Greatest Players Who Never Won a Championship

Juan Marichal was one of the MLB’s top pitchers in the 1960s, making eight straight All-Star teams from 1962 to 1969 for the San Francisco Giants. Marichal mostly played in an era when only two teams, the American and National League champions, made the postseason. San Francisco made the playoffs twice in Marichal’s Hall of Fame career, losing the 1962 World Series to the Yankees in seven games and losing the 1971 NLCS to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

With over 15,000 receiving yards in his career, Tony Gonzalez is far and away the most productive tight end in NFL history. He made 14 Pro Bowls, earned six All-Pro designations, and was a first-ballot NFL Hall of Famer. But in a team sport like football, he could only do so much. Gonzalez was on six playoff teams — three as a Kansas City Chief and three as an Atlanta Falcon. He was only part of one playoff victory, in 2012 as an Atlanta Falcon at age 36.

Twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin were drafted with back-to-back picks in 1999 and played together for 17 seasons as Vancouver Canucks. Both made two All-Star teams and each earned a Ross Trophy as the NHL’s top scorer — Henrik in 2010 and Daniel in 2011. Henrik was the only one to also receive the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP. The Sedin twins made 11 playoff appearances, coming closest to winning the Stanley Cup in 2011, but losing a seven-game final to the Boston Bruins. Though they never hoisted the Stanley Cup, the Sedins did win Olympic gold medals as members of Sweden’s 2006 championship team.

Ichiro Suzuki was an instant success coming from Japan to the Seattle Mariners in 2001. He was one of the greatest rookies of all time, earning Rookie of the Year and AL MVP honors. The Mariners won a staggering 116 games that season but lost in the ALCS to the New York Yankees. Suzuki would make the All-Star team and win a Gold Glove each of his first 10 seasons but fail to make his second postseason appearance until 2012, when he was a member of the Yankees. Suzuki again lost in the ALCS — the last playoff appearance of his career.

Dominique Wilkins was an exciting player, winning two Slam Dunk contests. He was also a terrific scorer, averaging nearly 25 points per game in his career. Wilkins spent nearly all of his Hall of Fame career with the Atlanta Hawks — a historically downtrodden franchise that has not won an NBA championship since the 1950s, when it was located in St. Louis. Wilkins played well in the postseason, but his team could never make it past the second round of the playoffs.