List of NBA franchise post-season droughts
Active droughts -- NBA Conference Finals appearance droughts
Table:
Seasons

Team

Last appearance
in Conference Finals

Result

Reference

54

Los Angeles Clippers ^

0Never

z —

[24]

45

Washington Wizards ^[c]

1979

Won vs. San Antonio

[15]

34

Charlotte Hornets ^

0Never

z —

[10]

24

New York Knicks

2000

Lost vs. Indiana

[7]

23

Philadelphia 76ers ^

2001

Won vs. Milwaukee

[28]

22

Sacramento Kings

2002

Lost vs. Los Angeles Lakers

[5]

22

New Orleans Pelicans ^

0Never

z —

[17]

21

Brooklyn Nets [d]

2003

Won vs. Detroit

[20]

20

Minnesota Timberwolves ^

2004

Lost vs. Los Angeles Lakers

[14]

17

Utah Jazz

2007

Lost vs. San Antonio

[23]

16

Detroit Pistons

2008

Lost vs. Boston

[22]

15

Denver Nuggets

2009

Lost vs. Los Angeles Lakers

[30]

14

Orlando Magic

2010

Lost vs. Boston

[21]

14

Phoenix Suns

2010

Lost vs. Los Angeles Lakers

[6]

14

Los Angeles Lakers ^

2010

Won vs. Phoenix

[8]

13

Chicago Bulls

2011

Lost vs. Miami

[11]

13

Dallas Mavericks

2011

Won vs. Oklahoma0Won vs. Oklahoma City0

[9]

11

Memphis Grizzlies

2013

Lost vs. San Antonio

[13]

10

Miami Heat

2014

Won vs. Indiana

[16]

10

Indiana Pacers

2014

Lost vs. Miami

[19]

By analysing the following table plus the article excerpts provided.

Give the answer to the question: The team that had an eleven year drought was established under what name ? Output only the correct answer as {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}. Do not introduce information beyond the provided sources.

