Best teams that didn’t win the title
Here are my favorites:
64-18 Sonics that took the Bulls to 6
Payton, Kemp, Schrempf, Perkins, McMillan, Hawkins, Snow… loved that team
I didn’t really follow basketball at that time but is this the same team they bring up in The Last Dance where George Karl (I think?) didn’t put Gary Payton on Jordan untill it was way too late in the series?
Didn’t have Payton guarding Jordan, went down 3-0, switched Payton onto Jordan, immediately won 2 straight before losing game 6…
Utterly insane coaching. Like what was he thinking, that was the year GP won DPOY and he had Nate McMillan on him until Game 4. Then he finally puts Payton primarily on MJ, and Jordan shoots 36% the rest of the series. SMH
Yep, didn’t make that change till they were down 0-3
Well what was the series analytically? Might have factored that in
Cleveland had the edge analytically
Some Knicks fan was telling me that the mark Jackson warriors were near the top of the league in net rating, so throw them in there too.
Watched those games and I remember that bulls didn’t try that much in those 2 games. When it became to close - they finished sonics. And I was sonics fan.
think it was either game 4 or 5
The 63-19 Sonics a couple years earlier were also the first #1 seed to lose to a #8 seed in the first round of the playoffs. Same coach.
I was an MJ fan and the officiating was terribly one-sided for the Bulls. That Sonics team had everything needed to win.
I got into the NBA aged 10 in the UK. 1993. Living off very scant highlights and endlessly watching NBA Jam Session and NBA Superstars on video. Shawn Kemp immediately became my guy. The Sonics my team. To this day I’ll never love a team how i loved the 93-96 Sonics.
different country - but same story. even now in nba2k i represent sonics with their custom jersey and ofc i have kemp jersey at home for quite some time. all thanks to the Reignman and Glove - the OG lob city.
I honestly think Kemp and Peyton are slept on for duos. They were the perfect double-act to me. Always love it when the best two players on a team are the point guard and a power big. CP3-Blake, Stockton-Malone, Nash-STAT, Penny-Shaq.
❤️❤️❤️
And Kevin Calabro having the time of his life calling those games!
Don’t forget the team two years earlier that lost to the 8 seed Nuggets… the race was wide open that year, maybe they would’ve beaten Houston
That one still hurts 😭
if only george had let Glove play MJ straight up in the first three games…
That team was so fun in video games too. No weaknesses.
2018 Rockets are the best team to never win. 65 wins, took the KD Warriors to 7
Damn I honestly forget how nice they were
27 bricked 3s in a row is insane, it’s almost like Harden is destined to never win shit😭
I mean he won at life.
there were few 3s that were called off but fuck yall i am sad now
They made one three, which was called a foul on the floor instead of on the shot.
Klay got Harden on the arm before Harden gathered the ball. It was close, but it’s an entirely defensible call.
They called off a made 3 in that span…
Chris Paul missed 24 games and Harden missed 10. If they played all those games, they would have won 70 imo. That team was ridiculously good.
42-3 record when Harden, Paul, and Capela all played.
I’d put the 2018 Rockets second for sure, but uh… what about the 73 win Warriors? I know people clown on that team for blowing the 3-1 lead, but they literally set the damn wins record lol. They have to be the best team to never win.
I mean, I don’t think they really count for OPs question considering they won the year before
Oh hmm, I see what you’re saying. I was reading it as “best single year team to not win the title,” rather than “best team core/era to not win any title.” If it’s the former; I’d pick the ‘16 Dubs; if it’s the latter, then yes they wouldn’t count.
2018 rockets were toe to toe with KD warriors. Of course they were better than the Barnes warriors
They are at or near the very top of the list.
If we’re talking singular seasons (obviously the Spurs won a few titles,) the ‘16 Spurs are also at or near the top of the list.
The Warriors won 73 games and only finished six up in the final standings And that was with GS gaining two games in the final 10.
Idc what records were, the KD Warriors were the best team any year they were together
I will forever die on the hill that had cp3 not been injured they would have won it all that year
Chris Paul clutching his leg still haunts me. Thanks. 🥲
2016&2017 spurs were up there with peak Kawhi before zaza
The best version of the Kings, 2002, had already traded Jason Williams for Mike Bibby. Bibby was nails in that series and provided clutch scoring that Chris Webber couldn’t provide.
