2002 The Pelicans

The Pelicans are based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They play in the Southwest Division of the league's Western Conference. The franchise was established as the New Orleans Hornets in 2002 due to the relocation of the Charlotte Hornets after spending 1988–2002 based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the franchise temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City, where they spent two seasons officially known as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. The team returned to New Orleans full-time for the 2007–08 season. On December 4, 2012, it was reported that the Hornets would change their name to the New Orleans Pelicans beginning with the 2013-2014 season. The team name is inspired by Louisiana's state bird, the Brown Pelican.

1995 The Grizzlies

The Grizzlies are based in Memphis, Tennessee. The team is part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. They were established in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1995. The team relocated to Memphis in 2001. They are also the only team out of the four major professional leagues that plays in Memphis. Despite being one of the youngest teams in the NBA, the Grizzlies are rivals with the Los Angeles Clippers. The Grizzlies and Clippers have been rivals since the 2011-12 season, when the Clippers eliminated the Grizzlies in the first round of the 2012 NBA Playoffs. The Grizzlies returned the favor in the 2012-13 season, eliminating the Clippers in the first round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs. The Grizzlies also have a rivalry brewing with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The two squads have faced each other in the playoffs in 2011, 2013, and 2014.

1995 The Raptors

The Raptors are based in Toronto, Ontario. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, as part of the NBA's expansion into Canada. When the Grizzlies relocated to Memphis, Tennessee to become the Memphis Grizzlies in 2001, the Raptors became the only Canadian team in the NBA.  In 2006–07, the Raptors qualified for their first playoff berth in five years, capturing the Atlantic Division title with 47 wins. In the 2007–08 season, they advanced to the playoffs again, but failed to make the playoffs in each of the next five seasons. They returned to the playoffs, won their second Atlantic Division title, and won a franchise record 48 games in the 2013–14 season. However, they failed for a fourth consecutive time to advance beyond the first round of the playoffs.

1989 T-Wolves

The Timberwolves (also commonly referred to as the T-Wolves, or simply Wolves) are based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Like most expansion teams, the Timberwolves struggled in their early years, but the team made the playoffs eight consecutive times from 1997 to 2004. Despite losing in the first round in their first seven attempts, the Timberwolves won their first division title in 2004 and advanced to the Western Conference Finals. After missing the playoffs their first seven seasons and losing in the first round the next seven, won their first two playoff series in 2004 before losing to the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. As of the end of 2014 season, the Timberwolves hold the longest active streak without a playoff berth, having missed the playoffs ten straight years since.

1989 The Magic

The Magic are based in Orlando, Florida. It is part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The franchise was established in 1989 as an expansion franchise. There was decided to hold a contest in the Orlando Sentinel newspaper to get names for their new franchise. Out of a total of 4,296 submitted entries,  the names were subsequently narrowed to four, "Heat", "Tropics", "Juice" and "Magic". They currently are the only team in the major pro sports leagues to play in the city of Orlando. The franchise has also been in the playoffs for more than half of their existence (14 playoff appearances in 24 years). Orlando has been the second most successful of the four expansion teams brought into the league in 1988 and 1989 in terms of winning percentage, after the Miami Heat.

1988 The Heat

The Heat are based in Miami, Florida. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference. The Heat are not related to the Miami Floridians, an ABA team in the early 1970s, although the Heat have occasionally paid tribute to the older franchise by wearing a replica version of the Floridians' uniforms for the NBA's "Hardwood Classics Nights" during the 2005–06 and 2011–12 seasons. Formed in 1988 as one of the NBA's four expansion franchises, the Heat have won three league championships (in 2006, 2012 and 2013), five conference titles and 11 division titles. From February to March, 2013, the Heat won 27 games in a row, the second-longest streak in NBA history (after the Los Angeles Lakers' 33 wins).

