Greatest non-Finals teams to never win the NBA title this century

1. 2015-16 San Antonio Spurs

67 wins gets a team at least tied for the top record in all but six seasons across NBA history. In 2015-16, the San Antonio Spurs’ 67-15 record was good for the No. 2 record in their conference as the Golden State Warriors rewrote history with 73 wins.

A second-place finish didn’t make the Spurs any less difficult to deal with. Still chugging off the engine that was their Big Three, Kawhi Leonard made his first All-Star appearance. A free agent addition over the summer, LaMarcus Aldridge managed to find his way to his fifth straight All-Star appearance.

San Antonio was fourth in offense and was the only team with a defensive rating below 100, the only team in the top five of both categories.

Their 11.1 net rating was actually higher than Golden State’s 10.6. As far as NBA.com’s advanced stats go back — 1996-97 — only five other teams — including these Warriors — have posted a double-digit net rating. Only two — 1996-97 Chicago Bulls and the 2016-17 Warriors — best this Spurs mark.

Such a dominant year-long showing is what makes their second-round defeat to the Oklahoma City Thunder all the more confounding. No injuries were present on the Spurs’ side. Just a rivalry that’s seen its share of back-and-forths over a span of years that happened to work against San Antonio this time around.

Golden State’s all-time regular season overshadowed the Spurs. OKC robbed them of a chance to step into some of that spotlight in a potential conference finals matchup.

Considering that, it’s no surprise one of the more underrated seasons in the Gregg Popovich/Tim Duncan era doesn’t get the acknowledgment it deserves. Even if the absence of a championship makes such recognition difficult to do.