Joe Mazzulla
2024 Boston Celtics Joe Mazzulla 4–0 Indiana Pacers Rick Carlisle

Western Conference finals

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Year Champion Coach Result Runner-up Coach
1971 Milwaukee Bucks Larry Costello 4–1 Los Angeles Lakers Joe Mullaney
1972 Los Angeles Lakers Bill Sharman 4–2 Milwaukee Bucks Larry Costello
1973 Los Angeles Lakers Bill Sharman 4–1 Golden State Warriors Al Attles
1974 Milwaukee Bucks Larry Costello 4–0 Chicago Bulls Dick Motta
1975 Golden State Warriors Al Attles 4–3 Chicago Bulls Dick Motta
1976 Phoenix Suns John MacLeod 4–3 Golden State Warriors Al Attles
1977 Portland Trail Blazers Jack Ramsay 4–0 Los Angeles Lakers Jerry West
1978 Seattle SuperSonics Lenny Wilkens 4–2 Denver Nuggets Larry Brown
1979 Seattle SuperSonics Lenny Wilkens 4–3 Phoenix Suns John MacLeod
1980 Los Angeles Lakers Paul Westhead 4–1 Seattle SuperSonics Lenny Wilkens
1981 Houston Rockets Del Harris 4–1 Kansas City Kings Cotton Fitzsimmons
1982 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–0 San Antonio Spurs Stan Albeck
1983 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–2 San Antonio Spurs Stan Albeck
1984 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–2 Phoenix Suns John MacLeod
1985 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–1 Denver Nuggets Doug Moe
1986 Houston Rockets Bill Fitch 4–1 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley
1987 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–0 Seattle SuperSonics Bernie Bickerstaff
1988 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–3 Dallas Mavericks John MacLeod
1989 Los Angeles Lakers Pat Riley 4–0 Phoenix Suns Cotton Fitzsimmons
1990 Portland Trail Blazers Rick Adelman 4–2 Phoenix Suns Cotton Fitzsimmons
1991 Los Angeles Lakers Mike Dunleavy 4–2 Portland Trail Blazers Rick Adelman
1992 Portland Trail Blazers Rick Adelman 4–2 Utah Jazz Jerry Sloan
1993 Phoenix Suns Paul Westphal 4–3 Seattle SuperSonics George Karl
1994 Houston Rockets Rudy Tomjanovich 4–1 Utah Jazz Jerry Sloan
1995 Houston Rockets Rudy Tomjanovich 4–2 San Antonio Spurs Bob Hill
1996 Seattle SuperSonics George Karl 4–3 Utah Jazz Jerry Sloan
1997 Utah Jazz Jerry Sloan 4–2 Houston Rockets Rudy Tomjanovich
1998 Utah Jazz Jerry Sloan 4–0 Los Angeles Lakers Del Harris
1999 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4–0 Portland Trail Blazers Mike Dunleavy
2000 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–3 Portland Trail Blazers Mike Dunleavy
2001 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–0 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich
2002 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–3 Sacramento Kings Rick Adelman
2003 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4–2 Dallas Mavericks Don Nelson
2004 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–2 Minnesota Timberwolves Flip Saunders
2005 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4–1 Phoenix Suns Mike D'Antoni
2006 Dallas Mavericks Avery Johnson 4–2 Phoenix Suns Mike D'Antoni
2007 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4–1 Utah Jazz Jerry Sloan
2008 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–1 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich
2009 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–2 Denver Nuggets George Karl
2010 Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4–2 Phoenix Suns Alvin Gentry
2011 Dallas Mavericks Rick Carlisle 4–1 Oklahoma City Thunder Scott Brooks
2012 Oklahoma City Thunder Scott Brooks 4–2 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich
2013 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4–0 Memphis Grizzlies Lionel Hollins
2014 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich 4–2 Oklahoma City Thunder Scott Brooks
2015 Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr 4–1 Houston Rockets Kevin McHale
2016 Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr 4–3 Oklahoma City Thunder Billy Donovan
2017 Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr 4–0 San Antonio Spurs Gregg Popovich
2018 Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr 4–3 Houston Rockets Mike D'Antoni
2019 Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr 4–0 Portland Trail Blazers Terry Stotts
2020 Los Angeles Lakers Frank Vogel 4–1 Denver Nuggets Michael Malone
2021 Phoenix Suns Monty Williams 4–2 Los Angeles Clippers Tyronn Lue
2022 Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr 4–1 Dallas Mavericks Jason Kidd
2023 Denver Nuggets Michael Malone 4–0 Los Angeles Lakers Darvin Ham
2024 Dallas Mavericks Jason Kidd 4–1 Minnesota Timberwolves Chris Finch

Results by team

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Stats updated through May 30, 2024