The Los Angeles Clippers are a professional basketball team based in Los Angeles , California . They play in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) and are a member of the NBA Western Conference 's Pacific Division . The Clippers were founded in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves . They were one of three franchises that joined the NBA as an expansion team in the 1970-71 season . The Braves moved to San Diego , California after the 1977-78 season , and became known as the San Diego Clippers . For the 1984-85 NBA season , the Clippers moved north to Los Angeles and became known as the Los Angeles Clippers . On October 14 , 1970 , the Braves beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 107-92 in their first game . In the 1972 NBA Draft , the Braves selected Bob McAdoo , who later won such awards as Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player . During McAdoo 's years ( 1972-76 ) with the franchise , the Braves reached the post-season three times and had a record of nine wins and 13 losses during that time . Overall , the Clippers have qualified for the post-season fourteen times ; most recently in the 2018-19 season . They passed the first round of the playoffs five times ( 1975-76 , 2005-06 , 2011-12 , 2013-14 and 2014-15 ) . The Clippers have never won league or Conference titles .
This is a list of seasons completed by the Washington Wizards , a professional basketball team based in Washington , D.C . The Wizards are a member of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) , and currently play their home games at the Capital One Arena , in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington , D.C .
The 1979 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Associations 1978-79 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics defeating the Eastern Conference champion Washington Bullets 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals . The Sonics earned their only NBA title . Dennis Johnson was named NBA Finals MVP . The Finals was a rematch of 1978 , in which Washington defeated Seattle 4-3 . As of the 2018-19 season [ update ] , this remains the last time the Bullets ( now the Wizards ) have advanced as far as the Conference Finals . The Spurs made their first visit to the Conference Finals in these playoffs . This was the first time that three of the former ABA teams made the playoffs , as it was the NBA playoff debut of the New Jersey Nets . This was the first time both conference finals went to a deciding Game 7 since 1963 and the last until 2018 .
The Charlotte Hornets are a professional basketball club based in Charlotte , North Carolina . They are members of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) , playing in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference . The original Charlotte Hornets franchise played in Charlotte from 1988-2002 before relocating to New Orleans , Louisiana and becoming the New Orleans Hornets . A new franchise , the Charlotte Bobcats , began play in the 2004-05 season . The team played for ten seasons as the Bobcats before adopting the Hornets name again starting in the 2014-15 season . The Hornets name was left available after the New Orleans Hornets renamed themselves the New Orleans Pelicans . As part of a deal between the Bobcats , Pelicans and NBA , the renamed Hornets reclaimed the original Hornets ' history and records from 1988 to 2002 , while all of the Hornets ' history and records from after relocation to New Orleans in 2002 through 2013 remained with the Pelicans . As a result , the Hornets are now reckoned as having suspended operations after the 2001-02 season before returning as the Bobcats in 2004 .
The New York Knickerbockers , better known as the New York Knicks , are a professional basketball team based in New York City that competes in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . An original member of the NBA , the Knicks play in the Eastern Conference 's Atlantic Division . In its 73 seasons , the franchise has reached the NBA Finals eight times and won two championships . As of the end of the 2018-19 season , New York has won more than 2,700 regular season games , and the team has the fourth-highest victory total in NBA history . Since 1968 , the Knicks have played home games at Madison Square Garden . One of the Basketball Association of America 's ( BAA ) eleven teams during its inaugural season , the Knicks won the league 's first game , defeating the Toronto Huskies 68-66 on November 1 , 1946 . The club qualified for the playoffs in the league 's first three seasons before the BAA merged with the National Basketball League in 1949 to form the NBA . Following the merger , New York extended its streak of playoff appearances to nine consecutive years , and reached the NBA Finals each year from 1952 to 1954 . The Knicks returned to the Finals in 1970 and defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games for the team 's first title . New York and Los Angeles faced each other again in the 1972 Finals , a series that the Lakers won four games to one . The Knicks earned their second NBA championship the following year , as they won a rematch with Los Angeles in five games . From 1988 to 2001 , the franchise reached the playoffs in fourteen consecutive seasons , but did not win an NBA title .
