NBA Finals

Staged since 1947 to crown an NBA champion, the Finals are the yearly crown jewel event on the basketball calendar and have made or broken the careers of nearly every legend of the league

FEATURED LISTS

No one believed in us: 14 biggest upsets in NBA Finals history

NBA playoff tradition is that the better team typically wins, but in these 14 NBA Finals series, the lesser team on paper managed to pull off a stunner.

June 1, 2022June 12, 2026

Won’t see my picture on the cover: 10 NBA Finals that weren’t featured on a Sports Illustrated cover

June 1, 2025June 11, 2026

Who’s going to Disney World?: Seven controversial NBA Finals MVP choices

June 1, 2024June 11, 2026

Instant gratification: Eight teams that ended playoff droughts with NBA Finals appearances

January 21, 2022June 12, 2026

So close and yet so far: 22 greatest players who played in an NBA Finals but never won a title

October 1, 2020June 4, 2026

Short of the promised land: 22 greatest players who have never reached the NBA Finals

September 21, 2020June 4, 2026

Grab the remote, let’s check what else is on: 17 most forgettable NBA Finals series

September 11, 2020June 12, 2026

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FULL archive

Going out on top: 17 notable NBA players who retired as champions

Whether they were a franchise legend closing out a storied career or a ring-chasing mercenary earning a title as a role player, these 17 players retired as NBA champions.

June 1, 2026June 11, 2026

Moral support: 26 notable NBA champions who were not on the playoff roster

Not all of them earned (or accepted) a ring for their efforts, but these 26 players contributed to an eventual champion, though only in the regular season.

May 1, 2026June 3, 2026

Mamba’s den mates: Ranking the 31 players who won a title as Kobe Bryant’s Lakers teammate

Kobe Bryant helped revive the dormant Lakers franchise in the ’00s, winning five championships along the way. Today, we rank the 31 players who were part of those championship runs with Bryant, based on their overall career (not just their time with the Lakers).

October 21, 2025June 3, 2026

Won’t see my picture on the cover: 10 NBA Finals that weren’t featured on a Sports Illustrated cover

For decades, Sports Illustrated was the weekly arbiter of what was notable in the world of sports. Here’s a look back at 10 times when the former paper of record for newsworthy sports milestones opted to de-emphasize the NBA Finals.

June 1, 2025June 11, 2026

Who’s going to Disney World?: Seven controversial NBA Finals MVP choices

Starting with the first time it was awarded, the Finals MVP award has been an occasional source of controversy. Here are seven such cases, some of which forever altered the individual legacy of the players involved.

June 1, 2024June 11, 2026

Foregone conclusion: 10 playoff series that were considered “virtual” NBA Finals

It’s the NBA Finals that technically decides the league’s champion from year to year but here are 10 times that series seemed like a foregone conclusion and the “true” Finals took place earlier in the postseason.

May 11, 2024June 12, 2026

Slamming the door shut: 19 winner-take-all NBA playoff game blowouts

As the old adage goes, anything can happen in a winner-take-all playoff game, and what transpired in these 19 examples were absolute decimations, leaving the losing team not just eliminated but usually questioning themselves heading into the offseason.

April 21, 2024June 12, 2026

Don’t you forget about me: 80 basketball moments from the ’80s that changed the sport forever

As part of our Totally ’80s series, we explore the 80 most monumental, controversial, influential, unforgettable, and indescribable basketball moments from the 1980s.

January 11, 2024October 23, 2025

Can’t blame me: 15 greatest individual NBA Finals performances in a losing effort

The NBA Finals is where legends are truly made and the 15 performances below are no exception. However, in these cases, the mythologizing was earned in a losing effort.

June 1, 2023June 11, 2026

New look, same result: Five players who won back-to-back championships with a different team each year

Winning back-to-back titles as an NBA player is rare enough but how about doing it with two different teams? Only five players in league history have pulled off such a feat and we present them here.

June 11, 2022June 6, 2026

No one believed in us: 14 biggest upsets in NBA Finals history

NBA playoff tradition is that the better team typically wins, but in these 14 NBA Finals series, the lesser team on paper managed to pull off a stunner.

June 1, 2022June 12, 2026

Pressure valves: 23 NBA rookies who made a major impact in the postseason

Some were superstars just continuing their domination while others were unheralded players stepping up at just the right time but either way, when the lights were turned up high and the pressure was cranked up, these NBA rookies came through in the playoffs.

May 1, 2022June 11, 2026

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