The NBA Belt · era belt
The belt since the 1976 ABA merger
Four ABA teams joined for 1976–77; this belt starts with that season's first game. Houston Rockets won that game against Atlanta Hawks, 120–104 on October 21, 1976.
2,094Reigns since 1976–77
2,094Title changes
30Franchises that held it
CavaliersHolder today
Start the NBA belt with Houston Rockets’ win on October 21, 1976 and it takes a different path for 5 reigns: on November 17, 1976 the new line and the original line land in the same hands, and from that day on they never differ again. Every reign since is the same reign on both belts, so this page is the era's record book rather than a second history.
Where the two lines differed
| # | Holder | From | To | Def. | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Houston Rockets | Oct 21, 1976 | Oct 27, 1976 | 1 | first game |
| 2 | Philadelphia 76ers | Oct 27, 1976 | Nov 5, 1976 | 2 | beat Rockets 116–94 |
| 3 | Portland Trail Blazers | Nov 5, 1976 | Nov 11, 1976 | 2 | beat 76ers 146–104 |
| 4 | Atlanta Hawks | Nov 11, 1976 | Nov 13, 1976 | 0 | beat Trail Blazers 107–105 |
| 5 | New Orleans Jazz | Nov 13, 1976 | Nov 17, 1976 | 1 | beat Hawks 115–86 |
The era's record book
Most days held since 1976–77
| 1 | Los Angeles Lakers | 1,951 |
| 2 | Boston Celtics | 1,683 |
| 3 | Chicago Bulls | 1,189 |
| 4 | San Antonio Spurs | 1,022 |
| 5 | Miami Heat | 994 |
| 6 | Golden State Warriors | 849 |
| 7 | New York Knicks | 740 |
| 8 | Houston Rockets | 700 |
| 9 | Denver Nuggets | 644 |
| 10 | Detroit Pistons | 642 |
Most reigns since 1976–77
| 1 | Boston Celtics | 132 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Lakers | 115 |
| 3 | San Antonio Spurs | 94 |
| 4 | Indiana Pacers | 93 |
| 5 | Houston Rockets | 93 |
| 6 | Philadelphia 76ers | 93 |
| 7 | New York Knicks | 92 |
| 8 | Milwaukee Bucks | 84 |
| 9 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 82 |
| 10 | Atlanta Hawks | 80 |
Most defenses since 1976–77
Longest reigns of the era
| # | Reign | Defenses | Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Golden State WarriorsJun 11, 2015 – Dec 12, 2015 | 26 | 184 |
| 2 | Boston CelticsNov 20, 2008 – Dec 25, 2008 | 16 | 35 |
| 3 | Los Angeles LakersFeb 16, 2000 – Mar 16, 2000 | 14 | 29 |
| 4 | Boston CelticsMar 11, 1986 – Apr 6, 1986 | 13 | 26 |
| 5 | Chicago BullsJun 16, 1996 – Nov 23, 1996 | 12 | 160 |
| 6 | San Antonio SpursMar 1, 2002 – Mar 27, 2002 | 12 | 26 |
| 7 | San Antonio SpursApr 4, 2004 – May 9, 2004 | 11 | 35 |
| 8 | Utah JazzFeb 11, 2009 – Mar 11, 2009 | 11 | 28 |
| 9 | Portland Trail BlazersFeb 23, 2018 – Mar 20, 2018 | 11 | 25 |
| 10 | Miami HeatJan 19, 2017 – Feb 11, 2017 | 11 | 23 |