Northwest Division (NBA)
| Conference | Western Conference |
|---|---|
| League | National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Inaugural season | 2004–05 season |
| Teams | |
| No. of teams | 5 |
| Championships | |
| Most recent Northwest Division champion(s) | Oklahoma City Thunder (6th title) |
| Most Northwest Division titles | Oklahoma City Thunder (6 titles) |
The Northwest Division is one of the three divisions in the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The division consists of five teams: the Denver Nuggets, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Utah Jazz.
The division was created at the start of the 2004–05 season, when the league expanded from 29 to 30 teams with the addition of the Charlotte Bobcats. The league realigned itself into three divisions in each conference. The Northwest Division began with five inaugural members: the Nuggets, the Timberwolves, the Trail Blazers, the Seattle SuperSonics and the Jazz.[1][2] The Trail Blazers and SuperSonics joined from the Pacific Division, while the Nuggets, the Timberwolves and Jazz joined from the now-defunct Midwest Division.
The SuperSonics-Thunder franchise has won the most Northwest Division titles, with six, while the Nuggets have won three, the Jazz have won two, the Trail Blazers have won one, and the Timberwolves have never won the Northwest Division title. In the 2009–10 season, all four teams that qualified for the playoffs each had more than 50 wins. The most recent division champion is the Oklahoma City Thunder, having won its sixth division championship in the 2015–2016 NBA season.
Standings
| Northwest Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah Jazz | 17 | 10 | .630 | 0.0 | 10–5 | 7–5 | 4–2 | 27 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder | 16 | 11 | .593 | 1.0 | 11–5 | 5–6 | 2–2 | 27 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 13 | 16 | .448 | 5.0 | 8–4 | 5–12 | 4–1 | 29 |
| Denver Nuggets | 11 | 16 | .407 | 6.0 | 5–7 | 6–9 | 3–5 | 27 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | 7 | 19 | .269 | 9.5 | 3–10 | 4–9 | 0–3 | 26 |
Notes
- y – Clinched division title
- x – Clinched playoff spot
Teams
Division champions
| Season | Team | Record | Playoffs result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004–05 | Seattle SuperSonics | 52–30 (.634) | Lost Conference Semifinals |
| 2005–06 | Denver Nuggets | 44–38 (.537) | Lost First Round |
| 2006–07 | Utah Jazz | 51–31 (.622) | Lost Conference Finals |
| 2007–08 | Utah Jazz | 54–28 (.659) | Lost Conference Semifinals |
| 2008–09 | Denver Nuggets | 54–28 (.659) | Lost Conference Finals |
| 2009–10 | Denver Nuggets | 53–29 (.646) | Lost First Round |
| 2010–11 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 55–27 (.671) | Lost Conference Finals |
| 2011–12[a] | Oklahoma City Thunder | 47–19 (.712) | Lost NBA Finals |
| 2012–13 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 60–22 (.732) | Lost Conference Semifinals |
| 2013–14 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 59–23 (.720) | Lost Conference Finals |
| 2014–15 | Portland Trail Blazers | 51–31 (.622) | Lost First Round |
| 2015–16 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 55–27 (.671) | Lost Conference Finals |
Titles by team
| Team | Titles | Season(s) won |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder | 6 | 2004–05, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2015–16 |
| Denver Nuggets | 3 | 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10 |
| Utah Jazz | 2 | 2006–07, 2007–08 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 1 | 2014–15 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | 0 |
Season results
| ^ | Denotes team that won the NBA championships |
| + | Denotes team that won the Conference Finals, but lost the NBA Finals |
| * | Denotes team that qualified for the NBA Playoffs |
| Season | Team (record) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | |
| |||||
| 2004–05 | Seattle* (52–30) | Denver* (49–33) | Minnesota (44–38) | Portland (27–55) | Utah (26–56) |
| 2005–06 | Denver* (44–38) | Utah (41–41) | Seattle (35–47) | Minnesota (33–49) | Portland (21–61) |
| 2006–07 | Utah* (51–31) | Denver* (45–37) | Portland (32–50) | Minnesota (32–50) | Seattle (31–51) |
| 2007–08 | Utah* (54–28) | Denver* (50–32) | Portland (41–41) | Minnesota (22–60) | Seattle (20–62) |
| |||||
| 2008–09 | Denver* (54–28) | Portland* (54–28) | Utah* (48–34) | Minnesota (24–58) | Oklahoma City (23–59) |
| 2009–10 | Denver* (53–29) | Utah* (53–29) | Portland* (50–32) | Oklahoma City* (50–32) | Minnesota (15–67) |
| 2010–11 | Oklahoma City* (55–27) | Denver* (50–32) | Portland* (48–34) | Utah (39–43) | Minnesota (17–65) |
| 2011–12[a] | Oklahoma City+ (47–19) | Denver* (38–28) | Utah* (36–30) | Portland (28–38) | Minnesota (26–40) |
| 2012–13 | Oklahoma City* (60–22) | Denver* (57–25) | Utah (43–39) | Portland (33–49) | Minnesota (31–51) |
| 2013–14 | Oklahoma City* (59–23) | Portland* (54–28) | Minnesota (40–42) | Denver (36–46) | Utah (25–57) |
| 2014–15 | Portland* (51–31) | Oklahoma City (45–37) | Utah (38–44) | Denver (30–52) | Minnesota (16–66) |
| 2015–16 | Oklahoma City* (55–27) | Portland* (44–38) | Utah (40–42) | Denver (33–49) | Minnesota (29–53) |
Notes
- a 1 2 Because of a lockout, the season did not start until December 25, 2011, and all 30 teams played a shortened 66-game regular season schedule.[3]
References
- General
- "NBA & ABA League Index". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC.
- Specific
- ↑ "NBA Approves Realignment for 2004-05 Season". National Basketball Association. November 17, 2003. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
- ↑ "Expansion Bobcats prompt change". ESPN.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. November 17, 2003. Retrieved May 29, 2011.
- ↑ Jenkins, Lee (December 5, 2011). "'tis The Season". CNN Sports Illustrated. Time Warner Company. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
