Even if you’re not a fan of the National Basketball Association, you are likely aware of one of the biggest rivalries in not only the NBA, but in the entire sports world: the Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers. The coastal confrontation between these two franchises has provided some of the league’s most-memorable moments.
Past that, there’s the Detroit Pistons-Chicago Bulls of the 80’s and 90’s, the New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat series of the early 2000’s as well as the Sacramento Kings-LA Laker matchups during the same era Most-recently, we had the Golden State Warriors
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Modern NBA Rivalries
There are several rivalries that are developing in today’s NBA. Franchises that see one another a few times in the post season adds significantly more drama to proceedings and brings an extra dimension to certain matchups. While there have been some off-the-chart rivalries in past years, there are also some current ones that are simmering nicely. But which teams does this involve?
Boston Celtics vs Milwaukee Bucks
When it comes to the biggest current NBA rivalries, the Celtics and the Bucks need to be mentioned. This is a rivalry that has a lot of history behind it and can be traced back to an exciting series of games in 1974’s NBA Finals. A series of playoff games in the 80s further cemented this rivalry, and it has extended into the modern era.
Of course, the fact that both play in the Eastern Conference and have been battling it out for the top spot in recent seasons also adds fuel to the fire. Much of the edge when these teams currently play also comes down to the sheer physicality on show.
Whether it is Giannis Antetokounmpo charging through contact or Marcus Smart using his body to disrupt the Bucks’ offense, games between these teams are never short on drama. Due to all this, the Bucks vs Celtics rivalry is one that has really taken off in the NBA lately.
Philadelphia 76ers vs Brooklyn Nets
Another of the fiercest current rivalries is between two NBA Finals’ favorite teams for 2022-23. The 76ers and Nets have certainly enjoyed a few hotly contested games in recent seasons, and there does seem to be a real edge when they play each other.
But what lies behind this? To begin with, you need to consider how close they are to one another. Philadelphia is not too far away from New York and this closeness in terms of geography sets the scene perfectly for them to be rivals.
In addition, players from both teams have been known to have somewhat heated exchanges on social media in the past. When you also consider how the trade of Ben Simmons from the 76ers to the Nets further shook things up, it is easy to see why these franchises clash.
Golden State Warriors vs Memphis Grizzlies
Although we have picked out Golden State here, you could make a case for most of the teams in the Western Conference having the Grizzlies in their sights! This is due to the somewhat antagonistic nature of their play in recent times and the cockiness some of their players display. As a team that is on the up and full of young talent, the Grizzlies are also seen as a real threat by most of their conference.
The Warriors seem to have fallen into the fiercest rivalry with Memphis though. This stems back to 2021’s play-off tournament when Memphis put the Warriors to the sword. In 2022, a huge win for Memphis over the Warriors led to Grizzlies player Jaren Jackson Jr mocking Golden State on social media. This was not forgotten by Warriors players, and Klay Thompson was quick to label Jackson ”a freaking bum” publicly after his team’s 2022 NBA Finals win.
Due to the above, it seems that there now exists bad blood between the two teams. If they continue to show this on-court as they battle it out in the Western Conference, it could become a classic basketball story.
The NBA still has some fierce rivalries
When you take a look at rivalries in the NBA, it is easy to hark back to well-known ones from the past — whether it is the Lakers vs the Celtics in the 1980s or the Knicks against the Heat in the 1990s. The modern NBA though is not short of rivalries like this, which leads to certain teams being desperate to beat one another. As the above shows, there are certainly some that are currently worth keeping an eye on.
