The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers are always competing for the most NBA championships in history. In 2024, the Celtics won their 18th NBA title, surpassing the Lakers and breaking a tie between the two teams. While these two teams continue to fight for the top spot, there are still several teams – 10 in total – trying to win their first championship.
In 2023, the Denver Nuggets became the newest team to win an NBA championship, defeating the Miami Heat in the Finals and claiming their first title. Here’s a look at the 10 NBA teams that are still searching for their first championship, along with their number of Finals appearances.
Brooklyn Nets
The Nets won two ABA championships with Julius Erving leading the team, but they have not won an NBA title since Erving was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers when the ABA-NBA merger happened in 1976. The team, then known as the New Jersey Nets, came close with back-to-back Finals appearances in 2002 and 2003. The Nets faced Shaquille O’Neal and the Lakers one year, and Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs the other year.
Charlotte Hornets
In 1998, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls eliminated the Hornets in the Eastern Conference semifinals while on their way to winning their sixth NBA title in eight seasons. Although Jordan was one of the best winners in NBA history as a player, he didn’t have the same success as the owner of the Hornets.
Jordan sold his majority stake in the team in 2023, but his poor draft choices before that, including top-10 picks like Emeka Okafor, Adam Morrison, Michael-Kidd Gilchrist, and Cody Zeller, prevented the Hornets from making deep playoff runs.
Charlotte Hornets (NBA)Indiana Pacers
Like the Nets, the Pacers were one of the best teams in the ABA, winning three championships before the 1976 merger. Like the Nets, the Pacers also faced Shaquille O’Neal and the Lakers in the Finals. Reggie Miller seemed ready to finally win an NBA title in 2000, but Shaq, Kobe Bryant, and the Lakers stopped Miller’s Indiana team in six games, winning their first of three straight championships. The Pacers haven’t returned to the Finals since.
LA Clippers
The Clippers have faced bad luck since moving from Buffalo, San Diego, and eventually Los Angeles. Now based in Inglewood, California, the Clippers are still searching for their first Finals appearance.
Although the team has had talented players, injuries to key players like Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard have prevented deep playoff runs. Along with questionable ownership and losing 3-1 leads in the 2015 and 2020 Western Conference semifinals, the Clippers have been one of the unluckiest teams in major North American sports.
Memphis Grizzlies
Even when the Grizzlies were based in Vancouver (1995-2001), they had trouble getting to the championship. The franchise did have one period when it came close. Tony Allen, Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, and Zach Randolph played strong defense and helped the team make the playoffs for seven straight years, including a run to the Western Conference Finals in 2013. Unfortunately, Memphis was swept by the Spurs in that series.
Memphis Grizzlies (NBA)Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves are another team still waiting for their first championship and their first Finals appearance. Minnesota couldn’t make it to the Finals during Kevin Garnett’s time with the team. The Timberwolves, formed in 1989, made the playoffs for eight straight years with Garnett but only made it past the first round once.
To make matters worse, Garnett left Minnesota and went on to win a championship with the Boston Celtics in 2008. In 2024, Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals, but Minnesota fell behind 3-0 in the series and lost in five games.
New Orleans Pelicans
A relatively new team, the Pelicans have been in New Orleans since 2002. They haven’t won any championships or made any Finals appearances. The team made it to the Western Conference semifinals for the first time with Chris Paul in 2008 when they were known as the New Orleans Hornets.
In 2012, New Orleans won the draft lottery and picked Anthony Davis as the No. 1 pick. However, the Pelicans didn’t make the most of the Davis years, and he eventually left to win a championship with the Lakers.
Orlando Magic
Orlando is known for being the home of Walt Disney World, but the Magic are not known for being home to an NBA champion. The Magic have had two of the best big men of their time in Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard. Both led the team to the Finals—Shaq in 1995 and Howard in 2009. However, it took both players leaving the team to win championships. Shaq won three championships with the Lakers and one with Miami. Howard won one, also with the Lakers.
Phoenix Suns (NBA)Phoenix Suns
The Suns have had several great teams with all-time great players who just couldn’t finish the job. NBA MVP Charles Barkley led Phoenix to the Finals in 1993, but they lost to Jordan and the Bulls in six games. Steve Nash won back-to-back MVPs with the Suns in 2005 and 2006 but couldn’t get Phoenix past the Western Conference finals. More recently, Devin Booker’s Suns lost a 2-0 series lead to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2021 Finals.
Utah Jazz
While there have been greater duos in NBA history than Karl Malone and John Stockton, they are certainly the greatest pair never to win a championship. These two Hall of Famers made the Jazz serious title contenders for over a dozen years, leading the team to its only two Finals appearances. Utah played in the NBA’s biggest stage in 1997 and again in 1998. Unfortunately for Malone and Stockton, both years were against Jordan’s Bulls. The Jazz lost both series in six games and haven’t been back to the Finals since.
