Every NBA organization works throughout the year to compile the talent necessary to compete for a title. Sometimes a team manages to put together a roster stockpiled with gifted players, and they enter the season as locks to win their division and make noise in the postseason.
- 10. 2013-14 Brooklyn Nets
- 9. 2015-16 Golden State Warriors
- 8. 2009-10 Cleveland Cavaliers
- 7. 2013-14 New York Knicks
- 6. 2004-05 Indiana Pacers
- 5. 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks
- 4. 2017-18 Oklahoma City Thunder
- 3. 2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers
- 2. 1996-97 Houston Rockets
- 1. 2021-22 Los Angeles Lakers
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Basketball games aren’t played on paper. There’s more to winning than putting together a collection of All-Stars, a fact the 20201-22 Lakers have learned this season. Chemistry matters. Injuries play their part as well. Luck is also a factor.
Despite having five future Hall-of-Famers on their roster, this year’s Lakers have been eliminated from the playoffs and are about to end the season with 50 losses.
Are the 2021-22 Lakers the most disappointing team in NBA history?
Below we’ll rank the 10 most disappointing teams of all time.
10. 2013-14 Brooklyn Nets
Regular Season Record: 44-38
Playoffs: Lost NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals (1-4) versus Miami Heat
The 2012-13 Nets finished the regular season 49-33 behind a solid threesome of Brook Lopez, Deron Williams, and Joe Johnson. Brooklyn looked poised to advance deep into the postseason before getting ousted by the Chicago Bulls in the First Round.
GM Billy King mortgaged the Nets’ future over the offseason landing Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jason Terry from the Boston Celtics for Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries, Kris Joseph, Keith Bogans, MarShon Brooks, first-round picks in 2014, 2016, and 2018, and the rights to swap first-round picks in 2017.
Paul Pierce, 36, averaged 13.5 PPG while playing tired and slow defense through 75 regular season games.
Kevin Garnett, 37, suited up for 54 contests, averaging 6.5 PPG as his body broke down.
Jason Terry, 36, played in only 35 games while averaging 4.5 points nightly.
Lopez, Johnson, and Williams did their part to keep the Nets competitive, but it was a slog with their youth and depth shipped off to Boston. The Nets finished the regular season 44-38 and were dispatched by the Miami Heat in five games during the Second Round of the playoffs.
The Nets assembled an excellent collection of talent, but age and injuries made this squad one of the most disappointing of all time.
9. 2015-16 Golden State Warriors
Regular Season Record: 73-9
Playoffs: Lost NBA Finals (3-4) versus Cleveland Cavaliers
The 2015-16 Warriors were headlined by Stephen Curry at the height of his powers. He joined the 50/40/90, averaging 30.1 points nightly while bending the NBA with his 6-feet-beyond-the-arc three-point shooting. Klay Thompson joined Curry in the backcourt, nailing 3.5 deep bombs per game at a 42.5% clip while averaging 22.1 PPG overall. Draymond Green was a defensive monster and one of the best all-around players of the decade, coming close to a triple-double at 14.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG, and 7.4 APG. Harrison Barnes rounded out the Warriors core, a sweet-shooting wing who guarded the opposing team’s best perimeter option on offense.
The Warriors stormed the league, breaking the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls 72-10 regular season wins record, a feat many experts thought was impossible with the international depth that poured into the league in recent years, making the lowliest teams competitive. Golden State breezed through the Western Conference Playoffs and led 3 games to 1 against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Finals. However, they lost three in a row as LeBron James became a hero throughout Ohio.
Quick Summary: The Warriors were the best regular season team of all time with the best shooting backcourt in NBA history, and they were up 3 to 1 in the finals before losing at home.
That’s disappointing.
8. 2009-10 Cleveland Cavaliers
Regular Season Record: 61-21
Playoffs: Lost NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals (2-4) versus Boston Celtics
During the 2009-10 season, LeBron James was the number one player in the world. He averaged 29.7 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 8.6 APG, 1.6 SPG, and 1.0 BPG as he blitzed the league with his unstoppable rim assaults, top-5 passing ability, and excellent all-around defense. All-Star Mo Williams flanked LBJ, providing excellent floor-spacing throughout the season (42.9 2P%), and Antawn Jamison did his part as a smooth shooting power forward. Anderson Varejao, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and Shaquille O’Neal provided interior toughness, while Delonte West contributed vacuum scoring off the bench.
The well-rounded Cavs finished the regular season with the best record in the league and were heavy favorites to win it all. Cleveland took care of the Bulls in the First Round and entered the Eastern Conference Semifinals full of confidence. Then the Celtics overwhelmed LeBron James, forcing him into a series-high 27 turnovers and an ugly 106 Offensive Rating. Boston beat the Cavs in six games, and then during the offseason, James appeared on national TV to announce he was heading down to Miami, breaking Cleveland’s collective heart.
The Cavs fell from title front runners to lottery fodder in the span of three months.
7. 2013-14 New York Knicks
Regular Season: 37-45
Playoffs: Finished 9th in the Eastern Conference missing the postseason
The 2013-14 New York Knicks had everything needed to make a championship run. Carmelo Anthony, 29, was an in-his-prime superstar who commanded a double team whenever he got the ball within 15 feet of the basket. Amar’e Stoudemire, 31, was only a couple years removed from putting up over 25 points per game in the Big Apple and still had an explosive first step and solid finishing skills at the rim. Tyson Chandler was one of the premier rim protectors in the league, J. R. Smith was a talented offensive player brimming with confidence, and Raymond Felton was a solid playmaker.
Las Vegas predicted the Knicks would win 50 games. Instead, they flopped miserably. Carmelo Anthony played black hole offense, averaging only 3.1 assists per game despite having a 32.4% usage rate, and Stoudemire was a shell of his former self, his prior microfracture surgery catching up with him. The losses piled up, and the Knicks stopped trying halfway through the year, ending things with the 24th rated defense.
The Knicks finished 2013-14 eight games under .500 in a season they were predicted to make a title run.
6. 2004-05 Indiana Pacers
Regular Season Record: 44-38
Playoffs: Lost NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals (2-4) versus Detroit Pistons
The 2003-04 Pacers were 61-21 in the regular season, eventually losing in six games to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals. They came into 2004-05 looking to win their first title, and they had the pieces to go all the way.
Metta World Peace was one of the most talented two-way wings in the NBA, a Defensive Player of the Year who could connect from deep, play bully ball in the post, and get to the rack at will. Jermaine O’Neal was an All-Star center, second only to Dwight Howard as a rim protector. Stephen Jackson was a top-tier perimeter option who played excellent defense and could get his own shot at any time on offense. Reggie Miller, 39, was still on the team, providing his distinctive brand of outside shot-making.
The Pacers got seven games into the season before the “Malice at the Palace.” World Peace was suspended the entire season, and the Pacers also lost O’Neal and Jackson for a significant stretch. Indiana’s culture was crushed, and they stumbled through the season, ending 44-38 before submitting to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The Pacers could have easily won the 2005 title, but their title hopes were dashed on one doomed night in November.
5. 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks
Regular Season Record: 67-15
Playoffs: Lost NBA Western Conference First Round (2-4) versus Golden State Warriors
The 2006-07 Mavericks came into the regular season on a championship mission after blowing a 2-0 lead to the Miami Heat the previous year. Dallas was led by Dirk Nowitzki and Josh Howard in the frontcourt. Dirk destroyed the league, averaging 24.6 PPG off 41.6% from deep as he won the MVP Award. Josh Howard was one of the most talented wings in the NBA, a two-way beast who hounded opposing perimeter players on the less fun end and lived at the rack on offense. Jason Terry and Devin Harris formed an excellent starting backcourt. Terry averaged 16.7 PPG and shot 43.8% from beyond the arc, and Harris used his speed to get into the lane while bothering opposing point guards on defense.
The Dallas Mavericks blitzed the league, compiling one of the best regular season records of all time. They entered the postseason as the clear-cut front runners and watched as Baron Davis, Stephen Jackson, and the number 8 seeded Warriors destroyed them in six games.
The Mavs were the first number one seed to lose to a number eight seed in a best-of-seven series, putting the cherry on top of one of the most disappointing seasons in NBA history.
4. 2017-18 Oklahoma City Thunder
Regular Season: 48-34
Playoffs: Lost NBA Western Conference First Round (2-4) versus Utah Jazz
The Thunder landed Paul George during the 2017 offseason, sending Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to the Pacers in return. Carmelo Anthony came on board next, waiving his no-trade clause, allowing the New York Knicks to consummate a deal with the Thunder.
OKC had it all on paper.
Russell Westbrook was a former MVP point guard. Paul George was an All-Star two-way wing, while Carmelo Anthony was a ten-time offensive dynamo. Steven Adams provided excellent rim protection as the Thunder’s defensive anchor, Andre Roberson was a premier perimeter defender, and Jerami Grant was a young energizer.
Things never clicked. Paul George chafed at Russell Westbrook’s stat-padding, ball hoggery. Andre Roberson missed significant time with injury, and Carmelo Anthony struggled with his reduced role as the third man.
The Thunder slogged their way to a 48-34 regular-season record before getting trounced by the young Utah Jazz 2 to 4 in a disastrous First Round showing that saw Brodie (try to) take over as he built up a whopping 39.0 USG%. Paul George and Carmelo ended the 2018 playoffs standing around the perimeter throughout their last two games, hands on their hips, frowning.
The 2017-18 Thunder had championship aspirations but struggled throughout the season.
3. 2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers
Regular Season Record: 45-37
Playoffs: Lost NBA Western Conference First Round (0-4) versus San Antonio Spurs
After adding Steve Nash and Dwight Howard, the Lakers entered the 2012-13 season with championship or bust expectations.
Dwight Howard, 27, was in the middle of his prime, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year who was the most effective defender in the league, a one-man buzzsaw who provided generational weakside defense. Steve Nash was 38-years-old but had come off an excellent season with Phoenix the previous year, providing the best playmaking in the league, averaging 10.7 APG. The Lakers also had incumbents Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant, a two-time champion duo far from over the hill. Metta World Peace was still on the squad, and at 33, he was still a top-tier perimeter defender and bucket getter.
The Lakers ended the 2012-13 season eight games over .500, and they made the playoffs, but the season was a disaster. Dwight Howard saw himself as a dominant post-up center and bristled at his lack of paint touches. Steve Nash and Pau Gasol suffered through injuries, and World Peace lost a step on defense. Kobe Bryant, 34, famously played 38.6 minutes per game, doing his best to hold the Lakers together before tearing his Achilles during the final week of the regular season.
The Purple and Gold entered the postseason without their top-10 all-time leader and were promptly swept by the Spurs in the First Round, launching one of the most difficult stretches in Lakers’ history.
2. 1996-97 Houston Rockets
Regular Season Record: 57-25
Playoffs: Lost NBA Western Conference Finals (2-4) versus Utah Jazz
The 1996-97 Houston Rockets put together one of the most talented trios in NBA history.
Charles Barkley teamed up with Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler prior to the 1996 season, forming a Hall-of-Fame trio that most saw as the biggest threats to the Chicago Bulls championship throne since Michael Jordan began his postseason domination of the league.
Charles Barkley, 33, was ring-less and supposedly starved for a title, as hungry as a grizzly bear after waking up in its dark cave after hibernating for four months. Hakeem Olajuwon was the premier center of his generation, a dominant defender who confounded opposing big men on offense with his blend of mid-range shooting and rim slashes. Clyde Drexler was the best wing in the association, not named Michael Jordan, a player capable of carrying the offense who could also lock up his assignments on defense.
It turned out Charles Barkley was not dying for a title. He put up 19.2 PPG but was a step slow on defense. Hakeem, 34, put up monster numbers but was no longer the unstoppable two-way force of nature he once was, and Clyde Drexler, also 34, had moved past his prime, unable to consistently glide past his defender from the perimeter.
The Rockets finished the regular season with the fourth-best record in the league at 57-25, but their Big-3’s collective age caught up with them in the playoffs as the Utah Jazz took them down in the Western Conference Finals 4-2.
The following season Houston finished 41-41 as Charles Barkley watched his championship dreams wither and die.
1. 2021-22 Los Angeles Lakers
Regular Season Record: 31-48
Playoffs: 11th in the Western Conference and will miss the NBA Play-In
Purple and Gold have a collection of talent that is nearly impossible to assemble. LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwight Howard are all on the squad and future first-ballot Hall-of-Famers. Las Vegas looked over the Lakers’ historical roster and propped them up as the number two preseason betting favorite to hang a banner.
The Lakers responded by falling off a cliff, exploding in a ball of ill-fitting parts.
Russell Westbrook has been a disaster, a triangle that couldn’t (or wouldn’t) transform into the square the Lakers needed. Brodie will end this season as one of the ten worst players in the league while earning $44 million. LeBron James and Anthony Davis were in and out of the lineup throughout the year with varying injuries. Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony tried, but they’re so far over the hill, they’re at the bottom, shoes off, relaxing in the sun.
The Lakers have not only missed the playoffs, but they’re also outside the top-10 in the depleted Western Conference with a real shot at losing 50 games this season.
Five future Hall-of-Famers together on a fifty-loss squad!!!!!
The 2021-22 Lakers are the most disappointing team ever.
All The Talent In The World Can’t Guarantee Success
All the squads on our list featured talented rosters.
The 2013-14 Nets mortgaged their future to bring in two future Hall-of-Famers but couldn’t find success in the playoffs while the 2016 Warriors ruled the league but couldn’t hang a banner. The 2009-10 Cavs had the number one player in the world but lost in the semis, and the Knicks missed the playoffs altogether in 2014.
The 2017-18 Thunder had one of the premier trios in the league but lost in the First Round and the 2012-13 Lakers brought in Dwight Howard and Steve Nash to team up with Kobe and Pau, yet couldn’t make it to the Second Round of the playoffs. The 1996-97 Rockets were one of the league’s first superteams but lost in the Western Conference Finals.
The 2007 Mavs, 2005 Pacers, and 2022 Lakers finish off our rankings as the most disappointing teams in NBA history. All three teams were extremely talented but couldn’t make it work.
