A win-loss mentality is a mindset that an individual or team has during games. It can either be positive or negative. A positive mental attitude will help one to have increased confidence in their skills, which they can then utilize to help them produce superior results. A negative mental attitude is the complete opposite and will just cause one to feel sorry for themselves and not want to play at all.
There is a debate, whether a second win is easier than the first one. For example, if somebody won over and over again, then they would just be expected to win. This would work as an expectation and not as hard as what it’s like in the beginning.
Some of the NBA teams dwelled in a winning mentality for a long time, winning game after game, becoming a huge threat, and making themselves look unbeatable. Let’s take a look at the five longest winning streaks in NBA history.
The Longest Winning Streak in NBA History: Los Angeles Lakers 1971-1972
The longest winning streak in a regular-season belongs to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1971-1972 run. The team went on and made the most consecutive wins in franchise history with 33 games won.
The Lakers had their dream team with Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West and there was no one to beat them for over two months! The winning streak was aborted by the Milwaukee Buck, who had Kareem Abdul Jabbar as their star. Despite this drawback, the Los Angeles Lakers went on and won this season.
The Longest Winning Streaks in NBA
After what the Lakers did in the 1971-1972 season, it would be a huge surprise to see any team get even close to the record but somehow few teams managed to do that.
Golden State Warriors 2014-2016
The second-longest winning streak in league history belongs to the Golden State Warriors. Their streak lasted for two seasons. They finished the 2014-2015 season with 4 consecutive wins and went through the 2015-2016 season with 24, adding up to 28.
Led by Stephen Curry, the Golden State Warriors made one of the most amazing performances the NBA has ever seen. 2016 was also the year Stephen Curry won MVP by a unanimous vote. Like the Lakers, Golden State Warriors finally lost to the Milwaukee Bucks and came up second to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the finals.
Miami Heat 2012-2013
The third-place team belongs to the Miami Heat. They are just one behind the Warriors (Miami Heat had 27 games won) and if it comes to one season winning streaks they would be on the number two.
The Miami Heat with LeBron James in their squad worked together perfectly and the team seemed to be impossible to beat until they clashed with the Chicago Bulls. Despite losing this game, they managed to bounce back and win the championship against the San Antonio Spurs in 2013.
It was a huge year for LeBron James as he won his fourth MVP title, joining only four other players, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6), Michael Jordan (5), Bill Russell (5), and Wilt Chamberlain (4), who got it 4 times or more.
Houston Rockets 2007-2008
Houston Rockets‘ winning streak started very impressively with their stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming playing like there was no tomorrow. Sadly, Yao Ming was injured after 12 consecutive wins. This didn’t stop the Houston Rockets, as they added ten games more to their streak.
Their winning streak was stopped by the almighty Boston Celtics, who won the 2008 championships.
Postseason Games
As we looked through the longest winning streaks in the NBA regular-season history, we can’t forget about the postseason games. These games determine which team will have a shot in the next NBA championships, so they are as important as regular ones.
Golden State Warriors 2016-2017
The Warriors started the playoffs with a win and went on a long winning journey with their very strong gameplay. They managed to win 15 consecutive games, which gave them the postseason game-winning record.
Their run was stopped by Cleveland Cavaliers, but the Warriors recovered from this pretty quickly and won the 2017 NBA title.
Los Angeles Lakers 1987-1989
The Lakers’ winning streak lasted two playoffs seasons, starting with 2 games at the end of the 1987 playoffs. Later they went to the NBA finals, which they won in 1988.
The streak was resumed in the 1988 playoffs and after 10 more consecutive wins, it was cut short by the Detroit Pistons.
Few Last Words
Each NBA team has its glory days and has a fair share of losses. A team has to be in their best shape to make this many consecutive wins. Every player counts and has to be on their toes all the time. With teamwork, proper guidance, and the right mindsets, the players mentioned above managed to become part of legendary tales of victory which are told by NBA fans to this day.
