The
National Basketball Association
(NBA) was founded in 1946 and began operations as the
Basketball Association of America
(BAA). Following the BAA's merger with the
National Basketball League
(NBL), the BAA rebranded as the NBA. The
1949?50 NBA season
marked the first season following the merger.
The NBA has kept a record of its win?loss statistics since its inception. These records include wins and losses recorded during a team's playing time in the
Basketball Association of America
(BAA).
[a]
Defunct BAA/NBA franchises are also accounted for, provided that they played at least one season in the BAA or NBA.
[a]
The records do not count wins and losses recorded by a team's playing time in the
American Basketball Association
(ABA), despite the 1976
ABA?NBA merger
.
[2]
The
San Antonio Spurs
have the highest win?loss record percentage, with 2,305?1,562 (.596).
[3]
Meanwhile, the
Minnesota Timberwolves
maintain the lowest win?loss record percentage, with 1,147?1,647 (.411).
[3]
The
Boston Celtics
lead the association with the most played games, with 6,114.
[3]
Conversely, the Pelicans have played the fewest overall games, with 1,768.
[3]
The Celtics have also recorded the most wins, with 3,634; the
Sacramento Kings
have recorded the most losses with 3,257.
[3]
The Pelicans have also recorded both the fewest wins with 831 and losses with 937.
[3]
Of teams established after the ABA?NBA merger, only the
Dallas Mavericks
and
Miami Heat
have a winning regular season record; the Heat are also the lone team founded post-merger to maintain a winning playoff record.
At the end of the regular season, 12 teams (the top 6 seeds per conference) will have clinched a
playoff berth
. Meanwhile, the 7th through 10th seeds in both conferences enter in a play-in tournament to determine both conferences' final two playoff seeds. Through the end of the 2024
NBA play-in tournament
, the
Atlanta Hawks
,
Miami Heat
,
Chicago Bulls
, and
New Orleans Pelicans
are tied for most play-in tournament games played, with four. The
Los Angeles Lakers
have the best play-in tournament record, having won all 3 of their play-in tournament games, while the
Golden State Warriors
have the worst play-in tournament record, having lost all 3 of their play-in tournament games.
As of the end of the
2023 NBA Finals
, the
Los Angeles Lakers
have the most post-season games played (777), wins (464), and losses (313), as well as the highest post-season winning percentage with 464?313 (.597) of any NBA team.
[4]
The Minnesota Timberwolves have the fewest post-season wins (21) and the lowest post-season winning percentage with 21?42 (.333).
[5]
The New Orleans Pelicans have the fewest post-season games played (55).
[6]
Active franchises
[
edit
]
Regular season
[
edit
]
Best win?loss record in division
?
|
Rank
|
Team
|
|
Won
|
Lost
|
|
First NBA season
|
Division
|
Notes
|
1
|
San Antonio Spurs
|
3,867
|
2,305
|
1,562
|
.596
|
1976?77
|
Southwest
?
|
[b]
|
2
|
Boston Celtics
|
6,114
|
3,634
|
2,480
|
.594
|
1946?47
|
Atlantic
?
|
|
3
|
Los Angeles Lakers
|
5,996
|
3,550
|
2,454
|
.591
|
1948?49
|
Pacific
?
|
[c]
|
4
|
Utah Jazz
|
4,032
|
2,177
|
1,855
|
.540
|
1974?75
|
Northwest
?
|
[d]
|
5
|
Phoenix Suns
|
4,525
|
2,429
|
2,096
|
.537
|
1968?69
|
Pacific
|
|
6
|
Oklahoma City Thunder
|
4,606
|
2,470
|
2,136
|
.536
|
1967?68
|
Northwest
|
[e]
|
7
|
Milwaukee Bucks
|
4,525
|
2,389
|
2,136
|
.528
|
1968?69
|
Central
?
|
|
8
|
Miami Heat
|
2,885
|
1,521
|
1,364
|
.527
|
1988?89
|
Southeast
?