Yea I’m pretty sure it was the Peja, Webber, Christie, Bobby Jackson, White dude with the crazy hair, Turkoglu version that was the best team to not win a title, and yes they were good.
Divac. Why does no one say Divac? Great passing big man and was a big part of the heart of those teams…
The Divac Webber combination .. both of their big men were very skilled and unselfish passers.
Scot Pollard!
Scot Pollard. I used to see him driving his old school muscle car on I5 in CA with his dogs
people outside turkiye and sac will never understand peak hedo
that was an incredible team. Such a travesty what happened
Deer in headlights all game seven. Bibby on his own.
Honestly they were better than most teams that did win a title. They were a freak Samaki Walker halfcourt heave (that was after the buzzer) from a 16-3 playoff run and a likely repeat.
92-93 Phoenix Suns
62 wins, Barkley MVP… just got Jordan’d (41.0 / 8.5 / 6.3) in the Finals.
Since their inception, Suns have put together a contender every 10-15 years that almost gets there but falling short every time, guaranteeing to keep the fans loyal enough to continue to suffer through this.
Pacers fans can relate
Oh yeah, Suns among the highest franchise win percentage in the league. Think they’re like 4th place, just behind Celtics, Spurs, and Lakers. Pretty crazy.
45+ years and counting of an annual broken heart over here lol
Came here to comment this. That team was so much fun and so stacked with Majerle, KJ, Richard Dumas, Ainge, Ceballos, and old Tom Chambers. Broke my heart that Jordan put such a comprehensive breakdown on them, and they still made a series of it.
Dumas was really coming into his own in those finals as a rookie. He’s kind of a what if because if he kept developing and didn’t become a drug addict, Phoenix might have got back to the finals.
Agree - he is a forgotten what-if. He started 32 games as a rookie and averaged nearly 16 points a game on a team that had plenty of scoring options. If he’d stayed clean, he would have made some All-Star teams.
This is the answer, I feel. That Bulls team was so seasoned and Jordan was at his apex while the Suns were all first time in the crucible. Talent wise they were at least the Bulls equal and Chuck was special that year. They weren’t quite ready for the finals pressure and lost two close ones at home but really put the scare into the Bulls after that. Could easily have gone to game seven in Phoenix if Paxon misses that three.
Chuck has talked about how going into that Finals he considered himself the best player in the League. The Suns lost the first two games, then bounced back in Game 3, winning a tough 3OT game. Heading into Game 4, Chuck tells his kid he’s going to go play the best game of his life.
And he does play a helluva game, notching a triple-double: 32/12/10.
But MJ went out and dropped 55 to lead the Bulls to the commanding 3-1 series lead. That was the game, Chuck said, where he accepted that Jordan was better than him, lol.
Broke my damn heart as a rabid 13 year old Suns fan. Hated Jordan ever since lol
It was insanely fun watching everyone tear it up as the Suns on NBA Jam in the arcade back then too. Barkely and Majerle just wiping the floor with everyone. I think it was KJ in the home release, but we dont talk about him anymore……………..
One of my picks for sure. They were a super fun team to watch with a super short window. I wish they coulda had 1 more chance in 1994. Them vs the Knicks woulda been a lot of fun.
Charles in that game 1 intro breaks my heart every time I watch it. He felt comfy and at home and wanted to compete, and he did. Just couldn’t beat Jordan. Plus the Jurassic Park them playing nails it too.
Phrasing needs work.
Bc the best team that didn’t win the title is the 2016 Warriors.
Best teams to NEVER win the title? There you go
stock and mailman with the jazz
I grew up a huge Jazz fan but looking back that team was shallow for most of their careers.
But the finals were legit. 2 HoF, Bryon Russell, and Jeff Hornacek. Won 64 and 62 games. The rest of the rotation were serviceable and played their role well. Took Jordan’s Bulls to game 6 back to back including some last minute shenanigans.
The 2016 Spurs who went 40-1 at home were also really good and the obvious answer of 73-9 warriors. 2018 Rockets of course are my favorite answer to this question. They went 51-5 IIRC when Harden/Paul/Capela all played. Each of their five best players missed 10+ games and they still went 65-17. At full health they coulda won 70 games.
