The 15 Most Dominant Teams To Win An NBA Championship

With the 2025 NBA Finals upon us, there is no time better than now to look to the past to predict the future. The Indiana Pacers made it through to these NBA Finals with just 50 regular season wins while the Oklahoma City Thunder approached ‘all time greatness’ levels with 68 regular season wins, 16 more than the next best team.

How does OKC rank against the most dominant teams in NBA history that went on to win an NBA Championship? We shall soon find out. For now, these are the 15 most dominant teams to win an NBA Championship throughout the history of the league.

First, you should notice that the stipulation here is ‘won a championship’ because there have been dominant teams throughout NBA history who simply couldn’t get it done in the NBA Playoffs. These are not those teams. Here we see the 15 most dominant NBA teams ever, based on regular season + NBA Playoffs winning percentage, margin of victory, and how badly they dominated their competition throughout the season.

15. 2008-09 Los Angeles Lakers: .793 Winning Percentage

Coming in at #15 on the list of the most dominant NBA teams to win a championship are Phil Jackson’s 2008-2009 Los Angeles Lakers. Get used to seeing Phil’s name on this list because you’ll see it a lot! The 2008-09 LA Lakers finished the regular season with a .793 winning percentage and regular season record of 65-17.

This Lakers squad was dominant at home in the playoffs, going 10-2 at home and 16-7 overall in the playoffs en route to a title. That lineup including Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, and Vladimir Radmanović was dominant from start to finish.

14. 1986-87 Los Angeles Lakers: .793 Winning Percentage

Pat Riley’s 1986-87 LA Lakers also had a .793 winning percentage like Jackson’s 08-09 Lakers. The 86-87 team went 65-17 during the regular season and breezed their way through the NBA Playoffs including a perfect 10-0 record at home in the Playoffs. This Lakers squad won their games by an average of 9.3 points/game during the regular season with 7’2″ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson absolute running through the competition.

13. 1982-83 Philadelphia 76ers: .793 Winning Percentage

Under the tutelage of head coach Billy Cunningham, the 1982-83 Philadelphia 76ers finished the regular season 65-17 and only lost 6 games at home during the entire regular season. They maintained that home court advantage in the NBA Playoffs, going 7-0 at home and 5-1 on the road, including a 4-0 sweep of the Lakers in the NBA Finals that year. Moses Malone would win the NBA Finals MVP Award, NBA’s MVP Award and would be named to the All-NBA Firs Team along with teammate Julius Erving.

READ NEXT: My interview with Julius Erving about the NIL era.

12. 2012-13 Miami Heat: .805 Winning Percentage

The 2012-13 Miami Heat led by LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh were one of the all-time greats. This team won their regular season games by an average of 7.9 points and finished the regular season with a record of 66-16 including a home court record of 37-4. Eric Spoelstra’s squad watched in amazement as LeBron James became the first and only player in NBA history to score 30+ points and shoot over 60% from the field for 6 straight games.

11. 2007-08 Boston Celtics: .805 Winning Percentage

The 2007-08 Boston Celtics under head coach Doc Rivers also went .805 in the regular season with a 66-16 record that included just 6 losses at home during the regular season. They were DOMINANT at the Garden in the playoffs, only losing 1 game at home and eventually winning it all in a 4-2 series over the Lakers.

This team led by Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce was the best modern Celtics team for many millennials and that Big 3 simply could not be stopped when they were firing on all cylinders, winning their regular season games by an average of 10.3 points.

10. 1970-71 Milwauweek Bucks: .805 Winning Percentage

Going back in time a few decades, the 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks also finished out the regular season with a winning percentage of .805 (66-16) with an incredible regular season home record of 34-2 and 8-0 at home in the NBA Playoffs.
This team was led by 7’2″ Lew Alcindor who would later change his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. In what was is second season in the league, Alcindor led all players in scoring with 31.7 points per game. Unreal.

9. 2016-17 Golden State Warriors: .817 Winning Percentage

Breaking the trend of teams who finished 66-16, Steve Kerr’s 2016-17 Golden State Warriors had a .817 regular season winning percentage (67-15). They were 36-5 at home during the regular season and 9-0 at home / 7-1 on the road in the NBA Playoffs, with their only playoffs loss coming against the Cavaliers in the Finals. The NBA’s first ‘Super Team’ in years had a Big 4 of Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry, and Draymond Green. The team smashed records all season including Curry setting an NBA record with 13 3-point shots made in a game and KD having 72 straight games with 20 or more points.

8. 2014-15 Golden State Warriors: .817 Winning Percentage

The 2014-15 Golden State Warriors only lost 2 games at home during the regular season while tallying up a .817 winning percentage. They’d win their regular season games by an average of 10.1 points and would eventually take out the Cavaliers 4-2 in the NBA Finals.
Steph averaged 23.8/ppg that season followed closely by Klay Thompson’s 21.7. Curry would up his numbers in the Playoffs averaging 28.3 points-per-game. This squad’s 83 combined regular season and Playoffs wins ranks 3rd all time in the NBA.

