NBA Teams That Have Never Been To The Conference Finals

Have the Hornets ever been to the Finals and the answer is NO! The Charlotte Hornets have not made it to the NBA Finals in 33 seasons.

Since the team’s establishment in 1988, the Hornets have not even made it to the Conference Finals. The Hornets are members of the Eastern Conference.

Out of the ten playoff appearances they have made to date, Charlotte has advanced to the Conference Semifinals on four occasions in 1993, 1998, 2001, and 2002.

The Hornets have always been outplayed in the playoffs and the Conference Semifinals. The one that haunts them the most would be the 2021 Semifinals where they were leading the Bucks 3-2. 

They only needed one win to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals but ended up losing both the remaining games as the Bucks ultimately won the series 4-3.

In the 2002 Conference Semifinals appearance, Charlotte lost to Brooklyn Nets 4-1. It was the last time they at least reached the Semi-Finals.

They were inactive for the next two seasons. After returning to the NBA, the Hornets have qualified for the playoffs in 2010, 2014, and 2016.

The Pelicans have not made an NBA Finals appearance in 21 seasons. Their best regular season was in 2007-08 when they had a 56-26 record.

The Pelicans and the Hornets are the only two teams in NBA that have never made it to the Conference Finals in its history. New Orleans Pelicans are members of the Western Conference.

New Orleans is relatively a young team that was established in 2002. They have qualified for the playoffs eight times, with the first appearance coming in their inaugural season.

The Pelicans have made it past the First Round of the playoffs on two occasions in 2008 and 2018. They have not made it past the First Round six times and their last playoff appearance came in 2022.

The 2008 Conference Semifinals was a close one where the Pelicans lost the series 3-4 to San Antonio Spurs. They were 2-0 up in the series and Spurs leveled it at 2-2. The Pelicans once again took the lead and were up 3-2.

The Pelicans lost Game 6 with a 19-point margin and followed up with another loss and ultimately ended up losing the crucial series by 3-4. 

Los Angeles Clippers are one of the NBA teams that have never been to the Finals. They have gone 53 seasons without a Finals appearance.

The Clippers were established in 1970 and were previously known as the Buffalo Braves (1970-78), San Diego Clippers (1978-84), and the Los Angeles Clippers since 1984.

They have made 17 playoff appearances and have lost 9 Conference Semifinals. Even with the likes of Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, and Kawhi Leonard, among other notables, the Clippers never it to the Championship game.

The Clippers are members of the Western Conference and their best-ever season to date in 2021 when they reached the Conference Finals.

They won the First Round against the Mavericks 4-3 and headed to the Semifinals with a match-up with the Utah Jazz. They won the series 4-2 and reached the Conference Finals.

Next up were Pheonix Suns for the Conference Finals. Los Angeles Clippers were down 1-3, made it 2-3, and eventually lost the series 2-4.

Memphis Grizzlies have not made an NBA Finals appearance in 28 seasons. Previously known as Vancouver Grizzlies, they were founded in 1995.

They qualified for their first playoffs in 2004, and since then, have made 12 more appearances. Memphis Grizzlies are members of the Western Conference and have won two Division Titles in 2022 and 2023.

Memphis have lost three Western Conference Semifinals and their best season has been in 2013. All the other playoff berths have resulted in them losing in the First Round.

In 2013, they beat the Clippers 4-2 to advance to the Semifinals. They then beat Oklahoma City Thunder 4-1 and later faced the Spurs in the Conference Finals.

The Western Conference Finals was decided in four straight games as the Spurs, who also happen to be one of their biggest rivals, beat the Grizzlies 4-0.

The Timberwolves are among the five teams that have never made a Finals appearance. They have the second-longest drought in NBA history. 

Since its establishment in 1989, Minnesota Timberwolves have been members of the Western Conference. They have one Division Title to their name which they won in 2004.

The team from Minneapolis has made 11 playoff appearances in its history. They made eight straight playoff appearances from 1997-2004 and also reached the Conference Finals in 2004.

After seven straight First Round eliminations, they finally qualified for the Semifinals in 2004 and beat the Sacramento Kings 4-3. They reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time and also happens to be the last, which they lost 2-4 against the Lakers.

Kevin Garnett was awarded the regular season MVP in 2004 but could not help the Minnesota Timberwolves in reaching the NBA Finals.