Starters2024-02-20 10:57 The Complete Story of the Stars
The NBA is a highly competitive league, and every game is full of challenges and uncertainties. To maintain a winning streak in such an environment, it takes a lot of quality, a spirit of unity, consistency and a little bit of luck. In NBA history, there have been teams that have done just that, and they've set amazing records by backing up their success with long winning streaks.
A winning streak is not only an honor for a team, but also a motivation. It allows the team to boost confidence, boost morale, stimulate potential, and reach a higher level. It can also allow the team to show their characteristics, prove their quality, and win more respect and support. Winning streaks usually span one season, but can also extend over multiple seasons.
Teams that start a winning streak are usually accidental, but they use the continued momentum to keep the winning streak going. These successes provide valuable reference material for how the team operates, giving a comprehensive understanding of the inner workings of competing teams.
Here are the longest regular-season winning streaks in NBA history, and do you know what they are?
8. 2014 San Antonio Spurs - 19 consecutive wins
The San Antonio Spurs in the 2013-2014 season were an awesome team.
They had a tragic defeat to the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals the previous year, but instead of giving up, they were determined to get their revenge. Led by Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and youngster Kawhi Leonard, and coached by legendary coach Greg Popovich, the team won 19 in a row between February 26 and April 3, 2014.
The prelude to this winning streak began with a 120-110 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Immediately afterward, the Spurs went on a break, claiming the seventh-longest winning streak in league history. In this winning streak, the Spurs went undefeated in March, sweeping the league with a 16-0 record. However, the winning streak ended in a 106-94 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 3.
Despite the end of the winning streak, the San Antonio Spurs finished the regular season with a 62-20 record, the league's best record that year and the third-best in franchise history. What's even happier for the Spurs is that they successfully took revenge on the Heat in the playoffs, defeating their opponents in the Finals with a score of 4-1 to win the championship.
7. 2008 Boston Celtics - 19 consecutive wins
In 2008, the Boston Celtics had just won their 17th (and most recent) championship in franchise history and were aiming for back-to-back NBA championships. They started the season with an impressive 27-2 record, which included a 19-game winning streak that began on November 15, 2008 and lasted until December 25, 2008.
The streak kicked off with a 102-97 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. The Celtics then went on a breakaway and went unbeaten in the next 18 games until Christmas Day 2008, when they lost 92-83 to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Boston Celtics ended the season with an impressive 62-20 record, the same record as the Spurs in 2014. However, they may have reached their peak form too early in the season, losing to the Orlando Magic in the second round of the playoffs after seven hard-fought games.
6. Los Angeles Lakers in 2000 - 19 consecutive wins
From February 4 to March 16, 2000, the Lakers had a 19-game winning streak.
The 1999-2000 season for the Lakers marked the beginning of a great era for this team, the first season of their Treble dynasty.
This season, the Lakers have a new home court, the Staples Center, and also boast two unrivaled basketball superstars, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal. At the start of the season, they had won seven in a row, but even more memorable was their 19-match winning streak.
On February 4, 2000, the Lakers won a 113-67 victory against the Utah Jazz (a margin of 46 points), a victory that kicked off their winning streak. The streak came to an end on March 16, when they lost 109-102 against the Washington Wizards.
However, on the playoff stage, they regained their best form and managed to claim the first championship trophy in three consecutive championships by defeating the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Finals.
5. 1971 Milwaukee Bucks - 20 consecutive wins
The Bucks claimed their second championship in 2021, but they won their first championship in franchise history half a century ago in 1971. Behind this championship trophy is a 20-game winning streak, which is also the first feat in NBA history to reach 20 consecutive wins in a single season.
In 1971, the Bucks went on a 20-game winning streak from Feb. 6 to March 9. The streak began with a 111-85 win over the San Francisco Warriors and ended with a 110-103 loss to the Chicago Bulls.
Still, the fact that the Bucks won the championship that year reaffirms the pattern of teams that have won long streaks throughout the season to win championships.
The Bucks had two legendary stars, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Robertson, as well as a group of outstanding players such as Dandridge, Smith and Allen, who played the best offense and defense in the league that season.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is one of the greatest centers in NBA history, averaging 31.7 points and 16 rebounds per game in the 1970-71 season. He possesses unparalleled physical prowess and technical prowess, and his Skyhook is one of the deadliest weapons in NBA history. He was named Regular Season MVP and Finals MVP that season.
Robertson is one of the most well-rounded guards in NBA history, averaging 19.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game in 1970-71. He is the first player in NBA history to average a triple-double in a season. He was named All-Star MVP that season.
4. 2008 Houston Rockets - 22 consecutive wins
From January 29 to March 18, 2008, the Rockets went all the way to 22 consecutive wins.
For the most part, teams that can pull off impressive winning streaks often possess the tenacity needed to sustain this winning culture and ultimately win the NBA Finals. However, not all teams can get their way, and this was the case with the Houston Rockets in 2008.
