Basketball Reference Blog
Most NBA Playoff Series Wins (player)
Posted by Andrew Weiser on December 22, 2023
(last updated on October 9, 2025)
While all the NBA’s most revered individual statistical records are accounted for during the regular season, greatness and glory happen in the playoffs. When NBA fans argue about the greatest player of all time, one of the most common arguments made is Michael Jordan’s six championships and 6-0 record in the Finals. So which players have won the most playoff series? Who has the most playoff wins in NBA history? Who are the greatest winners in the playoffs? Let’s find out.
LeBron James – 41 series wins
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James ▪ Instagram: kingjames
(King James, LBJ, Chosen One, Bron-Bron, The Little Emperor, The Akron Hammer, L-Train, Benjamin Buckets, Captain LeMerica)
Position: Small Forward, Power Forward, Point Guard, Center, and Shooting Guard ▪ Shoots: Right
6-9, 250lb (206cm, 113kg)
Team: Los Angeles Lakers
Born:
December 30,
1984
Relatives: Son Bronny James
High School: St. Vincent-St. Mary in Akron, Ohio
Recruiting Rank: 2003 (1)
Draft: Cleveland Cavaliers, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 2003 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 29, 2003
Experience: 22 years
- 21x All Star
- 2007-08 Scoring Champ
- 2019-20 AST Champ
- 4x NBA Champ
- 21x All-NBA
- 2003-04 All-Rookie
- 2003-04 ROY
- 3x AS MVP
- 6x All-Defensive
- 4x MVP
- 4x Finals MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
- 2023-24 IST MVP
2024-25
Career
70
1562
24.4
27.0
7.8
7.5
8.2
7.4
51.3
50.6
37.6
34.9
78.2
73.7
57.1
54.8
22.7
26.9
7.7
271.4
King James is the king of playoff series wins, posting a 41-13 record in 54 career playoff series, the most playoff series wins in NBA history. LBJ’s playoff dominance throughout the 2010s is very impressive, having made eight consecutive Finals from 2011 to 2018 with the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers. LeBron has historically cruised in the first round, posting a 15-3 first-round record and an undefeated 13-0 mark in the Eastern Conference first round. LeBron also leads all NBA players in most playoff games played with 292 under his belt. But how many playoff wins does LeBron have in total? He has 184 playoff wins to his name entering the 2025-26 season.
Derek Fisher – 40 series wins
Derek Fisher
Derek Lamar Fisher ▪ Twitter: derekfisher
(D-Fish)
Position: Point Guard and Shooting Guard ▪ Shoots: Left
6-1, 200lb (185cm, 90kg)
Born: August 9, 1974 (Age: 49-112d) in Little Rock, Arkansas us
Relatives: Brother Duane Washington; Nephew Duane Washington Jr.
College: Little Rock
High School: Parkview in Little Rock, Arkansas
Draft: Los Angeles Lakers, 1st round (24th pick, 24th overall), 1996 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: November 1, 1996
Career Length: 18 years
Career
1287
8.3
2.1
3.0
39.9
37.4
81.7
46.6
11.7
62.3
Though he never made an All-Star Game, point guard Derek Fisher became a household name among basketball fans by being a critical part of some of the great Laker teams of the 2000s. Perhaps overshadowed by the superstar appeal of Kobe and Shaq, Fisher ran the point and was an important role player on five championship Laker teams across two stints in LA. Fisher’s best series came against the heavyweight San Antonio Spurs in the 2001 Western Conference Finals. He averaged 17.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists in a sweep en route to an eventual championship. So how is he ahead of his teammate Kobe Bryant among who has the most playoff wins in NBA history? Later in his career Fisher joined budding stars James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant on the Oklahoma City Thunder for a few seasons while the Lakers were struggling.