|
|
9
|
Portland Trail Blazers
|
4,362
|
2,292
|
2,070
|
.525
|
1970?71
|
Northwest
|
|
10
|
Philadelphia 76ers
|
5,941
|
3,101
|
2,840
|
.522
|
1949?50
|
Atlantic
|
[f]
|
11
|
Houston Rockets
|
4,606
|
2,369
|
2,237
|
.514
|
1967?68
|
Southwest
|
[g]
|
12
|
Chicago Bulls
|
4,680
|
2,383
|
2,297
|
.509
|
1966?67
|
Central
|
|
13
|
Dallas Mavericks
|
3,543
|
1,797
|
1,746
|
.507
|
1980?81
|
Southwest
|
|
14
|
Denver Nuggets
|
3,869
|
1,954
|
1,915
|
.505
|
1976?77
|
Northwest
|
|
15
|
Indiana Pacers
|
3,868
|
1,930
|
1,938
|
.499
|
1976?77
|
Central
|
|
16
|
Atlanta Hawks
|
5,937
|
2,927
|
3,010
|
.493
|
1949?50
|
Southeast
|
[h]
|
17
|
New York Knicks
|
6,105
|
2,974
|
3,131
|
.487
|
1946?47
|
Atlantic
|
|
18
|
Golden State Warriors
|
6,103
|
2,969
|
3,134
|
.486
|
1946?47
|
Pacific
|
[i]
|
19
|
Toronto Raptors
|
2,310
|
1,096
|
1,214
|
.474
|
1995?96
|
Atlantic
|
|
20
|
Detroit Pistons
|
5,998
|
2,827
|
3,171
|
.471
|
1948?49
|
Central
|
[j]
|
21
|
New Orleans Pelicans
|
1,768
|
831
|
937
|
.470
|
2002?03
|
Southwest
|
[k]
|
22
|
Orlando Magic
|
2,803
|
1,315
|
1,488
|
.469
|
1989?90
|
Southeast
|
|
23
|
Cleveland Cavaliers
|
4,353
|
2,032
|
2,321
|
.467
|
1970?71
|
Central
|
|
24
|
Sacramento Kings
|
6,005
|
2,748
|
3,257
|
.458
|
1948?49
|
Pacific
|
[l]
|
25
|
Washington Wizards
|
5,087
|
2,272
|
2,815
|
.447
|
1961?62
|
Southeast
|
|
26
|
Charlotte Hornets
|
2,713
|
1,174
|
1,539
|
.433
|
1988?89
|
Southeast
|
[k]
|
27
|
Memphis Grizzlies
|
2,311
|
998
|
1,313
|
.432
|
1995?96
|
Southwest
|
[m]
|
28
|
Brooklyn Nets
|
3,868
|
1,654
|
2,214
|
.428
|
1976?77
|
Atlantic
|
[n]
|
29
|
Los Angeles Clippers
|
4,360
|
1,843
|
2,517
|
.423
|
1970?71
|
Pacific
|
[o]
|
30
|
Minnesota Timberwolves
|
2,794
|
1,147
|
1,647
|
.411
|
1989?90
|
Northwest
|
|
This list is accurate through the end of the
2023?24 NBA season
.
[10]
|
Play-in Tournament
[
edit
]
The NBA introduced a Play-in Tournament in the
2019?20 NBA season
to compensate for the suspension of the regular season and a difference in the amount of games played between teams, as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic
. For the 2019?20 season, if a conference's 9th seed was within 4 games of the 8th seed in the standings, a play-in scenario between the two seeds would be triggered.
[12]
The 8th seed would need to win one game, while the 9th seed would need to win two in the matchup.
[12]
Ultimately, the Western Conference's
Portland Trail Blazers
and
Memphis Grizzlies
would face off in a
Play-in game
.
[12]
The future of the Play-in Tournament was then explored, with many reports concurring that it would indeed become a permanent fixture in the NBA.
[13]
[14]
Due to the success of the Play-in tournament and the
COVID-19 pandemic
persisting into the NBA's
2020?21 season
, the league installed a Play-in tournament involving both conference's 7th- through 10th-placed teams in the regular season standings.
[15]
[16]
The format of the Play-in tournament involves the 7th-place team playing the 8th-place team with the winner clinching the 7th seed in the playoffs. The 9th-place team plays the 10th-place team with the loser being eliminated from playoff contention. The loser of the 7th-8th matchup will then play the winner of the 9th-10th matchup, with the winner clinching the 8th seed and the loser being eliminated.
