Top 10 Passing Teams since 1986

[robert_shaww]

1- San Antonio Spurs (2014)
2- Sacramento Kings (2002)
3- Los Angeles Lakers (1987)
4- Boston Celtics (1986)
5- Chicago Bulls (1996)
6- Seattle Sonics (1994)
7- Utah Jazz (1997)
8- Houston Rockets (1993)
9- Portland Blazers (1992)
10- Phoenix Suns (2005)

[Thorn]

1- San Antonio Spurs (2014)
2- Sacramento Kings (2002)
3- Los Angeles Lakers (1987)
4- Boston Celtics (1986)
5- Chicago Bulls (1996)
6- Seattle Sonics (1994)
7- Utah Jazz (1997)
8- Houston Rockets (1993)
9- Portland Blazers (1992)
10- Phoenix Suns (2005)

today I learned 1986 came after 1987

[r0drig0lac]

today I learned 1986 came after 1987

[riseagainst]

today I learned 1986 came after 1987

[Wally450]

Subtle edit.

Aren't the '86 Celtics considered one of the greatest passing teams by the older demographic?

[Round Mound]

1986 Celtics = GOAT Passing Team

[Suguru101]

Miami 2013? They were pretty good, at least the stats.

[Gotterdammerung]

What exactly entails a great passing team?

Is it raw stats, the total number of assists or assisted baskets percentage, average per player, etc.? Then this discounts the 77 Blazers or the 86 Celtics, for neither team led their league. Some stat hound will answer this.

Is it pure aesthetic pleasure, in which the team passes the rock beautifully as if the game was designed that way? 2002 Kings or 1970 Knicks is your pick.

Or is it about effectiveness, wherein the passing team wins the title and dominated the competition by passing them to death? 2014 Spurs or 1987 Lakers is your pick.

[fpliii]

What exactly entails a great passing team?

Is it raw stats, the total number of assists or assisted baskets percentage, average per player, etc.? Then this discounts the 77 Blazers or the 86 Celtics, for neither team led their league. Some stat hound will answer this.

Is it pure aesthetic pleasure, in which the team passes the rock beautifully as if the game was designed that way? 2002 Kings or 1970 Knicks is your pick.

Or is it about effectiveness, wherein the passing team wins the title and dominated the competition by passing them to death? 2014 Spurs or 1987 Lakers is your pick.

Maybe this is silly, but how about APG or AST% excluding the team leader in assists? That way it'll parse out most ball-dominant PGs from totals to get a better read on the team as a whole.

[Hamtaro CP3KDKG]

86 Celtics are easily number one to anyone whos seen them play
so many ppl overrating the 14 Spurs

[CelticBalla32]

Man, those early 2000s Kings teams under Rick Adelman... unbelievable. They had some incredible individual playmakers in C-Webb, Vlade (two of the best passing bigs you'll find), Doug Christie, Turkoglu and of course... J-Will.

When they had J-Will, their amount of passing highlights were out of control lol. I'm a Celtics fan, but those Kings teams were probably my favorite non-Celtics teams to watch growing up.

[1987_Lakers]

86 Celtics are easily number one to anyone whos seen them play
so many ppl overrating the 14 Spurs

Don't think so, they are by far the best passing team in the last 12 years.

[robert_shaww]

1986 Celtics = GOAT Passing Team

two slow comparing to the spurs.

didnt pass that good in the finals vs rockets. the spurs did.

[Purch]

The 2012 spurs were the best passing team of the decade.. Their offense was just ridiculous until the back door sweep. But leading up to that with their huge win streak.. They were one of the best offensive teams in nba history

[wally_world]

Suns should be higher

The Blazers squad with Pippen/Sabas/Smitty was awesome too. Pretty sure there are a few non contenders that might have slipped our minds.