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New York Knicks End 53-Year Title Drought With NBA Championship
The Knicks defeated their opponent to claim the NBA title on June 14, 2026. The win ends the longest championship drought among teams with multiple titles.
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The New York Knicks won the NBA championship on June 14, 2026, ending a 53-year title drought that began after their 1973 victory. The franchise last won the title in 1973, when a gallon of gas cost less than 50 cents and Richard Nixon was president.
An NBC News analysis of league data since the 1946-47 season found the Knicks had gone the longest without a championship among teams that already held at least two titles.
Ten current NBA franchises have never won a championship.
The Phoenix Suns, founded in 1968, have played 58 seasons without a title. The Los Angeles Clippers, established in 1970, have never reached the NBA Finals. Droughts of this length remain uncommon. The Milwaukee Bucks waited 50 years between titles from 1971 to 2021.
The Oklahoma City Thunder experienced a 46-year gap, and the Golden State Warriors went 40 years between their third and fourth championships.
Twenty-three back-to-back titles have been recorded, most recently by the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018. Ten additional titles came within two years of a team's previous win. The Boston Celtics captured nine titles during the 1960s alone. The Chicago Bulls won six championships from 1991 to 1998.
The Golden State Warriors secured four titles between 2015 and 2022. The Knicks remain one of three franchises that have existed since the league's first season in 1946.
