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As history has proven, one player cannot win an NBA Championship by himself. Michael Jordan needed the addition of Scottie Pippen to win a ring. Larry Bird teammed with Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish for his three championships. Magic Johnson had a slew of All-Stars playing alongside him in the 1980s. Here's the point: it is extremely hard, even for the elite players, to win an NBA Championship. And sadly, many will never know the feeling of hoisting the Larry O'Brien trophy. Here are a few current stars who won't win an NBA ring.

Allen Iverson, Detroit Pistons - As great of a scorer as Iverson has been in his career, he has never quite been able to play team-oriented basketball. The recent trade that sent Iverson to Detroit is a perfect example; the Denver Nuggets have been much better off without Iverson, while the Pistons are floating around the .500 mark. Iverson is a fantastic player and a sure-fire Hall-of-Famer, but he won't get a ring without buying into the team concept.

Jason Kidd, Dallas Mavericks - Kidd is arguably the best point guard of this generation, and he has put teams on his back in the past, but he never had the talent around him to win it all. Now, at age 35, his skills are starting to diminish, and the Mavericks already missed their window to win a championship. It's still possible that Kidd is traded to the Los Angeles Lakers before the trade deadline, but unless he gets out of Dallas, he will retire without a ring.

Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns - Similiar to Kidd, Nash is getting up there in age (34), and now that the Suns, under new coach Terry Porter, are playing more of a half-court game, Nash has gotten old quick. There are rumblings that the New York Knicks may go after Nash and LeBron James in 2010, but Nash would be 36 at that point, so the window to win in New York would be at most two years. The only chance the Suns have this year is if Shaquille O'Neal plays like he did when he was 30.

Tracy McGrady, Houston Rockets - With Yao Ming and Ron Artest at his side, McGrady certainly has the pieces to make a run at a championship in Houston, but there are several reasons to believe it won't happen. McGrady is injured on a regular basis, and there's still the issue of him never getting out of the first round of the playoffs. Furthermore, McGrady lacks the ability to consistently take over games. He still has plenty of years left in the league, but I wouldn't put money on him winning a championship.

Learn more about this author, Andrew Bohardt.
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