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Unfortunately for some, NBA superstars are mostly classified into two groups: those who have won NBA championships and those who failed to do so during their playing careers or are already at the tail-end and haven't done it.
In today's NBA, there are some emblematic cases of superstars who have been unable to lead their franchises to NBA titles, whether it happened due to simply playing against better teams, inability in big moments, or injuries, the fact is the same.
Nikola Jokic is the latest NBA superstar to get rid of the 'superstar without rings' label that was recently starting to be put next to his name.
Unfortunately for them, there are several superstars, including some who are already past their primes, that have not touched the Larry O'Brien trophy and tasted NBA championship champagne.
In this article, we will give you the five-best active players who have not won an NBA championship in their careers. Players who are in the early stages of their careers but are already turning into stars, such as Luka Doncic, Trae Young or Anthony Edwards, will naturally not be considered.
Without further ado, let us start.
#5 Paul George
Paul George has been in the NBA since the start of the 2010-11 campaign and has played for three different franchises. Even though his NBA Playoffs career has been large, with 108 postseason games, he has not been to the NBA Finals yet.
George has career averages of 20.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in the regular season.
In the NBA Playoffs, "PG13" averages 21.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game with 42/35/82 shooting splits.
He has appeared in the Conference Finals three times in his career, a couple of times with the Indiana Pacers and once with the LA Clippers in 2021.
#4 Carmelo Anthony
Carmelo Anthony will have a great shot at an NBA championship in 2022 if the experience-laden LA Lakers manage to stay healthy and learn to play with each other effectively. It might be Anthony's last chance, however, as he is 37 and heading into his 19th NBA season.
Though LeBron James will also be 37 in December and in his 19th season, he can still be considered as an elite talent in the league, while Anthony's role has declined, naturally.
Anthony has been in the NBA since 2003 and has already put up 27,370 career points, gone to 10 All-Star games, has been selected to the All-NBA team six times and won a scoring title.
However, Anthony has not won an NBA title, and the closest he got to the NBA Finals was the 2009 Western Conference Finals, a stage he reached with the Denver Nuggets.
Anthony averages 23 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game in his career with 44/35/81 shooting splits.
Also check out: James Harden Contract Breakdown
#3 Chris Paul
Chris Paul's chances to win the 2021 NBA championship were put to bed when the Milwaukee Bucks stormed to beat the Phoenix Suns in a six-game NBA Finals series. The 38-year-old guard had a stellar run in his first year with Phoenix and helped the squad reach the NBA Finals.
After grabbing a 2-0 lead over Giannis and company, the Suns could not hold on.
Paul, an 11-time All-Star, might've seen his best chance of winning an NBA championship as a team leader go by, but not many would bet against him finding a way to success in the upcoming seasons.
CP3 has played 129 postseason games and has averaged 20.7 points, 8.3 assists and five rebounds per game in his NBA Playoffs career.
#2 Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook is another veteran who will be looking to grab his first NBA championship with the LA Clippers in the 2022-23 NBA season, and this might be his best chance in years.
Opposed to Carmelo Anthony's case, Russell Westbrook will be one of the main players on the LA Clippers' roster in the 2023-24 NBA season as the 34-year-old is still in his prime (nearing the end of it).
A former MVP and a player who averaged a triple-double for the entire season in four of the past five campaigns, Westbrook has a 'can't win' tag put on his name. Whether he can change that while playing alongside James Harden and Paul George is yet to be seen, but the Clippers are one of the dark horses in the championship mix for the 2023-24 season.
Westbrook has played 111 postseason games in his career and has averages of 24.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game in the NBA Playoffs.
#1 James Harden
James Harden started the 2021 NBA Playoffs possibly looking at his best chance to finally win an elusive NBA championship. But it all ended in the second round of the NBA Playoffs against the eventual champions Milwaukee Bucks.
Harden has had some failures in the NBA Playoffs where he did not play at his level for his team and saw his chances end before the NBA Finals. He did have a chance to grab an NBA championship early in his career (as a sixth man), when he was a teammate to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook in the OKC Thunder, but lost the 2012 NBA Finals against the 'Big Three' Miami Heat.
'The Beard' ran into some trouble with the Houston Rockets and had some tough losses and bad outings with the franchise. He played in a couple of Western Conference Finals as the Rockets' leader, but his team could not get past the Golden State Warriors both times.
In his NBA Playoffs career, Harden averages 23.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and six assists per game (137 appearances) with 42/33/86 shooting splits.
