7 Big 3s That Never Won an NBA Championship
Big Threes in the NBA have become a staple of success in the past few decades, often leading to annual long playoff runs, finals appearances and even championships.
The following are not those teams.
We've seen plenty of talented players assembled into Big Threes that ultimately fell short of a championship time and time again. Whether because they didn't spend enough time together, were stopped short of a dynasty or simply choked in the playoffs, these are the best that never won a title.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Larry Nance, Brad Daugherty and Mark Price (1988-94)
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Before Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls dominated basketball in the 1990s, the Cleveland Cavaliers looked ready to go on multiple title runs.
Brad Daugherty was the first overall pick in 1986, a 7'0" center out of UNC who could score, rebound and pass. Price was the first pick of the second round (25th overall), a sharpshooting point guard who became famous for his ability to split the double team.
Nance had already established himself as an All-Star power forward with the Phoenix Suns, and he was the winner of the first-ever NBA Slam Dunk Contest in 1984. When he was traded to the Cavaliers in 1988, it gave Cleveland a Big Three that would go on to make six of the next seven postseasons.
The trio was known for their friendship off the court, as well. Nance would bring teammates over to his five-acre fishing pond, Price would lead gospel songs, and Daugherty was an avid deer hunter, inviting teammates out with him before practices in rural Richfield, Ohio, where the Cavs played at the time.
Though the group was close on and off the court, one man prevented Cleveland's first Big Three from becoming a dynasty.
In 1988-89, Price, Daugherty and Nance would go 6-0 against Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls in the regular season before ultimately losing to them on "The Shot" in Game 5 of their first-round best-of-five series.
In six playoffs runs featuring this trio, Cleveland lost to Chicago five times, making it as far as the Eastern Conference Finals in 1992.
While they would make 11 All-Star games with the Cavs (including the 1989 and 1993 games together), Daugherty's retirement at age 28 due to back injuries and Jordan's dominance ultimately limited what it could accomplish.
Utah Jazz: John Stockton, Karl Malone and Jeff Hornacek (1994-2000)
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While Jeff Hornacek is often an afterthought when talking about the 1990s Utah Jazz, Karl Malone and John Stockton needed the sharpshooting guard to achieve the success they did.
In seven seasons together, the Jazz trio made the postseason all seven times, including two trips to the NBA Finals. But just as was the case with the early-1990s Cleveland Cavaliers, one man continually put an end to their playoff runs.
Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls knocked the Jazz out in six games in 1997 and 1998, including a series-winner over Bryon Russell with 5.2 seconds left in '98.
Because of this, the Jazz will forever go down as one of the best teams and Big Threes to never win a title. Malone was a two-time MVP, Stockton is the all-time assist leader (15,806), and Hornacek shot 42.8 percent from three in seven seasons with the Jazz.
"No question Utah, once they got Hornacek to go with an established Stockton and Malone. They would have gotten a couple, definitely," former NBA guard Craig Ehlo told Bleacher Report when discussing how championships would have been divided up if Jordan had never played.
Malone and Stockton are the Hall of Famers, but Hornacek was an essential member of the Jazz, as well.
Sacramento Kings: Peja Stojakovic, Chris Webber and Vlade Divac (1998-2004)
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Sacramento's Big Three would eventually mold and change, but Chris Webber, Peja Stojakovic and Vlade Divac were at the heart of it all.
Webber and Divac initially set the stage, with the latter nearly 10 years older than Stojakovic. There were no weaknesses in Webber's game; he was a gifted power forward who could score, rebound, pass and block shots. He averaged 23.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.6 blocks during the trio's time together.
Divac was 30 by the time he got to Sacramento, but was still playing at a high level. Like Webber, he was one of the NBA's best passers at his position, and he was also an effective scorer and rebounder.
When Stojakovic started playing at a high level in his third season, the Kings took off.
Six years together resulted in six playoff trips, including a thrilling seven-game 2002 Western Conference Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers that's since been mired in controversy.
The Kings were kicked out of the playoffs by the Lakers three times in their six years led by Webber, Divac and Stojakovic, resulting in disappointing finishes after they won 55 or more games four times in the regular season.
Mike Bibby and Doug Christie would complete one of the best starting fives this millennium to not win a title.
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Phoenix Suns: Amar'e Stoudemire, Shawn Marion and Steve Nash (2004-08)
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No matter which team you supported, the mid-2000s Phoenix Suns were a must-watch with Steve Nash.
After signing a bargain six-year, $65 million deal with Phoenix in 2004 free agency, Nash became the engine who drove Amar'e Stoudemire, Shawn Marion and the "Seven Seconds or Less" Suns.
"It was fun as hell," Nash told Kent Somers of azcentral.com about Phoenix's run-and-gun style of play. "It was the start of what we see now by the majority of teams in the league. The style was new. The speed and pace was shocking people. They had a hard time adjusting."
