The 2016 NBA Finals will be remembered as much for the accomplishments of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers as they will for Golden State’s historic collapse in the wake of a record-setting regular season.
The Warriors aren’t alone in this regard, however. In fact, the teams with the most regular-season wins of all-time in MLB, NHL and NFL all failed to cap their historic seasons with a championship.
As they say, misery loves company.
2015-16 Golden State Warriors
After beating the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls’ all-time record of 72 wins, it seemed like the Warriors’ coronation as NBA champions was written in stone.
An injury to MVP Steph Curry early in the playoffs and a bout of adversity against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals only seemed to strengthen the resolve of the Warriors, who looked to be on another level than Cleveland through the first four games of the NBA Finals. Then LeBron took over, Curry went cold, and what once seemed like the inevitable became the improbable as the Cavaliers were crowned NBA champs.
Scottie Pippen was onto something…
2007 New England Patriots
The Patriots seemed well on their way to grabbing a piece of NFL history heading into Super Bowl XLII.
New England became the first team to go undefeated in the regular season since the NFL expanded its schedule to 16 games and had their sights set on the 1972 Miami Dolphins, who are the only team in league history to win the Super Bowl after a perfect season.
A showdown with Eli Manning and the New York Giants in the championship game didn’t look like it was going to derail New England’s bid for history. The Patriots entered the Super Bowl as 12-point favourites over the wild-card Giants and held a narrow lead heading into the final minutes of the game. But a late drive by Manning and David Tyree’s legendary helmet catch helped the Giants overcome the odds and hand the Patriots their first loss of the season.
1995-96 Detroit Red Wings
The 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens are regarded as the best team of all time, but the 1995-96 Red Wings gave them a run for their money.
Detroit won an NHL-record 62 games that season and finished one point shy of that Montreal team’s record of 132 points. Led by a stacked roster that included Hall of Famers Steve Yzerman, Sergei Fedorov, Nicklas Lidstrom and Paul Coffey, the Red Wings entered the playoffs as Stanley Cup front-runners. But after a few uninspiring series against Winnipeg and St. Louis in the first two rounds, the Red Wings met their match in the Western Conference final against the Colorado Avalanche.
The Red Wings would go on to lose that series in six gruelling games, spawning one of the most heated rivalries in hockey.
2001 Seattle Mariners
The Mariners were an absolute juggernaut in 2001.
They led the majors in both runs scored and fewest runs allowed en route to winning a record-tying 116 games. But much like the other team to win 116 games (the 1906 Chicago Cubs), a championship wasn’t in the cards for the Mariners.
After needing five games to dispatch the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS, the Mariners were handled easily by the New York Yankees in the ALCS, going quietly in five games.