1988 The Hornets

The Hornets are based in Charlotte, North Carolina, that competes in the NBA. They are part of the Southeast Division in the league's Eastern Conference. The Hornets were first established in 1988 as an expansion team, but relocated to New Orleans following the 2001–02 season. In 2004, a new expansion team, the Charlotte Bobcats, was established. After 10 seasons as the Bobcats, the team changed its name to the Charlotte Hornets, a year after the New Orleans franchise relinquished the Hornets name and renamed itself the Pelicans. In addition to re-inheriting the Hornets name from New Orleans, the Charlotte franchise reclaimed the history and records of the original 1988–2002 Hornets, effectively becoming a continuation of the original franchise.

1980 Mavs

The Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. At the 1980 NBA All-Star Game, league owners voted to admit the new team, with the team's name coming from the 1957–1962 TV western Maverick the name was chosen by the fans with 4600 postcards received beating Wranglers and Express. As of the 2013 season, the Mavericks have sold out 477 consecutive games since December 15, 2001, the longest sellout streak in North American major league sports. Since their inaugural 1980–81 season, the Mavericks have won three division titles (1987, 2007, 2010), two conference championships (2006, 2011), and one NBA Championship (2011).

1974 The Jazz

The Jazz are based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are a part of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference. The franchise began in 1974 as the New Orleans Jazz in New Orleans, Louisiana and moved to Utah in 1979. The Jazz are one of two teams in the Major professional sports leagues located in the state of Utah; the other team is Real Salt Lake, a professional soccer team in Major League Soccer. The Jazz were one of the least successful teams in the league in their early years. Although they took 10 years before they made a playoff appearance (in 1984), they would not miss the playoffs again until 2004. They became one of the powerhouse teams of the 1990s, culminating in two NBA Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998, where they lost both times to the Chicago Bulls. 

1970 Lob City

The Clippers are based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the league's Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves, one of three expansion teams to join the NBA that year. The Braves moved to San Diego, California in 1978 and became known as the San Diego Clippers. In 1984, the Clippers moved to Los Angeles. In 2013 the franchise won its first division title, as the team made the playoffs for the ninth time in franchise history and the third time in the past eight seasons. They also added to their budding rivalry with the Lakers, as they finished with a better record than the Lakers for the fifth time. They repeated as division champions in 2014.

1970 The Blazers

The Blazers are based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. The franchise entered the league in 1970, and Portland has been its only home city. The franchise has enjoyed a strong following; from 1977 through 1995, the team sold out 814 consecutive home games, the longest such streak in American major professional sports. The team has advanced to the NBA Finals three times (1977, 1990, 1992), winning the NBA Championship once in 1977. The team has qualified for the playoffs in 30 seasons of their 44-season existence, including a streak of 21 straight appearances from 1983 through 2003, the second longest streak in NBA history.

1970 The Cavs

The Cavaliers are based in Cleveland, Ohio. They play in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference, the only remaining charter member of the division. The 2002–03 team finished with the third-worst record in franchise history, which earned them a tie for last place in the league and a 22.5 percent chance at winning the NBA Draft Lottery and the first overall selection. The team has had moderate success in its history, winning three Central Division Championships (1976, 2009, 2010), an Eastern Conference Championship in 2007, and 18 total playoff seasons. 

1968 The Suns

The Suns are based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and the only team in their division not to be based in California. The Suns nickname was among 28,000 entries that were formally chosen in a "Name the Team" contest. Suns was preferred over Scorpions, Rattlers, Thunderbirds, Wranglers, Mavericks, Tumbleweeds, Mustangs and Cougars. The franchise owns the NBA's fourth-best all-time winning percentage, winning 55 percent of its games, as of the end of the 2012–2013 season. They made nine trips to the Western Conference Finals, and advanced to the NBA Finals in 1976 and 1993. As a result, based on their all-time win-loss percentage, the Suns are the most winning franchise to have never won an NBA Championship. 