Robert Horry – 39 series wins
Robert Horry
Pronunciation: \ORE-ee\
Robert Keith Horry
(Big Shot Rob, Big Shot Bob, The Key Man)
Position: Power Forward and Small Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-10, 240lb (208cm, 108kg)
Born: August 25, 1970 (Age: 53-096d) in Andalusia, Alabama us
College: Alabama
High School: Andalusia in Andalusia, Alabama
Draft: Houston Rockets, 1st round (11th pick, 11th overall), 1992 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: November 6, 1992
Career Length: 16 years
Career
1107
7.0
4.8
2.1
42.5
34.1
72.6
48.4
13.4
66.3
Another member of the Lakers early 2000s dynasty, seven-time champion Robert Horry has the third most playoff series wins in NBA history. Horry never made an All-Star team or won a scoring title, but he is arguably the greatest role player in NBA history, winning multiple championships with three different franchises. In addition to winning three consecutive rings with the Lakers, Horry won two championships with the Houston Rockets and two with the San Antonio Spurs. His career-best playoff series came in the 1995 Finals with Houston, where he averaged a 17.5 point and 10 rebound double-double.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 37 series wins
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Pronunciation: \kuh-REEM ab-dool juh-BAR\
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ▪ Twitter: kaj33
(Formerly known as Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr.)
(Lew, Cap, Murdock, Big Fella, The Tower of Power)
Position: Center ▪ Shoots: Right
7-2, 225lb (218cm, 102kg)
Born: April 16, 1947 (Age: 76-227d) in New York, New York us
College: UCLA
High School: Power Memorial in New York, New York
Draft: Milwaukee Bucks, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 1969 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 18, 1969
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1995 (Full List)
Career Length: 20 years
- Hall of Fame
- 19x All Star
- 2x Scoring Champ
- 1975-76 TRB Champ
- 4x BLK Champ
- 6x NBA Champ
- 15x All-NBA
- 11x All-Defensive
- 1969-70 All-Rookie
- 1969-70 ROY
- 2x Finals MVP
- 6x MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
Career
1560
24.6
11.2
3.6
55.9
5.6
72.1
55.9
24.6
273.4
Suffice it to say, when you win six championships and two Finals MVPs in the NBA, “most playoff wins” is a list you can expect to be on. Kareem posted a 37-12 career postseason series record, averaging 24.3 points and 10.5 rebounds in the playoffs. Kareem’s excellence in the playoffs cannot be understated: he averaged a 30+ point, 15+ rebound double-double in six different series and played in 13 sweeps with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers. In his 20 seasons in the NBA, Kareem only missed the playoffs twice.
Tim Duncan – 35 series wins
Tim Duncan
Timothy Theodore Duncan
(Timmy, The Big Fundamental, Groundhog Day, Old Man Riverwalk, The Stone Buddha)
Position: Center and Power Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-11, 250lb (211cm, 113kg)
Born: April 25, 1976 (Age: 47-218d) in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands vi
College: Wake Forest
High School: Saint Dunstan’s Episcopal in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Draft: San Antonio Spurs, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 1997 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 31, 1997
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2020 (Full List)
Career Length: 19 years
- Hall of Fame
- 15x All Star
- 5x NBA Champ
- 15x All-NBA
- 15x All-Defensive
- 1997-98 All-Rookie
- 1997-98 ROY
- 3x Finals MVP
- 1999-00 AS MVP
- 2x MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
Career
1392
19.0
10.8
3.0
50.6
17.9
69.6
50.7
24.2
206.4
Tim Duncan has the most playoff series wins in the NBA among players who have never played for the Lakers. He is third on the all-time list of who has the most playoff wins in NBA history, with 157 playoff games won. In Duncan’s 48 career series, he averaged 20.6 points and 11.4 rebounds per game. Known for his conservative game, and even more conservative fashion sense, Duncan was named Finals MVP three times out of his five titles. He spent all 19 of his professional seasons with the San Antonio Spurs and his Spurs made the postseason each year of his career.
Scottie Pippen – 33 series wins
Scottie Pippen
Scottie Maurice Pippen ▪ Twitter: ScottiePippen
(Formerly known as Scotty Maurice Pippen)
(Pip, Scott, Batman, Robin)
Position: Small Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-8, 210lb (203cm, 95kg)
Born: September 25, 1965 (Age: 58-065d) in Hamburg, Arkansas us
Relatives: Nephew Kavion Pippen; Son Scotty Pippen Jr.