Yeah they were up by 20 til Kawhi got hurt
We missed out on what could’ve been a great series
Wasn’t that 2017?
Yeah that was game 1 in 2017, 2016 they lost 4-2 to okc
My bad, you’re right
The John Stockton/child rapist Utah Jazz were contenders for nearly 20 years and never won the title.
Idk if I’d say we were contenders for 20 years. After 88 Eaton really fell off especially in the postseason, and for the next several years it was Stockton, Malone and a bunch of scrubs. I’d say you could only really consider the Jazz contenders in 88, and 94-01 (after the Hornacek trade).
The 73 win Warriors.
Considering they sandwiched that season with championships, I don’t think that’s really in keeping with the spirit of the question.
Literally the best team ever assembled and they didn’t win the ring. I’d say that nails the spirit of the question.
All the teams named as possibilities were multi-year teams that had title windows, and those windows slammed shut with zero Rings. It’s a reason we look slightly differently at the 1990s Buffalo Bills than at the 2007 New England Patriots. They are the best single-season team never to win a Super Bowl, but comparing them to those Bills (or even the current versions of the Bills and Baltimore Ravens) just feels different.
The 2016 Warriors are the only time in a 4-year span that the team did not win a Ring. In a 5-year span, they missed 5-straight championships (something not done in North American pro-sports since the 1960s Celtics won 8-straight) by 3 wins.
To compare them to the 7-seconds or less Suns, CWebb Kings, or Stockton/Malone Jazz is just extremely disingenuous and you know it. Your homerism is showing.
The OP is pretty clearly talking about cores as a whole, not single specific years. 2016 Warriors are not in the spirit of the question since effectively the same team won the previous year.
It is dangerous to have the most regular season wins in any of the four major sports. All 5 teams that have the best regular season records (2016 Warriors, 1906 Chicago Cubs and 2001 Seattle Mariners, 2023 Boston Bruins, and 2007 New England Patriots) did NOT win the championship.
It’s the most successful season that didn’t end holding the trophy, but I have a hard time saying they are the pound per pound contender for best “team.”
The biggest knock against them would be
* Down 3-1 in the WCF * blew the finals * buy many advanced stats, were only a smidge better than the Spurs that season.
I don’t want to dismiss them as “frauds” in any way so this isn’t a “oh, they are not that good” kind of dismissal, but the 73-9 is not the end all display of how good they were.
They are a top 15 team, but by many metrics, the 2020 Bucks were rated better, and the Spurs of the same year had a better point differential. Neither of those won either.
It’s not as cut and dry as it seems… but it’s also not some massive gap either.
They didn’t blow the finals. Steph pulled a hammy and that was that.
I think losing after being up 3-1 is blowing the finals.
Yall are still coping 10 years later.
Not a Cleveland fan talking about coping 💀
The only team that can claim blowing a 3-1 lead in the finals losing to the Cleveland cavaliers is nothing for us to cope about.
You’re also in a far worse position than us currently and will be years from now. Enjoy obscurity again.
And then the 2017 Cavs lol
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Well yeah but the question is best team that didnt win
1998 Pacers that took the Bulls to game 7 and were up in the 4th quarter at Chicago despite giving up 22 offensive rebounds.
This series hurt me as a child
99-00 Blazers that took the Lakers to 7 in WCF
That squad was deep and great on both ends.
Yeah Sheed and them should have won it 😤
That team needed one TRUE superstar. That 4th qtr in game 7 makes it painfully clear. No one could score a single bucket to save their lives.
But the depth was absolutely crazy.
I remember watching that with my dad and his friend, who apparently hated the Lakers. He was getting so frustrated when the Blazers kept missing and fouling and Sheed got a bad tech.
His daughter asked why he was getting upset, and he said something like “They are professionals who should be good at their jobs”.
Somehow it stuck with me.
Harden/CP3 Rockets were the best team not to win a title. 17 Cavs deserve an honorable mention.
Kings with Bibby were better than any of J-Will’s teams
Bibby, Doug Christie, Peja, CWebb, Divac…Bobby Jackson and Hedo off the bench.
Robbed in broad daylight by the NBA…
Lakers fan and I agree. G6 was theirs.
J Will taught them the behind the back pass though.
But yeah you’re right
Ewing Knicks.