Nash was both an outstanding shooter and passer who would win back-to-back MVPs with Phoenix in 2005 and 2006. He averaged 17.5 points and 11.2 assists while shooting 51.3 percent from the field, 45.3 percent from three-point range and 90.4 percent from the stripe during the trio's four years together.
As good as Stoudemire and Marion were without Nash, his leadership and passing ability elevated both their games.
The Nash-Stoudemire pick-and-roll was as good as any in the league, with the 6'10" big man able to catch sky-high passes before flushing them with authority. Marion could play and defend nearly every position, and he was a four-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA member.
Phoenix won 60-plus games twice with its Big Three, reaching the Western Conference Finals two times but never playing for a championship.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka (2009-16)
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While OKC's Big Three started out as Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden, the trio only got three years together before Harden was traded to the Houston Rockets in 2012.
Durant, Westbrook and Serge Ibaka made six playoff trips together in a seven-year span, looking like a dynasty in the making that was set to break out and win a championship at any time.
Reaching the Finals in 2012 was unheard of for a core this young. Durant and Westbrook were just 23 at the time, and Ibaka was only 22. While they ultimately fell short to the Miami Heat's Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, that season was supposed to be a springboard to success.
Durant was fighting for best-player-in-the-league status, leading the NBA in scoring four times during both the regular season and the playoffs. He was named the league's MVP in 2013-14 and made five All-NBA first teams in OKC.
Westbrook was an alpha forced to play second fiddle to Durant, finishing first in scoring in 2014-15 while becoming one of the most physical point guards the game has ever seen.
Ibaka was the perfect third star, a defensive-minded big man who could spread the floor, rebound and score from all levels. He led the NBA in blocked shots twice (2011-12, 2012-13) and was named to three All-Defensive first teams (2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14).
While Durant, Westbrook and Harden could have started a dynasty, the combination of Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka still should have won at least one title.
Ibaka was traded to the Orlando Magic in June 2016, and Durant left for the Golden State Warriors in free agency weeks later. Westbrook would go on to win an MVP in OKC before he was traded to the Rockets in 2019.
Memphis Grizzlies: Marc Gasol, Mike Conley and Zach Randolph (2009-17)
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For seven years, the "Grit and Grind" Memphis Grizzlies became a staple of the Western Conference playoff picture, using their size, pace control and defense to smother opponents.
While fellow playoff participants like the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets moved more and more toward pace-and-space schemes, the Grizzlies reversed the trend with bully-ball, a strategy that took them as far as the Western Conference Finals.
It's difficult to say who had the biggest impact on Memphis' success.
Conley is one of the best players to never make an All-Star Game, a member of the 2012-13 All-Defensive second team who remains one of the most underrated point guards of the past 20 years. He brought some much-need shooting to the frontcourt-heavy Grizzlies, averaging 15.2 points on 37.9 percent shooting from three in the trio's eight years together.
Gasol is the most accomplished player in Grizzlies history, a three-time All-Star who did everything Memphis needed him to do. An excellent passer and the quarterback of the defense, Gasol showcased outstanding footwork in the paint while eventually expanding his offensive game out to the three-point line. He was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2012-13.
Randolph was perhaps the player who put the most fear in opponents' hearts. A 6'9", 250-pound bowling ball, he was a double-double machine who thrived on physicality. His time in Memphis resulted in a pair of All-Star selections, all while helping the Grizzlies take down teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers in the postseason.
Throw in all-world defender Tony Allen and this was one of the best defensive teams never to make a Finals.
Los Angles Clippers: Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin (2011-17)
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The "Lob City" Los Angeles Clippers weren't just one of the best basketball teams of their era. They were also by far the most successful group in franchise history.
In 2011, Chris Paul was traded from the New Orleans Hornets to the Clippers for Eric Gordon, Al-Farouq Aminu, Chris Kaman and a first-round pick, which got the future Hall of Famer to L.A. just as his athletic prime was beginning in his age-26 season.
Paul was the leader, already a four-time All-Star who had led the league in assists twice and steals three times. He had guided the Hornets to the playoffs three of the past four seasons but didn't have anyone as talented as Blake Griffin around him at the time.
Griffin was the 2010-11 Rookie of the Year and one of the best dunkers in all of basketball, and he would go on to make five straight All-Star trips with Paul from 2011 to 2015.
DeAndre Jordan complemented the two stars with his rebounding, screen-setting and finishing around the rim. He led the NBA in field-goal percentage five straight years, was a two-time rebounding champion and made the 2017 All-Star Game.
But as good as this trio was, it never advanced past the second round.
In six playoff trips featuring this group, the Clippers never lost to the same opponent twice. Getting knocked out by the San Antonio Spurs, Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz, they simply fell victim to a brutal Western Conference time and time again.
Paul would later be traded to the Rockets, Griffin was dealt to the Detroit Pistons, and Jordan left to join the Dallas Mavericks in free agency.
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