Top NBA Franchises from the 1960's

As the NBA gained popularity throughout the late 1950's and early 1960's, a rival league appeared on the professional basketball scene. The American Basketball Association (ABA) was established in 1967, and competed directly against the NBA. It was similar to the AFL-NFL rivalry in professional football prior to the merger. The NBA and ABA eventually merged a decade later. Despite the distraction of a rival league, the NBA thrived during the 1960's. Below is the list of the top NBA franchises of the 1960's.

Boston Celtics

The Celtics embarked upon perhaps the most dominant dynasty in sports history as the decade of the 1960's commenced. The Celtics ended the 1950's with championships in 1958-59 and 1959-60. That was only the beginning of one of the most amazing acts of ascendancy the sports world has witnessed. The Celtics won the subsequent six NBA championships, eight consecutive overall. The Philadelphia 76ers ended the Celtics hope at a ninth consecutive championship in 1966-67. They returned to championship form winning two more titles in 1967-68 and 1968-69. The won 54 or more games in eight seasons throughout the 1960's. They won more than 60 games in three seasons. The Celtics were stacked with talent such as Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, and Sam Jones.

Philadelphia 76ers (Syracuse Nationals until 1962-63)

Due to the dominance of the Celtics, every other NBA team played in the shadows throughout the 1960's. However, 76ers fans clearly recall their run of success. They did something the Celtics did not in the 1960's. In 1966-67, the 76ers became the first team to win 68 games in a single season. Of course, they earned the championship by defeating the San Francisco Warriors four games to two. This was the franchise's first NBA championship since 1954-55 when they were known as the Syracuse Nationals. They won 62 games in 1867-68, but lost to the Celtics in the divisional round of the playoffs. Wilt Chamberlain, Billy Cunningham, and Hal Greer led the 76ers through their peak.

Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers began the decade transitioning from the move from the frigid Minneapolis, Minnesota to sunny Los Angeles, California. The Lakers appeared in seven NBA finals, but failed to win a single championship. The Lakers fell victim to the dominant Celtics in six of the seasons they failed to bring the coveted trophy to Hollywood. The Lakers won more than 50 games in four seasons throughout the 1960's. Leading the Lakers throughout the 1960's included Hall of Famers Jerry West and Elgin Baylor.

Honorable mentions include New York Knicks; St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks

Resource: Pro Basketball Reference, NBA Finals