Total number of appearances

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Team East West Total East West Total Total
appearances
Champions Runner-up
Los Angeles Lakers 0 19 19 0 5 5 24
Boston Celtics 11 0 11 12 0 12 23
San Antonio Spurs 0 6 6 1 7 8 14
Chicago Bulls 6 0 6 3 2 5 11
Detroit Pistons 5 0 5 6 0 6 11
Miami Heat 7 0 7 3 0 3 10
Seattle SuperSonics / Oklahoma City Thunder 0 4 4 0 6 6 10
Phoenix Suns 0 3 3 0 7 7 10
San Francisco / Golden State Warriors 0 7 7 0 2 2 9
Milwaukee Bucks 1 2 3 5 1 6 9
Indiana Pacers 1 0 1 8 0 8 9
Cleveland Cavaliers 5 0 5 3 0 3 8
Philadelphia 76ers 5 0 5 3 0 3 8
Houston Rockets 0 4 4 1 3 4 8
New York Knicks 4 0 4 4 0 4 8
Portland Trail Blazers 0 3 3 0 4 4 7
Utah Jazz 0 2 2 0 4 4 6
Dallas Mavericks 0 3 3 0 3 3 6
Denver Nuggets 0 1 1 0 4 4 5
Baltimore / Washington Bullets 4 0 4 0 0 0 4
Orlando Magic 2 0 2 2 0 2 4
Toronto Raptors 1 0 1 1 0 1 2
Atlanta Hawks 0 0 0 2 0 2 2
New Jersey / Brooklyn Nets 2 0 2 0 0 0 2
Kansas City / Sacramento Kings 0 0 0 0 2 2 2
Minnesota Timberwolves 0 0 0 0 2 2 2
Memphis Grizzlies 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
Los Angeles Clippers 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Years of appearance

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In the sortable table below, teams are ordered first by number of appearances, then by number of wins, and finally by year of first appearance. In the "Season(s)" column, bold years indicate winning conference finals appearances.

Apps Team Wins Losses Win % Season(s)
24 Los Angeles Lakers 19 5 .792 1971, 1972, 1973, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2020, 2023
23 Boston Celtics 11 12 .478 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2002, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024
14 San Antonio Spurs 6 8 .429 1979, 1982, 1983, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017
11 Chicago Bulls 6 5 .545 1974, 1975, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2011
11 Detroit Pistons 5 6 .455 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
10 Miami Heat 7 3 .700 1997, 2005, 2006, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2020, 2022, 2023
10 Oklahoma City Thunder 4 6 .400 1978, 1979, 1980, 1987, 1993, 1996, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016
10 Phoenix Suns 3 7 .300 1976, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1990, 1993, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2021
9 Golden State Warriors 7 2 .778 1973, 1975, 1976, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022
9 Milwaukee Bucks 3 6 .333 1971, 1972, 1974, 1983, 1984, 1986, 2001, 2019, 2021
9 Indiana Pacers 1 8 .111 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2013, 2014, 2024
8 Philadelphia 76ers 5 3 .625 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 2001
8 Cleveland Cavaliers 5 3 .625 1976, 1992, 2007, 2009, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
8 New York Knicks 4 4 .500 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2000
8 Houston Rockets 4 4 .500 1977, 1981, 1986, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2015, 2018
7 Portland Trail Blazers 3 4 .429 1977, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1999, 2000, 2019
6 Dallas Mavericks 3 3 .500 1988, 2003, 2006, 2011, 2022, 2024
6 Utah Jazz 2 4 .333 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2007
5 Denver Nuggets 1 4 .200 1978, 1985, 2009, 2020, 2023
4 Washington Wizards 4 0 1.000 1971, 1975, 1978, 1979
4 Orlando Magic 2 2 .500 1995, 1996, 2009, 2010
2 Brooklyn Nets 2 0 1.000 2002, 2003
2 Toronto Raptors 1 1 .500 2016, 2019
2 Sacramento Kings 0 2 .000 1981, 2002
2 Atlanta Hawks 0 2 .000 2015, 2021
2 Minnesota Timberwolves 0 1 .000 2004, 2024
1 Memphis Grizzlies 0 1 .000 2013
1 Los Angeles Clippers 0 1 .000 2021
0 Charlotte Hornets 0 0
0 New Orleans Pelicans 0 0

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Exceptions include the 1998–99 season, which was shortened to 50 games due to the lockout, the 2011–12 season, shortened to 66 games due to another lockout, the 2019–20 season, shortened to between 63 and 75 games due to the season's suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the 2020–21 season, shortened to 72 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

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  1. ^ Goldaper, Sam. "The First Game". NBA History: NBA Encyclopedia Playoff Edition. NBA Media Ventures (NBA.com). Archived from the original on September 7, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2010.
  2. ^ "1949–50 Season Overview: Powerful Lakers Repeat". NBA History: NBA Encyclopedia Playoff Edition. NBA Media Ventures (NBA.com). Retrieved August 5, 2010.
  3. ^ Feldman, Dan (May 12, 2022). "NBA to name conference finals MVPs". NBC Sports. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  4. ^ "NBA redesigns Finals trophy, adds awards named after Magic Johnson, Larry Bird". Washington Post. May 12, 2022. To complete the postseason collection, the NBA updated its conference championship trophies, first created in 2001
  5. ^ "NBA introduces new lineup of postseason hardware". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
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