New York's Title Needs An Asterisk

The 2026 Finals winner joins an exclusive club of asterisked NBA champions

Jun 18, 2026

The New York Knicks won the 2025-26 NBA Championship on Saturday night, the first in 53 years.

But in the history books, the title should carry an asterisk.

With so much help on their side, the Knicks join a short group of champions that warrant an asterisk on their name.

Here’s the definitive list of titles that deserve to be asterisked due to their illegitimate, unfair or excessively lucky circumstances that drove their run, ranked in chronological order.

Sorry, Knicks fans. This had to be done.

2026 NBA champions: New York Knicks*

Asterisk reason: They ducked the best team. The reigning champs*, the OKC Thunder, won a league-high 64 games in the regular season but got snakebit by injuries in the West Finals, losing Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell. Did I mention Jalen Brunson is 0-6 against the Thunder since 2023-24? They’re lucky it’s not 0-10 right now. Instead, the Knicks faced a Finals team full of 20-year-olds with almost no playoff experience, the San Antonio Spurs. Not a real title.

2025 NBA champions: Oklahoma City Thunder*

Asterisk reason: In Game 7, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles with the game tied 16-16 in the first quarter. Without the most clutch player of the 2024-25 season, the Pacers would go on to lose by 12. Asterisk. Also, Aaron Gordon played on one hamstring and Ja Morant got hurt in Game 3.

2024 NBA champions: Boston Celtics*

Asterisk reason: Noted Celtics killer Jimmy Butler, who ended Boston’s postseason run the year before, missed the opening round with a knee injury. In the following round, Cavs All-Star center Jarrett Allen missed the entire series while Cavs star Donovan Mitchell was sidelined for half the series with an ankle injury. Tyrese Haliburton injured his hamstring in Game 2, knocking him out for the rest of the series. How many breaks does one team need?

2023 NBA champions: Denver Nuggets*

Asterisk reason: Faced a Play-in team in the NBA Finals. ‘Nuff said.

2022 NBA champions: Golden State Warriors*

Asterisk reason: A checkbook title. No Jamal Murray in the first round. No Ja Morant after Game 3 in the second round. Also, Jordan Poole turned into Kobe Bryant for a few weeks which doesn’t seem fair.

2021 NBA champions: Milwaukee Bucks*

Asterisk reason: According to NBA’s foremost scholar Jeff Teague, Giannis Antetokounmpo’s brother Thanasis made “a magical COVID recovery” during the Finals, evaded the COVID protocols and helped stabilize his brother en route to Finals MVP. Which was made easier considering Suns opponent Chris Paul was playing the series with one hand, requiring surgery on his left wrist in the offseason.

2020 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: No fans. No travel. No credibility. Just ask Alex Caruso himself!

2019 NBA champions: Toronto Raptors*

Asterisk reason: Kevin Durant ruptured his Achilles tendon in Game 5 and Klay Thompson tore his ACL in Game 6. Kawhi Leonard rested all season and a timely gust of wind at the end of Game 7 against Philadelphia 76ers nudged the ball just enough to fall in the basket. Unfair.

2018 NBA champions: Golden State Warriors*

Asterisk reason: LeBron James “pretty much” broke his hand. Chris Paul’s hamstring popped. And if that’s not enough, the Game 7 referee audit produced by the Houston Rockets that showed 81 potential missed calls that cost the Rockets 18.6 points. Fraudulent championship, certified by accountants.

2017 NBA champions: Golden State Warriors*

Asterisk reason: Kawhi Leonard landed on Zaza Pachulia’s foot while up 23 in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals and Leonard never played again. But mostly: Kevin Durant joined a 73-9 team because of a cap spike. Scandalous.

2016 NBA champions: Cleveland Cavaliers*

Asterisk reason: Draymond Green got suspended in a potential clinching Game 5 for things he did two months prior and Stephen Curry might have been hobbled and Harrison Barnes missed several very open shots. Stars aligned a little too well, don’t you think?

2015 NBA champions: Golden State Warriors*

Asterisk reason: Did Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving even play in the Finals? Also, James Harden tallied 12 turnovers in the Western Conference finals-clinching loss in Game 5, but it’s unclear what another referee audit might uncover. Very questionable circumstances.

2014 NBA champions: San Antonio Spurs*

Asterisk reason: In Game 1 of the NBA Finals in San Antonio, the Spurs’ home arena’s air conditioning “malfunctioned” due to electrical failure and LeBron had to be carried off the floor due to leg cramps. Spurs won Game 1 by 15. Need I say more?

2013 NBA champions: Miami Heat*

Asterisk reason: Reigning 2012 Western Conference champs traded away future MVP James Harden before the season and lost Russell Westbrook to injury when Patrick Beverley needlessly collided with him in the first round of the playoffs, paving the way for the Heat to repeat. Invalid.

2012 NBA champions: Miami Heat*

Asterisk reason: Lockout season, broken bodies. Derrick Rose tore his ACL and Joakim Noah injured his foot, torpedoing the No. 1-seeded Chicago Bulls’ season. Thus, the No. 2-seeded Heat cruise by default and take down the up-and-coming Thunder that never fully arrived. Lucky LeBron.

2011 NBA champions: Dallas Mavericks*

Asterisk reason: They played a lot of zone. Unsportsmanlike conduct. Penalty: title vacated along with dignity.

2010 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: In Game 7, the Lakers took 21 free throws in the fourth quarter while the Celtics took 17 all game. You tell me.

2009 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: Kobe Bryant dodges LeBron James yet again. King James averaged 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.0 assists for the 66-win Cavs in the Eastern Conference finals, and somehow it wasn’t enough. Of the 229 individual opponents that Kobe faced at least 20 times in his career, Kobe’s lowest win percentage came against LeBron, losing 6 of his 22 games against the four-time MVP, per Basketball Reference. Kobe and the Lakers faced Dwight Howard instead. Lakers catch another break.

2008 NBA champions: Boston Celtics*

Asterisk reason: Celtics legend Kevin McHale called up his former Celtics teammate Danny Ainge and traded him Kevin Garnett in his prime. Luck of the Irish, I guess.

2007 NBA champions: San Antonio Spurs*

Asterisk reason: Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw -- both in their primes, were suspended for a pivotal Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals for stepping onto the floor at the wrong time. The Spurs go on to face a 50-win team in the Finals. An asterisk among asterisks.

2006 NBA champions: Miami Heat*

Asterisk reason: The disparity in free throw totals were so egregious in the Finals, Mavs owner Mark Cuban reportedly put a former FBI agent on the case. Moving on...

2005 NBA champions: San Antonio Spurs*

Asterisk reason: The league expanded from 29 to 30 teams. Diluted title.

2004 NBA champions: Detroit Pistons*

Asterisk reason: After averaging 18 points in the first round of the playoffs, Los Angeles Lakers forward Karl Malone’s knee imploded by the NBA Finals. David beats Goliath, but if only Goliath had no knees left.

2003 NBA champions: San Antonio Spurs*

Asterisk reason: If a tree falls in the forest and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound?

2002 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: Ask the Sacramento Kings.

2001 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: The Lakers lost both games to Ray Allen and the top-scoring Milwaukee Bucks in the regular season, which is notable because Allen all but said the Bucks-Sixers Eastern Conference finals was rigged so the NBA could get regular-season MVP Allen Iverson and Philadelphia in the Finals against the Lakers. Bucks fans have already asterisked this one for years.

2000 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: The referees swallowed the whistle when Shaquille O’Neal drilled Steve Smith in the lane in the closing seconds of Game 7 of the epic Blazers-Lakers Western Conference finals. (Smith has thoughts). Shaq-sized asterisk.

1999 NBA champions: San Antonio Spurs*

Asterisk reason: Lockout season. Doesn’t count.

1998 NBA champions: Chicago Bulls*

Asterisk reason: MJ pushed off.

1997 NBA champions: Chicago Bulls*

Asterisk reason: Voters got bored and gave Karl Malone the MVP and thereby gave life to Michael Jordan’s vengeful loins. Also, Scottie Pippen grabbed the rim. Tarnished title.

1996 NBA champions: Chicago Bulls*

Asterisk reason: Adding the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies this season diluted the overall talent pool for Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls to feast on. But the real reason for this asterisk is two-time All-Defense member Nate McMillan’s back. If it doesn’t turn to mush, this is Sonics in six, not the Bulls. The franchise isn’t the only thing stolen from Seattle.

1995 NBA champions: Houston Rockets*

Asterisk reason: Michael Jordan was playing golf.

1994 NBA champions: Houston Rockets*

Asterisk reason: Michael Jordan was playing baseball.

1993 NBA champions: Chicago Bulls*

Asterisk reason: Voters got bored (again) and gave Charles Barkley the MVP and thereby gave life to MJ’s vengeful loins. Jordan inexplicably finished third in MVP that year. The real voter fraud that no one is talking about.

1992 NBA champions: Chicago Bulls*

Asterisk reason: Arvydas Sabonis, arguably the best basketball player in the world not named Michael Jordan at the time, was in his prime playing for Real Madrid instead of the Blazers who had drafted him in 1986. If Sabas didn’t wait until 1995 to join the NBA, this is a very different 1992 Finals battle between the Blazers and Bulls. Call it the Arvydas Asterisk.

