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NBA: Ranking the 30 best players to win NBA Finals with 2 or more teams

By Corey Rausch

CHARLOTTE, NC - FEBRUARY 16: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (L) and Shaquille O'Neal attend the AT&T Slam Dunk during the 2019 State Farm All-Star Saturday Night at Spectrum Center on February 16, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NC - FEBRUARY 16: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (L) and Shaquille O'Neal attend the AT&T Slam Dunk during the 2019 State Farm All-Star Saturday Night at Spectrum Center on February 16, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images) /
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James Edwards
James Edwards (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images) /

Best NBA players to win NBA Finals with two or more teams: 20. James Edwards

The second member of the Bad Boys Pistons to make the list, James Edwards was significantly better than the way that he is remembered. Edwards did not get the individual accolades that some of his peers were lavished with and would play for a number of teams over the course of his career but one thing remained a constant: James Edwards could score in the low post.

Edwards was drafted in the third round of the 1977 draft and found himself thrust into the starting lineup early after an injury knocked out Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the first game of the season. After acquitting himself well as a starter and in need of a change to the roster, Edwards was shipped out in December of his first season to the Indiana Pacers. In Indiana, Edwards was a force averaging 15.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. He spent nearly four seasons with the Pacers before moving on.

In his next step, with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Edwards was actually slightly better. The big man averaged 16.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game over the two partial seasons he played there. Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, they were owned by Ted Stepien and he would salary dump Edwards to the Phoenix Suns.

Edwards spent the next four seasons in Phoenix and in the fifth, he was traded to the Detroit Pistons, becoming an integral member of the Bad Boys champions. Edwards came off the bench for the first title team and started all 20 playoff games for the second. Buddha, as his teammates called him, was born to be a Piston even if his run with the team only lasted three full seasons after the trade.

Following his departure from the Pistons, Edwards would steadily see his minutes slip over stints with the LA Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers before signing up with the Chicago Bulls for his 19th and final season. Though his role was limited, the team went 72-10 and Buddha got his third ring to end his career.