- Chris Paul has played 18 NBA seasons without winning an NBA championship
- There are 11 NBA All-Stars who have played at least 13 NBA seasons without winning an NBA championship
- Of the 11 players below to never win an NBA championship, only James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Derrick Rose have also won MVP
At the end of any NBA player’s career, we tend to look at two big factors when considering their careers a success or not. The first of those is going to be if they made enough money for themselves and their families heading into the future. Regardless of how their careers ended up on the court, being able to secure generational wealth is always going to be considered a success. As for their play on the court, the biggest deciding factor when labeling a player successful or not will inevitably be their ability to capture an NBA championship.
- T10. Gordon Hayward – 13 Seasons
- T10. Blake Griffin – 13 Seasons
- T10. Paul George – 13 Seasons
- T7. DeMar DeRozan – 14 Seasons
- T7. Derrick Rose – 14 Seasons
- T7. James Harden – 14 Seasons
- T4. Goran Dragic – 15 Seasons
- T4. Russell Westbrook – 15 Seasons
- T2. Mike Conley – 16 Seasons
- T2. Al Horford – 16 Seasons
- 1. Chris Paul – 18 Seasons
Of course, an NBA championship holds different weight for supposed leaders of a franchise or All-Stars as they are more commonly referred to. Being good enough to be an All-Star and All-NBA player but not being able to win a championship tends to come with more criticism than anything else. In the NBA today, there are 11 former NBA All-Stars who have played at least 13 seasons and failed to capture an NBA championship in their careers. Some of these players’ time is running out for that opportunity, while others still have a bit of time before panic mode sets in.
Today, we are going to talk about the 11 former NBA All-Stars who have yet to earn the title of NBA champion and the circumstances surrounding their droughts. We will also try and take a look into the future to see if there is any window of opportunity left for them to do so.
These are the longest-tenured NBA All-Stars who have never won a championship.
T10. Gordon Hayward – 13 Seasons
We kick things off with a trio of players who have put in 13 years of NBA service and have yet to be crowned NBA champions. The first of these former All-Stars is Gordon Hayward, who was the ninth overall pick to the Utah Jazz in 2010. Hayward has averaged 15.5 points and 4.5 rebounds over the course of his career, one that has been marred by freak injuries and overpaid contracts.
Hayward made his only All-Star appearance for the Utah Jazz back in 2017, averaging 21.9 points per game in 74 appearances. The following season, he would sign a contract with the Celtics in free agency, only to snap his leg five minutes into his debut and miss the entire 2018 season. Since that time, Hayward has appeared in 55 games just once with the Celtics and Hornets.
I guess we can’t say it was all bad, though. Hayward signed a four-year, $120 million deal back in 2020 that will pay him $31.5 million in 2023-24 and make him one of the most overpaid players next season. Hayward has never reached the playoffs in his three seasons with Charlotte and hasn’t been past the first round since 2018-19 with Boston. Hayward likely won’t win that elusive NBA title while with the Hornets, leaving him with a big decision in free agency in 2024-25.
T10. Blake Griffin – 13 Seasons
It is kind of incredible that Blake Griffin has been in the NBA only 13 seasons, considering when I watch him, it feels like he has been around forever. Griffin was the first overall pick in 2009 of the Los Angeles Clippers. After missing his entire first season with an injury, Griffin came back the next year with a vengeance. He would rattle off five straight All-Star selections averaging 21.5 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. Unfortunately, for many reasons, the Clippers couldn’t get out of their own way and never made it past the second round in Griffin’s eight seasons with the team.
As Griffin moved on to the Pistons and the Nets, He desperately was searching for a bench to ride to the NBA title. His game and health had deteriorated to the point where he could only play less than 15.0 minutes per night. In 2022-23, Griffin appeared in 41 games for the Celtics, averaging just 4.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. Griffin would have his best chance ever at a ring with the Celtics falling in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Miami Heat.
While his future in the NBA currently hangs in the balance, Griffin will perhaps get just one more chance for a championship in what is left of his career. The Boston Celtics have shown interest in bringing him back but it remains unclear if Griffin reciprocates those feelings.
T10. Paul George – 13 Seasons
When it comes to pure skill, Paul George is one of the most talented players in the game today. After the Pacers made him their 10th overall pick in 2010, George quickly blossomed into one of the best two-way players in the game, earning a total of eight All-Star appearances in his career. While with the Pacers from 2011 through 2017, George led them to back-to-back Conference Finals appearances in 2013 and 2014. Unfortunately for him, LeBron James was waiting and knocked off George and Indiana both times they got that far.
After two years of MVP-caliber play with the Thunder, George headed to the Clippers where he has earned two more All-Star appearances since 2020. In 2021, George gave the Clippers their best chance at an NBA Finals, leading them to the Western Conference Finals for the first time ever. He averaged 26.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.0 steals per game to do so before falling to Phoenix.