7. 1999-2000 Los Angeles Lakers: .817 Winning Percentage

Remember how when this article started I said you should expect to see Phil Jackson’s name quite a few times? Well, he’s back. The 1999-2000 Los Angeles Lakers finished with a .817 regular season winning percentage. They only lost 5 games at home in the regular season and were 11-2 at home in the Playoffs, eventually toppling the Pacers 4-2 in the Finals.

This was Phil Jackson’s first season with the Lakers and while he is arguably the greatest NBA coach of all time, having Shaq on that squad averaging 29.7 points and 13.6 rebounds each game alongside Kobe Bryant averaging 22.5 ppg made life a little easier for Phil.

6. 1991-92 Chicago Bulls: .817 Winning Percentage

Another legendary squad with a .817 regular season winning percentage, Phil Jackson’s 1991-92 Chicago Bulls were defending NBA Champions this season and had a bullseye on their back every game. As they say, playing the Bulls that season was ‘the Super Bowl’ for every other team. Michael Jordan would win his 2nd straight NBA MVP award that season while the team rattled off separate winning streaks of 14 and 13 games during the regular season.

5. 1985-86 Boston Celtics: .817 Winning Percentage

The last of the teams tied with a .817 regular season winning percentage, the 1985-86 Boston Celtics had a sickening 40-1 record at home during the regular season. Their only home loss of the regular season came on December 6th to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Larry Bird, Boston’s superstar, win his third straight MVP award this season as the Celtics would beat teams by an average of 9.4 points. When the NBA Playoffs came around, the Celtics were a perfect 10-0 at home and would eventually topple the Rockets 4-2 in the Finals to cap off a legendary season.

4. 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers: .841 Winning Percentage

The 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers are the squad that dates back the furthest on this list. They ran through opponents in the regular season with an .841 winning percentage and 68 wins under head coach Alex Hannum.

This 76ers squad only lost 2 games at home all regular season and 3 games on neutral ground. Wilt Chamberlain was a force to be reckoned with all season with 24 points/game and this squad’s 46-4 record to start the season is still to this day the best 50-game start of any team in NBA history.

3. 1996-97 Chicago Bulls: .841 Winning Percentage

Phil Jackson’s back on the list with the 1996-97 Chicago Bulls, the second best Bulls squad of the Michael Jordan era. These Bulls were 10-1 at home in the NBA Playoffs, 39-2 at home during the regular season, and beat teams throughout the season by an average of 10.8 points.

Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Steve Kerr, and Toni Kukoc were all global celebrities. This was PEAK Jordan era and MJ averaged 29.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game throughout the season. This team was just one win shy of becoming only the second team in NBA history to reach 70 regular season wins, a feat they’d accomplished the season prior.

2. 1971–72 Los Angeles Lakers: .841 Winning Percentage

The 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers led by Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, and Pat Riley were the stuff of legend. They finished the regular season with a .841 winning percentage which would be the best in NBA history for decades to come. This squad beat teams by an average of 12.3ppg during the regular season while racking up a record of 69-13.
Once they played their way to the 1972 NBA Finals it only took 5 games to dispatch the Knicks and get Wilt Chamberlain the Finals MVP trophy and the Lakers’ first championship since 1954.

1. 1995-96 Chicago Bulls: .878 Winning Percentage

Phil Jackson’s 1995-96 Chicago Bulls are considered to be the best Chicago Bulls squad of the Michael Jordan era and arguably the greatest NBA team of all-time depending on who you are talking to. They were the first team in NBA history to finish the regular season with 70 or more wins, going 72-10 on the seasons for a winning percentage of .878.
During the regular season, this Bulls squad would only lose 2 games at home and they were a perfect 10-0 at home in the NBA Playoffs, beating the SuperSonics 4-2 in the Finals.
The 1995-96 Chicago Bulls will be remembered for both sides of the ball as they have the best offensive and the best defensive ratings of any team in NBA history. Anyone who was alive to watch this team play should consider themselves fortunate.

Honorable Mention: 2015-16 Golden State Warriors with a Winning Percentage of .890

Steve Kerr’s 2016-16 Golden State Warriors set an NBA record with 73 regular season wins for an .890 winning percentage. They were 39-2 at home during the regular season but they could not get it done in the NBA Playoffs, losing in Game 7 to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers after blowing a 3-1 series lead, and that game 7 loss would ultimately lead to Kevin Durant joining the Warriors and creating an indomitable super team. Every team listed above won an NBA Championship but not these Warriors, despite setting the NBA record for wins and winning percentage.