who has the most nba championships in nba history
List of NBA players with most championships Boston Celtics center Bill Russell holds the record for the most NBA championships won with 11 titles during his 13-year playing career.[7] He won his first championship with the Boston Celtics in his rookie year. Afterwards, he went on to win ten championships in the next 12 years, including eight consecutive championships from 1959 to 1966.[8] He won the last two championships in 1968 and 1969 as player-coach.[7] Russell's teammate, Sam Jones, won ten championships from 1959 to 1969, the second most in NBA history.[9] Four Celtics players, Tom Heinsohn, K. C. Jones, Satch Sanders and John Havlicek, won eight championships each.[10][11][12][13] Two other Celtics, Jim Loscutoff and Frank Ramsey, won seven championships each.[14][15][16] Four players, Bob Cousy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, won six championships each.[17][18] Jordan and Pippen are members of the Chicago Bulls team who won three consecutive championships twice in the 1990s.[19][20] George Mikan won two championships in the NBL before it merged with the BAA to form the NBA, and won five championships in the NBA.
Boston Celtics Founded in 1946 as one of the original eight NBA teams to survive the league's first decade, the team is owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which they share with the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Boston Bruins.
Boston Celtics With Bill Russell, the Celtics advanced to the 1957 NBA Finals and defeated the St. Louis Hawks in seven games, giving the Celtics the first of their record 17 championships. Russell went on to win 11 championships, making him the most decorated player in NBA history.[15] In 1958, the Celtics again advanced to the NBA Finals, this time losing to the Hawks in 6 games.[16] However, with the acquisition of K.C. Jones that year, the Celtics began a dynasty that would last for more than a decade.[17] In 1959, the Celtics won the NBA Championship after sweeping the Minneapolis Lakers, the first of their record eight consecutive championships.[18] During that time, the Celtics met the Lakers in the Finals five times, starting an intense and often bitter rivalry that has spanned generations. In 1964, the Celtics became the first NBA team to have an all African-American starting lineup. On December 26, 1964, Willie Naulls replaced an injured Tommy Heinsohn, joining Tom 'Satch' Sanders, K.C. Jones, Sam Jones, and Bill Russell in the starting lineup. The Celtics defeated St. Louis 97–84. Boston won its next 11 games with Naulls starting in place of Heinsohn.[19] The Celtics of the late-1950s–1960s are widely considered as one of the most dominant teams of all time.[20]
Bill Russell Russell is one of the most successful and decorated athletes in North American sports history. His awards and achievements include 11 NBA championships as a player with the Boston Celtics in 13 seasons (including two NBA championships as player/head coach), and he is credited with having raised defensive play in the NBA to a new level.[81] By winning the 1956 NCAA Championship with USF and the 1957 NBA title with the Celtics, Russell became the first of only four players in basketball history to win an NCAA championship and an NBA Championship back-to-back (the others being Henry Bibby, Magic Johnson, and Billy Thompson). He also won two state championships in high school. In the interim, Russell won an Olympic gold medal in 1956. His stint as coach of the Celtics was also of historical significance, as he became the first black head coach in major U.S. professional sports when he succeeded Red Auerbach.[82]