Which year was the best
Sabonis and the TrailBlazers
89-92 Blazers teams were better than the Sabonis teams.
Now imagine Sabonis was able to come to the States around that time
Imagine a world where Jordan never wins a ring.
I cry myself to sleep every night thinking about it
If we’re gonna talk about best Blazer teams to not win a title, it begins with the 1978 Blazers that went 50-10 before Walton went down.
The Kings with White Chocolate were just good not great.
They broke out and became strong after he was dealt/moved.
1999 - 2001 season:
126 W - 88L = .589 win% or a 48 - 34 record
They lost in R1 in 5 to Jazz in 99 (best of 5), lost in R1 in 5 to Lakers in 00 (best of 5), and lost in R2 to 4 to Lakers in 01 (best of 7)
Then they brought Bibby in, and had Peja Stojackovich break out with Webber becoming elite.
2002 = 61 - 21 and lost in 7 in WCF
2003 = 59 - 23 and lost in 7 in WCSF
2004 = 55 - 27 and lost in 7 in WCSF
I really wish people would understand what you wrote. Mike Bibby was a vastly better player than White Chocolate. In Sacramento White Chocolate shot 39% and 30% from 3. He also was bad defensively.
Came here for this. The Webber/Bibby/Peja/Vlade teams were the good teams. Bibby took them to the next level by being steadier at just about every facet of the game.
I think a lot of people think White Chocolate was on the SAC team that had that classic series vs. LAL.
You’re correct. It’s interesting that long term, J Will will (and is currently) be remembered more than Bibby who was the better player and on better teams. J Will was just magical and chaotic to watch, impossible to forget
How do you not have the 2018 Rockets?
I think I just have an irrational dislike of Chris Paul.
*very rational
Barkley’s Suns, Stockton & Malone Jazz, and GP/Kemp’s Sonics. So many during the Bulls dynasty!
2006 Mavs but that finals was rigged
A combine 46 free throws in games 5 and 6 is insane
2007 Mavs the following season too. Went 50-5 after starting the season 0-4 and finishing with 67 wins
Mavs old coach picked apart his old team lead by his understudy (Avery Johnson). Nelly knew every strength and weakness of the 07 roster and coaching staff. We did not fare well in that match up. 2007 was a strategic loss
The 2006 nba finals was rigged
Stockton/Malone Jazz Phoenix with Barkley Rockets Harden Net KD/Kyrie/Harden
It’s gotta be the 2016 Spurs
2002 Kings
61-21 record
PG: Mike Bibby SG: Doug Christie SF: P ja Stojakovic PF: Chris Webber C: Vlade Divac
with Bobby Jackson as the 6th man
the team played a fun brand of basketball…. unfortunately they lost in 7 games in the WCF to the Lakers.
I still remember game 4, Samaki Walker hit a 3 from half court at the halftime buzzer that shouldn’t have counted and then at the ens of the 4th Vlade tips a rebound to Robert Horry for the 3 and LA wins that game by 1
Even their 61-21 record doesn’t do them justice. They played more like a high 60s-win team.
You can watch old Kings games on YouTube if you look around. I shit you not there’s games where that team is just fucking around, behind the back passes, just being silly. They were so good.
Nothing can top webber’s kings
2018 Rockets clears all of these teams.
Not with them missing 27 straight 3 pointers in game 7
I can’t think of any other non title team that would have taken the KD warriors to 7 games
2014 Hawks
They had a losing record in the regular season but yeah probably them too
It depends on what officiating standard is being used. If we go with the 90s, the Suns, SuperSonics and Jazz would give 18 Rockets a run for their money
If we’re talking over a number of years, and not just one year teams, it’s tough to top the 60’s Lakers. From the time they got Jerry West until they got Wilt (which I’d consider a new “team”, the Wilt Lakers), they made the NBA Finals 5 times without winning.
I think we’re not ready to have this conversation since this happened so very soon, but last years Spurs were an incredibly dominant team in the regular season. 62 wins and just 3 shy of the 65 win club. They were rightfully overshadowed by OKC in the regular season, then got the better of them in the WCF before finally running out of gas.
I hope that eventually people remember this team for how amazing it was overall especially given how young its core was, and not just the choker memes. The only team that dominated them throughout the season was the team they lost to in the finals.