In 2008, the Rockets had a stellar 22-game winning streak, the fourth-longest winning streak in NBA history. The winning streak began with a 111-107 win over the Warriors on Jan. 29 and ended with a 94-74 loss to the season-winning Celtics on March 18. It's worth mentioning that they had a staggering 18-0 record in February.
The most surprising thing about the Rockets' 22-game winning streak is that 10 of them have been without Yao Ming. Yao Ming was injured in a Feb. 26 game against the Wizards and was diagnosed with a stress fracture that will be out for the season. The Rockets did not give up hope, but relied on a group of excellent players such as McGrady, Battier, Scola and Artest to play an amazing winning streak.
They averaged 104.5 points per game in those 10 games and only one game was a single quarter loss. They have beaten opponents including strong teams such as the Lakers, Hornets, and Mavericks in these 10 games.
The winning streak accounted for 38 percent of the Rockets' wins that season, and they ended the season with a 55-27 record. However, that was only enough to put them in fifth place in the Western Conference.
The Rockets didn't continue their heroic form in the playoffs, and they were stopped by the Jazz in the first round. They lost 2-4 in the series, with two of those games going overtime. They averaged just 92.7 points per game in the playoffs. They didn't show their firepower and resilience in the regular season in the playoffs.
3. 2013 Miami Heat - 27 consecutive wins
From February 3 to March 27, 2013, the Heat went all the way to a staggering 27 consecutive wins.
2013 was a glorious year for the Heat. The team, which is centered around the Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, just won their second NBA championship in 2012. A year later, they were eager to win the title again and showed their dominance with a 27-bout winning streak.
James is one of the greatest players in NBA history, averaging 26.8 points, eight rebounds and 7.3 assists per game in 2012-13. He possesses unparalleled physicality and leadership, and his versatility and dominance are among the most terrifying weapons in NBA history. He was named Regular Season MVP, Finals MVP and All-Star Starter that season.
The streak kicked off on February 3, 2013, with a 100-85 victory over the Toronto Raptors. They went undefeated until a 101-97 loss to the Bulls on March 27 to end the winning streak. The streak became the second-longest streak in league history at the time and remains the second-longest streak in a single season in league history.
The winning streak propelled the Heat to an impressive 66-16 record, the best in the NBA that year.
The Heat struggled in the playoffs, knocking out the Bucks 4-0 and the Bulls 4-1, but faced stubborn resistance from the Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals and went through seven hard-fought games to advance 4-3.
They were challenged by the Spurs in the Finals, where they went 2-3 down in their first five games and were just one step away from losing the championship. However, they did not give up hope and relied on the tenacious struggle of players such as James, Wade and Bosh, as well as a magical three-pointer by Ray Allen in Game 6, to turn the situation around, and finally reversed the Spurs 4-3 to win the championship.
2. 2015 Golden State Warriors - 28 consecutive wins
From April 9 to December 12, 2015, the Warriors won 28 straight games across two seasons.
The Warriors in the mid-2010s were one of the greatest teams in basketball history. In the 2014-15 season, the Warriors ended the regular season with a four-game winning streak, which began with a 116-105 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on April 9, 2015. The Warriors then won their first championship in four decades in 2015.
Little did the world know at the time, however, that the final four games of the 2014-15 season would indirectly propelled the Warriors to the second-longest winning streak in league history. The 2015-16 season opened the season with a 24-game winning streak, breaking the previous season opening record of 15 held by the Rockets in 1993-94.
The Warriors' first loss of the season came nearly two months later, on December 12, 2015, when they lost to the Bucks 95-108. However, the loss didn't affect the Warriors' performance throughout the season, and they ended the season with a stellar 73-9 record, the best in NBA history.
The Warriors didn't face much of an obstacle in the playoffs either, knocking out the Rockets, Trail Blazers and Thunder 4-1 to reach the Finals. They were challenged by the Cavaliers in the Finals, where they went 3-1 in their first four games and were just one step away from defending their championships.
However, shockingly, the Warriors didn't win the Finals that year, and they couldn't capitalize on their chances, being reversed by the Cavaliers for three games in a row, losing 3-4 and missing out on the championship.
1. Los Angeles Lakers in the 1971-72 season (33 consecutive wins)
From November 5, 1971 to January 9, 1972, the Lakers went 33 games undefeated.
The Lakers in the 1971-72 season were hailed as one of the greatest teams in NBA history. That season, they set a winning streak that lasted for 33 races, from 5 November 1971 to 9 January 1972. This is the only team in league history to have at least 30 consecutive wins.
The winning streak began with a 110-106 win over the Baltimore Bullets (now the Washington Wizards) and ended with a 120-104 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Lakers ended the season with a staggering 69-13 record, with 48 percent (nearly half) of those victories coming from those 33 straight wins. The Lakers added to their winning streak by beating the New York Knicks in five wins in the NBA Finals that season.