College: University of Central Arkansas
High School: Hamburg in Hamburg, Arkansas
Draft: Seattle SuperSonics, 1st round (5th pick, 5th overall), 1987 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: November 7, 1987
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2010 (Full List)
Career Length: 17 years
- Hall of Fame
- 7x All Star
- 1994-95 STL Champ
- 6x NBA Champ
- 7x All-NBA
- 10x All-Defensive
- 1993-94 AS MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
Career
1178
16.1
6.4
5.2
47.3
32.6
70.4
50.4
18.6
125.1
The NBA’s greatest sidekick, Scottie Pippen played in 43 series in his playoff career, winning 33 of them. The majority, 31 of them, came during his time with the Chicago Bulls and his other two series wins came with the Portland Trailblazers in the 2000 playoffs. In 1994, Pippen led the Jordan-less Bulls to a first round sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Pippen played well in every playoff series but really turned it on in the Bulls’ six Finals wins. Across those series, he averaged 19.0 points, 8.3 rebounds and 5.9 assists.
Kobe Bryant – 33 series wins
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant ▪ Twitter: kobebryant
(Black Mamba, KB24, Vino, Showboat, Little Flying Warrior, The Eighth Man, Lord of the Rings)
Position: Shooting Guard and Small Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-6, 212lb (198cm, 96kg)
Born: August 23, 1978 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania us
Died:
January 26, 2020
Relatives: Father Joe Bryant; Uncle Chubby Cox
High School: Lower Merion in Ardmore, Pennsylvania
Draft: Charlotte Hornets, 1st round (13th pick, 13th overall), 1996 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: November 3, 1996
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2020 (Full List)
Career Length: 20 years
- Hall of Fame
- 18x All Star
- 2x Scoring Champ
- 5x NBA Champ
- 15x All-NBA
- 1996-97 All-Rookie
- 12x All-Defensive
- 4x AS MVP
- 2007-08 MVP
- 2x Finals MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
- 2018 Oscar
Career
1346
25.0
5.2
4.7
44.7
32.9
83.7
48.2
22.9
172.7
Surprise, surprise another Laker legend on the list of NBA players with most playoff games and most playoff series wins. NBA all-time great Kobe Bryant won 33 total playoff series in his illustrious career, his first coming in 1997 and his last in 2012. The Mamba has a spectacular 7-1 record in the Western Conference Finals with his only loss in the series coming in 1998 at the age of 19 to Stockton and Malone’s Utah Jazz. For players who have 20+ years of experience in the NBA, most playoff wins do not all happen with a single franchise. However, Kobe spent his entire career in purple and gold, racking up 135 playoff victories for the Lakers.
Shaquille O’Neal – 32 series wins
Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O’Neal ▪ Twitter: SHAQ
(Shaq, Diesel, The Big Aristotle, Superman, Shaq Fu, Shaq Daddy, Warrior)
Position: Center ▪ Shoots: Right
7-1, 325lb (216cm, 147kg)
Born: March 6, 1972 (Age: 51-268d) in Newark, New Jersey us
Relatives: Son Shareef O’Neal
College: LSU
High School: Cole in San Antonio, Texas
Draft: Orlando Magic, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 1992 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: November 6, 1992
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2016 (Full List)
Career Length: 19 years
- Hall of Fame
- 15x All Star
- 2x Scoring Champ
- 4x NBA Champ
- 14x All-NBA
- 1992-93 All-Rookie
- 1992-93 ROY
- 3x All-Defensive
- 3x AS MVP
- 3x Finals MVP
- 1999-00 MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
Career
1207
23.7
10.9
2.5
58.2
4.5
52.7
58.2
26.4
181.7
With 32 series wins with four separate franchises, Shaq has the eighth-most playoff series wins. NBA fans are probably not surprised to hear this. O’Neal was a force to be reckoned with and won championships playing with two of the game’s all-time great guards in Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. Shaq played in six Finals overall, posting an impressive 28.8 points and 13.1 rebounds per game on the NBA’s biggest stage.
