Ranking Ringless NBA Stars Most Likely to Win a Title First
Over the last five years, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokić, Jayson Tatum and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander all earned their first NBA championship rings. As the age of parity and non-repeat title-winners continues, the only question is: Who's next?
Candidates include a mixture of up-and-coming superstars, established MVP candidates and some end-of-the-line vets still hanging on, hopeful of one last shot to cap their careers with a 'chip.
We like to think we've evolved enough as a basketball-consuming public to know that the failure to win a ring doesn't invalidate the greatness of a career. But we also have to acknowledge that we view the above list of first-timers—Giannis, Jokić, Tatum and SGA—differently after their championship runs.
They're minted. Established. Unimpeachable.
Let's see who's got the best shot to gain that same ultimate validation for the first time.
5. Jimmy Butler, Golden State Warriors
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It's a long shot that will require the aging Golden State Warriors to stay healthy, but Jimmy Butler could be in line for his best crack at a championship since he heroically carried the 2022-23 Miami Heat to the Finals.
It's hard to imagine that version of Butler, aka Playoff Jimmy, still exists. Across the 2021-22 and 2022-23 postseasons, Butler put up 27.1 points per game, took over contests on the regular and generally appeared to be one of the five best players in the world. He was a cape away from being confused with a superhero.
Now 36, he'll need help.
Fortunately, Stephen Curry remains an All-NBA superstar, Draymond Green is coming off a third-place finish in DPOY voting and the Dubs' supporting cast looked like that of a top-tier contender from the moment they added Butler at the 2025 trade deadline.
The Warriors sit right around 10th in most championship odds forecasts, which feels a bit low given their upside and experience. But we can't ignore the age factor, or the way Golden State could be athletically overwhelmed by the OKCs and Houstons of the world.
Still, Butler's postseason resumé is as impressive as it gets. And now he's playing alongside the best teammate of his career in Curry.
Rule out Playoff Jimmy at your own risk.
4. Luka Dončić, Los Angeles Lakers
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It won't happen this season, which means LeBron James probably won't be around to see it, but Luka Dončić is going to get the Los Angeles Lakers back into contention at some point in the relatively near future.
Assuming Dončić's conditioning overhaul is more of a sustainable lifestyle change than a temporary "revenge body" glow-up, the 26-year-old seems fated to win an MVP and collect a ring by the time he's 30. His early-career performance to this point, which included five straight All-NBA first team nods from 2019-20 to 2023-24, is simply too overwhelming to ignore.
The key to Dončić's case is that we know he doesn't need all that much around him to contend for a championship. The Dallas Mavericks squad he hauled to the Finals in 2024 featured a 31-year-old Kyrie Irving and absolutely no one else you'd even consider calling a star. Dallas had a good defense and decent support pieces; it's not going to be that hard for the Lakers to build a far more dangerous roster around Dončić than that one.
It's possible Dončić has already played his best basketball. The Mavericks seemed convinced that was the case, which is why they dealt him away. But if they're wrong, and if Luka has yet a higher level to reach, just hand him a Larry O'Brien now.
3. Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
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Jalen Brunson has led the New York Knicks to at least one playoff series win in every year of his tenure with the team, and he guided them all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals last season.
There's a reasonable chance that now, with the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers forced into gap years, Brunson and the Knicks go from knocking on the door to kicking it down.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a force, but Brunson's Knicks took them down in the first round of the 2023 playoffs. If the Philadelphia 76ers stay healthy enough to pose a threat, New York can derive confidence from the time it eliminated Philly in the first round of 2024.
If new head coach Mike Brown does a better job of limiting Brunson's minutes during the regular season, the two-time All-NBA guard could be fresher for the playoffs. Considering a heavily fatigued Brunson has averaged 29.9 points and 6.8 assists over the last three years and 42 postseason games with the Knicks, an uptick in production would be a remarkable achievement.
And it might yield a title.
2. Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers
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Evan Mobley's two-way dominance might allow him to outpace teammate Donovan Mitchell in most catch-all metrics as soon as this coming season. But if the Cleveland Cavaliers are going to break through and win a ring, it'll be because Mitchell finally stays healthy enough to be his team's undeniable alpha for a full playoff run.
Mitchell's postseason numbers are among the best of all time. He's averaged 28.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.8 assists on 56.1 percent true shooting across 63 games. The only players in history with postseason numbers that good over that large of a sample: LeBron James and Michael Jordan.
Cleveland's path to the Finals should remain easier than that of any team trying to survive the annual four-round death match that is the Western Conference playoff slate. The Cavs project to run away with the East's top seed this coming season, which could allow them to preserve Mitchell for the games that matter most.
Entering his age-29 season, Mitchell doesn't have as much time to get over the hump as many of the other players on this list. Decline isn't far off. For now, though, Mitchell boasts a postseason track record none of his peers can match and one of the least obstructed paths to the Finals.
1. Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
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Anthony Edwards is nowhere near a finished product. Considering he's come in seventh in MVP voting after each of the last two seasons, that thought should concern the rest of the league.
Through five campaigns, Edwards has been defined as much by year-over-year improvement as by his boundless athleticism and megawatt smile. He's improved his scoring average and true shooting percentage in every season of his career. As he enters his mid-20s, why would he stop now?
In addition to a personal trajectory that keeps angling steadily upward—one that should hit top-five MVP levels in 2025-26—Edwards' chances at a ring also have a lot to do with his team. The Minnesota Timberwolves have reached the Western Conference Finals in each of the last two postseasons, putting them within spitting distance of competing for a title.
The Oklahoma City Thunder loom as a potentially dynastic force, and Edwards' path to glory will have to go through them. That's hardly disqualifying. The Indiana Pacers and Denver Nuggets both took the Thunder to seven games last spring. OKC is a great team, but it didn't waltz to its 2025 championship.
Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference and Cleaning the Glass. Salary info via Spotrac.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
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