10 best teams that fell short of winning NBA title
By Phil Watson
6. 1972-73 Los Angeles Lakers
So how do the 60-22 Los Angeles Lakers beat out the 68-14 Boston Celtics from the 1972-73 season to make this list?
Well, about that. Of Boston’s 68 victories. 14 of them (one in five) came against their hapless rivals in the Atlantic Division, the still very-expansion-y Buffalo Braves (21-61) and the WOATs (worst of all-time) in the 9-73 Philadelphia 76ers.
Out West, the Lakers had to deal with another 60-win team in the Milwaukee Bucks, a very good Chicago Bulls club and a pesky and experienced Golden State Warriors team that had just gotten Hall of Famer Rick Barry back from the ABA.
The Lakers were the defending champions and had to deal with a plethora of injuries. Jerry West missed 13 games, while power forward Happy Hairston ripped up a knee in mid-December and missed the final 54 games of the regular season. He did come back to play 26 minutes in three playoff games, but was not a factor.
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Wilt Chamberlain led the NBA in rebounding with 18.6 boards per game in what would be his final pro season (he signed to play for the ABA’s San Diego Conquistadors in 1973-74 but was prevented from playing after the Lakers filed for an injunction) and set a record by shooting 72.7 percent from the floor.
Gail Goodrich took on the scoring load in the regular season before West returned to be the go-to guy in the playoffs, with both guards and Chamberlain making the All-Star Game.
The Lakers nearly met their maker in the Western Conference Semifinals, needing a Chamberlain blocked shot and outlet pass assist to Goodrich for a layup with 20 seconds remaining in Game 7 against the Chicago Bulls after trailing most of the game.
Los Angeles caught something of a break with the Warriors stunning the Bucks to reach the Western Conference Finals and beat Golden State in five games to return to the NBA Finals for their third meeting in four years with the New York Knicks. New York had beaten the Celtics to get to the Finals and won four straight after dropping Game 1 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif.