NBA Championship Droughts

On June 22, 2025, the Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA Championship, defeating the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the NBA Finals. An ESPN headline published in the immediate aftermath noted that the Thunder won its first championship in the Oklahoma City era (it changed before I could save a screenshot so you will have to take my word for it). ESPN was correct. It was the Oklahoma City Thunder’s first championship, but not the franchise’s. The Thunder are the former the Seattle SuperSonics, having moved from Seattle to Oklahoma City (and leaving their former name behind) for the 2008-09 season. The SuperSonics joined the NBA in the 1967-68 season and won one championship in 1978-79. Thus, if we consider the franchise’s full legacy going back to the Seattle days, the Thunder ended a 46-year championship drought. Living in New York City, I noted some excitement about the deep playoff run of the New York Knicks, which have an even longer championship drought going back to the 1972-73 season.

These events inspired me to examine which NBA franchises have the longest ongoing championship droughts and other related statistics.

Parameters of Our Survey

This survey will consider every season going back to the inaugural Basketball Association of America (BAA) season of 1946-47 (the first “NBA” season is 1949-50). We will not count the former American Basketball Association (ABA) even though four NBA teams, including the 2024-25 Eastern Conference Champion Indiana Pacers, were originally ABA teams.

While many early BAA/NBA franchises folded, all but one BAA/NBA champion is represented among the current 30 extant NBA franchises. The sole exception is the 1947-48 BAA champion Baltimore Bullets, which folded early in the 1954-55 season and are not related to the former Baltimore Bullets which evolved into today’s Washington Wizards (the Wizards began as the Chicago Packers in 1961-62).

For defining “franchise,” we follow teams through relocation and re-namings. For example, the current New Orleans Pelicans derive from the original Charlotte Hornets, which entered the NBA in 1988-89. Those Charlotte Hornets moved to New Orleans in 2002-03 and were re-branded as the Pelicans in 2013-14. The current Charlotte Hornets franchise derives from the Charlotte Bobcats, which entered the NBA in 2003-04 and were re-named in 2014-15. While the NBA has decided that the current Charlotte Hornets have the legacy of the original Charlotte Hornets, our survey dispenses with that sentimental fiction and treats the current New Orleans Pelicans as descending from the original Charlotte Hornets and the current Charlotte Hornets as descending from the Charlotte Bobcats (compare the 2001-02 Charlotte Hornets to the 2002-03 New Orleans Hornets to understand why this is the correct approach).

NBA Franchise Championship Table

Below, I present a table listing all 30 extant NBA franchises, their first and most recent NBA championships, and the amount of time that has elapsed from their most recent championship.

Franchise	First BAA/NBA Season	Championship(s)	Drought
Atlanta Hawks	1949-50 [TRI]	1957-58 [STL]	67
Boston Celtics	1946-47	1956-57, 1958-59, 1959-60, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1962-63, 1964-65, 1965-66, 1967-68, 1968-69, 1973-74, 1975-76, 1980-81, 1983-84, 1985-86, 2007-08, 2023-24	1
Brooklyn Nets	1976-77 {NYN]	N/A	N/A*
Charlotte Hornets	2003-04 [CHA-Bobcats]	N/A	N/A
Chicago Bulls	1966-67	1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1995-96, 1996-97, 1997-98	27
Cleveland Cavaliers	1970-71	2015-16	9
Dallas Mavericks	1980-81	2010-11	14
Denver Nuggets	1976-77	2022-23	2
Detroit Pistons	1948-49 [FWP]	1988-89, 1989-90, 2003-04	21
Golden State Warriors	1946-47 [PHW]	1946-47 [PHW], 1955-56 [PHW], 1974-75, 2014-15, 2016-17, 2017-18, 2021-22	3
Houston Rockets	1967-68 [SDR]	1993-94, 1994-95	30
Indiana Pacers	1976-77	N/A	N/A*
Los Angeles Clippers	1970-71 [BUF]	N/A	N/A
Los Angeles Lakers	1948-49 [MNL]	1948-49 [MNL], 1949-50 [MNL], 1951-52 [MNL], 1952-53 [MNL], 1953-54 [MNL], 1971-72, 1979-80, 1981-82, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1987-88, 1999-00, 2000-01, 2001-02, 2008-09, 2009-10, 2019-20	5
Memphis Grizzlies	1995-96 [VAN]	N/A	N/A
Miami Heat	1988-89	2005-06, 2011-12, 2012-13	12
Milwaukee Bucks	1968-69	1970-71, 2020-21	4
Minnesota Timberwolves	1989-90	N/A	N/A
New Orleans Pelicans	1988-89 [CHA-Hornets]	N/A	N/A
New York Knicks	1946-47	1969-70, 1972-73	52
Oklahoma City Thunder	1967-68	1978-79 [SEA], 2024-25	0
Orlando Magic	1989-90	N/A	N/A
Philadelphia 76ers	1949-50 [SYR]	1954-55 [SYR], 1966-67, 1982-83	42
Phoenix Suns	1968-69	N/A	N/A
Portland Trail Blazers	1970-71	1976-77	48
Sacramento Kings	1948-49 [ROC]	1950-51 [ROC]	74
San Antonio Spurs	1976-77	1998-99, 2002-03, 2004-05, 2006-07, 2013-14	11
Toronto Raptors	1995-96	2018-19	6
Utah Jazz	1974-75 [NOJ]	N/A	N/A
Washington Wizards	1961-62 [CHP]	1977-78 [WSB]	47

