No Team Has Ever Accomplished This Feat In The History of the NBA

Published on April 22nd, 2022 11:44 am EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


Let's say that your favorite team is currently down 3-0 in their playoff series, and you took to Google to try and get some good news about their plight.

You searched "Has a team ever come back from 3-0 down to win in the NBA", hoping for a glimmer of hope. Hoping that there is some historical precedent for a team winning four games in a row in a NBA series after dropping their first three.

I have some bad news for you if this is the case.

No team has EVER come back from 3-0 down to win in the NBA.

It has happened in other leagues (NHL, MLB), but NEVER in the NBA.

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There have been three occasions in NBA history where teams have come back from 3-0 down, only to lose.

They were:

1951 New York Knicks
1994 Denver Nuggets
2003 Portland Trail Blazers

The 1951 York Knicks came very close to defeating the Rochester Royals, as they battled back from 3-0 down, only to lose 79-75 in Game 7.

The 1994 Denver Nuggets very nearly dealt an embarrassing loss to Karl Malone, John Stockton and the Utah Jazz, as the Nuggets came back from 3-0 down, only to lose 91-81 in Game 7.

The 2003 Portland Trail Blazers nearly pulled off the impossible, battling from 3-0 down against the Dallas Mavericks, only to lose 107-95 in the final game.

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Only one basketball team has overcome a 3-0 deficit to win, and that was the San Miguel Beerman, who came back from 3-0 down to win the 2015-16 Phillipine Cup Finals in 2015-16.

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In short - if your team is down 3-0, don't get your hopes up.