Regardless of whether someone is a diehard NBA fan or not, there is a very good chance that they know the names Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James, and have you ever thought which of them has the most NBA finals appearances? They’re three of the best NBA players of all time, which is why they were recently named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

They’re also three of the most decorated NBA players ever, as they’ve made some of the most NBA Finals appearances in the history of the league. Collectively, Russell, Jordan, and James have made an astonishing 28 NBA Finals appearances between them.

But they’re not the only NBA players to appear in the NBA Finals on multiple occasions. There are actually a handful of players who have also accomplished this relatively rare feat.

We’re going to give these superior players their props by running through the names of some of the guys who managed to make the most NBA Finals appearances. Check them out below.

Bill Russell, 12 NBA Finals Appearances

Bill Russell is routinely left out of the G.O.A.T. conversation in favor of players like Michael Jordan and LeBron James. But many NBA fans—especially those who grew up in the 1960s—would argue that anyone who leaves Russell out of this convo is making a big mistake.

The Boston Celtics legend made the most NBA Finals appearances in NBA history throughout his storied career by playing in 12 NBA Finals. He also made the most consecutive NBA Finals appearances by a player by playing in 10 straight NBA Finals between 1959 and 1969.

And he didn’t just play in the NBA Finals, either. Russell dominated in the NBA Finals, losing just one series during his historic run to leave him with 11 rings in total.

Russell also took one of the most iconic sports photos of all time while posing with all the championship rings that he racked up over time. If that isn’t enough to earn him some G.O.A.T. consideration, what is?

Sam Jones, 11 NBA Finals Appearances

There is one name that you’re going to be surprised to see left off this list. That name is Wilt Chamberlain.

Chamberlain is, without question, one of the best NBA players in the history of the game. But he only managed to rack up six NBA Finals appearances. And that was largely because of the stranglehold that the Boston Celtics had on the NBA’s Eastern Conference back in the 1950s and 1960s when Chamberlain played in the East.

Bill Russell obviously played a huge part in keeping Chamberlain out of the NBA Finals for so many years. But so did Sam Jones, who was right by Russell’s side as a key member of the Celtics dynasty.

In fact, Jones earned the nickname “Mr. Clutch” at that time in part because of some of the performances he put up against Chamberlain. During the 1960 NBA Playoffs, for example, Jones hit a game-winning shot over Chamberlain to help the Celtics knock off the Philadelphia Warriors in Game 6 of their series. It led to Chamberlain calling Jones the most clutch player on the Celtics.

Jones’ accomplishments were, to some degree, overshadowed by Russell’s domination of the NBA back in the 1950s and 1960s. But he’s an NBA Finals legend in his own right for sure and has 10 NBA rings to show for it.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 10 NBA Finals Appearances

Back in July 2021, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks won the team’s first NBA title in 40 years. The Bucks hadn’t won the title since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar led the team to the NBA Finals in 1971.

That was Abdul-Jabbar’s first NBA Finals appearance. But it definitely was not his last. He made one more appearance in the NBA Finals with the Bucks in 1974 before asking the team to trade him and eventually landing with the Los Angeles Lakers.

From there, Abdul-Jabbar would make it back to the NBA Finals eight more times. He would also pick up five more NBA titles along the way while taking part in some of the best NBA Finals matchups of all time at the height of the Celtics/Lakers rivalry.

Even though Abdul-Jabbar only has about half the number of rings that Bill Russell does, he’s another player that deserves a mention in the G.O.A.T. convo. His NBA Finals appearances more than back it up.

LeBron James, 10 NBA Finals Appearances

One of the things that you’re going to notice as you make your way through this list of the players with the most NBA Finals appearances is that almost all of them are now retired. We say “almost” because LeBron James is the one player mentioned here that bucks this trend. And that might make his inclusion all the more impressive.

In this day and age, there aren’t really any dynasties in the NBA like there used to be. A team like the Golden State Warriors might put together a nice run for a few years. But the free agency and the willingness of players to move from one team to the next has made it hard for dynasties to exist.

Despite this, LeBron has managed to make it to the NBA Finals ten times throughout his still-ongoing NBA career. That includes:

• One NBA Finals appearance at the start of his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers
• Four consecutive NBA Finals appearances with the Miami Heat after “taking his talents to South Beach”
• Four consecutive NBA Finals appearances with the Cavaliers after returning to Cleveland
• One NBA Finals appearance with the Lakers after leaving Cleveland for Los Angeles

LeBron has caught some flack for only winning four NBA titles in spite of the fact that he’s been to the NBA Finals so many times. But it’s worth noting that he only has one fewer ring than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar who also made ten NBA Finals appearances.

It’s also worth noting that, as we mentioned earlier, LeBron isn’t retired yet. So there is always a chance that he could add to both his NBA Finals appearances and his NBA title count before everything is all said and done.

