For all 30 teams in the league, there is only one goal at the beginning of each season and that is to win the NBA championship. However, only one out of those teams can win each year, which means that as long as teams are making it deep into the playoffs and contending, they can count the season as something of a success.
However, only half the league can even make it to the playoffs and some franchises have historically been better than others. The Lakers and Celtics are the obvious ones, but the Spurs, Bulls, Warriors, Pistons, and Heat have also enjoyed quite a few winning seasons throughout their existence. Then there are teams like the Suns, that have enjoyed playoff success at different points but don’t have the championships to show for it.
The third category is teams that have barely even made the playoffs a lot, and 6 of these teams have a very dubious honor. Michael Jordan is the GOAT and the playoffs GOAT as well since he made it to the playoffs every season except when he was retired and then later when he was with the Washington Wizards. And while he lost a bit early in his career, the number of playoff wins he managed are more than 6 NBA teams have managed in their history.
Jordan’s 119 playoff wins are 60 more than the Orlando Magic have ever managed, and he has over 50 more than the Clippers as well. The Washington Wizards, who he played for, have only managed 20 wins less than MJ himself did in their history as well.
While players comparing themselves to MJ’s success might be a little unnecessary since he is the GOAT for a reason, but the fact that he has more playoff wins than whole franchises is a bit embarrassing. These organizations need to step it up soon, and at least the Nuggets, Nets, and Clippers have become better in recent memory and can hope to get those numbers up in the coming seasons.