The 2000 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 1999-2000 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers four games to two . Shaquille O'Neal was named NBA Finals MVP . The San Antonio Spurs were the champions going into the playoffs , but following a season-ending injury to fourth-year star Tim Duncan , were eliminated by the Phoenix Suns in the first round , marking the first time since 1987 that a title-winning team did not repeat . They were also the first defending champion to be eliminated in the first round since the Philadelphia 76ers in 1984 . The Lakers ' win was the first title for both O'Neal and Kobe Bryant , both considered future first-ballot Hall of Famers , and the first Lakers championship since the 1988 NBA Finals . A. C. Green , the only player left from the Lakers ' Showtime era , was in the Lakers starting lineup for this series as well . For the Pacers , it was their first Eastern Conference title after four previous appearances in the Eastern Conference Finals ; however , after this season , the team was radically altered with key players Dale Davis , Derrick McKey and Mark Jackson moving to other teams and Rik Smits retiring . Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals was the last game Patrick Ewing ever played as a Knick , and New York would not win another playoff series until 2013 . The Trail Blazers defeated the Timberwolves and the Jazz in the first two rounds before falling to the Lakers in the conference final . The Trail Blazers would not win another playoff series until 2014 . This season 's playoffs also marked the debut of the five-year-old expansion Toronto Raptors .
The Philadelphia 76ers , often referred to as the Sixers , are an American professional basketball team based in Philadelphia . The Sixers play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . In sixty-six NBA seasons , the franchise has played in the NBA Finalsnine times and never won . The Sixers have the third-highest victory total and third most playoff appearances in NBA history . Since 1996 , the Sixers have played home games at Wells Fargo Center . In 1937 , owner Daniel Biasone founded the franchise as the Syracuse Nationals , a member of the National Basketball League ( NBL ) . The Nationals qualified for the playoffs three times then joined the NBA in 1949 , one of seven NBL teams to merge with the rival Basketball Association of America ( BAA ) . The Nationals qualified for the playoffs in every season played in Syracuse , advancing to three Finals and Losing . For the 1963-64 season , the year following the departure of the Philadelphia Warriors for San Francisco , the Syracuse Nationals relocated to Philadelphia as the 76ers . The franchise has played fifty-three seasons as the Philadelphia 76ers , with thirty-three playoff appearances and zero championships . The Sixers acquired Philadelphia-native Wilt Chamberlain in 1964 from the Warriors and defeated Chamberlain 's former team in the 1967 Finals , but suffered a sharp fall from grace due to the loss of Chamberlain to retirement and Billy Cunningham to the ABA : in 1972-73 the team won only nine games , the fewest in an 82-game NBA season . Under coaches Gene Shue and Cunningham , and the on-court leadership of forward Julius Erving , the 76ers returned as a power quite rapidly , achieving winning records in all but one season from 1975-76 to 1990-91 .
The 2001 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2000-01 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers 4 games to 1 . Shaquille O'Neal was named NBA Finals MVP for the second straight year . Since 2001 , the 76ers have not advanced beyond the conference semifinals . This was the 76ers ' first Finals appearance since Moses Malone and Julius Erving led the 1983 team to the NBA title ( coincidentally , last defeating the Lakers ) in the famous fo ' , fo ' , fo ' year ( it ended up being fo ' , fi ' , fo ' , as Philadelphia lost one second-round game to the Milwaukee Bucks that year ) . However , it was the Lakers ' turn to put together the most dominant postseason in NBA history , going 15-1 with their only loss coming in OT to the Sixers in Game 1 of the Finals . They set many records , including going undefeated in regulation and on the road ( finishing 8-0 in the latter category ) . They were the second NBA champion to defeat four 50-win or better teams on their way to the title as the Rockets did it first in 1995 . The Lakers also equaled the previous records set by their 1989 team by winning their first 11 post-season games and sweeping three series in the post-season . Their playoff dominance would be bested after the first round of playoffs was extended to a best of seven format instead of the best of five in the 2003 NBA playoffs by the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors who would go 16-1 on their way to their fifth championship . The Milwaukee Bucks won their first playoff series since 1989 , made the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1986 and won the division for the first time since that year . They won the division and a playoff series in 2019 .
This article is a list of seasons completed by the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) .