Magic Johnson – 32 series wins
Magic Johnson
Earvin Johnson Jr. ▪ Twitter: MagicJohnson
(Magic, Buck, E.J. the Deejay, Tragic, The Magic Man, Junior)
Position: Point Guard, Shooting Guard, and Power Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-9, 215lb (206cm, 97kg)
Born: August 14, 1959 (Age: 64-107d) in Lansing, Michigan us
College: Michigan State
High School: Everett in Lansing, Michigan
Draft: Los Angeles Lakers, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 1979 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 12, 1979
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2002 (Full List)
Career Length: 13 years
- Hall of Fame
- 12x All Star
- 4x AST Champ
- 2x STL Champ
- 5x NBA Champ
- 10x All-NBA
- 1979-80 All-Rookie
- 3x Finals MVP
- 3x MVP
- 2x AS MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
Career
906
19.5
7.2
11.2
52.0
30.3
84.8
53.3
24.1
155.8
The leading man of the Showtime Lakers, Magic Johnson ended his career with a 32-8 record in playoff series. 28 of these series wins came in the 1980s. Magic averaged a triple-double in four different playoff series, including the 1987 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, for which he was named Finals MVP. He ranks 11th among NBA players with most playoff games won with 128. Like fellow Hall of Fame guard Kobe Bryant, the entirety of Johnson’s playoff wins came with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Tony Parker – 30 series wins
Tony Parker
William Anthony Parker Jr. ▪ Twitter: tonyparker
(T.P., Fiery Francophile, Parisian Torpedo)
Position: Point Guard ▪ Shoots: Right
6-2, 185lb (188cm, 83kg)
Born: May 17, 1982 (Age: 41-196d) in Bruges, Belgium be
Draft: San Antonio Spurs, 1st round (28th pick, 28th overall), 2001 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 30, 2001
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2023 (Full List)
Career Length: 18 years
Career
1254
15.5
2.7
5.6
49.1
32.4
75.1
50.8
18.2
111.3
Part of the 2000s San Antonio Spurs’ “Big Three” with Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker won 30 series with the Spurs over 17 postseasons. Head coach Gregg Popovic and The Big Three consistently found themselves competing in the Western Conference, as Parker’s Spurs made the playoffs in each of his 17 seasons with the team from 2002 to 2018. With that playoff exposure comes a lot of playoff wins. Parker is sixth all time among NBA players with most playoff games played and won, with 137 wins in 226 playoff games.
Michael Jordan – 30 series wins
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan
(Mike, Air Jordan, M.J., His Airness, Money, Black Cat, Mr. June, G.O.A.T., Superman, Captain Marvel, Black Jesus)
Position: Shooting Guard and Small Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-6, 198lb (198cm, 89kg)
Born: February 17, 1963 (Age: 60-285d) in Brooklyn, New York us
College: UNC
High School: Emsley A. Laney in Wilmington, North Carolina
Draft: Chicago Bulls, 1st round (3rd pick, 3rd overall), 1984 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 26, 1984
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 2009 (Full List)
Career Length: 15 years
- Hall of Fame
- 14x All Star
- 10x Scoring Champ
- 3x STL Champ
- 6x NBA Champ
- 11x All-NBA
- 1984-85 All-Rookie
- 1984-85 ROY
- 9x All-Defensive
- 3x AS MVP
- 1987-88 Def. POY
- 5x MVP
- 6x Finals MVP
- NBA 75th Anniv. Team
Career
1072
30.1
6.2
5.3
49.7
32.7
83.5
50.9
27.9
214.0
You didn’t think MJ would be left off a list of who has the most playoff wins in NBA history, did you? Although he took a few years off in the mid-90s, Jordan’s excellence and leadership of the Bulls dynasty produced a 30-7 record in playoff series, famously including his 6-0 record in the NBA Finals. Jordan averaged 40+ points per game in five different playoff series, including the 1993 NBA Finals against the Phoenix Suns.
FAQs
LeBron James has the most playoff wins in NBA history. As of the beginning of the 2025-26 season, James has won 184 playoff games and 41 playoff series.
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