2017 Cavaliers
2000 Blazers with Pippen, Sabonis, Rasheed. Rewatch 4th quarter game 7 for more proof the league is rigged.
I recently rewatched it. I hate the Lakers and it didn’t looked rigged to me on the rewatch, or live at the time, ACTIVELY being furious as the Blazers could not hit a shot. The only thing one could find issue with I suppose was Sabonis being in foul trouble, but it was IMPOSSIBLE to play against Shaq in that time period without committing fouls to try and stop him (it is why western conference teams of the time period would field untalented big men who existed simply to foul Shaq).
The Blazers problem was that as their 15-point fourth quarter lead started falling away, they had no one who could calmly hit a bucket. Everyone - including Scottie Pippen, of whom I am a fan and who was a great winner - seemed shook. If anything, they feel a little similar to the feeling one gets watching how the Spurs just played the 4th quarter of game 4 against the Knicks in the Finals. A team of players hoping just one of them will rise up to make big buckets and stem the tide, but no one is doing it. So the road crowd gets louder and louder, and the lead gets smaller and smaller.
I hated that game 7. I felt the Lakers dynasty (though we did not yet know it would be one) could have been stopped right then and there, before it started. I think if you replace Steve Smith with, say, 2004 Chauncey Billups, they win that game.
90s Knicks.
The 2020 Bubble Heat team
24 Pacers were underrated. They took an all time great Celtics team to the limit, and very likely would have beaten the Mavs.
I watched the games and I get what youre trying to say, the Pacers played very well and lost a few of those games to flukey plays but they ultimately got swept, we can hardly say they took them to the limit.
2000 Blazers
Starters: Damon Stoudamire Steve Smith Scottie Pippen Rasheed Wallace Arvydas Sabonis
Bench: Stacey Augmon Brian Grant Jermaine O’Neal Detlef Schrempf Bonzi Wells
they were fun, no doubt
Damn I loved Bonzi wells. Such an exciting and underrated player
The 96 Sonics and 97 Jazz won 64 games each and took absurd Bulls teams to 6. Of teams that never won (so not the 16 warriors or 2013 Spurs) those are probably the best. Also shout out the early 90s Blazers and late 2010s Rockets.
2017 Cavs. That team was dominant as hell and would’ve beaten most teams. 2018 warriors were just that good.
2012 thunder
96 sonics easily up there.
How about the 73-9 Warriors?
Can we not count the ‘07 Mavs (67 wins) because they won 4 years later with a quite different cast?
2007 Bulls
They were lead by Kirk Hinrich, when he was 13th on Defensive Player of the year and made the All Defense second team, but his teammates failed him on the second round, losing the first 3 games. Of course Kirk bring them back to force Game 6 but winning 4 straight wasnt possible.
Came here to say the Webber/Divac Kings
9 of the 12 finals games between the Bulls and Jazz were decided by 5 points or less (there was one bizarre game in 98 in which the Jazz never got off the bus). The Jazz took the 96 Sonics to 7, losing a close game 7. Knocked out the Hakeem, Barkley, Drexler Rockets in 97 with Stockton’s iconic game winner. Completely dominated the Lakers in both 97 and 98.
It’s very justified to hate Malone but it doesn’t mean those Jazz teams weren’t great.
stockton and malone 90s jazz
That Pacers team that lost in 7 to the Thunder two years ago was lightning in a bottle. I am rooting for them to do some things even if they aren’t my team.
Keeping on this, the Pacers team which had their season torpedoed by Malice in the Palace was really nice too. I feel bad for Reggie Miller, as great as a career as he’s had. That season’s team had the makeup to breakthrough.
Freshman year we won a game like 35-12 I think we could’ve gone all the way had we better coaching
Crazy how the Phoenix Nash teams didn’t even reach the Finals. They were my second team because the Knicks were turbo-ass during that decade, and I still couldn’t catch a break.
Maybe it was my fault, maybe I’m the problem.
I still can’t believe OKC kept choking with that roster
Same. Russ and KD should’ve been enough and they had Serge at his peak.
People forget how good Serge Ibaka was
Facts! Dude was killing in ‘13/‘14/‘15 especially
They had bad luck with injuries after trading Harden away. 2016 was the only year they really choked.
All interesting teams.
