The most lopsided rivalries in NBA history

As a gambler it is important to remember past events typically don’t have an effect on future outcomes. Just ask any victim of the roulette wheel.

In sports, however, it is hard to ignore when one team seems to have the other’s number. Let’s take a look at the five most lopsided rivalries in the NBA.

5. San Antonio Spurs vs. Phoenix Suns

While things were fairly evenly split through the 1990s, during the Spurs’ reign in the 2000s, they had the opportunity to repeatedly crush the Suns' dreams in the postseason. From 2000-2010 the Spurs faced the Suns six times in the postseason and won five of six series.

The Suns teams during those years, with Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire, never got over the hump and had to witness the Spurs take home multiple championships.

4. Los Angeles Lakers vs. Los Angeles Clippers

This year’s NBA postseason will reach a crescendo if we get the Lakers-Clippers matchup most expect, but the history of the rivalry has been one-sided.

The Lakers lead this crosstown rivalry 148-74 in head-to-head competition. The squad in yellow also has 16 championships, while the Clippers have never advanced past the second round.

3. San Antonio Spurs vs. Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers franchise is one of the least successful in NBA history, so it’s not surprising they made this list twice. One team the Clippers have been absolutely abysmal against is the Spurs, who lead the all-time series 129-45.

Any time a professional team is only 25% against another, over such a large sample size, it’s worth noting.

2. Los Angeles Lakers vs. Sacramento Kings

Any Kings fan should vividly remember the series that went the way it shouldn’t have. In 2002 the Lakers defeated the Kings in a highly contentious series that will forever live in NBA folklore—for the way the officials factored into the outcome.

The Lakers are 277-156 against the Kings and obviously have more individual and team achievements. The Lakers defeated the Kings in the playoffs three straight years from 2000-2002, during an era when the Kings had their best teams in franchise history. The battles on the court were not lopsided, but the end results are.

1. Chicago Bulls vs. New York Knicks

Being a Knicks fan in the last 30 years has been defined by failure and disappointment, but in the 1990s the Knicks actually had really good teams that were pitted against the great Jordan-era Bulls. The Bulls defeated the Knicks six of the seven times they met during postseason play from 1989-1996.

The toughness that defined those Knicks teams were no match for the skill and competitiveness of Michael Jordan's Bulls. The Knicks took punch after punch, and haven’t gotten off the mat since.

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