Over the last seven years, there have been seven different NBA champions. During that stretch, three teams have won their first championship — including last year’s champion, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
With the league in an era of parity, it seems as if every team has a chance at the NBA Finals, and the list of teams without a Larry O’Brien trophy seems poised to dwindle every year. Right now, it stands at 10 teams.
Learn more about the 10 teams who have never won an NBA championship below.
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The 10 teams that have never won an NBA championship are:
- Brooklyn Nets
- Charlotte Hornets
- Indiana Pacers
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Orlando Magic
- Phoenix Suns
- Utah Jazz
10 Teams Without an NBA Championship
From NBA Finals heartbreaks to seasons they’d rather forget, here’s a brief rundown of these teams’ competitive history and where they are headed into the NBA 2025-26 season.
Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets have never won a championship in either their current Brooklyn iteration or during their lengthy tenure in New Jersey, where they spent the majority of their franchise history.
The organization came tantalizingly close in the early 2000s led by Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson making back-to-back NBA Finals appearances in 2002 and 2003.
They rose to prominence once again when they assembled what appeared to be a championship-caliber roster in 2021 and 2022 with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. Still, they remain without a championship.
Now in the midst of a rebuild, Brooklyn is likely look at a play-in tournament game at best.
Charlotte Hornets
The 1988 expansion franchise team, the Charlotte Hornets, have yet to capture a championship despite having chances in multiple cities over their tenure.
The franchise’s golden era spanned from 1992 to 2002, featuring three stellar players — Larry Johnson, Alonzo Mourning and Glen Rice — not to mention their famous starter jackets that defined 1990s basketball culture.
This core led the team to multiple playoff appearances and some memorable upset victories over higher-seeded teams, with postseason berths coming in 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. The farthest the team has ever advanced is the conference semifinals.
Unfortunately, recent years have been challenging for Charlotte. Since 2017, the Hornets have managed just one winning season and have won fewer than 30 games in each of the last three seasons, leaving them among the league’s basement dwellers heading into the 2025–2026 season.
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers recently experienced their most successful season in a quarter-century, reaching the 2025 NBA Finals where they fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder in seven games.
This marked their first NBA Finals appearance in 25 years and represented the culmination of a franchise that has seen near-championship teams throughout much of their history.
The Pacers enjoyed sustained success in the 1990s behind the sharpshooting of Reggie Miller, making back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals appearances in 1994-95 and again in 1998-99 and 2000. The early 2000s brought another resurgence led by Jermaine O’Neal, along with supporting players like Steven Jackson and Ron Artest, who helped establish a gritty, defensive identity.
Indiana has maintained its competitive edge and enters 2025 as legitimate contenders for the Eastern Conference title despite losing star Tyrese Haliburton, building on the momentum from their recent Finals run.
Los Angeles Clippers
Long considered the punchline in Los Angeles as “the other team,” the LA Clippers have undergone a remarkable transformation since the early 2010s. The “Lob City” era, featuring Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan, marked the beginning of their evolution from perennial losers to consistent playoff contenders.
The Clippers have reversed their historically losing ways, making the playoffs in 12 of the last 14 seasons, including seven campaigns with 50 or more wins. While they’ve yet to break through with a championship, they’ve established themselves as a legitimate force in the competitive Western Conference heading into next season.
Memphis Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies’ early years were defined by futility. Beginning play in 1995, the franchise failed to win more than 20 games in their first four seasons and didn’t surpass 30 wins throughout their entire first decade. However, 2003 marked a crucial turning point with the arrival of the Gasol brothers and Zach Randolph.
The “Grit and Grind” era, anchored by Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, Mike Conley and Tony Allen, transformed Memphis into defensive stalwarts who endeared themselves to fans with their physical, blue-collar style of play.
After a five-year playoff absence, Memphis is once again positioning itself as a contender in the Western Conference, looking to build on their established culture of toughness.
Minnesota Timberwolves
An expansion team that joined the league in the 1989-90 season, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ success has been largely defined by their franchise stars. The drafting of future Hall of Fame forward Kevin Garnett in 1995 led to eight straight playoff appearances and established the team’s identity around his intensity and versatility.
Following Garnett’s trade, the franchise entered a prolonged period of dormancy from 2007 to 2017, never posting a record above .500. Recently, however, the Timberwolves have experienced a dramatic resurgence led by the emergence of All-NBA star Anthony Edwards.
This young core has guided the team to two straight Western Conference Finals appearances, establishing Minnesota as one of the top contenders heading into the 2025-26 season.
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New Orleans Pelicans
Originally established as the New Orleans Hornets after Charlotte’s relocation, the franchise became the Pelicans beginning with the 2013-14 season. Much of New Orleans’ recent history has been plagued by injuries to star players, most notably 2019 first overall pick Zion Williamson, whose availability has been a constant concern.
The Pelicans have never advanced past the Eastern Conference Semifinals and have yet to win more than 50 games since adopting their current identity. The 2024-25 season proved particularly challenging, as the team posted a dismal 21-61 record that stands as the worst in franchise history as the Pelicans.
Their 2025-2026 outlook doesn’t look much better.
Orlando Magic
Another expansion franchise from the 1989-90 season, the Orlando Magic experienced a dynamic run in the mid-1990s behind the dominant duo of Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway. This partnership led to an NBA Finals appearance in 1995 and an Eastern Conference Finals loss the following year, establishing Orlando as a legitimate contender.
The Magic have been consistently marked by the presence of superstar talent throughout their history. Following the Shaq and Penny era came Tracy McGrady in the early 2000s, then Dwight Howard in the mid-2000s, who led the team to multiple conference finals and an NBA Finals appearance in 2008-09.
Currently, Orlando finds itself back in playoff contention after losing in the first round for the past two years. With an intact roster returning and some promising young players in Paolo Banchero, Franx Wagner and newly acquired Desmond Bane, the Magic are positioning themselves to compete for a wide-open Eastern Conference in 2025-2026.
Phoenix Suns
Aside from a challenging stretch from 2011 to 2020, the Phoenix Suns have been competitive for most of their franchise history. They’ve reached three NBA Finals and seven Western Conference Finals, consistently fielding teams that have fallen just short of the ultimate prize.
The Suns have enjoyed the services of high-profile stars throughout their history, including Charles Barkley, Steve Nash, Shawn Marion and Amar’e Stoudemire.
The franchise broke out of their decade-long losing period in the 2020-21 season with the acquisition of Chris Paul to pair alongside All-Star guard Devin Booker. This combination led to an NBA Finals appearance that year, followed by conference semifinal exits in the subsequent two seasons.
After trading away Kevin Durant and losing Bradley Beal, Phoenix appears to be heading into a rebuild phase for the 2025-26 season, marking another transition period for the franchise.
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz enjoyed early success with the flashy play of “Pistol” Pete Maravich before embarking on their most successful era from the mid-1980s to late 1990s.
Led by the legendary duo of John Stockton and Karl Malone, the Jazz became perennial contenders and reached back-to-back NBA Finals against the Chicago Bulls, though they fell short both times.
Since that golden era, Utah has experienced various starts and stops with competitive seasons but has struggled to advance beyond the second round of the playoffs. The 2024-25 season proved particularly difficult, as the Jazz won just 17 games and found themselves among the bottom teams in the entire NBA, signaling another potential rebuild on the horizon.
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