Abbreviation Legend

BUF = Buffalo Braves; CHA-Bobcats = Charlotte Bobcats; CHA-Hornets = Charlotte Hornets (referring to the original Charlotte Hornets which became the current New Orleans Pelicans); CHP = Chicago Packers; FWP = Fort Wayne Pistons; MNL = Minneapolis Lakers; NOJ = New Orleans Jazz; NYN = New York Nets; PHW = Philadelphia Warriors; ROC = Rochester Royals; SEA = Seattle SuperSonics; STL = St. Louis Hawks; SYR = Syracuse Nationals; TRI = Tri Cities Blackhawks; VAN = Vancouver Grizzlies; WSB = Washington Bullets

Longest Ongoing Championship Droughts

First, let us look at which teams have gone the longest since winning their last championship through the conclusion of the 2024-25 season. This necessarily excludes NBA franchises which have yet to win an NBA championship. 20 of the 30 NBA franchises have won at least one championship. Below, I list the longest droughts for those franchises from longest to shortest (as of the end of the 2024-25 NBA season).

1. Sacramento Kings (74 seasons)
2. Atlanta Hawks (67 seasons)
3. New York Knicks (52 seasons)
4. Portland Trail Blazers (48 seasons)
5. Washington Wizards (47 seasons)
6. Philadelphia 76ers (42 seasons)
7. Houston Rockets (30 seasons)
8. Chicago Bulls (27 seasons)
9. Detroit Pistons (21 seasons)
10. Dallas Mavericks (14 seasons)
11. Miami Heat (12 seasons)
12. San Antonio Spurs (11 seasons)
13. Cleveland Cavaliers (9 seasons)
14. Toronto Raptors (6 seasons)
15. Los Angeles Lakers (5 seasons)
16. Milwaukee Bucks (4 seasons)
17. Golden State Warriors (3 seasons)
18. Denver Nuggets (2 seasons)
19. Boston Celtics (1 season)
20. Oklahoma City Thunder (0 seasons)

The NBA has gone through an unusual period of parity. 10 different teams have won championships from 2012-13 through 2024-25, with only the four-time champion Golden State Warriors having won more than one in this stretch. The NBA has typically been a more dynastic league. For example, the period beginning with the 1979-80 season and culminating with 2013-14 also saw ten franchises win championships with eight franchises winning more than one. The recent parity explains why eight franchises now have championship droughts of less than ten seasons.

Had the Thunder lost to the Pacers, they would have had the sixth longest extant championship drought at 46 seasons, one spot behind the team that defeated the SuperSonics in the 1978 NBA Finals, the Washington Bullets (now Wizards).

The New York Knicks’ deep playoff run generated excitement in New York City in part because it was the Knicks’ first Conference Finals appearance since 2000 (where, like in 2025, they lost to the Pacers) and in part because the Knicks have not won a championship since 1972-73. The Knicks have the longest championship drought of any franchise that has not undergone a relocation since winning its most recent title (the Knicks and Boston Celtics are the only two franchises to have existed under the same banner continuously since the inaugural 1946-47 BAA season). However, two franchises have longer championship droughts. The Atlanta Hawks last won a championship as the St. Louis Hawks in 1957-58, wherein they became the last team to defeat the Boston Celtics in a playoff series until 1965-66. The Sacramento Kings won a championship on the opposite coast as the Rochester Royals in 1951-52, wherein they won an all-New York NBA Finals against the Knicks in seven games (the NBA’s only “all New York” Finals). Unlike the Knicks, which made NBA Finals appearances in 1994 and 1999 (they came painfully close to winning the Championship in 94), neither the Hawks nor Kings have made the NBA Finals since winning their last championships, although the Kings came famously (or infamously, depending on who you ask) close in 2002.

Longest Droughts of Franchises With No Championships

Ten NBA franchises have never won an NBA championship. I will list each team along with the number of their championship-free seasons (through 2024-25) and their NBA Finals appearances.

Rank	Franchise	NBA Seasons	NBA Finals Appearances
1	Phoenix Suns	56	1976, 1993, 2021
2	Los Angeles Clippers	54	N/A
3	Utah Jazz	50	1997, 1998
4	Brooklyn Nets	48	2002 [NJN], 2003 [NJN]
4	Indiana Pacers	48	2000, 2025
6	New Orleans Pelicans	36	N/A
7	Minnesota Timberwolves	35	N/A
7	Orlando Magic	35	1995, 2009
9	Memphis Grizzlies	29	N/A
10	Charlotte Hornets	21	N/A

Note again that I trace the current New Orleans Pelicans to the original Charlotte Hornets and the current Charlotte Hornets to the former Charlotte Bobcats. But neither franchise has reached the NBA Finals, so my disagreement with the NBA on this issue should not cause any controversy for our survey.

