James Jones missed the finals once.
The National Basketball Association -LRB- NBA -RRB- playoffs are a best-of-seven elimination tournament among 16 teams in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference -LRB- called divisions , pre-1970 -RRB- , ultimately deciding the league 's season champion in the NBA Finals .. National Basketball Association. National Basketball Association. best-of-seven. Best-of-seven playoff. elimination tournament. Knock-out tournament. Eastern Conference. Eastern Conference ( NBA ). Western Conference. Western Conference ( NBA ). NBA Finals. NBA Finals