Lowest Seeds to Ever Make the NBA Finals

Here is a list of the lowest seeds to ever make the NBA Finals:

• 2010 Boston Celtics 4E
• 2006 Dallas Mavericks 4W (Lost 4-2 to Miami)
• 1999 New York Knicks 8E (Lost 4-1 to San Antonio)
• 1995 Houston Rockets 6W (Won 4-0 over Orlando)
• 1981 Houston Rockets 6W (Lost 4-2 to Boston)
• 1978 Seattle Supersonics 4W (Lost 4-3 to Washington)
• 1969 Boston Celtics 4E (Won 4-3 over the LA Lakers)

Here are some notes on those teams.

• 2010: The Celtics started the season 23-5 and finished the season 27-27.  They were also the 2008 NBA champions.  As I blogged earlier, it appears that they rested their old and injured players in the regular season in order to maximize their potential in the playoffs.  Here is a recent article which confirms my point.
• 2006: Due to a screwy rule, Dallas was given the 4th seed despite having a 60-22 record (which was the 2nd best in the west and 3rd best overall).  They should have won too if it wasn't for some shady officiating.
• 1999: This season was played after a lockout shortened the season to 50 games.  It was the kind of year for an 8-seed to slide its way into the finals.
• 1995: The Rockets were the defending champions.
• 1981: On the surface this seems random.  The Rockets went 40-42.  They beat the defending champion Lakers 2-1, then the Spurs 4-3, then in the conference finals beat the 40-42 Kansas City Kings.  Within two years they traded Moses Malone to Philadelphia and then finished the 1982-83 season with the worst record in the league.
• 1978: Portland was by far the best team until Bill Walton was injured late in the season.  Seattle returned to the finals in 1979 and won it.
• 1969: Not only was Boston the defending champion, including this year, they had won 11 of the past 13 finals.

My point is that in the NBA playoff system, it is somewhat unlikely for a poor team to win.  In keeping with my original point, the regular season doesn't matter when a good team knows that it can reserve its energy for the playoffs.

By contrast, here are the lowest-seeded Stanley Cup finalists of the past 10 years.

• 2010 Philadelphia Flyers 7E
• 2009 Pittsburgh Penguins 4E (Won 4-3 over Detroit)
• 2007 Ottawa Senators 4E (Lost 4-1 to Anaheim)
• 2006 Edmonton Oilers 8W (Lost 4-3 to Carolina)
• 2004 Calgary Flames 6W (Lost 4-3 to Tampa Bay)
• 2003 Anaheim Mighty Ducks 7W (Lost 4-3 to New Jersey)
• 2000 New Jersey Devils  4E (Won 4-2 over Dallas)