NJNNew Jersey Nets
NJNNew Jersey Nets has reached the nba champions decider 2 times on record, first in 2001-02 and most recently in 2002-03. 0 wins against 2 runner-up finishes are recorded below, sourced from our full nba champions list.
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
NJNNew Jersey Nets — 0 nba champions.
Franchise history
The Nets trace their roots to 1967, when the franchise entered the American Basketball Association as the New Jersey Americans, then relocated to Long Island in 1968 and rebranded as the New York Nets. Under owner Roy Boe, the Nets acquired a rising local star, Julius "Dr. J" Erving, whose highflying scoring led the Nets to ABA championships in 1974 and 1976. When the NBA absorbed four ABA franchises in the 1976 merger, a hefty territorial fee owed to the Knicks forced the sale of Erving's contract to Philadelphia, gutting the roster.
The team moved back across the Hudson in 1977, becoming the New Jersey Nets, and spent the next quarter-century as a mostly middling franchise. That changed in 2001 when a trade brought point guard Jason Kidd to New Jersey; his playmaking transformed the team into a perennial contender, and the Nets reached consecutive NBA Finals in 2002 (lost to the Lakers) and 2003 (lost to the Spurs). The franchise later relocated to Brooklyn in 2012, a distinct later chapter.
Sources
Runner-up finishes (2)
See the full nba champions list for the winner each of these years.
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