Heading into each season, winning an NBA championship is the ultimate goal for every team.

Only three franchises have ever won three titles in a row – Boston Celtics (eight straight from 1959 to 1966), Chicago Bulls (twice), and Los Angeles Lakers (twice)

3. Chicago Bulls

Conference Titles:Six (1991-1993, 1996-1998)

NBA Titles:Six (1991-1993, 1996-1998)

Notable Players: Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman

The Chicago Bulls find themselves at No. 3 in the rankings for one reason and one reason alone: Michael Jordan. 

Without MJ at the helm, the Bulls would have no NBA titles. With him, they have six, placing them third in the NBA in that category. 

The two three-peating teams to which the Bulls can lay claim to are some of the most dominant squads in NBA history. Even with those, though, Chicago can’t touch the top two franchises in NBA history.

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2. Los Angeles Lakers

Conference Titles:31 (1949, 1950, 1952-1954, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968-1970, 1972, 1973, 1980, 1985,1986, 1987-1989, 1991, 2000-2002, 2004, 2008-2010)

NBA Titles:16 (1949, 1950, 1952-1954, 1972, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000-2002, 2009, 2010)

Notable Players:Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant

To be perfectly honest, I wanted to cop out and have the Lakers and the Celtics tied for No. 1. But that would’ve been wimpy and not really my style. Instead, I’ll take a stand. 

The Los Angeles Lakers, hearkening all the way back to George Mikan’s days in Minneapolis, have been an absolutely incredible franchise. There really isn’t a single time in their history that they’ve been bad. 

16 Hall of Famers have played for the Lakers at some point in their careers and another four have paced up and down the sidelines.

1. Boston Celtics

Conference Titles: 21 (1957-1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984-1987, 2008, 2010)

NBA Titles:17 (1957, 1959-1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984, 1986, 2008)

Notable Players:Larry Bird, Bill Russell, John Havlicek

With more NBA titles than any other franchise in league history, the Boston Celtics can lay claim to the top spot in these rankings.