Magic Johnson, 9 NBA Finals Appearances

When you think about the NBA Finals back in the 1980s, Magic Johnson is probably one of the first players that come to mind. The Showtime Lakers made a name for themselves in the ’80s—and Magic was at the center of it all.

It all started in the 1980 NBA Finals when Magic, who was only a rookie, helped the Lakers knock off the Philadelphia 76ers with a dominant Game 6 performance after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar suffered a severe ankle injury. He put up 42 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists in that game to lead the Lakers to a series-clinching victory.

And Magic got even better from there, appearing in nine NBA Finals in total and winning five of them. Through 50 NBA Finals games, Magic averaged an incredible 19.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 11.7 assists while playing more than 40 minutes per game. It made him one of the most prolific players in NBA Finals history.

Jerry West, 9 NBA Finals Appearances

It’s hard to feel too bad for a guy who lands near the top of a list featuring players who made the most NBA Finals appearances. It’s also hard to feel too bad for a guy who is literally the NBA’s logo.

But you do have to feel at least a little bit bad for Jerry West, who made it to nine NBA Finals throughout his career but only won one of them. He suffered some heartbreaking NBA Finals losses and really should have more than one ring to his name.

On a positive note, though, West is the only player in NBA history to ever be named the NBA Finals MVP while playing for the losing team. He did it in the 1969 NBA Finals when the Lakers lost to the Celtics.

West also averaged more than 30 points per game in the NBA Finals. That’s good for second all-time (behind only Michael Jordan) in NBA Finals history.

It obviously would have been nice to see West win more NBA titles. But it’s hard to blame him for the Lakers’ inability to stop the Celtics from building a dynasty back in the 1960s.

Tom Heinsohn, 9 NBA Finals Appearances

If you’re a casual NBA fan, the name Tom Heinsohn might not ring a bell. You can blame that on the fact that Heinsohn played alongside guys like Bill Russell and Bob Cousy who stole the show.

But Heinsohn is a Hall of Famer who played in nine NBA Finals throughout the 1950s and 1960s and ended up with eight championship rings to his name. He averaged almost 20 points per game for the Celtics during 52 career NBA Finals games and was a key cog in their success.

Heinsohn’s best NBA Finals game ever may have also been one of his very first ones. He helped the Celtics beat the St. Louis Hawks in Game 7 of the 1957 NBA Finals by scoring 37 points in a thrilling double-overtime contest.

John Havlicek, 8 NBA Finals Appearances

If we were to ask you to guess the Celtics’ all-time leading scorer, John Havlicek might not be the first name that comes to mind. But Havlicek spent 16 seasons with the team and racked up over 26,000 points in the process.

Havlicek also grabbed over 8,000 rebounds and dished out over 6,000 assists while making it to 13 consecutive NBA All-Star Games and earning 11 All-NBA teams.

And believe it or not, he did these things despite spending the first part of his career coming off the bench as a “supersub” for the Celtics (which should demonstrate just how good the Celtics were back then!).

All of this helped Havlicek earn a spot on this list of players with the most NBA Finals appearances. It also helped him go a perfect 8-0 during his NBA Finals appearances.

Tom “Satch” Sanders, 8 NBA Finals Appearances

Back in the 1950s and 1960s, the Celtics had plenty of guys on their roster who could put the ball through the basket. So when they went to make their selection in the 1960 NBA Draft, they were in the market for someone who could rebound and play solid defense for them.

They found this player in Tom “Satch” Sanders, who had averaged about 16 points and 13 rebounds during his time at New York University. They selected him and asked him to be a shutdown defender for them, which is exactly what he went on to do.

Sanders was routinely asked to defend some of the best players on other teams during some of the Celtics’ biggest NBA playoff games in the 1960s. That meant that he matched up against guys like Willis Reed and Elgin Baylor on a nightly basis.

And for the most part, Sanders played his role and did it even better than the Celtics could have ever expected him to when they drafted him. It resulted in him making eight NBA Finals appearances with the team and winning all eight of them.

K.C. Jones, 8 NBA Finals Appearances

Much like “Satch” Sanders, K.C. Jones wasn’t asked to do much on the offensive side of the ball for the Boston Celtics. During eight NBA Finals appearances, he only averaged 6.5 points per game.

Rather than relying on his offensive prowess, Jones was relied on for his defense. Although steals weren’t recorded as stats back in the 1960s, it’s widely believed that he would have led the league in steals almost every season.

At just six-foot-one, Jones wasn’t the tallest player on the Celtics by any stretch of the imagination. But his tenacious defense helped him and the Celtics make eight NBA Finals appearances. It also helped him win eight NBA titles before calling it quits after less than a decade in the league.

Frank Ramsey, 8 NBA Finals Appearances

We promise that we’re almost done discussing all of the different Celtics players from back in the 1950s and 1960s who made it to a ridiculous number of NBA Finals. But we can’t stop doing it before we touch on Frank Ramsey, who played in eight NBA Finals and helped the Celtics win seven of them.