Since that time, both he and teammate Kawhi Leonard have struggled mightily with injuries that have prevented them from another deep playoff run. Time is running out for the Clippers, but George may have some gas left in the tank should they decide to move on anytime soon. The Clippers may have what it takes to compete but only if their $40 million men, Leonard, and George, are healthy and able to make an impact.
T7. DeMar DeRozan – 14 Seasons
As we move on to the NBA All-Stars with at least 14 seasons played in the NBA, there is another trio of stars awaiting even stronger than the last. Much like Paul George, DeMar DeRozan suffered a similar fate during his early career against LeBron James in the playoffs. In nine seasons with Toronto, DeRozan averaged 19.7 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. He would earn four of his six career All-Star appearances during that time as well and get the closest he has ever been to an NBA championship.
In 2015-16, DeRozan was able to lead his team to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time after two straight first-round exits. Like many before and after him, DeRozan fell to a LeBron James-led Cavaliers team that would go on to win the NBA championship that season. It was the only time DeRozan has ever been to a Conference Finals in his career. Over the last two seasons with the Chicago Bulls, DeRozan has made two more All-Star appearances but only one playoff appearance in 2022 which lasted just five games.
In my opinion, Chicago will not be the place for DeRozan to chase an NBA championship moving forward, and at 34 years old, there aren’t many chances left for him to get it done, either. Most likely, he will end up needing to join a contender toward the end of his career or hope Chicago does right by him and trades him to one.
T7. Derrick Rose – 14 Seasons
Early on in his career, Derrick Rose looked like he was well on his way to having one of the greatest careers by a point guard ever. He would earn his first All-Star selection in 2010, his second season in the NBA, and became the youngest MVP in NBA history in 2011. Rose would average 25.0 points and 7.7 assists per game that season before falling in the Conference Finals. During the 2012 playoffs, Rose would tear his ACL, completely altering the trajectory of his career forever.
Rose was never the same after his first knee injury, and things only got worse after his second injury in 2013-14. Since the injury, Rose has been with the Knicks, Cavaliers, Timberwolves, Pistons, and then the Knicks again. He has never returned to All-Star form and has been coming off the bench pretty much full-time since 2017. Other than the 2011 run to the Conference Finals, Rose has never been past the second round of the NBA playoffs on any stop in his career.
After two and a half seasons with the Knicks, Rose now finds himself a member of the Memphis Grizzlies. In a chance to showcase what he still has left off the bench, Rose could help the Grizzlies forget about their suspended point guard Ja Morant for the first 25 games of the season. As far as championship aspirations are concerned, Memphis has a ton of work to do in a loaded Western Conference after a first-round exit at the hands of the Lakers in 2023.
Of all the players on this list, I don’t think there is any one player that fans want to see win a championship more than Derrick Rose.
T7. James Harden – 14 Seasons
Of the six players left to cover, five of them have been to the NBA Finals before, and only two have been named MVPs. The first of those MVP award-winners is none other than James Harden. As a young man with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Harden was not yet the offensive juggernaut we know him as today at his peak. He was a Sixth Man of the Year in 2012 and made the only NBA Finals appearance of his career that season as well. Directly after that season, Harden would be traded to the Rockets, where he skyrocketed to among the NBA’s elite players in the game.
Among the three scoring titles and 2018 MVP win, Harden ran into the same issue consistently during the NBA playoffs. That issue was, of course, the dynasty Golden State Warriors. Every time that Harden inched close to earning another trip to the Finals Golden State was there to rip it out from under him, completely wiping away the 30.0 points per game he was automatic for from 2018 through 2020.
Heading into 2023-24, we are at a crossroads yet again with Harden, who is publicly feuding with Daryl Morey and the Philadelphia 76ers. If any player’s championship window is slamming shit at this very moment, it is James Harden. There may not be a team who wishes to welcome the kind of behavior he has exhibited over the last few years, forcing himself out of Houston, Brooklyn, and now Philadelphia.
T4. Goran Dragic – 15 Seasons
Prior to his 2018 All-Star season with the Miami Heat, Dragic was a middle-of-the-pack point guard who spent time with the Suns and Rockets. In the nine seasons he spent in Phoenix and Houston, he averaged 13.3 points, 4.8 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. In 2018, Dragic averaged 17.3 points and 4.8 assists to earn the only All-Star selection to speak of.
In 2020, Dragic would have his best season, helping lead the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, Dragic would spend most of the series hobbled and unable to perform at the high level he had up until that point. Following his time with the Heat, Dragic spent some time with the Raptors and Nets but still failed to even comes close to an NBA championship.
