10 Greatest NBA Dynasties Of All-Time
What is a dynasty?
Fortunately, this isn't a term that is restricted only to basketball or the NBA. In sports, a dynasty is a team that dominates the competition over an extended period of time. And given that the 2017-18 season is the NBA's 71st year, it's safe to say that the league has seen plenty.
Now to rank them in a Top 10 there would have to be parameters placed. So here are the factors based on which these dynasties have been ranked:
a) Championships - A team has got to win at least one championship to be on this list. The number of championships is the primary elimination factor.
b) Some level of continuity on the roster.
c) Period and time span of dominance.
These parameters obviously remove the non-title winning dynasties. The ones that clinched just one title, ala the 2007-08 Boston Celtics or the Detroit Pistons of the mid-2000's, can't make it to this list, given that there are already 10 dynasties that have clinched more than one. So let's get right to it:
#10 Houston Rockets - (1993-95)
Championships - 2 (1994, 95)
Like almost every championship-winning team the league has witnessed, the Houston Rockets were built around the talents of their superstar - Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon. Although he had a roster well tailored to suit his talents, numerous times Olajuwon single-handedly carried the Rockets to wins not only in the regular season but also when it mattered the most - in the Playoffs.
Houston basically surrounded Olajuwon with shooters who could play moderate defense. Kenny Smith (joined the team in 1991), Vernon Maxwell (joined the team in 1989), Robert Horry (drafted by the team in 1992), Mario Elie (joined the team in 1993) and Otis Thrope (joined the team in 1988) were key role players in the Rockets' first championship in 1994. In the second year, the franchise traded for superstar Clyde Drexler in exchange for Thorpe, another player, and a future first-round pick.
This team was well constructed, well balanced but and might have been slightly lucky, considering the fact that both their championships came during the break Michael Jordan took in the mid-1990's.
What puts them right at the bottom?
They might have been slightly lucky, considering the fact that both their championships were clinched when Michael Jordan took a break from basketball in the mid-1990's. Also, their dominance of the competition was only in the first year. In the second season of their back-to-back championships, they really had to dig deep and fight hard to win it all.