Back In The Day NBA

Micheal Jordan's Chicago Bulls, Kareem, Magic-Led Lakers Among Nick Wright's NBA Dynasties

Shandel Richardson

USA TODAY Sports
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There are plenty NBA teams deserving of the dynasty label.

According to FS1's Nick Wright, there are only four worthy of the distinction. Wright gave his list on a recent episode of "First Things First."

They were:

The Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls in the 1990s.

The Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson Los Angeles Lakers of the 1980s

Bill Russell's Boston Celtics in the 1950s and `60s.

Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant Lakers of the early 2000s.

"There are four unimpeachable, no arguments against dynasties in NBA history," Wright said. "And then there's two or three we can have the argument. Russell's Celtics, obvious dynasty, 11 in 13 years, eight in a row. Magic and Kareem's Lakers, five rings in a decade, nine trips to the Finals. Jordan's Bulls, six in eight years. Shaq and Kobe's Lakers, three rings in a row. Those are the four unimpeachable dynasties."   

The topic arose when Wright was discussing if this year's Celtics are on the verge of a dynasty. He said no because he feels dynasties no longer exist. He put the Celtics on par with the Chauncey Billups-led Detroit Pistons from the 2000s. They won a lot of games but only one championship.

"Dynasties are not common, hence why they are remembered the way they are," Wright said. "What is super common in the NBA is one and done, one championship. Right now, they have the exact postseason resume of that of Chauncey's Pistons over and eight-year stretch, six conference finals, one championship, one Finals loss."  

 Wright did give honorable mention to the San Antonio Spurs of the 2000s (four titles) and the Golden State Warriors from 2015 to 2022 (four titles). He gave his reasoning for calling them "question marks."

"The Spurs are a weird one because they never won back-to-back because there was a dynasty within their dynasty," Wright said. "The Warriors, I feel, are a dynasty ... I have heard people I respect argue that because of the Kevin Durant parachute in, parachute out that it's not one cohesive unit throughout."

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day NBA. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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Shandel Richardson

SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com