It goes like this: These are the 13 Best Pro Sports teams that failed to win it all.
The unlucky 13 just missing the cut:
1996 Seattle Supersonics,
1983 Washington Redskins,
2003 Sacramento Kings,
1984 Miami Dolphins,
'61-'62 Philadelphia Warriors,
1979 San Diego Chargers,
'95-'96 Detroit Red Wings,
1938 Toronto Maple Leafs,
'79-'80 Philadelphia Flyers,
'03-'04 Los Angeles Lakers,
1946 Boston Red Sox,
1931 Philadelphia Athletics,
1976 Pittsburgh Steelers
13: 1993 Phoenix Suns - The Suns added Charles Barkley to a deep team with loads of talent in the fierce Western Conference and it was on. Barkley won the MVP, the Suns tore up the West and then ran into MJ. Yet the Suns still gave the Bulls all they could handle and if not for a few teensy breaks, very well could have won that series. But now Charles can quietly simmer as Kenny and Magic flash their bling on the TNT set while he can continue to have nightmares starring John Paxson.
12: 1988 Oakland A's - The 104 win A's should have been a dynasty. They had power (Bash brothers), they had pitching (Dave Stewart and Bob Welch) and they were facing the punchless Los Angeles Dodgers. Kirk Gibson changed the whole series on one hobbled swing and despite the A's winning game 2, the series had all the wind stolen from its sails for the A's.
11: 1998 Utah Jazz - Stockton to Malone, just like the '93 Suns ran into the juggernaut known as Michael Jordan. They gave him his money's worth, though. The most prolific combo in sports history had it's chance two years in a row but in '98 they seemed better prepared. It didn't matter. The '98 Jazz would have won a title in most any other NBA season.
10: 1969 Baltimore Orioles - The 109 win Orioles should have been a dynasty and a half. Sure enough, they were a force to be reckoned with as long as Earl Weaver was coach and Jim Palmer (who was the #4 starter on the '69 team) was on the staff. But these Orioles choked away a sure-fire set of rings. They were certainly more talented and better seasoned but just ran into a hot team at the same time they turned frigid. It was more shocking than it was an upset as the Mets were a 100-win team in their own right, but the Orioles, loaded with future Hall of Fame players should have left the 60's and 70's with more than a mere two championships.
9: 1999-2000 Portland Trailblazers - This team was stacked to the gills in talent and had home court plus a 12 point lead over the Los Angeles Lakers yet still managed to end up with nothing but heartache to show for it. Easily one of the most heartbreaking collapses in sports history. But the Blazers should have never been in that position to begin with as they had ample opportunities to seal the Lakers fate instead of their own.
8: Early 90's Buffalo Bills - It's one thing to lose a Championship. It's quite another to lose it four years in a row. It takes a special team to repeat as Conference champs after losing a Super Bowl. it's quite another to do that three more times. They lost the first one on the closest kick in Super Bowl history and they lost the other three in games that really were closer than the scores indicate. The 90's Bills were stacked with Hall of Fame caliber players and really deserved to have something show for their efforts other than losses.
7: '92-'93 Pittsburgh Penguins - They finished the season with a meager tie... that is, after setting an NHL record by winning 17 straight games. Perhaps their late season run and their pride wore them down as they lost in the second round of the playoffs. Sure, they won two Stanley Cups in the prior two seasons but the '92-'93 team was certainly the most talented version. It is perhaps the last team we'll ever see with four 100+ point scorers on one roster (Mario Lemieux, Kevin Stevens, Rich Tocchet, Ron Francis) while rookie Jaromir Jagr had a mere 94 points.
6: 1954 Cleveland Indians - Some people have been fooled into thinking Willie Mays' over the shoulder catch at the Polo Grounds in the 11954 World Series is the greatest catch in baseball history. The throw was actually MORE impressive, but it wasn't the catch that was the most spectacular thing about that play, it was the impact it had on the Series. Vic Wertz's drive into centerfield should have been a game winning hit in Game one for the 111-win Tribe. Instead, it was an out and the game was won on a HR that traveled half as far. Much like the '88 World Series, the entire Series' momentum was crushed in one swing.
5: 2001 Seattle Mariners - Setting an AL record and tying the MLB record with 116 wins, the Mariners were led by Ichiro Suzuki and extraordinary teamwork (and a lot of luck, as Pythagorean shows) in posting their best season ever. They did it without superstars like Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey or Randy Johnson. They also lost for the second straight season to the Yankees. In the year where Jeter made the flip and earned the name Mr. November, it was the Yankees defeat of the vaunted Mariners that history overlooks - and was the most impressive feat by the '01 Yanks, hands down.
4: 1998 Minnesota Vikings - 15-1, home field advantage and they should have, could have, would have won the NFC Championship game if only their perfect-all-season-long kicker could chip a simple field goal through to seal it. No! Does anyone really think the Vikings wouldn't have beaten the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl instead of the Falcons getting trounced?
3: '06 Chicago Cubs - That's the 1906 Cubs. After winning the NL handily with a record 116 wins (and a mere 36 losses) the Cubs choked away the freshly minted Fall Classic to their crosstown brothers the White Sox. The Cubs would semi-redeem themselves the next two seasons but the '06 team was by far the best Cubs team ever, regardless of record.
2: 1968 Baltimore Colts - The New York Jets had nothing but a slim shot and tremendous confidence. There's no reason this game should have even been close. The normally efficient Earl Morrall was ineffective and an aged Johnny Unitas almost made the Jets a minor footnote in the annals of history. Instead, Joe Namath rode a terrorizing defense and some quality panache as his ticket into the Hall of Fame. Don Shula's Colts weren't just favored to win, they should have destroyed the Jets just like every other team but one they faced that season. The Colts held eleven opponents to 10 points or less in 1968 and scored less than 20 points only one other game until they faced the Jets.
1: 2007 New England Patriots - When you go undefeated all season - handily - and throughout the playoffs before losing the biggest game on a freak play by a shaky QB not known for his clutchness (Eli Manning) and it makes a household name out of a no one (David Tyree), you choked your way to the bottom of this list. Long forgotten are all the many opportunities the Pats had to put this game away. Perhaps an otherwise meaningless loss in the regular season might have led to a championship instead.