I must add that the OKC trio is more of projection than it being a shocker they didn’t win the year they went to the Finals. I do consider them one of the greater “what-ifs” in league history, though.
The excuse was that they couldn’t afford Harden, but they could have.
And, yeah. Only one ball.
Did the Showtime Lakers play with more than one ball? Kobe/Shaq? Heatles? Warriors with KD?
It’s the 73-9 Warriors easily
How is no one mentioning the 73-9 2016 warriors?
1993 Suns 2007 Suns 2022 Suns
Phoenix was good with Nash. And good with Barkley. And even good with CP3 But they’ve never won 65 games in a season. They’ve never won 60 games in back-to-back seasons. They were wonderful, fun teams. But none of them were ever clear favorites to win the title.
7sol suns ..literally cheated out of a title
04 Lakers
Barkley suns, Webber kings, Malone jazz, Kemp/Payton sonics
73-9 Warriors is a crazy omission.
But maybe you mean, team cores that never won.
93 Knicks.
The 92 Knicks took the Bulls to 7 games, but the 93 Knicks were the 1 Seed and went up 2-0 on the Bulls. They honestly should’ve won Game 5 back home (and I’d argue maybe Game 6, as well), but some really timely bad calls combined with abysmal free throw shooting, they just woofed it.
The 2017 Cavs were historically good. They just came up against the juggernaut Warriors that added an MVP lol
1996⁄97 & 1997⁄98 Utah Jazz, 1990/ 91” Run TMC” Warriors, 1993 Suns.
Bias aside the 2021 Nets
2006 era Suns. So many awesome players, amazing to watch compared to other teams at the ring
when the death squad warriors added boogie
2016 Thunder were enormous and would’ve beat the cavs
I think you mean Sacramento with Chris Webber and Mike Bibby.
Yes, I think you’re right.
Grit & Grind Memphis Grizzlies
98 Pacers
73 win Warriors…
Do the 2016 Warriors count? Surely the only 73-win team ever has to be the best team that didn’t win the title.
My picks (no order:)
-Suns with Steve Nash in mid to late 00’s. God I loved watching them play.. they were a true blast to watch. Fundamental basketball at it’s best, but there was always some sort of demon on Steve’s shoulder preventing them from doing it. That 2007 miss was brutal.. they were so awesome that year. That injury to Steve was brutal. I was so pissed at the Spurs after and I’ve never truly rooted for them since. The crazy part is.. all 3 Suns finals teams were as deserving too. 76’s team gets forgotten but they were quietly excellent and 93’s team was dang good. Their window closed too fast.
-The Jazz teams in the late 90’s deserved one, just bad timing. They let one slip in 1999. Portland was good though.
-Def one of the Drexler Portland teams, again timing was crap. If you say put the 1992 team with more experience in the 1990 finals that one woulda been a 7 game series me thinks. That 1990 team wasn’t ready for that Pistons team.
-The 06 or 07 Mavericks were title worthy, just had awful luck. The fact Dirk won just one title sucks, he was too good to be a one and doner. Just something about the 2007 playoffs. Such a dreadful finals that was. The 88 Mavericks were also very good, just couldn’t shut down Showtime enough.
-Any of the late 90’s Pacers were worthy of a title.. 99 I think they coulda played the Spurs to 7. Lakers were just too good for them in 2000.
-The Bullets shoulda won more than one title in the 70’s. 75 or 79 coulda easily been theirs they just let them both slide. They were too good to be a one timer. 1975 is just an odd finals, so many close games that year.
05 Pacers
2025 Pacers
04 Lakers and 2011 Heat were pretty loaded too
I think Elgin Baylor is 0-8
I maintain that the Bucks only won because KDs nets were injured
06 Mavs
07 Mavs
Not really worth mentioning given how similar they were to the 2017 and 2018 warriors. Spirit of the question is cores that never won a title.
18-1 Patriots
White chocolate?
Guess he thinks Mike Bibby is white
Idk if you’re making a joke but White Chocolate is Jason Williams’s nba nickname
Oh I know
But those Kings teams that were contenders were with Bibby
I figured with the sonics as your team you’d be familiar with 2000s ball lol
Oh I love J-dub white chocolate back in the day. He was electric. That elbow pass in the rookie game had me trying that at the playground lol