The 2002 NBA playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2001-02 season . This was the final postseason that held a best-of-5 first-round series ; the 2003 NBA Playoffs saw those series expand to a best-of-7 format . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets 4 games to 0 . Shaquille O'Neal was named NBA Finals MVP for the third straight year . This year marked the return of playoff success for the Boston Celtics , who had last made the playoffs in 1995 , won their last playoff series in 1992 and made their last Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 1988 . Though they eventually lost to the Nets 4-2 ( preventing a Celtics-Lakers NBA Finals ) , they did create the biggest 4th quarter playoff comeback in Game 3 , winning 94-90 after trailing by as much as 21 prior to the fourth quarter . ( This record was later broken by the Los Angeles Clippers , who came back from 24 in the fourth quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies in 2012 ) . The Detroit Pistons won their first playoff series since 1991 . They would lose in the Eastern Conference Semifinals to the Celtics in five games . The playoffs also marked the last appearance of the Charlotte Hornets in the playoffs until 2010 . The Hornets moved the next year to New Orleans , while an expansion team , formerly the Bobcats , was formed in 2004 . The Hornets were renamed the Pelicans in 2013 , after which the Bobcats reclaimed the Hornets name in 2014 .
The New Orleans Pelicans are a professional basketball team based in New Orleans , Louisiana . They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The franchise began play during the 2002-03 NBA season as the New Orleans Hornets following the relocation of the Charlotte Hornets , based in Charlotte , North Carolina . After three seasons in New Orleans , Hurricane Katrina forced the franchise to temporarily relocate to Oklahoma City , Oklahoma , where they spent two seasons as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets . The Hornets returned to New Orleans full-time for the 2007-08 season . The team changed its name to the New Orleans Pelicans at the conclusion of the 2012-13 season . Led by All-Star Baron Davis , the New Orleans Hornets qualified for their first post-season appearance during the 2002-03 season . They lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round . The team earned their first division title during the 2007-08 season , behind the play of All-Stars Chris Paul and David West . Finishing with a franchise-best record of 56 wins and 26 losses , the Hornets won the Southwest Division title over the defending champion San Antonio Spurs . They advanced to the Conference Semifinals , where they were defeated by the Spurs in seven games . In 16 seasons , the Pelicans have compiled an overall record of 630-715 all-time .
This is a list of seasons completed by the Brooklyn Nets professional basketball team . The Nets were founded as the New Jersey Americans in 1967 , a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association ( ABA ) . A year later , the team moved to Long Island , New York , and were renamed as the New York Nets . There , behind the play of Hall of Famer Julius Erving , the team won its only two ABA championships : in 1974 and 1976 . After the 1975-76 season , the ABA merged with the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) , and the Nets were one of four franchises that joined the NBA . After a season of being the second team to represent the state of New York ( the other being the New York Knicks ) , the team moved back to New Jersey as the New Jersey Nets . In the NBA , the Nets have experienced only one period of sustained success , from the 2001-02 season to the 2006-07 season , when led by Jason Kidd they played in the postseason every year and twice reached the NBA Finals , but lost to Shaquille O'Neal-led Los Angeles Lakers in 2002 and then to Tim Duncan-led San Antonio Spurs in 2003 . After 35 seasons in New Jersey , owner Mikhail Prokhorov moved the team to the New York City borough of Brooklyn to become the Brooklyn Nets .
The 2003 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2002-03 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets , 4 games to 2 , in the NBA Finals . Tim Duncan was named NBA Finals MVP for the second time . This postseason featured the most series decided by 6 games in NBA Playoff history . This postseason is notable for being the first time since 1974 that all series were conducted in a best-of-seven format ; From 1984 to 2002 , the first-round series were best-of-five . It is also notable as the only time the conference quarterfinal round did not include any series sweeps . This is the first time that the NBA Playoffs carried more games on cable television than regular broadcast television , and marks the debut for the NBA Playoffs to be aired on NBA TV , and the return broadcast on ESPN and ABC after the NBA departed from NBC and TBS . The Detroit Pistons advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since the Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars-led team was swept by the Chicago Bulls in 1991 , ending the Pistons ' quest for a third consecutive title . The Pistons would go on to appear in six consecutive Eastern Conference Finals through 2008 , the most consecutive appearances for any Eastern Conference team since the Bill Russell-led Boston Celtics ( 1956-69 ) . The Dallas Mavericks ended a long conference finals drought by making it there for the first time since 1988 . As of 2018 , the 49-win Nets are the most recent NBA Finals participant to win fewer than 50 games in an 82-game season . The Boston Celtics were swept in a postseason series for the first time since 1983 .
This article is a list of seasons completed by the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association . The Timberwolves joined the NBA as an expansion team for the 1989-90 NBA season , along with the Orlando Magic .