In 2022-23, Dragic would split time with the Bulls and Bucks, appearing in seven regular season games for Milwaukee and two of their first-round playoff games against the Heat. Milwaukee would drop that series to Miami, and Dragic missed out on another opportunity at making a title run.
In order for Goran Dragic to have any chance at an NBA championship, he will have to ring chase with the best of them and land on a contender like Miami again, Denver, or Boston to even think about grabbing that elusive NBA title.
T4. Russell Westbrook – 15 Seasons
At the beginning of this article, I mentioned the fact that there are three former MVPs on this list of All-Stars to never win an NBA championship. The final one of those MVP winners is Russell Westbrook, who has become one of the greatest all-around point guards in NBA history. At his peak, he was a walking triple-double who would shatter Oscar Robertson’s all-time record in the blink of an eye. Unfortunately, his lack of an NBA championship has invited far too many trolls to weigh in on his career.
Westbrook sure did have his fair chances to deliver that championship in the past. He helped lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to the 2012 NBA Finals, and nearly went back with the Thunder in 2016 but lost to the Warriors in seven games in the Conference Finals.
Nowadays, the only chance Westbrook has of getting back to the Finals and winning that championship would be in a slightly diminished role, perhaps off the bench with a playoff contender. He will do just that with the Clippers again in 2023-24, just as he ended the 2022-23 season when he finished the season strong despite the performance coming in a loss to the Phoenix Suns. What a fairytale ending that would be to help a franchise capture its first NBA championship.
T2. Mike Conley – 16 Seasons
For what felt like decades but was only half that, Mike Conley was the most underrated point guard in the NBA. It took him 14 seasons to earn his first All-Star appearance with the Utah Jazz despite 12 seasons of elite service to the Memphis Grizzlies. Conley played from 2008 through 2019 with the Grizzlies where he averaged 14.9 points, 5.7 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. In 2013, he took on a pivotal role with a Memphis team that advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals for the first and only time in team history, which is the closest he ever came to the NBA Finals.
In 2021, Conley would earn his first and only All-Star appearance averaging 16.2 points, 6.0 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. Since that time, Conley has been on some teams looking to rebuild, like the Jazz, and a team trying to get over the proverbial hump in the Timberwolves.
At 36 years old, Conley most likely has just one or two seasons left to seriously chase an NBA championship. Whether that is with the Timberwolves or somewhere else remains to be seen. He is only under contract for one more season with Minnesota before he can make the decision to really chase that ring with a contender, or go somewhere else for one last decent paycheck.
T2. Al Horford – 16 Seasons
If you ask any teammate he has had in his career, they will all say that Al Horford is the best veteran presence anyone could ask for in the locker room. It has been that way since he debuted with the Atlanta Hawks back in 2007-08. Horford would earn four of his five career All-Star selections with the Hawks during the first nine seasons of his career, with his last selection coming in 2018 with the Celtics.
At 35 years old, Horford anchored a Celtics defense that was the best in the NBA en route to the first NBA Finals appearance of his career. Horford and the Celtics would fall to the Warriors in six games, spoiling the only chance he has ever had at a ring.
Now age 37, Horford’s best chance to win a championship may just be to remain in Boston and hope they can get themselves over the hum in the next two years. Even in his older age, Horford showed in 2023 that he can still take the game’s best big men off their game enough to win a playoff series. If you don’t believe me, tell me how Joel Embiid’s playoff run ended in 2023.
1. Chris Paul – 18 Seasons
Of all the active NBA All-Stars to never win an NBA championship, Chris Paul is by far the most polarizing of the group. There are fans that absolutely adore what he has meant to the game for nearly two decades, while many despise his antics and “dirty” play on the court. The fact is, Paul has been one of the game’s best point guards ever over the last 18 seasons with the Hornets, Clippers, Thunder, Rockets, Suns, and soon-to-be the Warriors.
Every team Paul has been a part of has gotten better due to his leadership and the way he runs the offense. His defensive skills have rubbed off on teammates as well, and big men always seem to have career seasons with Paul as their point guard.
In 18 NBA seasons, Paul has been an All-Star 12 times as well as an 11-time All-NBA Team selection, five-time assists champ, and six-time steals champ. Despite all of this, Paul has rarely been able to play meaningful games in his career, whether it be due to injuries or other circumstances preventing him from doing so.
In 2021, Paul helped the Suns reach the NBA Finals for the first time in his career. After building a 2-0 series lead, the Suns collapsed and relinquished the championship to Milwaukee in six games.
After two disappointing seasons with Phoenix, Paul is now headed to the Golden State Warriors in the most shocking deal of the entire 2023 offseason. I can’t think of too many other places Paul would rather be if he truly wants to go after an NBA championship again in his career. Are the Warriors built for one more run to help Chris Paul get that missing piece of his legacy? I would never count them out on their worst day, and adding Chris Paul drives that point home even further.
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