Both the Nets and Pacers were originally ABA teams and won ABA Championships. The Nets were the 1973-74 and 1975-76 ABA champions while the Pacers were the 1969-70, 1971-72, and 1972-73 ABA champions. While this is an NBA-only survey, it is more than worth noting out of respect to their ABA history that these franchises have won championships.

The Phoenix Suns are the longest running NBA franchise without a championship. The franchise got off in an inauspicious start when it lost a coin flip for the number one overall pick in the 1969 NBA Draft (between the Suns’ first and second seasons) to the Milwaukee Bucks, which also debuted in the 1968-69 season. The number one pick in the 1969 NBA Draft was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and the Bucks with Mr. Abdul-Jabbar the Bucks won the 1970-71 NBA Championship in its third season. The Suns have had periods of success, notably having been competitive in their three NBA Finals losses and having had several championship-caliber teams in the Steve Nash era in the latter 2000s.

The Pacers became the only team on the current list to lose a seven-game NBA Finals, and we will never know if they would have removed themselves from this list absent bad injury luck.

The Utah Jazz were an elite team for much of the Stockton-Malone era, which ran from 1984-85 through 2002-03, and had plenty of championship caliber teams in that period, but their two consecutive Finals appearances ended in six game defeats against the Chicago Bulls (many such cases in the 90s). The New Jersey, now Brooklyn, Nets were a much less successful franchise, only winning a single playoff series from 1976-77 through 2000-01. But the Nets made consecutive NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003 behind Jason Kidd and may well have won it all in 2003 had Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs not been at his absolute peak.

Time to First Championship

There is some hope for franchises which have yet to win an NBA championship. Many franchises with championships took their time before winning one. Below, I list how long it took each of the 20 NBA championship franchises to win their first (based on entry into the BAA or NBA).

• Denver Nuggets (47th season)
• Cleveland Cavaliers (46th season)
• Detroit Pistons (41st season)
• Houston Rockets (37th season)
• Dallas Mavericks (31st season)
• Chicago Bulls (25th season)
• New York Knicks (24th season)
• Toronto Raptors (23rd season)
• Miami Heat (18th season)
• Washington Wizards (17th season)
• Oklahoma City Thunder (12th season)
• Boston Celtics (11th season)
• Atlanta Hawks (9th season)
• Portland Trail Blazers (7th season)
• Philadelphia 76ers (6th season)
• Milwaukee Bucks (3rd season)
• Sacramento Kings (3rd season)
• Golden State Warriors (1st season)
• Los Angeles Lakers (1st season)
• Baltimore Bullets (1st season) [franchise defunct]

Five franchises have already taken longer to win a championship than the slowest team to a championship, the Denver Nuggets, which won their first NBA championship in 2022-23 after moving from the ABA to the NBA in 1976-77.

Longest Periods Between Championships

The Thunder won the 2024-25 Championship 46 seasons after the franchise (then Seattle SuperSonics) last won the championship in 1978-79. Below, I list every instance where a team won championships 10 seasons apart.

Franchise	Previous Championship	Next Championship	Seasons Apart
Milwaukee Bucks	1970-71	2020-21	50
Oklahoma City Thunder	1978-79 [SEA]	2024-25	46
Golden State Warriors	1974-75	2014-15	40
Boston Celtics	1985-86	2007-08	22
Golden State Warriors	1955-56 [PHW]	1974-75	19
Los Angeles Lakers	1953-54 [MNL]	1971-72	18
Boston Celtics	2007-08	2023-24	16
Phiadelphia 76ers	1966-67	1982-83	16
Detroit Pistons	1989-90	2003-04	14
Los Angeles Lakers	1987-88	1999-00	12
Philadelphia 76ers	1954-55 [SYR]	1966-67	12
Los Angeles Lakers	2009-10	2019-20	10

The Thunder/SuperSonics had the second longest gap between championship seasons at 46. The 2020-21 champion Milwaukee Bucks set the record mark at 50. After the Golden State Warriors 40-year gap from 1974-75 to 2014-15, no team has won a championship more than 22 seasons apart.

Were the Kings, Hawks, or Knicks to win the championship, they would break the Milwaukee Bucks’ 50 season record. In the Knicks’ case, it is worth noting that had the Knicks won in 1993-94 (they had a 3-2 lead against the Houston Rockets in the 1994 NBA Finals and narrowly lost games six and seven), they would have been at fifth on this list if everything else stayed the same.

Conclusion

This article is distinct from some of my prior NBA surveys examining whether defense wins championships or looking at prolific three-point shooting teams. Those surveys pointed toward interesting insights. Championship gaps are just for fun. I hope you enjoyed it.