[17]
Best win?loss record in division
?
|
Team active in play-in
‡
|
Playoffs
[
edit
]
Best win?loss record in division
?
|
Most recent champion ★
|
Team active in play-in
‡
|
Qualified for most recent playoffs ?
|
Team in playoff drought
†
|
Defunct franchises
[
edit
]
17 BAA/NBA franchises are now
defunct
, although only 15 played games.
[3]
Amongst defunct franchises, the Chicago Stags have the highest win?loss record percentage, with .612. The
Denver Nuggets
have the lowest win?loss record percentage, with .177. The
Baltimore Bullets
have the most games played (450), wins (158), and losses (292) for a defunct NBA franchise. The
Cleveland Rebels
,
Detroit Falcons
,
Indianapolis Jets
,
Pittsburgh Ironmen
, and
Toronto Huskies
are all tied for fewest games played (60).
Only teams that recorded playing time in the BAA/NBA are included, as the NBA does not recap NBL statistics nor does it officially count ABA statistics.
Regular season
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
BAA win?loss records are included, as the NBA claims the BAA's history as its own. For example, at
NBA History
online its table of one-line "NBA Season Recaps" begins 1946?47 without comment. NBL statistics are not included, as unlike with BAA statistics prior to the BAA-NBL merger, the NBA has not included NBL statistics when recapping their history.
[1]
- ^
The Spurs began play as the
Dallas Chaparrals
in the
1967?68 ABA season
, as one of the ABA's charter members. They were known as Texas Chaparrals for the
1970?71 season
, but returned to the Dallas Chaparrals name the following season. They then relocated and rebranded as the "San Antonio Spurs" ahead of the
1973?74 season
and were absorbed into the NBA following the 1976
ABA?NBA merger
. The Spurs' 378?366 (.508) ABA record over 744 games played are not included in their NBA statistics.
[7]
If they were, they would have a 2,661?1868 (.588) record over 4,529 total games played, which would rank third all-time behind the Celtics and Lakers.
- ^
The Lakers played in
Minneapolis
from
1948
?
1960
.
- ^
The Utah Jazz played in New Orleans from
1974
?
1979
.
- ^
The Thunder played as the
Seattle SuperSonics
from
1967
?
2008
, before relocating to Oklahoma City and rebranding as the "Thunder".
- ^
The 76ers played as the
Syracuse Nationals
from
1949
?
1963
.
- ^
The Rockets played in San Diego from
1967
?
1971
.
- ^
The Hawks began their NBA play in
1949
as the
Tri-Cities Blackhawks
, before relocating and rebranding as the Milwaukee Hawks in
1951
, and then again to
St. Louis in 1955
, before settling as the Atlanta Hawks in
1968
.
- ^
The Warriors played in
Philadelphia Warriors
from
1946
?
1962
, before relocating to San Francisco in
1962
. They would rebrand as the Golden State Warriors to begin the
1971?72 season
.
- ^
The Pistons played in
Fort Wayne
from
1948
?
1957
.
- ^
a
b
The New Orleans Pelicans began play as the New Orleans Hornets in the
2002?03 NBA season
, due to the original
Charlotte Hornets
(which began play in the
1988?89 NBA season
)
relocating to New Orleans
. The city of Charlotte was then awarded the 30th NBA franchise, dubbed the
Charlotte Bobcats
, which began play in the
2004?05 NBA season
. The New Orleans Hornets
rebranded as the New Orleans Pelicans
, with the
2013?14 NBA season
being their first under the Pelicans name. The Bobcats then rebranded as the Charlotte Hornets, first playing under the Hornets name in
2014
.
[8]
This second incarnation of Charlotte Hornets retained statistics and records of the original Charlotte Hornets franchise which played from the 1988?89 NBA season to the
2001?02 NBA season
, as well as the statistics and records accumulated while playing as the Bobcats.
[9]
Meanwhile, the New Orleans Pelicans franchise was retroactively regarded as a
2002?03
season expansion franchise, maintaining the statistics and records accumulated from that season onwards, including during their temporary tenure as the
New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets
from
2005
?