The 2004 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2003-04 season . The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons defeating the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals . Chauncey Billups was named NBA Finals MVP . The Minnesota Timberwolves , after missing the playoffs their first seven seasons and losing in the first round the next seven , won their first two playoff series in 2004 before losing to the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals . As of 2019 [ update ] , these are the Wolves ' only two series victories . The Timberwolves would not make the playoffs again until 2018 . The Indiana Pacers made the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since their NBA Finals run in 2000 , after which they significantly changed the makeup of their team ( yet still made the playoffs every year ) . Game 2 of the series with the Pistons was pivotal , as Tayshaun Prince blocked a lay-up by Reggie Miller late in the game to preserve the victory ; the Pistons won 4-2 . The 2004 playoffs was the first appearance for the Memphis Grizzlies in their 9-year history which began in Vancouver . However , they failed to win a single game in their first 3 playoff appearances ( 2004 , 2005 , 2006 ) , before earning their first playoff game and series victories in 2011 . This was the last playoff appearance for the New York Knicks until 2011 , when they would be swept in the first round . The Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz missed the playoffs for the first time since 1982 and 1983 , respectively .
This article is a list of seasons completed by the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The Jazz joined the NBA as the New Orleans Jazz , an expansion team that began play in the 1974-75 season . The Jazz relocated from New Orleans to Salt Lake City , Utah for the 1979-80 season . As of April 15 , 2015 , the Utah Jazz are the last franchise to not record a 60-loss season .
The 2007 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2006-07 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals . Tony Parker was named NBA Finals MVP , making him the first Spur other than Tim Duncan and the first European-born player to receive the award .
This is a list of seasons completed by the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association . The franchise was founded in 1941 as the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons in the National Basketball League and as the Fort Wayne Pistons joined the Basketball Association of America , which was the precursor to the NBA . However , the games won and lost in the NBL are not included in the franchise total . The Pistons have had three main periods of success . In the early years of the NBA the team reached the NBA Finals twice in consecutive years before falling to the Lakers and then to the St. Louis Hawks . Following an extended era of mediocrity the Pistons , led by the Hall of Fame backcourt of Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars and nicknamed the Bad Boys for their intimidating defence , posted winning records every seasons from 1983-84 to 1991-92 , and after narrowly losing in 1988 , ended the Lakers dynasty of the 1980s the following season and repeated the following year . The Pistons third period of success , with former on-court star Dumars serving as general manager and building a top team from other franchises discards , occurred between 2001-02 and 2007-08 when the team won fifty games or more during every season , including a third NBA title in 2003-04 and a franchise record total of wins two seasons later . The Pistons have experienced two major periods of failure . Between 1956-57 and 1982-83 , the Pistons had just three winning seasons and overall had a winning percentage of .417 , culminating in a combined record of 37-127 ( win percent .226 ) in the 1979-80 and 1980-81 seasons , after which the drafting of Isiah Thomas completely revitalized the franchise . Since 2009-10 , the Pistons have only once finished out of the bottom two in their division or had a winning record . In the six seasons starting in 2009-10 the franchise had an overall record of 172 wins from 476 games or a winning percentage of .361 .
The 2008 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2007-08 season . The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals . Paul Pierce was named NBA Finals MVP . The playoffs were noted for the Atlanta Hawks ' return after 9 years , taking the # 1 seed and eventual champion Celtics to 7 games before bowing out . Also notable was the debut of the Chris Paul-led Hornets in the playoffs after Hurricane Katrina and their 7-game series against defending champions San Antonio Spurs , and the Lakers and Celtics ' revitalization of their franchises , most especially after key trades during the preseason and regular season . The Celtics ended up playing 26 playoff games ( 2 games short of a full length postseason of 28 ) , breaking the 25 game record of the 1994 Knicks and 2005 Pistons by 1 game for the most playoff games in a single season played by 1 NBA team . The Knicks , however , only played a Best-of-5 First Round , and so had 2 fewer games to accomplish that feat . Also , the top seeds from each Conference met in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000 . The 2008 Finals was also the first since 1998 to feature neither Shaquille O'Neal nor Tim Duncan . The Golden State Warriors won 48 games , more than 5 of the 8 playoff teams in the Eastern Conference . However , all eight qualifiers in the Western Conference finished with at least 50 wins , thus leaving the Warriors out of the postseason .