1968 The Bucks

The Bucks are based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The Milwaukee Bucks were formed in January 1968 when the NBA awarded a franchise to Milwaukee Professional Sports and Services. The Bucks played their first NBA regular-season game against the Chicago Bulls. As is typical with expansion teams, the Bucks' first season was a struggle. Their first victory came in their sixth game as the Bucks beat the Detroit Pistons. The Bucks have won one league title in 1971, two conference titles in 1971 and 1974, and thirteen division titles.

1967 The Spurs

The Spurs are based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The San Antonio Spurs started out as the Dallas Chaparrals of the original version of the American Basketball Association (ABA) in 1967. During the 1970–71 season, the name "Dallas" was dropped in favor of "Texas" and an attempt was made to make the team a regional one. The team moved to San Antonio and was renamed the San Antonio Gunslingers. However, before they even played a game the name was changed to Spurs. The Spurs currently rank second among active franchises for the highest winning percentage in NBA history trailing only the Los Angeles Lakers. The Spurs' four NBA championships (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007) are the fourth most in history behind only the Boston Celtics (17), Los Angeles Lakers (16), and Chicago Bulls (6).

1967 Rockets

The Rockets are based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the NBA. The team was founded as San Diego Rockets in 1967 and played in San Diego, California for four years, before moving to Houston in 1971. They made their first appearance in the playoffs in 1969. In 1981 NBA Finals were the Rockets defeated by Boston Celtics. The Rockets stormed all the way to the 1994 NBA Finals to the first championship against the New York Knicks. The team repeated as champions in 1995 with a memorable run and sweeping the favored Orlando Magic. After winning two championships, the Rockets traded away most of the championship team, changed their championship uniforms, and, to date, have not advanced to the finals again. 

1967 The Thunder

The Thunder are based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. The Thunder, along with the Tulsa Shock – a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) franchise based in Tulsa, Oklahoma – are the only teams in the major professional North American sports leagues based in the state of Oklahoma. Formerly the Seattle SuperSonics, the team relocated in 2008 from Seattle, Washington. The SuperSonics qualified for the NBA Playoffs 22 times, and won the 1979 NBA Championship. In Oklahoma City, the Thunder qualified for their first playoff during the 2009–10 season. They have won their first division title as the Thunder in 2011 and their first Western Conference championship as the Thunder in 2012.

1967 Nuggets

The Nuggets are based in Denver, Colorado that plays in the National Basketball Association, part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. The team was founded as the Denver Larks in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association (ABA) but changed its name to Rockets before the first season. The team joined the NBA in 1976 after the ABA-NBA merger (Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York Nets and San Antonio Spur). They changed the name again to the Nuggets in 1974 and played for the final ABA Championship title in 1976, losing to the New York Nets. After the ABA-NBA merger the team has had some periods of success, making the playoffs for some consecutive seasons, but it has not made an appearance in a championship round since its last year in the ABA.

1967 The Pacers

The Pacers are based in Indianapolis, Indiana, as the members of the Central Division in the Eastern Conference of the NBA. The Pacers were first established in 1967 as members of the American Basketball Association (ABA) and became members of the NBA in 1976 as a result of the ABA-NBA merger (Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York Nets and San Antonio Spur). The team is named after Indiana's history with harness racing pacers as well as the Indianapolis 500's pace cars. The Pacers and Pistons met for the first time in the 1990 Playoffs, but the rivalry truly began in the 2003-04 season. A recent rivalry with the Miami Heat was triggered with the team in the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2012 NBA Playoffs. The Pacers have won three championships, all in the ABA (1970, 1972, 1973). The Pacers were Eastern Conference champions in 2000.

1967 BrooklyKnight

The Nets are based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. They are a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The team is one of two NBA franchises that play home games in New York City; the other is the Knicks, who are based in Manhattan. An original member of the American Basketball Association (ABA), the Nets were founded in 1967 and initially played in Teaneck, New Jersey, as the New Jersey Americans. The Nets won two ABA championships in New York before becoming one of four ABA teams to be admitted into the NBA (Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York Nets and San Antonio Spur). After 35 seasons in New Jersey, the team returned to the state of New York in 2012 as the Brooklyn Nets.