2007
.
- ^
Predating the NBA, the Kings played their first NBA season in
1948?49
as the
Rochester Royals
, before relocating to Cincinnati where they played from
1957
?
1972
. They then relocated, playing as the
Kansas City?Omaha Kings
from
1972
?
1975
and as the
Kansas City Kings
from
1975
?
1985
. Finally, the franchise settled in Sacramento in
1985
.
- ^
The Grizzlies played in
Vancouver
from
1995
?
2001
.
- ^
Originally an ABA team, the Nets played their first NBA season as the
New York Nets
from
1976?77
, before relocating to
New Jersey
in
1977
. They moved back to New York and rebranded as the Brooklyn Nets in
2012
.
- ^
The Clippers played as the
Buffalo Braves
from
1970
?
1978
, before rebranding as the Clippers and relocating to San Diego, where they played from
1978
?
1984
. They once again relocated to Los Angeles in
1984
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
This team folded prior to the BAA?NBL merger and therefore its history occurred entirely prior to the BAA becoming the NBA.
- ^
This team's history and records are not affiliated with the current day
Washington Wizards
who played as the Baltimore Bullets from
1963?64
to
1972?73
.
- ^
This team's history and records are not affiliated with the current day
Denver Nuggets
team.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"NBA Season Recaps"
. National Basketball Association. July 17, 2013. Archived from
the original
on July 17, 2013
. Retrieved
March 2,
2015
.
- ^
Aschburner, Steve (September 5, 2013).
"We All Count Numbers But Do All Numbers Count?"
.
Hang Time Blog
. National Basketball Association
. Retrieved
April 26,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
"NBA & ABA Team Index"
.
Basketball-Reference
.
Sports-Reference
. Retrieved
April 26,
2015
.
- ^
"NBA Teams: Los Angeles Lakers Records Year by Year"
.
landofbasketball.com
. Retrieved
June 6,
2021
.
- ^
"NBA Teams: Minnesota Timberwolves Records Year by Year"
.
landofbasketball.com
. Retrieved
June 6,
2021
.
- ^
"NBA Teams: New Orleans Pelicans Records Year by Year"
.
landofbasketball.com
. Retrieved
June 6,
2021
.
- ^
"San Antonio Spurs Historical Statistics and All-Time Top Leaders"
.
Basketball-Reference.com
.
Sports-Reference
. Retrieved
April 13,
2023
.
- ^
Windhorst, Brian
(July 19, 2013).
"Charlotte Hornets back in 2014-15"
.
ESPN
. Retrieved
July 6,
2017
.
- ^
Feldman, Dan (May 20, 2014).
"Charlotte Hornets assume historical records from New [Orleans] Pelicans"
.
ProBasketballTalk
. NBC Sports
. Retrieved
July 6,
2017
.
- ^
"All-Time Team Records"
(PDF)
.
2019?20 Official NBA Guide
. NBA Properties, Inc. October 17, 2019
. Retrieved
November 10,
2020
.
- ^
Stein, Marc
(August 15, 2020).
"Damian Lillard Gets Help Moving Portland Out of the Yacht Club"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Everything you need to know about Trail Blazers play-in game(s) vs. Memphis Grizzlies"
.
NBC Sports
. August 13, 2020
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
- ^
Wimbish, Jasmyn (April 27, 2021).
"NBA wants to adopt postseason play-in tournament permanently, per report"
.
CBS Sports
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
- ^
Feldman, Dan (April 26, 2021).
"Report: NBA expected to permanently adopt play-in tournaments"
.
NBC Sports
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
- ^
"NBA 2020-21 season explainer: Schedule, COVID-19 protocols, playoff format and big questions"
.
ESPN
. December 6, 2020
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
- ^
"How does the NBA play-in tournament work? Dates, projections and rules explained"
.
ESPN
. May 17, 2021
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
Since there is a chance for teams to finish with an uneven number of games played because of COVID-19 complications, the NBA will use winning percentage to determine the standings.
- ^
"FAQ: NBA Play-In Tournament"
.
National Basketball Association
. May 17, 2021
. Retrieved
May 17,
2021
.
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Players
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Annual
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Season
| |
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