This is a list of seasons completed by the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . They have played for 49 seasons , 38 in the NBA and nine in the American Basketball Association ( ABA ) . As of the close of the 2017 season , they have never reached an NBA Finals and only been to three Western Conference Finals series .
The 2009 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2008-09 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals . Kobe Bryant was named NBA Finals MVP . The Boston Celtics lost a best-of-7 series after leading 3-2 for the first time to the Magic in the Eastern Conference Semifinals . Before that , their first round series with the Chicago Bulls set an NBA Playoff record for the most overtime games ( 4 ) and periods ( 7 ) played . The Houston Rockets won a first round series for the first time since 1997 . They pushed the eventual champion Lakers to a Game 7 before losing . The Atlanta Hawks won a first round series for the first time since 1999 , but were swept by the Cavs after enduring a tough 7-game series with the Miami Heat , who made the playoffs for the fifth time in 6 years . The Denver Nuggets won a playoff series for the first time since 1994 , eventually reaching their first conference final since 1985 . As for the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs , they failed to advance past the first round for the first time since 2000 . The Pistons were swept by the Cavs , while the Spurs lost to the Dallas Mavericks 4-1 . The Portland Trail Blazers made the playoffs for the first time since 2003 , but for the fourth straight time , they were eliminated in the first round , courtesy of Houston in 6 games .
This is a list of seasons completed by the Orlando Magic . The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando , Florida . They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The team was established in 1989 . The Magic have not won an NBA title , but have appeared in the NBA Finals twice , in 1995 and 2009 . The best record posted by the Magic was 60-22 , in the 1995-96 season , and their worst record was 18-64 , in the team 's inaugural season .
The 2010 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2009-10 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals . Kobe Bryant was named NBA Finals MVP for the second straight year . For the 2nd time in 3 seasons and the first time since 2008 , all Western Conference playoff teams had at least 50 wins . The 7 games separating 1-8 was tied for the smallest margin , also from 2008 . Cleveland 's 61 wins in the NBA was the smallest win total for best record since the Pacers won 61 in 2004 . The Cavaliers ' second round playoff exit ( 4-2 vs. Boston ) was the earliest for the top seed since the Dallas Mavericks ' first round loss to the Golden State Warriors in 2007 . Many teams avenged previous losses by defeating teams who defeated them in recent years . The Spurs defeated the Mavericks , who beat them twice in the previous 4 seasons . The Cavaliers beat the Bulls for the first time since The Shot . The Suns defeated the Spurs , who won the previous 4 meetings in the last decade . The Lakers beat the Suns , who defeated them in the first round in 2006 and 2007 .
The Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix , Arizona , United States . They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The Suns began playing in the NBA as an expansion team in the 1968-69 NBA season . In their inaugural season , the Suns posted a win-loss record of 16-66 . They participated in the playoffs only once in their first seven seasons . In the 1975-76 season , a rookie Alvan Adams helped the team reach its first NBA Finals , which they lost to the Boston Celtics 4-2 . Charles Barkley and Steve Nash won the Most Valuable Player ( MVP ) award while playing for the Suns . Barkley led the Suns to the 1993 NBA Finals , where they lost to the Chicago Bulls . After signing with the Suns in 2004 , Nash led the team to three straight division titles , but after reaching the Conference Finals in 2009-10 the Suns have subsequently experienced their worst period of on-court failure , missing the playoffs for eight consecutive seasons ( the franchise 's previous record playoff drought was five seasons , which happened after the team made the postseason in only their second year of existence during the 1969-70 campaign ) . Despite their failures in the 2010s , the Suns franchise has the NBA 's fourth-best all-time winning percentage , winning 54 percent of its games , as of the end of the 2015-16 season . In their first forty-three seasons , the Suns made the playoffs 29 times , posted nineteen seasons with fifty or more wins , appeared nine times in the Western Conference Finals , and advanced to the NBA Finals in 1976 and 1993 . As a result , based on their all-time winning percentage , the Suns are the most successful franchise to never win an NBA championship .
