The NBA, throughout its rich history, contains great tales of franchises that have progressed considerably from season to season. Every fan is captivated to find out which teams have improved the most in the NBA.
Without going any further, the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2022 are a clear example of striking progress in just 12 months. The JB Bickerstaff-led team doubled its winning record from last season. From just 22 wins in the 2020-21 campaign to 44 in 2021-22 to become one of the franchises with the most promising future in the entire league.
And it is that this type of improvement so run over is rare.
However, thanks to big rebuilds, successful trades, draft picks or free agency, the NBA has seen even more dramatic improvements. Among the most improved NBA teams in league history, there are five instances of franchises that have increased their win count by 30 or more units just one season apart.
Boston Celtics 1979-80: 32 wins
One of the specialist franchises to regain competitiveness in just one season is the Celtics. In the 1979-90 season, the Massachusetts team progressed in a few months from a pessimistic 29-win season to a creditable feat of 61 wins.
Two first-year players changed the dynamic of the team: Larry Bird and Kevin McHale. Bird was selected sixth in the 1978 Draft, but did not make the team until a season later. Meanwhile, the pick they made with McHale was acquired along with Robert Parish in a trade with the Golden State Warriors. The arrival of this new trio in the city of Boston allowed them to climb 32 wins compared to the previous year and sneak into the five teams that have improved the most from one season to the next.
That season marked the beginning of a historic era for the Celtics. The aforementioned generation reached five NBA Finals, won three titles and took a decade to return to a record that was less than 50 wins.
Phoenix Suns 2004-05: 33 victorias
How to forget Nash’s first season in Phoenix?
He was the only big-name addition that year. Steve Nash changed the face of a team that had 29 wins in 2003-04. The Suns took a risk and offered the 30-year-old point guard an economic amount that the Dallas Mavericks were not willing to match. The play went well for the Arizonans, who equaled the best record of wins in the history of the franchise (62), which can be surpassed this course.
Nash’s incalculable impact on the Suns’ recovery earned him the MVP badge. His averages that season were 15.5 points, 11.5 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. The point guard led a team that reached two consecutive Western Conference Finals. Only the San Antonio Spurs first and then the Dallas Mavericks deprived the Phoenix team of getting closer to the title.
Although Nash was the main star, the rest of the Suns players were a fantastic group. Shawn Marion, Joe Johnson or Amar’e Stoudemire are some of the names to stand out that season. All of them found their best versions under Mike D’Antoni’s innovative style of play, which fit perfectly in a team that is already part of NBA history.
San Antonio Spurs 1989-90: 35 wins
A new force of nature landed in San Antonio to turn the tide for a losing team. David Robinson had already been chosen at number 1 in the 1987 draft. However, the Spurs had to wait for him to finish his two years of service in the United States Navy to enjoy his basketball quality.
Today we can say that the wait was worth it. Robinson was a turning point that placed the Spurs among the teams that have improved the most from one season to the next. The center was unanimously named Rookie of the Year. That first season he averaged 24.3 points, 12.0 rebounds and 3.9 blocks. A real madness.
Those outstanding individual performances left their mark on the team’s record. In the 1988-89 season, the Spurs signed the worst season in their history. They stayed in only 21 victories, less than ever. Robinson raised the win tally to 56, leading the team to the third-best record in the Western Conference. A competitive change that lasted in the following decades.
That season, in addition to Robinson, the contributions of players like Rod Strickland or Terry Cummings were key. Thanks to that great mix of players, the Spurs set what was then the NBA record for the largest increase in wins from one season to the next, going from 21 in 1989 to 56 in 1990.
San Antonio Spurs 1997-98: 36 wins
Eight years after David Robinson, the Spurs repeated history with Tim Duncan. Considered one of the best power forwards in history, he joined the Texan team to form ‘the twin towers’ of San Antonio.
In the previous year, the superstar of the franchise, David Robinson, had only been able to play six games. Without him, the Spurs, used to being a team of playoffs, they only achieved 20 victories. But it wasn’t all bad news, despite being the third-worst record in the league, San Antonio won the Draft lottery. They chose Tim Duncan, a young man who had wowed his numbers in his fourth year at Wake Forest University.
The Tim Duncan effect was something to remember. He had one of the best seasons by a rookie in NBA history. He went on to average 21.1 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks without missing a single game in the regular season. David Robinson also recovered from his back injury and had a magnificent year. He averaged 21.6 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. Very similar stats to his new teammate in the paint.
That season the Spurs again broke their own record among the teams that have improved the most in a single year. Recovering Robinson and accompanying him with players like Duncan or Avery Johnson served to reach 56 victories. However, despite the great feat, their record only served to be fifth in the Western Conference, since the competition was very intense that year.
Boston Celtics 2007-2008: 42 wins
We are talking about the leader among the NBA teams that has improved the most from one year to the next in the entire history of the league.
The case of the Celtics in the first season together of Pierce, Allen and Garnett is one of the best stories that the NBA has left us. Those from Boston arrived after a 2006-2007 course to forget. They had only won 24 games, the second worst figure in the league and the worst in the Eastern Conference. It had been 21 years since his last championship and the spirit of the city had fallen. Fans of the historically winning team were losing patience.
However, overnight the sports management of the franchise carried out two operations that changed the course of the team. The architect of such a feat was Danny Ainge, winner of the Executive of the Year Award and considered since then as one of the general manager more respected. From one day to the next, the Celtics acquired two stars who, along with Paul Pierce, automatically made them candidates.
The night of the 2007 draft will be hard for Celtics fans to forget. That day the franchise took over the services of Ray Allen in exchange for Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, a second round pick from 2008 and the rights to Jeff Green, who was the number 5 pick in that same draft. A month later, Boston rounded out the roster with Kevin Garnett sending Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green, Al Jefferson, Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair and two first-round picks from 2009 to Minnesota.
A team that did not step playoffs since 2004-05 he became the top candidate. The three All-Star quality players – Pierce, Garnett and Allen – were joined by a Rajon Rondo who in his second season in the league took over the starting point guard job. The team coached by Doc Rivers lived up to the hype and dominated the season to finish with a 66-16 record. As a result, they became the best team in the league, achieved the third-best record in franchise history and ranked first among the teams that have improved the most in a single season.
Still, the best was yet to come. As in the regular season, the Celtics swept that season in the playoffs and took the title of champions. In this way, the Bostonians went from one of the worst seasons in their history to get their 17th title. Not even the most optimistic of fans would have imagined a similar story.
(Cover photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