Ramsey only averaged about 13.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game over the course of 47 career NBA Finals games. But he was known for coming up big when the Celtics needed him most.

For instance, Ramsey averaged just over 23 points per game and a shade over 6 rebounds during the Celtics’ playoff push in 1959. It played a huge part in the Celtics winning the title that year.

Ramsey’s name often gets lost in the shuffle since he played alongside guys like Bill Russell and Bob Cousy. But he’s now a Hall of Famer who eventually had his jersey number 23 retired by the Celtics.

Derek Fisher, 8 NBA Finals Appearances

Most of the players who have made the most NBA Finals appearances ever are star players. They’re guys who helped lead their respective teams to NBA Finals appearances year after year.

Derek Fisher would not fall into this category. He was a role player for pretty much his entire career. But he had a knack for working his way onto teams that ended up in the NBA Finals.

Most notably, Fisher went to the NBA Finals seven times with the Lakers during two different stints with the team. He won five titles while teaming up with Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant.

But he also made an NBA Finals appearance in 2012 with the Oklahoma City Thunder while serving as the backup for Russell Westbrook. In total, he played in 43 NBA Finals games and averaged 8.7 points and 2.4 assists in them.

Michael Cooper, 8 NBA Finals Appearances

Speaking of role players who helped the Lakers win multiple NBA titles, we can’t create a list of the players with the most NBA Finals appearances without mentioning Michael Cooper.

Cooper spent a dozen seasons with the Lakers in the 1970s and 1980s. He spent most of that time coming off the bench for the team. But he came to embrace this role and eventually played an important part in the Lakers making eight NBA Finals appearances and winning five of them.

In 46 career NBA Finals games, Cooper didn’t even put up any gaudy numbers (10.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists per game). But he did play solid defense and fill a necessary role alongside Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Bob Cousy, 7 NBA Finals Appearances

Although Bob Cousy excelled on a personal level after the Celtics picked him up at the start of his NBA career in 1950, it wasn’t until the second half of his career that he began to enjoy NBA Finals’ success. He went from not appearing in a single NBA Finals game through his first six NBA seasons to making some of the most NBA Finals appearances in league history.

Not coincidentally, this occurred after the Celtics added both Bill Russell and Tom Heinsohn to the mix. Cousy went on to make seven NBA Finals appearances in total, winning six of them along the way.

Cousy was, unfortunately, forced to retire at the age of 34 in 1963, which negated him from enjoying more of the NBA Finals success that came the Celtics’ way in the years that followed. But even still, he managed to make his mark on the NBA Finals in spite of the slow start at the beginning of his NBA career.

Robert Horry, 7 NBA Finals Appearances

Outside of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James, almost all of the guys on this list of the players with the most NBA Finals appearances won titles with the same teams. Not Robert Horry.

Horry went a perfect 7-for-7 when it came to appearing in NBA Finals matchups and winning them. More impressively, he accomplished this feat with three different teams.

Horry played for the Houston Rockets when they won the NBA Finals in 1994 and 1995. He played for the Los Angeles Lakers when they won the NBA Finals in 2000, 2001, and 2002. And he played for the San Antonio Spurs when they won the NBA Finals in 2005 and 2007.

Horry earned a reputation for being a very reliable role player throughout his career. He also earned the nickname “Big Shot Bob” due to his knack for hitting big-time shots on the biggest stage.

Michael Jordan, 6 NBA Finals Appearances

It feels a little bit strange putting Michael Jordan last on any list when you consider how revered he is within the basketball community. But on this rare occasion, MJ is not the best at something. He doesn’t have the most NBA Finals appearances ever.

He might not mind that, though. Because while all of the other true superstars on this list experienced what it was like to lose in the NBA Finals at least once, MJ never had to go through that. He played in six NBA Finals and won six NBA Finals, which you could argue is the reason why so many people consider him to be the G.O.A.T.

MJ also did more than just play in and win six NBA Finals matchups. He dominated during them for the most part. Back in the 1993 NBA Finals, for example, he averaged 41 points per game throughout the series to help the Chicago Bulls beat the Phoenix Suns.

With this in mind, it should come as no surprise to hear that MJ won the NBA Finals MVP award after every single NBA Finals matchup he played in. He was one of the best players in NBA Finals history, even without making the most NBA Finals appearances.

Will Any Current Players Land on This List of Players With the Most NBA Finals Appearances?

If LeBron James can play for at least a few more seasons, he might end up having the most NBA Finals appearances ever. But he might be the last active player to land on this list for a long time.

Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson might be able to do it. Kevin Durant might also have a chance.

But it’ll be tough for many current players to work their way onto this list. It really makes you appreciate what the guys on this list were able to do.

Enjoy this article? Find others like it on our blog!