Which NBA franchise has the most playoff wins?

Sure, the Timberwolves have only been around since the 1989-90 season. There are many NBA teams that have been around for decades longer than them. Even so, Minnesota has pretty bleak playoff history. Most NBA teams have over 100 playoff wins as a franchise. The Wolves…have 21. It takes 16 to win the NBA title these days. Think about that.

As the NFL did with the expansion Cleveland Browns, the NBA decided to give the Charlotte Hornets, nee Bobcats, the history of Charlotte basketball back. As such, the Pelicans are considered to have come into existence as a franchise in 2002. The Pelicans have played 49 playoff games, the fewest of any NBA franchise. They have 22 wins, though, one more than the Timberwolves.

Speaking of Charlotte basketball! The Bobcats were quite terrible and did not add many postseason wins. Also, the current Hornets have been pretty bad. The earlier iteration of the Hornets, though, found some success. Charlotte has a pretty poor playoff record, all things considered. While it has 23 wins, it also has 40 losses.

The Vancouver Grizzlies never made the playoffs. It took until the franchise’s third year in Memphis to make the postseason, and it got swept in its first three appearances. The Grizzlies wouldn’t win a playoff game until the 2010-11 season, but made up for lost time. They now have 38 playoff wins.

There is a major jump from the bottom four to the next level. The Raptors joined the NBA at the same time as the Grizzlies. Toronto has had much more success, though. The Raptors have a 57-66 postseason record. That includes a title, making them the first franchise on this list to have a championship.

Orlando has featured stars like Shaquille O’Neal, Tracy McGrady, and Dwight Howard over the years. While the Magic don’t have a title, they have made it to the NBA Finals two times. Orlando made it to the finals in 1995 and 2009, and the team is primed to add playoff wins with Paolo Banchero. The Magic have 59 postseason victories.

The Clippers have perhaps the bleakest history of any NBA franchise. They have been around since 1970, when they were the Buffalo Braves, and have yet to make the NBA Finals. The Clippers didn’t win a playoff series between 1976 and 2006. Los Angeles went all in with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, and now James Harden as well, but no finals appearance has emerged yet. All that futility has led to 64 playoff victories, mostly in the last couple decades.

The Nets do have two ABA titles, but of course those don’t count here. In the early 2000s, then based in New Jersey, the Nets made it to two NBA Finals, but could not claim a ring either time. The franchise has taken some big swings in recent years, but doesn't even have an Eastern Conference Finals appearance to show for it. Brooklyn, as a franchise, has accumulated 70 postseason victories.

This is an instance where old-school basketball history comes into play. If we say to you that the Kings have a title, you might say, “Wait, what?” The franchise’s title came all the way back in the 1950-51 season, when the Rochester Royals won it all. In Sacramento, things haven’t gone as well. The Kings have 83 NBA playoff wins, going back to those Royals days.

The Nuggets are oh-so-close to 100 playoff wins, thanks largely to last year’s magic run. It gave the Nuggets their first title as a franchise. Denver is the first team on this list to have played over 200 postseason games, with 132 losses paired with those 98 wins.

In the ‘70s, the then-Bullets were one of the NBA’s top franchises. Many of those playoff wins came back then. The Bullets made four NBA titles, winning a title in 1978. The Wizards era hasn’t been quite as fruitful, and the franchise is stuck at 99 playoff wins.

We cross the 100-win threshold. After years of being an also-ran franchise, Mark Cuban bought the Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki showed up. That helped them pick up quite a few playoff wins, and also one NBA title to date. Luka Doncic has emerged as the heir apparent to Dirk, and while Doncic will arguably go down as a better player, he doesn’t have the same level of playoff success just yet. The Mavs have 105 postseason victories.

The Pacers have 115 NBA playoff wins, even without a single NBA title. We stress NBA, because Indiana was arguably the best team in ABA history. The Pacers won three titles in that league before being part of the ABA-NBA merger.

Portland has a few more playoff wins than Indiana…but quite a few more playoff losses. While the Pacers are just below .500 in postseason play, the Blazers have 155 losses against 119 wins. However, the Blazers also have something the Pacers do not have, which is an NBA title. Portland memorably took home the championship in the 1976-77 season.

The Cavs are a first on this list: A franchise with a winning playoff record. They are 125-104 with five NBA Finals appearances and one title. All of those Finals runs came with LeBron James, of course. Then again, having a winning record but only 126 playoff wins speaks to how bad Cleveland has largely been as a franchise outside of the LeBron era. So…a positive? A negative?

Of course, being a Cavs fan is better than being a Jazz fan in the big picture, all things considered. While the Jazz have played in 292 playoff games to Cleveland’s 234, and have 135 wins to Cleveland’s 126, there is something missing. Utah lacks any titles. The Jazz made it to two finals but ran into Michael Jordan, which cost a lot of great players a chance at a ring.

