NBA Finals Winners Over the Years- Complete List of All the NBA Finals Winners

Garima Ranawat

Last updated: June 23, 2025

3 min read

Let’s have a look at the NBA Finals winners over the years.

Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The 2024-25 NBA regular season has comes its end and we have the Oklahoma City Thunder as the new champion of the NBA. The Thunder overcame the Pacers 4-3 in the NBA Finals to clinch their first NBA trophy in the OKC era. The Thunder earned their first finals appearance in twelve years by defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals. On the other hand, the Pacers ended their 25-year-long drought and defeated the New York Knicks to book a date against the toppers, Thunder.

Oklahoma City had one championship under its umbrella, but not as the Thunder. But, they did it this time after a heartbreak in 2012. Their first NBA title came in 1979, when they were known as the Seattle Supersonics.

If we look back at the history, several teams have emerged as the powerhouses of the NBA. From the Boston Celtics lifting the trophy 18 times, to the LA Lakers taking it home 17 times, a few franchises have established themselves as legendary names. On the other hand, teams such as the Golden State Warriors and the Miami Heat are some names, who are in pursuit of becoming the newer greats.

NBA Finals Winners Over the Years

As the NBA Finals 2025 are just a few days away, let’s have a look at the NBA Finals winners over the years.

YEAR	WINNERS	RUNNERS UP
1949	Minneapolis Lakers	Washington Capitols
1950	Minneapolis Lakers	Syracuse Nationals
1951	Rochester Royals	New York Knicks
1952	Minneapolis Lakers	New York Knicks
1953	Minneapolis Lakers	New York Knicks
1954	Minneapolis Lakers	Syracuse Nationals
1955	Syracuse Nationals	Fort Wayne Pistons
1956	Philadelphia Warriors	Fort Wayne Pistons
1957	Boston Celtics	St. Louis Hawks
1958	St. Louis Hawks	Boston Celtics
1959	Boston Celtics	Minneapolis Lakers
1960	Boston Celtics	St. Louis Hawks
1961	Boston Celtics	St. Louis Hawks
1962	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1963	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1964	Boston Celtics	San Francisco Warriors
1965	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1966	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1967	Philadelphia 76ers	San Francisco Warriors
1968	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1969	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1970	New York Knicks	Los Angeles Lakers
1971	Milwaukee Bucks	Baltimore Bullets
1972	Los Angeles Lakers	New York Knics
1973	New York Knicks	Los Angeles Lakers
1974	Boston Celtics	Milwaukee Bucks
1975	Golden State Warriors	Washington Bullets
1976	Boston Celtics	Phoenix Suns
1977	Portland Trail Blazers	Philadelphia 76ers
1978	Washington Bullets	Seattle SuperSonics
1979	Seattle SuperSonics	Washington Bullets
1980	Los Angeles Lakers	Philadelphia 76ers
1981	Boston Celtics	Houston Rockets
1982	Los Angeles Lakers	Philadelphia 76ers
1983	Philadelphia 76ers	Los Angeles Lakers
1984	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
1985	Los Angeles Lakers	Boston Celtics
1986	Boston Celtics	Houston Rockets
1987	Los Angeles Lakers	Boston Celtics
1988	Los Angeles Lakers	Detroit Pistons
1989	Detroit Pistons	Los Angeles Lakers
1990	Detroit Pistons	Portland Trail Blazers
1991	Chicago Bulls	Los Angeles Lakers
1992	Chicago Bulls	Portland Trail Blazers
1993	Chicago Bulls	Phoenix Suns
1994	Houston Rockets	New York Knicks
1995	Houston Rockets	Orlando Magic
1996	Chicago Bulls	Seattle SuperSonics
1997	Chicago Bulls	Utah Jazz
1998	Chicago Bulls	Utah Jazz
1999	San Antonio Spurs	New York Knicks
2000	Los Angeles Lakers	Indiana Pacers
2001	Los Angeles Lakers	Philadelphia 76ers
2002	Los Angeles Lakers	New Jersey Nets
2003	San Antonio Spurs	New Jersey Nets
2004	Detroit Pistons	Los Angeles Lakers
2005	San Antonio Spurs	Detroit Pistons
2006	Miami Heat	Dallas Mavericks
2007	San Antonio Spurs	Cleveland Cavaliers
2008	Boston Celtics	Los Angeles Lakers
2009	Los Angeles Lakers	Orlando Magic
2010	Los Angeles Lakers	Boston Celtics
2011	Dallas Mavericks	Miami Heat
2012	Miami Heat	Oklahoma City Thunder
2013	Miami Heat	San Antonio Spurs
2014	San Antonio Spurs	Miami Heat
2015	Golden State Warriors	Cleveland Cavaliers
2016	Cleveland Cavaliers	Golden State Warriors
2017	Golden State Warriors	Cleveland Cavaliers
2018	Golden State Warriors	Cleveland Cavaliers
2019	Toronto Raptors	Golden State Warriors
2020	Los Angeles Lakers	Miami Heat
2021	Milwaukee Bucks	Phoenix Suns
2022	Golden State Warriors	Boston Celtics
2023	Denver Nuggets	Miami Heat
2024	Boston Celtics	Dallas Mavericks
2025	Oklahaoma City Thunder	Indiana Pacers

NBA Finals

Oklahoma City Thunder

Garima Ranawat

Garima is a sports writer with around two years of experience in Indian sports and a newfound interest in the NBA. Inspired by the leadership of cricketing legend MS Dhoni, she wishes to bring in newer perspectives to the NBA fanatics with her writing.

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