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles , California that competes in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) , which was formerly called the Basketball Association of America ( BAA ) . Since 1999 , the Lakers have played their home games at Staples Center . The Lakers ' franchise was founded in 1947 in Minneapolis , Minnesota . The first owners purchased the disbanded Gems from Detroit , Michigan , then renamed and moved the team . It was in Minneapolis where the Lakers received their official title from Minnesota 's nickname , Land of 10,000 Lakes . The Lakers won five championships before relocating to Los Angeles for the 1960-61 NBA season . The Lakers went on to lose all of their six appearances in the NBA Finals in the 1960s , despite the presence of Elgin Baylor and Jerry West . In 1972 , the Lakers compiled a 33-game winning streak , the longest streak in U.S. professional team sports , and won their sixth title , under coach Bill Sharman . The Lakers ' popularity soared in the 1980s when they won five additional championships during a nine-year span with the help of Hall of Famers Magic Johnson , Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , James Worthy and coach Pat Riley , the franchise 's all-time leader in both regular season and playoff games coached and wins . Two of those championships during that span were against their arch-rivals , the Boston Celtics . With the help of Shaquille O'Neal , Kobe Bryant , and Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson , the Lakers played in seven NBA Finals between 2000 and 2010 , winning three of them consecutively from 2000 to 2002 , losing the next two in 2004 and 2008 , and winning in 2009 and 2010 ; the last three appearances were without O'Neal . The Lakers hold records for having ( at the end of the 2014-15 NBA season ) the most wins ( 3,125 ) , the highest winning percentage ( .620 ) , the most NBA Finals appearances ( 31 ) of any NBA franchise , second-fewest non-playoff seasons with seven and are second NBA championships with 16 , behind the Boston Celtics ' 17 .
The Chicago Bulls are a National Basketball Association ( NBA ) team based in Chicago , Illinois . Dick Klein founded the Bulls in 1966 after a number of other professional basketball teams in Chicago had failed . [ a ] In their 50 seasons , the Bulls have achieved a winning record 25 times , and have appeared in the NBA playoffs 34 times . They received international recognition in the 1990s when All-Star shooting guard Michael Jordan led them to their six league championships . The only two NBA franchises that have won more championships than the Bulls are the Boston Celtics ( 17 championships ) and Los Angeles Lakers ( 16 ) . The Bulls initially competed in the NBA 's Western Division . The Western Division was renamed the Western Conference in 1970 , and was split into the Midwest and Pacific Divisions . The Bulls played in the Midwest Division until 1980 , when they moved to the Central Division of the Eastern Conference .
The 2011 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2010-11 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks defeating the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals . Dirk Nowitzki was named NBA Finals MVP . The Chicago Bulls achieved several firsts since 1998 : the East 's best record , a Central Division title , and over 60 victories . They also clinched the NBA 's best record for the first time since 1997 , guaranteeing home-court advantage in every round . They advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1998 , and lost the ECF for the first time since 1990 . The Indiana Pacers appeared in the playoffs for the first time since 2006 , as did the Memphis Grizzlies . The New York Knicks made the playoffs for the first time since 2004 , but this was their first playoff appearance as an above-.500 team since 2001 . The Philadelphia 76ers and New Orleans Hornets appeared for the third time in 4 years . The other 11 teams were in the 2010 NBA Playoffs . The Oklahoma City Thunder headed to the playoffs with their first Northwest Division title under this incarnation . This was the final postseason appearance for the New Orleans franchise while known as the Hornets , as the team was renamed the Pelicans before the 2013-14 season .
The Dallas Mavericks are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas , Texas . They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The Mavericks began playing in the NBA as an expansion team in the 1980-81 season . In their inaugural season , they posted a win-loss record of 15 - 67 . From 1983 to 1990 , the Mavericks , led by key players including Mark Aguirre , Brad Davis and Rolando Blackman , made the postseason six out of seven times , appearing in the Conference Finals in 1988 . For the rest of the decade the Mavericks were dreadful : they bottomed out with an 11 - 71 record and the worst average point differential in NBA history during the 1992-93 season . This was followed by a 13-69 mark in the 1993-94 season - easily the worst two-season record in NBA history - and the Mavericks did not win more than thirty-six games in any season until 1999-2000 . The Mavericks returned to prominence in the 2000s , coinciding with the franchise 's purchase by Mark Cuban . Leading by the trio of Dirk Nowitzki , Michael Finley and Steve Nash , they returned to the playoffs in 2001 and to the Conference Finals in 2003 . While Nash and Finley left in 2004 and 2005 respectively , Nowitzki emerged as the teams leader , leading the Mavericks to their first NBA Finals appearance in 2006 , only to lose to the Miami Heat . After a series of early exits from the playoffs , the Mavericks returned to the NBA Finals again in 2011 , also against the Heat , and won their first NBA Championship . The Mavericks have played 36 seasons , and advanced to the playoffs in 21 of those seasons .
This is a list of seasons completed by the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The team was founded in 1995 as the Vancouver Grizzlies as one of two franchises that joined the NBA for the 1995-96 season . The Grizzlies moved to Memphis after the 2000-01 season .
