Winning an NBA Championship is no easy feat. There’s one factoid that really illustrates how unique it is to not only reach the NBA Finals but to win four games against another elite team: of the league’s 30 franchises, more than a third—11 NBA teams—have never won a championship in their entire history.

Among those, two stand out in the 2025 NBA Finals: the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Pacers, one of the NBA’s most enduring teams since joining from the ABA in 1976, are making just their second-ever Finals appearance. Meanwhile, the Thunder are back in the Finals for the first time since 2012.

This year’s Finals showcase two young teams led by stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Tyrese Haliburton, both trying to end decades of championship droughts. Their presence underscores how elusive winning it all can be—especially for teams that haven’t yet tasted the summit.

Of the 30 current franchises, the Indiana Pacers, Charlotte Hornets, Los Angeles Clippers, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, and several other teams have never lifted the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Even more staggering: five of the eleven teams have never even reached the NBA Finals, according to NBA.com.

NBA Teams That Never Won a Championship

As we alluded to in the title, here are the eleven franchises with exactly ZERO NBA championships in their history—a reminder of just how difficult and rare it is to reach the NBA’s ultimate goal. While teams like the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls have become synonymous with title runs and dynastic success, a significant portion of the league has never lifted the Larry O’Brien Trophy. These franchises span different eras, markets, and levels of competitiveness, but they share one frustrating commonality: decades of chasing a title that has remained out of reach.

Some, like the Indiana Pacers, Phoenix Suns, and Utah Jazz, have made it to the NBA Finals but fallen just short. Others, including the Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans, have struggled to even make deep playoff runs. Whether due to bad timing, tough competition, injuries, or just plain bad luck, these teams have found themselves on the outside looking in—year after year. And just like how fans often take a chance on new casinos like https://www.nyttcasino.com/no/ hoping to hit the jackpot, these teams and their loyal fanbases enter every season with renewed hope that this might finally be the year everything clicks. But in both cases—whether on the court or at the tables—there are no guarantees, only the thrill of the pursuit.

We updated the above after the . Now here’s the top five NBA teams that never won a championship. (Note: The Denver Nuggets were removed from this list after capturing their first ever NBA championship in 2023.)

Though the “Thunder” never won an NBA championship; their story is a little more complicated. Originally established as the Seattle SuperSonics in 1967, the franchise relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008. Whether you consider the Thunder and Sonics the same franchise is a matter of perspective—technically, the history and records stayed with the organization, but many fans (especially in Seattle) see the Thunder as a new entity. What’s indisputable is that this is the closest the Thunder—or Sonics lineage—have come to a title since Seattle’s lone championship in 1979.

5. Indiana Pacers

The Pacers have had their chances in multiple eras—Reggie Miller in the ’90s, Paul George in the early 2010s—but always seemed to run into generational roadblocks like Michael Jordan or LeBron James. Their only prior Finals appearance came in 2000, where they fell to Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant’s Lakers. Now, in 2025, they’re back behind the all-around brilliance of Tyrese Haliburton, hoping to finally flip the narrative.

4. Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets were previously the New Jersey Nets; and the team based out of New Jersey advanced all the way to the NBA finals in 2002 and 2003 and lost to the Lakers and Spurs respectively. After moving to Brooklyn the Nets have never reached the NBA Finals. The star-studded Kevin Durant–James Harden–Kyrie Irving experiment looked promising but imploded due to injuries, off-court distractions, and locker room friction.. Due to the high-octane offensive repertoires of Durant, Irving and Harden, the team was one of the favorites, but the trio rarely played together in large part because Irving refused to get the vaccine which in turn pushed the Nets to trade the disgruntled and unhappy Harden to the Philadelphia 76ers.  In short, the Nets were easily swept in the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs by the Boston Celtics and things aren’t looking optimistic for the Nets next season.

3. Phoenix Suns

The Suns have reached the Finals three times—1976, 1993, and 2021—but each ended in heartbreak. According to hoopsbeast, The Suns lost in the 1967 Finals to the Boston Celtics.  Charles Barkley couldn’t get past Jordan, and Chris Paul and Devin Booker came up short against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks. Despite fielding competitive teams across decades, Phoenix still searches for its first ring. They managed to make the finals again back in 1993 when Charles Barkley was a force to be reckoned with, however, they lost to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in 6. 

They made it to the NBA Finals again in 2021 and lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in 6 games again. 

If you’re a Suns fan, there’s plenty to be hopeful about though, the Chris Paul era has lifted the franchise back to elite status and they have a legit chance this year to win it for the first time in franchise history.

2. Orlando Magic

The Orlando Magic have made two trips to the NBA Finals, but that elusive championship has continued to slip through their fingers. Their first appearance came in 1995, when a young Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway powered the Magic past Michael Jordan’s Bulls in the playoffs, only to be swept in the Finals by Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets. They made it back in 2009, this time led by another dominant big man, Dwight Howard, alongside a sharpshooting supporting cast that included Rashard Lewis, Hedo Türkoğlu, and Jameer Nelson. That run also ended in disappointment, as the Magic fell in five games to Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Since then, Orlando has struggled to regain its footing. The franchise has gone through multiple rebuilds, coaching changes, and draft picks that haven’t translated into long-term success. While the team has some promising young talent in recent years, it remains several steps away from true contention in the Eastern Conference. For now, Magic fans are left hoping that the third time—whenever it comes—will finally be the charm.

1. Utah Jazz

Arguably the most successful franchise without a championship, the Utah Jazz have been perennial contenders across multiple eras, yet they remain stuck in the category of “best teams to never win it all.” The Jazz have recorded 17 seasons with 50 or more wins, showcasing consistent excellence during the regular season—but have never been able to turn that success into postseason glory. Their most iconic era came in the late 1990s, when the legendary duo of John Stockton and Karl Malone led the team to back-to-back NBA Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998, only to be denied both times by Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in unforgettable fashion.

The Jazz continued to be competitive in the 2000s and 2010s, led by stars like Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, Donovan Mitchell, and Rudy Gobert, but again, postseason ceilings fell short of expectations. Despite high seeds and strong regular-season records, they often ran into elite Western Conference foes like the Lakers, Spurs, or Warriors in the playoffs. The 2021 season, where they finished with the best record in the league, felt like their best shot in years—but they were bounced by the Clippers in the second round. With a loyal fanbase and a long history of competitive basketball, Utah remains one of the league’s most respected franchises—but until a title is won, they’re also one of its most snakebitten.