What NBA Coach Has the Most Rings?

We all know that the NBA is a competitive league, and we all know that winning is everything. So which NBA coach has the most championship rings?

Phil Jackson

Phil Jackson is a retired American professional basketball coach who was the head coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, winning a total of eleven NBA championships. He is widely considered one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time.

Jackson’s first season

In his first season with the Knicks, Jackson immediately improved the team, leading them to a 54–28 record. In the 1993 NBA Playoffs, the Knicks defeated the Charlotte Hornets in the first round 3-1, but then lost to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, four games to two.

Jackson’s second season

The second season started out rough for Jackson and the Bulls. They started the season 20-20, and seemed to be in danger of missing the playoffs. However, they caught fire in the second half of the season, finishing with a 50-32 record. They made it to the playoffs as the sixth seed, but lost in the first round to the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in four games.

Jackson’s third season

In Jackson’s third season, the Bulls finished 55–27, setting a then-NBA record for fewest losses in a season. They then advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost to the eventual NBA champion Detroit Pistons in six games. The series was noted for Isiah Thomas’s guarantee that the Pistons would beat the Bulls, and the subsequent fistfight between Bill Laimbeer and Kurt Thomas.

Gregg Popovich

Gregg Popovich has the most rings of any NBA coach with five. He has been the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs since 1996 and has led them to five NBA Championships. He is also a three-time NBA Coach of the Year.

Popovich’s first season

Andersen was injured for much of the 1996–97 season, and Popovich was again left to fill in as head coach for much of the year. The Spurs posted a record of 20–62, winning just nine games after the All-Star break.

Popovich’s second season

The Spurs finished Popovich’s second season with a 56–26 record. They lost to the Utah Jazz in the Western Conference Finals, four games to one. In the off-season, the Spurs acquired piece to form what would become known as their “Twin Towers” duo: 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) center David Robinson from the Naval Academy and 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) forward Sean Elliott from Arizona. The Spurs drafted high school player Gervin had been selected a decade earlier). With a core of younger players and a blended roster of veterans and rookies, they became one of only three teams in NBA history to win at least 60 games in three consecutive seasons.

Popovich’s third season

The Spurs finished the season 56–26, second in the Midwest Division. In the playoffs, they swept the Denver Nuggets in three games in the first round, then defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in six games in the semifinals. In the Conference Finals, they avenged their previous year’s loss to the Utah Jazz, this time defeating them in six games. The Spurs went on to beat the New York Knicks 4 games to 1 to win their first NBA Championship. Tim Duncan was named the Most Valuable Player of both the regular season and Finals.

Pat Riley

Pat Riley has the most rings of any NBA coach with 9. He has 5 rings from his time with the Lakers and 4 from his time with the Heat. He is also the only coach to have won a championship with 3 different teams.

Riley’s first season

Riley’s first season in Los Angeles was fraught with tension between him and Johnson. The two had frequent disagreements about the team’s direction, including Johnson’s decision to fire head coach Paul Westhead just 10 games into the 1981–82 season. Johnson publicly called for a “showdown” meeting with Riley to clear the air, but Riley refused, saying that he didn’t need to defend his strategy to Johnson. Tension between the two continued to grow throughout the season as the Lakers struggled. They finished the season with a disappointing record of 37–45 and were swept out of the playoffs in the first round by the Phoenix Suns.

Riley’s second season

In Riley’s second season, the Heat finished with a regular-season record of 52–30. In the playoffs, they defeated the New York Knicks in five games in the first round, before losing to the eventual Eastern Conference champion Chicago Bulls in seven games in the conference semifinals.

Riley’s third season

In Riley’s third season, the Heat once again improved, finishing 55-27. In the playoffs, they swept the Orlando Magic in the first round before losing to the Chicago Bulls in five games in the Conference Semifinals. The following season, Miami finished 61-21, winning the Southeast Division for the second consecutive year. In the playoffs, they defeated the Charlotte Hornets in seven games in the first round before losing to the Knicks in seven games in the Conference Semifinals.