Number 7
Minneapolis Lakers defeat New York Knicks (4-3)
1952
Nowadays, leagues like the NBA, NFL and NHL tailor the rules so that their superstars can flash their skills and entertain fans, but in 1952, the NBA did the opposite and changed the rules in order to slow down otherwise unstoppable talent.

Spurred by protests from New York Knicks head coach, Joe Lapchick, the league doubled the width of the foul lane -- dubbed ”The Mikan Rule” -- to essentially curtail the effectiveness of skilled big men or more specifically: George Mikan. Lapchick and Mikan would meet in the finals in an odd matchup, as neither team had their own home court advantage for the first six games. The Lakers were pushed out of the Minnesota Auditorium because of a sportsman convention and the Knicks were bumped out of Madison Square Gardens because of the Barnum & Barnes Circus.

The teams split the first six games, which were all closely contested. But for Game 7, the Lakers got their home court back in Minnesota, a place where the Knicks had not won in their last 11 tries. The Knicks failed in their 12th try and for a second consecutive season lost in the finals.

Number 6
Los Angeles Lakers defeat Detroit Pistons (4-3)
1988
In any and every sport, the only thing more common than the confetti at a championship parade are the promises to win it all again the next year. Los Angeles Lakers head coach, Pat Riley, guaranteed his fans exactly that as the Lakers paraded around the title in 1987 -- but he really meant it. Even with a big bull’s-eye on their backs, the Lakers returned to the finals, but found themselves in a 3-2 hole against the rough and tough Detroit Pistons.

Game 6 proved to be a classic and a particularly career-defining moment for Pistons’ guard, Isiah Thomas. In the midst of lighting up the Lakers defense in the third quarter, Thomas badly sprained his ankle and had to be helped off the court. Still in obvious pain, he returned 35 seconds later and finished the quarter with 25 points on 11-of-13 field goals.

Isiah carried the Pistons to a three-point lead with only 60 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, but they couldn’t hold on. By Game 7, Thomas’ ankle swelled up and behind a triple-double from “Big Game” James Worthy, the Lakers fulfilled Riley’s promise and repeated as champions.

Number 5
Boston Celtics defeat Los Angeles Lakers (4-3)
1969
When Jerry West and the Los Angeles Lakers were unsuccessful in previous NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, the candid West openly admitted that the Celtics were the better team. In 1969, as the two teams collided in the finals for the seventh time, West believed that the Lakers -- fitted with a legitimate center after the acquisition of Wilt Chamberlain -- were now the superior squad.

While Chamberlain and Bill Russell brawled in the frontcourt, West and John Havlicek waged war in a shootout from the backcourt. The Lakers jumped out to a 2-0 series lead, but blew opportunities in both Game 3 and Game 4 to take a chokehold. As the teams split one-sided affairs in Games 5 and 6, the burden shifted to Game 7 in L.A.

The Lakers had faced the Celtics in four previous Game 7s but never had the luxury of home court. With Jerry West dealing with a hamstring injury and Wilt Chamberlain later tweaking his knee, the Lakers came up just short in a 108-106 loss. West averaged 38 points per game in the series and became the first player ever to be named NBA Finals MVP from the losing team.

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