Updated June 22, 2012
The NBA has come a long way since the Chicago Stags and Philadelphia Warriors played for the Basketball Association of America title back in 1947. For one thing, the game one crowd was under 8,000 people strong... and just three years later, the Stags were out of business.The 2012 NBA Champion will be the 66th in league history. Half of those titles belong to just two franchises: the Boston Celtics have won 17 and the Lakers 16. At the opposite end of the spectrum are the Nets, Magic, Suns, Jazz, Cavaliers and Pacers - teams that have reached the Finals but never won a title - and the Bobcats, Hornets, Raptors, Grizzlies, Timberwolves, Nuggets and Clippers, who have never even reached the Finals.
Finals MVPs: The Bill Russell Award
The NBA introduced the Finals MVP award in 1969. The list of winners is very impressive - Jo Jo White of the 1976 Celtics and Cedric Maxwell of the 1981 Celtics are the only eligible Finals MVPs that aren't in the Hall of Fame... and of the more recent winners, Chauncey Billups (2004 Pistons) is the only one that doesn't seem like a mortal lock for Springfield.Unsurprisingly, Michael Jordan has more Finals MVP awards on his mantle than anyone else. MJ was named Finals MVP six times; Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal and Tim Duncan are three-time Finals MVPs.
Magic Johnson is the only rookie to win the award. His long-time Laker teammate Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the only player to be named Finals MVP for two different teams.
Since 2009, the Finals MVP award has been named in honor of Celtics great Bill Russell. Russell's career pre-dates the award, but it seems fair to assume that he would have been honored a couple of times in the course of winning eleven NBA titles.
NBA Finals: Results and MVP Winners
| Year | Champion | Opponent | Series Result | Finals MVP |
| 2011-12 | Miami Heat | Oklahoma City Thunder | 4-1 | LeBron James, Miami |
| 2010-11 | Dallas Mavericks | Miami Heat | 4-2 | Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas |
| 2009-10 | Los Angeles Lakers | Boston Celtics | 4-3 | Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles |
| 2008-09 | Los Angeles Lakers | Orlando Magic | 4-1 | Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles |
| 2007-08 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-2 | Paul Pierce, Boston |
| 2006-07 | San Antonio Spurs | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4-0 | Tony Parker, San Antonio |
| 2005-06 | Miami Heat | Dallas Mavericks | 4-2 | Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat |
| 2004-05 | San Antonio Spurs | Detroit Pistons | 4-3 | Tim Duncan, San Antonio |
| 2003-04 | Detroit Pistons | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-1 | Chauncey Billups, Detroit Pistons |
| 2002-03 | San Antonio Spurs | New Jersey Nets | 4-2 | Tim Duncan, San Antonio |
| 2001-02 | Los Angeles Lakers | New Jersey Nets | 4-0 | Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles |
| 2000-01 | Los Angeles Lakers | Philadelphia 76ers | 4-1 | Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles |
| 1999-00 | Los Angeles Lakers | Indiana Pacers | 4-2 | Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles |
| 1998-99 | San Antonio Spurs | New York Knicks | 4-1 | Tim Duncan, San Antonio |
| 1997-98 | Chicago Bulls | Utah Jazz | 4-2 | Michael Jordan, Chicago |
| 1996-97 | Chicago Bulls | Utah Jazz | 4-2 | Michael Jordan, Chicago |
| 1995-96 | Chicago Bulls | Seattle SuperSonics | 4-2 | Michael Jordan, Chicago |
| 1994-95 | Houston Rockets | Orlando Magic | 4-0 | Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston |
| 1993-94 | Houston Rockets | New York Knicks | 4-3 | Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston |
| 1992-93 | Chicago Bulls | Phoenix Suns | 4-2 | Michael Jordan, Chicago |
