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In every season, there is always at least one team that are dubbed as the favorites to make the NBA Finals then win it all. More often than not, these favorites would bring home the championship given their star power or chemistry. However, being a favorite doesn’t always mean it’s a sure thing.
As we all know, winning a NBA championship isn’t as easy as putting all the top talents together. Furthermore, upsets are always on the horizon especially in the postseason. For this piece, let’s take look at five favorite teams that failed to secure a championship.
2020-2021 Brooklyn Nets
With a returning Kevin Durant alongside Kyrie Irving, it looked like the Nets were going to be the one that would dethrone the Lakers this season. And all the more so, when they traded for James Harden that allowed them to form a Big Three. Aside from the Big Three, they also had former All-Stars Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan in their roster.
Based on an article in CBS Sports, the Nets were considered the favorites to win the title this year. During the season, the Nets finished as the number two seed with a 48-24 record. It is worth noting that the team achieved this, despite KD appearing only in 35 games. With their stars supported by veteran role players, it looked like the Nets were going to go deep in the playoffs. But unfortunately, we just recently witnessed the Nets suffer an upset against the Giannis-led Milwaukee Bucks.
Although KD was playing like he never got injured by averaging 35.4 points and 10.6 rebounds per game in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, injuries to Kyrie Irving and James Harden dampened the Nets’ hopes to advance. Despite a dominant 2-0 start, Giannis and the Bucks came alive to take advantage of the Nets’ injured stars. Giannis had one of the best playoff series of his career, as he registered 31.9 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game. He also had 41 points and 13 rebounds in Game Seven to clinch a spot in the Eastern Conference Finals.
2010-2011 Miami Heat
Speaking of Big Threes that failed to capture a championship in their first year, the Miami Heat were also favored to win it all in 2011. With LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh teaming up, majority of the field could barely match the Heat’s star power. Unfortunately, things didn’t turn out the way LBJ and crew did.
The Heat had a solid 58-25 record to secure the second seed in the East. Furthermore, they got pass the Sixers, Celtics, and the number one seeded Bulls in the East. But despite their solid showing in the first few rounds, the Heat started to fade away come Game Two of the 2011 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.
In the series, LBJ arguably had the worse playoff series of his career. Against the Mavs, he only registered 17.8 points per game thanks to the zone defense deployed by Rick Carlisle. Although this still looked like a decent production on paper, the Heat expected more from The King. But unfortunately, a red-hot Dirk Nowitzki torched the Heat’s defenses and capitalized on LBJ’s off series. Thus, Nowitzki and the Mavs pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NBA history to give Dallas its first franchise NBA Championship.
Fortunately for LBJ and crew, they redeemed themselves the following season. LBJ would eventually lead the Heat to three more NBA Finals appearances that resulted into two succeeding championships.
2003-2004 Los Angeles Lakers
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When Kobe and Shaq were teammates in Los Angeles, the Lakers were always favorites to win the title especially after completing a three-peat from 2000 to 2002. And in 2004, the Lakers looked like they’d give themselves another championship with the additions of former superstars Karl Malone and Gary Payton.
In the regular season, this edition of the Lakers were as dominant as ever. The Shaq and Kobe led squad finished with a 56-26 record which was good enough to take the second seed in the West. The first few rounds for the Lakers was also a walk in the park for the Purple and Gold, as they eliminated the Rockets, Spurs, and the number one seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. Unfortunately, the NBA Finals was a different story.
Despite being more star-studded on paper than the Detroit Pistons, the underdogs shocked the Lakers by outlasting them in five games. The hot-shooting of Chauncey Billups and the rebounding prowess of Ben Wallace proved to be too much for the favorites. Wallace would have a monster series by averaging 10.8 points and 13.6 rebounds per game including a 22-rebound performance in the title-clinching game. On the other hand, Billups would be declared as the Finals MVP by averaging 21.0 points, 5.2 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per outing in the series.
2004-2005 Phoenix Suns
After an underwhelming 29-53 record the previous year, the Suns immediately turned things around after acquiring Steve Nash from Dallas. To support the two time MVP, they surrounded him with young pieces in Amare Stoudemire, Shawn Marion, Joe Johnson, and Leandro Barbosa.
With Nash running D’Antoni’s system in perfect fashion, the Suns became a legitimate contender as they finished with the best record in the league. It is also worth noting that Nash, Stoudemire, and Marion were all named to the All-Star team which only magnifies the star-power of this team’s core.
But unfortunately, this team failed to get the job done. After opening the playoffs with a sweep against the Memphis Grizzlies and getting past nemesis the Dallas Mavericks in the next round, the Suns stumbled upon eventual champions, the San Antonio Spurs. Aside from an untimely injury to Joe Johnson that hampered their championship hopes, Duncan was hardly stopped in the series. The Big Fundamental averaged 27.4 points and 13.8 rebounds per game to help the Spurs finish off the favorites in five games.
2015-2016 Golden State Warriors
After winning the championship in the previous season in dominant fashion against the LeBron James-led Cavaliers, the Warriors were penciled for a repeat the following year. With Stephen Curry getting his second straight MVP by leading the Warriors into a dominant run that saw them finish with a historic 73-9 record, which was the best record since MJ and the Bulls finished with 72-10 in the ‘95-96 season. Unfortunately unlike the Bulls, the Warriors failed to get the gold.
The postseason saw the Warriors eliminate the Houston Rockets in five games. However, they went through rigorous seven game series in the succeeding rounds. They survived a tough Blazers squad in the Conference Semifinals spearheaded by Damien Lillard, and then had to miraculously claw themselves back from 1-3 series deficit against the Oklahoma City Thunder who were led by Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
As they met a familiar foe in the NBA Finals, it looked like Curry and the Warriors were going to get the job done after taking a 3-1 lead. Unfortunately for them, James and the Cavs didn’t give up. LBJ posted a string of 41 point games in Games Five and Six.
Furthermore, him and his running mate Kyrie Irving led the Cavs to a victory in dramatic fashion come Game Seven. As we all know, the monumental chase down block by LBJ on Andre Iguodala that led to a dagger trey by Irving sealed the fate of the Warriors in that specific NBA Finals.