1991 NBA champions: Chicago Bulls*

Asterisk reason: Lakers’ top scorer James Worthy and top shooter Byron Scott both got hurt and couldn’t play the decisive Game 5 of the NBA Finals. What could have been?

1990 NBA champions: Detroit Pistons*

Asterisk reason: Again, Sabonis wasn’t playing in America so the Pistons avoided him starting for the Blazers in the Finals and flipping the NBA paradigm. Also, the Pistons couldn’t beat Michael Jordan in basketball so they turned to boxing and football tactics in their Eastern Conference battles. Not basketball. Not fair.

1989 NBA champions: Detroit Pistons*

Asterisk reason: Magic Johnson blew out his hamstring in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, ending both the MVP’s season and the legitimacy of the Pistons title.

1988 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: Isiah Thomas suffered a debilitating ankle injury in Game 6 and he barely played in Game 7, a game in which the Pistons lost by a measly three points. Too close to call, in my opinion.

1987 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: A year after winning Sixth Man of the Year for the title-winning Celtics, Bill Walton’s feet gave out yet again and the Lakers won the championship without having to face one of Boston’s key players. Lakers lucky again.

1986 NBA champions: Boston Celtics*

Asterisk reason: After Michael Jordan scored 63 points against the Celtics in the first round, Larry Bird said, “It’s just God disguised as Michael Jordan.” By beating the Bulls and sending Jordan home, the Celtics were literally the only team that postseason to be touched by the hand of God. All other teams were touched by mere mortals. Let’s chalk this up to divine intervention.

1985 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: Celtics starter Cedric Maxwell, who won the 1981 Finals MVP, missed 25 games following knee surgery late in the season and was a shell of himself upon his return. The Lakers cruise again with their Finals opponent battered.

1984 NBA champions: Boston Celtics*

Asterisk reason: Hall of Fame forward Jamaal Wilkes was averaging 17 points per game for the Lakers that season and then missed the first round of the playoffs dealing with a gastrointestinal virus. He lost his starting gig and became a non-factor in the playoffs, scoring double-digits just once the rest of the way. If Wilkes doesn’t get the bug, Boston doesn’t get the trophy. Can’t argue with science.

1983 NBA champions: Philadelphia 76ers*

Asterisk reason: Notice that Moses Malone’s famous quote is “Fo’, fo’, fo’” and not “Fo, fo’, fo’, fo’.” That’s because, at this point in NBA history, the top two seeds received a first-round bye and only played three series for a championship. I think we can all agree that real champs win four series.

1982 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: Again, top seeds skipped the first round. This is extra important in 1982 because the Philadelphia 76ers, as a No. 3 seed, had to play an extra series in their disproportionately grueling road to the NBA Finals. Case in point, playoff games played before the Finals: Sixers 15, Lakers 8. Of course, the Lakers prevailed in six games.

1981 NBA champions: Boston Celtics*

Asterisk reason: To win the NBA Finals, the Celtics needed to beat a 40-42 Houston Rockets team. Not a typo. If that’s not asterisk-y enough for you, I don’t know what is.

1980 NBA champions: Los Angeles Lakers*

Asterisk reason: Philly, as it was in 1982, played the Lakers in the Finals with the burden of playing an extra series. With less miles on their tires, the Lakers cruised to the title against their more-fatigued foe. Soft!

1979 NBA champions: Seattle Supersonics*

Asterisk reason: In a rematch of the Bullets-Sonics Finals a year ago in which the Bullets won, the Sonics benefitted by injuries knocking out two Bullets starters Kevin Grevey (hamstring) and Tom Henderson (ankle) in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Not a fair fight.

1978 NBA champions: Washington Bullets*

Asterisk reason: The defending-champion Blazers’ repeat hopes were derailed when Bill Walton broke his foot in February while the team was 50-10 -- easily the best record in the NBA. No Walton, no glory.

1977 NBA champions: Portland Trail Blazers*

Asterisk reason: In the first season with the NBA-ABA merger, the Blazers made the playoffs for the first time and won the title all in the same season. Seems totally legitimate except for this important detail: the NBA referees went on strike during the playoffs. Oh.

1976 NBA champions: Boston Celtics*

Asterisk reason: Half the best players were in the ABA. (Ten of the 24 All-Stars in 1977 were former ABA players, including All-Star Game MVP Julius Erving and five of the 10 starters in the 1977 Finals were ABA players).

1975 NBA champions: Golden State Warriors*