| 1991-92 | Chicago Bulls | Portland Trail Blazers | 4-2 | Michael Jordan, Chicago |
| 1990-91 | Chicago Bulls | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-1 | Michael Jordan, Chicago |
| 1989-90 | Detroit Pistons | Portland Trail Blazers | 4-1 | Isiah Thomas, Detroit |
| 1988-89 | Detroit Pistons | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-0 | Joe Dumars, Detroit |
| 1987-88 | Los Angeles Lakers | Detroit Pistons | 4-3 | James Worthy, Los Angeles |
| 1986-87 | Los Angeles Lakers | Boston Celtics | 4-2 | Magic Johnson, Los Angeles |
| 1985-86 | Boston Celtics | Houston Rockets | 4-2 | Larry Bird, Boston |
| 1984-85 | Los Angeles Lakers | Boston Celtics | 4-2 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles |
| 1983-84 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-3 | Larry Bird, Boston |
| 1982-83 | Philadelphia 76ers | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-0 | Moses Malone, Philadelphia |
| 1981-82 | Los Angeles Lakers | Philadelphia 76ers | 4-2 | Magic Johnson, Los Angeles |
| 1980-81 | Boston Celtics | Houston Rockets | 4-2 | Cedric Maxwell, Boston |
| 1979-80 | Los Angeles Lakers | Philadelphia 76ers | 4-2 | Magic Johnson, Los Angeles |
| 1978-79 | Seattle SuperSonics | Washington Bullets | 4-1 | Dennis Johnson, Seattle |
| 1977-78 | Washington Bullets | Seattle SuperSonics | 4-3 | Wes Unseld, Washington |
| 1976-77 | Portland Trail Blazers | Philadelphia 76ers | 4-2 | Bill Walton, Portland |
| 1975-76 | Boston Celtics | Phoenix Suns | 4-2 | Jo Jo White, Boston |
| 1974-75 | Golden State Warriors | Washington Bullets | 4-0 | Rick Barry, Golden State |
| 1973-74 | Boston Celtics | Milwaukee Bucks | 4-3 | John Havlicek, Boston |
| 1972-73 | New York Knicks | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-1 | Willis Reed, New York |
| 1971-72 | Los Angeles Lakers | New York Knicks | 4-1 | Wilt Chamberlain, Los Angeles |
| 1970-71 | Milwaukee Bucks | Baltimore Bullets | 4-0 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Milwaukee |
| 1969-70 | New York Knicks | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-3 | Willis Reed, New York |
| 1968-69 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-3 | Jerry West, Los Angeles |
| 1967-68 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-2 | |
| 1966-67 | Philadelphia 76ers | San Francisco Warriors | 4-2 | |
| 1965-66 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-3 | |
| 1964-65 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-1 | |
| 1963-64 | Boston Celtics | San Francisco Warriors | 4-1 | |
| 1962-63 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-2 | |
| 1961-62 | Boston Celtics | Los Angeles Lakers | 4-3 | |
| 1960-61 | Boston Celtics | St. Louis Hawks | 4-1 | |
| 1959-60 | Boston Celtics | St. Louis Hawks | 4-3 | |
| 1958-59 | Boston Celtics | Minneapolis Lakers | 4-0 | |
| 1957-58 | St. Louis Hawks | Boston Celtics | 4-2 | |
| 1956-57 | Boston Celtics | St. Louis Hawks | 4-3 | |
| 1955-56 | Philadelphia Warriors | Fort Wayne Pistons | 4-1 | |
| 1954-55 | Syracuse Nationals | Fort Wayne Pistons | 4-3 | |
| 1953-54 | Minneapolis Lakers | Syracuse Nationals | 4-3 | |
| 1952-53 | Minneapolis Lakers | New York Knicks | 4-1 | |
| 1951-52 | Minneapolis Lakers | New York Knicks | 4-3 | |
| 1950-51 | Rochester Royals | New York Knicks | 4-3 | |
| 1949-50 | Minneapolis Lakers | Syracuse Nationals | 4-2 | |
| 1948-49* | Minneapolis Lakers | Washington Capitols | 4-2 | |
| 1947-48* | Baltimore Bullets | Philadelphia Warriors | 4-2 | |
| 1946-47* | Philadelphia Warriors | Chicago Stags | 4-1 | |
| * The 1947-49 teams are technically champions of the Basketball Association of America (BAA). The BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the National Basketball Association in 1949. | ||||