The Bucks have basically had two good eras. There’s the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar era, which won them a title in 1971. Now, we have the ongoing Giannis Antetokounmpo era, which gave the franchise a second ring in 2021. Throw in a smattering of other playoff wins, and Milwaukee gets up to 150 postseason victories. The Bucks are the first team to hit 150 wins, and also 300 playoff games.

While the James Harden era did not lead to as many playoff wins as hoped, and no title, the Rockets did add to their postseason victory total. Of course, Houston was the biggest benefactor of Jordan’s baseball era. The Rockets won the two NBA titles during MJ’s interlude, helping them to 158 playoff wins.

For now, the Suns are Even Steven. They are the only team on this list for which that is the case. Phoenix has 160 playoff wins, and 160 playoff losses. Of course, it’ll be hard for the Suns to maintain that, and that’s certainly not the goal. The Suns are all-in with the current roster in search of the franchise’s first NBA title.

The Heat have a winning playoff record, and this time around it speaks to a largely successful franchise. For starters, the Heat began a franchise in 1988, so getting to 290 playoff games is quite good. On top of that, Miami has 162 postseason wins, and that includes three titles. This includes two titles with LeBron. Basically, if you want your NBA franchise to have a winning playoff record, bring in LeBron James.

The Thunder’s history still includes the Seattle Supersonics history, and that will be the case until if (when?) Seattle gets an expansion NBA team. Seattle had quite a bit of success as a squad, making three NBA Finals and winning a ring. That being said, the Thunder era has been quite good. OKC is 57-57 in the playoffs, so throw in the Sonics’ 107 wins, and you end up with 164.

If you read NBA lists (and if you are reading this, that’s probably you), you have likely internalized the fact that the St. Louis Hawks were fairly successful. Bob Pettit and all that. Indeed, the St. Louis Hawks played in four NBA finals, winning it all in 1958. Of course, this was back when there were only two rounds to the playoffs. Then, the Hawks went 48 seasons without making it to the conference finals before doing so in 2015. Atlanta has 168 playoff wins, but is also the first team on this list with over 200 playoff losses.

Michael. Jordan. When he was around, the Bulls won plenty of playoff games. Chicago has six NBA titles, all of them with Jordan. The MJ era is responsible for the majority of postseason victories for the franchise, but it leaves the team with quite an impressive record. The Bulls have 187 postseason wins against 162 losses. It will probably be a bit until they get to 200, though.

Pistons fans will likely be pleased to see the team above their rivals in the Windy City. Detroit has one-upped Chicago with 188 playoff wins. Now, on the other hand, the Pistons have 182 losses, and also only three titles. Nobody is exchanging the Bulls’ history (or present) for the Pistons’.

Knicks fans are often unhappy with the franchise, but they have had plenty of postseason success. The Knicks have won two NBA titles and been to four NBA Finals. Of course, those titles came in the 1970s, and those other two finals appearances in the 1990s. Also, the Knicks were an original NBA franchise. They have 193 playoff wins against 198 losses, just outside the top five. It’ll be hard for them to get into the top five, but sixth isn’t bad.

The Warriors open the top five and also are the first team on this list with over 200 playoff wins. While Wilt Chamberlain gets a lot of stick for “falling short” in the playoffs, he helped the Philadelphia Warriors rack up many playoff wins. Many of those postseason victories have come recently, though. There are more rounds and more games than back in the day, which means more chances to win. Also, Steph Curry and company were a true-blue dynasty, winning four titles in under a decade. The Warriors have 212 wins, and their .552 win percentage is third-best.

George Gervin was cool, but for years, the Spurs were not a notable franchise. Then, David Robinson showed up. Then, Gregg Popovich showed up. Then, Tim Duncan. And so on in building arguably the top NBA franchise of the new millennium, or at least the first 20 years of it. They won five titles between 1999 and 2014, all with Pop at the helm. The new era is nigh with Victor Wembenyama. It may take a couple of years, but Wemby should help the Spurs add to their 222 postseason wins.

It’s a little surprising that the 76ers are this high. They have three NBA titles, which is impressive, but not on the same level as the other upper-tier franchises. Philly has gotten here thanks to sheer tonnage. The Sixers have been to the playoffs a whopping 52 times. That’s the third most ever. Philly has 248 playoff wins, but also 234 losses.

The top-two franchises in NBA history are, well, obvious but also way ahead of the pack. Even if we factor in the early days of the NBA when there were only a handful of teams, the success of the Celtics and Lakers is incredible. The Sixers, as we noted, have 248 playoff wins. Boston has 407. The Celtics have more playoff wins than the Spurs have playoff games. They also have 17 titles. Sure, 11 of those titles came before the 1970s, but since then, they have added six more. The Celtics aren’t just an old-timey franchise.

The Lakers are forever tied to the Celtics in terms of NBA history. They vie for the titles of greatest franchise. Currently, both LA and Boston have 17 titles. All in all, the Lakers have the edge, though. Los Angeles has 464 postseason victories. However, the Lakers also have a .597 win percentage. The Celtics are at .566. Sorry, Beantown. The Lakers are the kings of the NBA postseason.