Newly retired, Chris Paul is a candidate for a place in the Top 5 of the greatest players in history who have never won the NBA title.
The Uncrowned Kings: Ranking NBA Greats Without a Championship
A look at the legends whose careers, despite individual brilliance, lack the ultimate prize.
- Chris Paul’s recent retirement sparks debate about the greatest players to never win a title.
- John Stockton and Karl Malone top the list, defined by their enduring partnership and playoff heartbreak.
- Several MVPs, including Allen Iverson and Charles Barkley, fall into this category, highlighting the difficulty of championship success.
- Elgin Baylor’s individual dominance was consistently overshadowed by the success of rivals like Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain.
- Patrick Ewing came agonizingly close in 1994, but injuries and the dominance of Michael Jordan ultimately denied him a ring.
5: Allen Iverson
“The Answer” remains one of the few Most Valuable Players who never lifted the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. The year 2001 stands as his defining moment, earning the MVP award and leading a thrilling run to the NBA Finals. There, he faced the seemingly unbeatable Los Angeles Lakers, led by Shaq, becoming the only player to win a game against them throughout the entire playoffs. Despite averaging an incredible 35.6 points in the Finals, Iverson’s team ultimately fell short, leaving a notable void in his otherwise spectacular career.
4: Patrick Ewing
Often described as a player born in the wrong era, Patrick Ewing was instrumental in the revival of the New York Knicks. Though some might argue he’d have been better served avoiding certain franchise decisions, he came closer to a championship than many on this list. In 1994, he played in a hard-fought Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the Houston Rockets, after years of battling Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls. An injury during the 1999 Finals return prevented him from securing the elusive title, and a subsequent trade sent him elsewhere.
3: Charles Barkley
Known as “The Round Mound of Rebound,” Charles Barkley was a force of nature and a 1993 MVP. This came the year after his participation in the celebrated “Dream Team” and coincided with the NBA’s growing international appeal. He was a prominent face of this expansion, even challenging Michael Jordan in a memorable Finals series. Despite playing alongside numerous Hall of Famers—Moses Malone, Julius Erving, and Hakeem Olajuwon among them—Barkley never achieved championship glory.
2: Elgin Baylor
Many consider Elgin Baylor the unluckiest player in NBA history. His individual brilliance was undeniable, yet he was denied the 1962 MVP award despite averaging a remarkable 38 points per game, largely due to the dominance of Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. Baylor recorded games of 71 and 61 points, the latter still a Finals record, but he retired at the start of the 1971-1972 season—the very season the Lakers finally won the championship. With a career average of 27.4 points, Baylor profoundly influenced legends like Julius Erving and Michael Jordan, but a championship ring remained out of reach.
1: John Stockton + Karl Malone
Inseparable. John Stockton, the NBA’s all-time leader in assists and steals, and Karl Malone, the league’s third-highest scorer and a two-time MVP, formed a dynamic duo for 18 years. Their partnership, built on the pick-and-roll and relentless physicality, transformed the Utah Jazz from a struggling franchise into a perennial contender. However, they repeatedly encountered the roadblock of Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, falling to them in the 1997 and 1998 Finals by 4-2 margins—including the infamous “Flu Game” and Jordan’s second retirement. After their partnership dissolved in 2003, Malone attempted a final run with the Lakers, but success eluded him. Their legacies are inextricably linked; one cannot be mentioned without the other.
It’s over for Chris Paul. A somber end for one of the greatest leaders the NBA has ever seen, ranking second in both assists and steals. His Hall of Fame induction is assured, but a championship ring—so close in 2021 when the Phoenix Suns led the Finals 2-0 before a stunning collapse—remains absent. This doesn’t diminish his greatness, but in retrospect, it signaled the beginning of the end. Whether he truly belongs in the Top 5 of all-time greats without a title is debatable.
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