Which teams have played in the NBA Finals over the last 20 years? originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
The 2023 NBA Finals are shaping up to be a tale of two radically different teams.
In one corner are the heavily-favored Denver Nuggets making their first-ever appearance in the NBA Finals. They'll take on the Miami Heat, who boast one of the most impressive pedigrees as a franchise over the past two decades but enter this year's postseason via the play-in tournament.
While the past means very little once tipoff rolls around, it's worth looking back at how some franchises have faired in recent history.
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Here’s a look back at the NBA Finals for the past 20 years:
Which team has the most NBA Finals appearances over the past 20 years?
The Miami Heat now lead the pack with seven appearances over the last decade. This year's Cinderella run gave them the edge over the Warriors' six appearance over that time period.
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They're followed closely behind by the San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers with five appearances each. The only other teams with multiple Finals appearances over the past 20 seasons are the Celtics (3) and the Dallas Mavericks (2).
The New Jersey Nets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Toronto Raptors and Milwaukee Bucks have each made one Finals appearance since 2004, with the latter two making the most of their time and leaving with the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.
Which team has the most NBA championships over the past 20 years?
Golden State’s most recent win gives them the edge over Miami with its fourth championship in eight years. While they technically own that record over the past two decades, they narrowly edge out the Spurs who won four titles in the past 21 years...and on one less appearance than the Warriors.
The Heat and Lakers are the only other franchises with multiple titles over the past two decades with three apiece.
What is the most common NBA Finals matchup of the past 20 years?
It wasn’t too long ago that a Finals matchup between Cleveland and Golden State was a foregone conclusion. Luckily for the sport of basketball, that’s not the case anymore, but the rivalry is the most common of the past two decades by claiming 20% of the matchups since 2002.
There are only three other matchups that have met multiple times in the Finals since 2003: Mavericks-Heat, Celtics-Lakers and Spurs-Heat. Each of those matchups occurred twice in the past decade, splitting the championships in all three cases.
Every NBA Finals appearance over the past 20 years:
2003: San Antonio Spurs def. New Jersey Nets 4-2
2004: Detroit Pistons def. Los Angeles Lakers 4-1
2005: San Antonio Spurs def. Detroit Pistons 4-3
2006: Miami Heat def. Dallas Mavericks 4-2
2007: San Antonio Spurs def. Cleveland Cavaliers 4-0
2008: Boston Celtics def. Los Angeles Lakers 4-2
2009: Los Angeles Lakers def. Orlando Magic 4-1
2010: Los Angeles Lakers def. Boston Celtics 4-3
2011: Dallas Mavericks def. Miami Heat 4-2
2012: Miami Heat def. Oklahoma City Thunder 4-1
2013: Miami Heat def. San Antonio Spurs 4-3
2014: San Antonio Spurs def. Miami Heat 4-1
2015: Golden State Warriors def. Cleveland Cavaliers 4-2
2016: Cleveland Cavaliers def. Golden State Warriors 4-3
2017: Golden State Warriors def. Cleveland Cavaliers 4-1
2018: Golden State Warriors def. Cleveland Cavaliers 4-0
2019: Toronto Raptors def. Golden State Warriors 4-2
2020: Los Angeles Lakers def. Miami Heat 4-2
2021: Milwaukee Bucks def. Phoenix Suns 4-2
2022: Golden State Warriors def. Boston Celtics 4-2
When did the Nuggets and Heat play this season?
The Denver Nuggets are the betting favorite, according to our partner, Pointsbet, and history is on their side in this matchup.
The Nuggets have won the last six meetings against the Heat, three of them by double digits. The last time the Heat won this face off -- Aug. 1, 2020 -- both teams' first game back following the more than four-month pause due to Covid-19.
Looking at this year specifically, the Nuggets won 124-119 at home on Dec. 30 and then again on the road in February, winning 112-108.