The 2013 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2012-13 season . The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat defeating the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals . LeBron James was named NBA Finals MVP . The Miami Heat headed into the playoffs with a franchise-best 66 wins , topping the league in the regular season . Their 2012 Finals opponents , the Oklahoma City Thunder , topped the Western Conference with 60 wins , making it the first time since 2006 that the two teams who faced off in the previous year 's finals topped their respective conferences in the next regular season . However , when the Thunder lost to the Memphis Grizzlies in the Conference Semifinals , home court advantage in the Western Conference Finals went to the San Antonio Spurs , who were two games ahead of the Grizzlies . The New York Knicks entered the playoffs with their best regular-season performance since 1997 , finishing atop the Atlantic Division for the first time since 1994 . The Indiana Pacers won the Central Division for the first time since 2004 , while the Los Angeles Clippers made franchise history by winning their first Pacific Division title and having a 56-win season , tied with the Memphis Grizzlies , whose 56 wins were also a franchise record . The Denver Nuggets earned the West 's third seed and headed into the playoffs with a franchise-record 57 wins . The Brooklyn Nets and Golden State Warriors made their first playoff appearances since 2007 . This also marked the first time that Barclays Center hosted a playoff game . The Houston Rockets made their first playoff appearance since 2009 , while the Milwaukee Bucks appeared for the first time since 2010 .
The Miami Heat are a professional basketball team based in Miami , Florida that competes in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The Heat were formed in 1988 as an expansion franchise along with the Charlotte Hornets ; as of the 2018-19 season [ update ] they were one of two franchises formed after 1980 to win any NBA titles ( the other being the Toronto Raptors ) . The Heat and the Orlando Magic are the two NBA franchises that are located in the state of Florida . Since entering the league , Miami has fielded squads that have made the playoffs 19 out of 28 seasons , captured 12 division titles , five conference titles and three NBA Championships . They defeated the Dallas Mavericks in the 2006 NBA Finals , the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2012 NBA Finals , and the San Antonio Spurs in the 2013 NBA Finals .
The 2014 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association 's 2013-14 season . The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs defeating the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals . Kawhi Leonard was named NBA Finals MVP . For the first time since 1984 , the NBA Finals were played in a 2-2-1-1-1 format ( the higher seed hosts Games 1 , 2 , 5 , and 7 , the lower seed hosts Games 3 , 4 , and 6 ) . They were also the first playoffs overseen by Commissioner Adam Silver . The Spurs continued the longest active playoff streak in the NBA at 17 straight appearances . The Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards made their first playoff appearances since 2008 , while the Charlotte Bobcats , in their final playoff appearance before renaming themselves the Hornets , returned after a four-year absence . All three teams from Texas made the playoffs for the first time since 2009 . For the first time since 2005 , the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks did not qualify for the playoffs in the same year . For the first time since 1994 , the Lakers and Celtics missed the playoffs in the same season . In addition , this was the first time in NBA history that the Knicks , Celtics , and Lakers missed the playoffs in the same year ( the Celtics last missed the playoffs in 2007 ) The Denver Nuggets also missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003 . The first round of the 2014 Playoffs is generally considered one of the greatest postseason rounds in NBA history .
The Indiana Pacers are a professional basketball team based in Indianapolis , Indiana , United States . They are members of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association ( NBA ) . The Pacers were founded in 1967 , originally as members of the American Basketball Association , where they were crowned league champions three times and made the playoffs in all of the nine seasons they participated in the league . The Pacers were led during the ABA days by two-time MVP Mel Daniels and by head coach Bobby Leonard . The 1976-77 season marked the first season of NBA play for the Pacers and the team struggled early , compared to their ABA success . The Pacers only made it to the NBA playoffs three times in their first 13 seasons . The Pacers would not win their first playoff series until the 1993-94 season , which came against the Orlando Magic . It was during this time that the Pacers were led by 1987 draft pick , Reggie Miller , who entered the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012 . Miller would play for the Pacers until the 2005 season and with his help , the Pacers would go on to win one Eastern Conference championship , four Central Division championships , and make 15 playoff appearances . Over the Pacers 49 seasons of play they have made the playoffs 32 times ( 23 in the NBA and 9 in the ABA ) . The Pacers have appeared in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals eight times ( 1994 , 1995 , 1998 , 1999 , 2000 , 2004 , 2013 , 2014 ) and advanced to the NBA Finals in 2000 , where they eventually lost to the Los Angeles Lakers 4-2 . The Pacers are one of 11 franchises to have never won an NBA championship and the only Central Division team without at least one title .