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It is not just having a platinum or gold superstar that matters, it is having additional superstars that separates the champions from the pretenders. Now let’s look at how many superstars have been on each NBA championship team or runner-up. These are all active superstars, meaning they have played qualifying minutes and are not over-age; hence Gary Payton’s year with the Heat in 2006 does not count, nor does Manu Ginobili’s in 2013 or Jason Kidd’s in 2011, nor Kareem’s seasons in 1987 and 1988.

P= Platinum

G= Gold

S= Silver

B= Bronze

T= Total 

The seven teams that have won titles without a platinum or gold medal superstar are often called “ensemble” teams because they had a cast where the third or fourth player was not that much worse than the first or second player.

Maybe the vast majority of teams that do not have a top-30 all-time player in his prime on their roster can aspire to developing an “ensemble team,” right? Then, you have a shot. Maybe there is hope for the two dozen or so NBA teams that do not have James, Durant, Howard or Paul—or Bryant, Nowitzki, or Duncan (if still in their primes). Or the teams led by the few young players may vault into this group in the next few years, from the likes of Rose, Griffin, Westbrook, and maybe Anthony Davis or Kyrie Irving.

Well, not really. The “ensemble” option is almost as difficult as having a platinum or gold caliber superstar.

One of the seven “ensemble” champions was led by Rick Barry, and had he spent the five seasons he was out of the NBA pursuing an ABA career from age 23 to age 28 he would certainly be a top-30 gold medal player. So toss that one out.

Two of remaining seven “ensemble” champions—the legendary Bad Boy Pistons of 1989 and 1990—had two silver and one bronze superstar on them. There are no present NBA teams that have two silver and one bronze superstar in their primes on their roster. No one is close. Those were truly great teams.

The four remaining “ensemble” champions each had two silver or bronze superstars in their prime on their rosters. How may present NBA teams even meet that standard to try to make it as an “ensemble” champion? The Knicks, if Stoudemire is healthy, would be the only one that might then challenge the platinum and gold superstar led teams. And as one who has seen a lot of Knicks basketball in recent years, I can tell you that this Knicks team only wins an NBA title in 2014 or 2015 if all of the legitimate contenders with a gold or platinum superstar falter, through injuries or dissension.

And that is how “ensemble” teams generally win NBA titles: they get through in flukes like the 2004 Pistons when the superior Lakers imploded or like the Bullets and Sonics in the late 70s when the league was “between” superstars.

And here is another factor the above data indicates that doubles the height of the walls around the gated community where NBA championship contenders reside: it is not just having a platinum or gold superstar that matters. That is necessary but not sufficient. A champion generally requires at least one or two more superstars from this list to contend and to win.

Most championship teams have at least two players from the glorious 95 list on their roster. (The dynasty Celtics of the 60s had as many as five in a single season—with two platinum stars—topped off by Bill Russell. No wonder they could vanquish a Lakers team with platinum and gold medal superstars Jerry West and Elgin Baylor and, later, Wilt Chamberlain. If Bill Russell had never been born, those Laker teams probably would have won five or six titles in the 60s.) It is striking how many teams have two superstars of at least silver status.

If you are a fan of a team with a platinum of gold superstar in his prime, life is good. It is very good, especially if your team has at least one other superstar in his prime on the roster.

The vast majority of NBA teams have no superstars at all on their roster. Is their future is to play the hapless Washington Generals for the next generation of superstar-led teams? Maybe hope to get lucky once or twice a decade and get a couple of rounds into the playoffs before their inevitable demise? Fill their fanbase with a lot of propaganda about how they just need another piece and some more experience to win a flag?  Probably. But smart GMs understand the superstar thesis and take steps to improve their odds dramatically. We will discuss those teams and those measures in part two.