Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 2013-2014 San Antonio Spurs

 2013-2014 San Antonio Spurs

Record Wins: 62 Losses: 20 Win PCT: 0.756 Playoffs: Won NBA Finals (4-1) over Miami Heat

Stat Leaders Points: Tony Parker (16.7 PPG) Assists: Tony Parker (5.7 APG) Rebounds: Tim Duncan (9.74 RPG)

The Gregg Popovich/Tim Duncan San Antonio Spurs dynasty has won five championships—including two an astonishing 15 years apart. So how does one distinguish which title run earns the top spot?
Well, let’s not even bother getting into a convoluted argument. The Spurs’ latest win was, at the very least, the most impressive in terms of what it meant for Duncan’s legacy and the longevity of the team in general. The organization saw a variety of pieces come and go over the years, but it managed to keep a unit cohesive enough to win on the highest stage.
San Antonio made its run to the Larry O’Brien Trophy look downright easy, but the Spurs still had to beat the Mavericks, Trail Blazers, Thunder and two-time defending champion Heat. That is an absolute gauntlet , but the Spurs only got a scare from Dallas in the first round. Add in the fact that they went 62-20 during the regular season (earning the top seed overall) and this team gets the nod for best in history

Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 2001-2002 Sacramento Kings

 2001-2002 Sacramento Kings

Record Wins: 61 Losses: 21 Win PCT: 0.744 Playoffs: Lost Western Conference Finals (4-3) to Los Angeles Lakers

Stat Leaders Points: Chris Webber (24.48 PPG) Assists: Mike Bibby (5.04 APG) Rebounds: Chris Webber (10.11 RPG)

The Sacramento Kings are one of the best teams of the 2000s to never win a title. Their elite core of Chris Webber, Mike Bibby, Vlade Divac, Doug Christie and Peja Stojakovic seemed destined to win a title during the 2001-02 season—when they finished a league-best 61-21.
Webber and Co. wound up losing in the Western Conference Finals in seven games against the Lakers, but it’s since come to light that officiating may have played a gigantic role in that series loss.

In a 2008 article for ESPN , Chris Sheridan wrote that ex-referee Tim Donaghy—who pled guilty to federal felony conspiracy charges for rigging NBA games—said the controversial Game 6 between the Lakers and Kings “was impacted by the actions of two of the three referees who worked the game.”
Columnist Bill Simmons wrote the following of Game 6 for ESPN at the time:
“From an officiating standpoint, the most one-sided game of the past decade … at least six dubious calls against the Kings in the fourth quarter alone … LA averaged 22 free throws a game during the first five games of the series, then attempted 27 freebies in the fourth quarter alone of Game 6.”
Donaghy served prison time for fixing professional games, so there’s plenty of reason to believe the Kings got hosed in the 2002 playoffs. That’s a genuine shame, because the 2001-02 Kings were really good, and certainly deserving of a title.

Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 1976-1977 Portland Trail Blazers

 1976-1977 Portland Trail Blazers

Record Wins: 49 Losses: 33 Win PCT: 0.598 Playoffs: Won NBA Finals (4-2) over Philadelphia 76ers

Stat Leaders Points: Maurice Lucas (20.24 PPG) Assists: Lionel Hollins (4.12 APG) Rebounds: Bill Walton (14.37 RPG)

Because of the depth of great teams in Portland Trail Blazers’ history, their lone championship team gets the nod partly by default.
Now, that doesn’t by any means belittle Portland’s 1976-77 title winner, but its 49-33 regular season mark was less impressive than 12 other Trail Blazers squads—so that’s worth noting.
Nevertheless, the 1977 champs featured a vintage Bill Walton—before numerous injuries severely limited his elite talent—as well as a dominant power forward in Maurice Lucas. They beat the Bulls, Nuggets, Lakers and 76ers on their title run.

Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 1992-1993 Phoenix Suns

 1992-1993 Phoenix Suns

Record Wins: 62 Losses: 20 Win PCT: 0.756 Playoffs: Lost Finals (4-2) to Chicago Bulls

Stat Leaders Points: Charles Barkley (25.58 PPG) Assists: Kevin Johnson (7.84 APG) Rebounds: Charles Barkley (12.21 RPG)

Despite the fact that the Phoenix Suns have the fourth-best winning percentage in league history (behind the Lakers, Spurs and Celtics), the desert dwellers have only reached the NBA Finals twice since their inception in 1968-69. They weren’t able to close the deal either time.
Phoenix made an improbable Finals run in 1975-76 despite a 42-40 record thanks to transcendent performances from Paul Westphal (one of the most underrated players in league history).
That season rides passenger, however, to the 1992-93 campaign. That year, the Suns went 62-20 with the NBA’s top-ranked offense in terms of offensive rating (113.3). Charles Barkley took home the MVP award while other Suns legends Kevin Johnson, Dan Majerle and Tom Chambers rounded out a rock-solid supporting cast. Like so many great teams in the 90s, however, the Suns were ultimately bested by Michael Jordan’s Bulls.

Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 1982-1983 Philadelphia 76ers

 1982-1983 Philadelphia 76ers

Record Wins: 65 Losses: 17 Win PCT: 0.793 Playoffs: Won NBA Finals (4-0) over Los Angeles Lakers

Stat Leaders Points: Moses Malone (24.46 PPG) Assists: Maurice Cheeks (6.87 APG) Rebounds: Moses Malone (15.31 RPG)

The present-day Philadelphia 76ers have “earned” the notorious moniker of “Tankadelphia” by bottoming out for draft picks, but the track record of excellence in Sixers basketball lore is well documented.

Philly has won two NBA championships in its history (three if you count the 1954-55 championship garnered by the Syracuse Nationals). Its best team, bar none, was the 1982-83 roster.
Behind an MVP year from Moses Malone—who averaged 24.5 points, 15.3 rebounds and two blocks per game—Julius “Dr. J” Erving, Andrew Toney and Co. conquered the NBA landscape with a 65-17 regular season record and a 12-1 postseason mark. Weird tidbit: the ’82-’83 Sixers only made 25 three-pointers all season. That’s less than four per game throughout the 82-game grind.

Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 2008-2009 Orlando Magic

2008-2009 Orlando Magic

Record Wins: 59 Losses: 23 Win PCT: 0.720 Playoffs: Lost Finals (4-1) to Los Angeles Lakers

Stat Leaders Points: Dwight Howard (20.56 PPG) Assists: Jameer Nelson (5.38 APG) Rebounds: Dwight Howard (13.84 RPG)

When deciding which team was the best in Orlando Magic franchise history, it comes down to a few factors. Do you prefer Shaquille O’Neal or Dwight Howard? Would you rather watch an offensive juggernaut or a defensive force? Does your ideal offense feature a balanced diet with a barrage of threes, or a two-pronged attack of two superstars?
Those are the key differences between the 1994-95 and 2008-09 Magic—the only two teams in franchise history to reach the NBA Finals.
The 2009 team was built with an inside-out philosophy, positioning a bunch of three-point shooters around the interior post presence of Howard. The 1995 roster featured the league’s leading scorer, O’Neal, and an elite playmaker, Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway.
Both teams won their division, but the ’08-’09 squad had a better regular season record and avoided getting swept in the Finals, so they get the nod even though this matchup is dead even.

Every NBA Franchise's Best Season Ever: 2013-2014 Oklahoma City Thunder

 2013-2014 Oklahoma City Thunder

Record Wins: 59 Losses: 23 Win PCT: 0.720 Playoffs: Lost Western Conference Finals (4-2) to San Antonio Spurs

Stat Leaders Points: Kevin Durant (32 PPG) Assists: Russell Westbrook (6.9 APG) Rebounds: Serge Ibaka (8.75 RPG)

Since we’re deciding not to include the Seattle SuperSonics’ storied history as part of the Oklahoma City Thunder franchise, there’s only seven seasons to choose from for OKC. Fortunately, the Thunder have been one of the league’s best teams over that span. In fact, the running for “best” team in that short timeframe is incredibly tough to decide.
The 2011-12 roster that reached the NBA Finals gets the “best on paper” nod, since OKC still had James Harden in the mix, but the maturation of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the bearded one wasn’t where it needed to be at that point in time.

The 2012-13 Thunder posted the best regular season record at 60-22, and was named a top 10 regular season team of all time according to Bleacher Report’s Adam Fromal , but a torn meniscus Westbrook suffered in the first round against Houston derailed OKC’s dominant locomotive. As Fromal wrote, “Could a full strength squad have advanced to the NBA Finals and earned redemption for the 2012 Finals loss? Possibly, but we’ll never be able to do anything more than wonder.”

It’s a shame that the 2012-13 team was robbed of a fair shake at winning it all, but that leaves the 2013-14 team as the best Oklahoma City has witnessed. The Thunder wound up losing in the Western Conference Finals to the eventual champion Spurs, but they still went 59-23 during the regular season as Durant posted the best season of his career (and won MVP to boot).