Has an NBA Team Ever Gone Undefeated?
Contents
The answer to this question is a resounding no – an NBA team has never gone undefeated. In fact, the closest any team has come to achieving this feat was the 72-10 Chicago Bulls of 1995-96, who lost four games that season.
The 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers went 82-0 during the regular season. They are the only team in NBA history to go undefeated. The team was led by head coach Chuck Daly and featured players such as Julius Erving, George McGinnis, and Doug Collins.
The roster
The 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers roster was:
-Caldwell Jones
-George McGinnis
-Doug Collins
-Fred Carter
-Larry Costello
-Joe Caldwell
-John Block
-Steve Mix
-Harvey Catchings
The season
The 1972–73 Philadelphia 76ers season was the franchise’s 77th season and its last in Philadelphia. The team finished the regular season with a 68-13 record, winning the Atlantic Division by 13 games over the New York Knicks, and eventually the NBA Championship, defeating the Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.
The 1985-86 Boston Celtics
The 1985-86 Boston Celtics are the only team in NBA history to have an undefeated season. They went 40-0 at home and 34-4 on the road for a combined 74-4 record. The Celtics were led by future Hall of Famers Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish. They also had one of the best defensive teams of all time, giving up just 101.5 points per game.
The roster
The 1985-86 Boston Celtics were an American professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Celtics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league’s Eastern Conference. The team played its home games at the Boston Garden, which it shared with the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL).
The roster featured eight future Hall of Fame players:Bird, Danny Ainge, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Dennis Johnson, Bill Walton, coach K.C. Jones, and general manager Red Auerbach. The starting five of Bird, Johnson, Parish, McHale, and Ainge are considered one of the best lineups in NBA history. After winning their first 14 games of the season and starting 18–0 at home, they finished with a record of 67–15 (.817), second-best in franchise history behind only their 1963–64 championship team that won 68 games. They defeated the Chicago Bulls in four games in the First Round before beating the Milwaukee Bucks in five games and then disposing of their heated rivals from Los Angeles Lakers four games to two to win their 16th NBA Finals Championship. They are considered by many as one of basketball’s all-time greatest teams due to their revolutionary play and dominant winning streak throughout most of 1986. Currently hold numerous league records including defensive efficiency rating (86%), assists per game (29), field goal percentage (.519), 3-point field goal percentage (.393), fewest turnovers per game (11), and fewest fouls per game (14).
The season
The 1985-86 Boston Celtics season was the 40th season of the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team finished the season with a record of 67-15, best in the NBA. They went on to win their 16th NBA Championship, defeating the Houston Rockets 4-2 in the Finals. The championship was their first since 1976, and came after losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Finals in 1984 and 1985.
The 1986-87 Los Angeles Lakers
The 1986-87 Los Angeles Lakers are the only team in NBA history to finish the season with a record of 67-15, which is the best record in a season. They also won their division by fourteen games and their conference by eleven. This team is considered one of the best NBA teams of all time.
The roster
The 1986-87 Los Angeles Lakers roster was one of the most talented in NBA history. The team featured several future Hall of Famers, including Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy. The Lakers also had several All-Stars, such as Michael Cooper, Byron Scott, and A.C. Green. The team was so talented that they were able to field a second unit that would have been a starting lineup on most other NBA teams.
The Lakers were coached by Pat Riley, who would go on to win five NBA championships with the team. The Lakers won an astonishing 65 games during the regular season, and then proceeded to win all 16 of their playoff games, becoming the first and only team in NBA history to go undefeated in the playoffs.
The 1986-87 Lakers are widely considered to be one of the greatest teams in NBA history, and their postseason run is one of the most impressive accomplishments in all of sports.
The season
The 1986-87 Los Angeles Lakers finished the regular season with a record of 65-17, surpassed only by the Boston Celtics (67-15). The Lakers then cruised through the playoffs, winning all 12 games en route to their 15th NBA Championship. The team was absolutely loaded, with future Hall of Famers Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy leading the way.
The 1987 Lakers are widely considered to be one of the greatest teams in NBA history. They were certainly the best team of their era, and many experts believe they would have been able to compete with any team from any era. In fact, ESPN ranked the 1987 Lakers as the second-greatest team in NBA history, behind only the 1996 Chicago Bulls.
The 1991-92 Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are the only team in NBA history to win 70 games in a season. They did it in the 1991-92 season. Led by Michael Jordan, the Bulls went on to win the NBA Finals that year. They were the first team to ever win a championship after winning 70 games in a regular season.
The roster
The 1991-92 Chicago Bulls were an NBA team that went undefeated. They had a record of 72-10 and won the NBA championship. The team was led by Michael Jordan, who was named the NBA MVP for the season. Other key players on the team included Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, and B.J. Armstrong.
The season
The 1991-92 Chicago Bulls went 67-15 during the regular season, easily winning the Central Division. They then won all three rounds of the NBA Playoffs, culminating in a four-game sweep of Portland in the NBA Finals. The Bulls thus became the first team in NBA history to win 70 games in a season. Along the way, they broke numerous other records, including becoming the first team to win more than 30 games on the road in a single season.
The 2015-16 Golden State Warriors
The 2015-16 Golden State Warriors were a special team. They won a then-record 73 regular season games, and then went on to win the NBA Finals. They were the first team in NBA history to start the season 24-0, and they did it all without losing a single game.
The roster
The 2015-16 Golden State Warriors were an American professional basketball team that won an NBA-record 73 regular-season games. The Warriors broke the previous record of 72 wins, set by the Chicago Bulls in the 1995-96 season. They also reached the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year, where they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in seven games to win their second NBA championship in franchise history.
The Warriors’ roster was composed of 11 All-Stars, including two MVPs (Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant), and one Rookie of the Year (Draymond Green). They also had five players who were named to the All-NBA Teams (Curry, Durant, Green, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green), and four players who were named to the All-Defensive Teams (Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Andrew Bogut, and Shaun Livingston).
The season
The 2015–16 Golden State Warriors season was the 70th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and its 54th in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Warriors entered the season as the defending NBA champions, having won their fourth NBA title and first championship since 1975. The Warriors set an NBA regular season record with 73 wins, finishing first in the Western Conference and matched the 1995–96 Chicago Bulls for the most regular season wins in an NBA season. They broke the Bulls’ record of 72 wins on April 13, 2016, with a 125–104 win over the San Antonio Spurs. The Warriors set a then-record by starting 24–0 to begin the season, eventually extending their winning streak to 34 games, eclipsing the previous mark of 33 set by the St. Louis Hawks during the 2014–15 campaign. Their 53rd consecutive home win dating back to last year’s regular season equals the second longest streak in NBA history behind only that of another Warrior team – that span from December 28, 2012 to December 23, 2013 when they won 54 straight at Oracle Arena (now Chase Center).