1966 Chicago Bulls

The Bulls are based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The Bulls saw their greatest success during the 1990s. They are known for having one of the NBA's greatest dynasties, winning six NBA championships between 1991 and 1998. The Bulls are the only NBA franchise to win multiple championships and never lose an NBA Finals in their history. The Bulls share rivalries with the Milwaukee Bucks, Detroit Pistons, and more recently the Indiana Pacers and the Miami Heat. The Bulls - Pistons rivalry was highlighted heavily during the late 80's and early 90's and is considered one of the NBA's greatest rivalries. Many experts and analysts consider the Bulls to be one of the greatest teams in NBA history.

1961 Bullets

The Wizards are based in Washington, D.C. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. They began playing as the Chicago Packers in 1961. After only one year, they changed their name to the Zephyrs. In 1963 the franchise moved to Baltimore, Maryland, and became the Baltimore Bullets. The 1970-71 season ended with the Milwaukee Bucks winning the NBA Championship, beating the Baltimore Bullets in their first NBA Finals. In 1973, the team moved to Landover, Maryland and became the Capital Bullets; to avoid confusion with the Washington Capitals, they changed their name to the Washington Bullets the following season. The Bullets have won the NBA Championship in 1978. A contest was held to choose a new name and the choices were narrowed to the Dragons, Express, Stallions, Sea Dogs, or Wizards. In 1997, the Bullets officially became the Washington Wizards.

1947 Showtime

The Lakers are based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The franchise began with the 1947 purchase of a disbanded team, the Detroit Gems of the NBL. The new team began playing in Minneapolis, Minnesota, calling themselves the Minneapolis Lakers in honor of the state's nickname, "Land of 10,000 Lakes". They won five of the next six BAA and NBA championships in Minneapolis after the NBA formed in 1949. They relocated to LA and made the NBA Finals six times in the 1960s, but lost each series to the Boston Celtics, beginning their long rivalry. They won their sixth NBA title, and first in LA in 1972, five other championships in a nine-year span, including their first ever Finals championship against the Celtics in 1985. They won three consecutive titles between 2000 to 2002 and two more by defeating the Orlando Magic in 2009 and Boston in 2010. The Lakers are one of the most successful teams in the history of the NBA with 16 NBA championships wins.

1946 The Warriors

The Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The team was first established as the Philadelphia Warriors, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1962, the franchise was relocated to San Francisco and became known as the San Francisco Warriors until 1971, when its name was changed to the current Golden State Warriors. The Philadelphia Warriors won the inaugural BAA championship in 1947, followed by the Baltimore Bullets and the Minneapolis Lakers in 1948 and 1949 respectively. The Warriors have won two others in the team's history, including another in Philadelphia in 1956, and one as Golden State in 1975, tying them for 5th in the NBA in number of championships.

1946 The Hawks

The Hawks are based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are part of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference in the NBA. Their origins can be traced to the establishment of the Buffalo Bisons in 1946, a member of the National Basketball League. After 13 games of their inaugural season, the team moved to Moline, Illinois and became the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. In 1949, they joined the National Basketball Association. In 1951, the team moved to Milwaukee, where they changed their name to the Hawks. They have won their only NBA Championship in 1958, after they moved to St. Louis in 1955. All the franchise's NBA Finals appearances and lone NBA championship took place when the team resided in St. Louis. The Hawks currently own the second-longest run (behind the Sacramento Kings) of not winning an NBA title at 56 years.

1946 The Knicks

The Knicks, is the world's most valuable professional basketball organization, based in New York City, New York. The team, established in 1946, was one of the founding members of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which became the NBA after merging with rival NBL in 1949. The team along with the Boston Celtics is one of only two teams of the original NBA still located in its original city. Beginning in 1950, the Knicks made three consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals, all of which were losing efforts. They were successfully guided to two championship titles in 1970 and 1973. The Knicks of the 1980s had mixed success that included six playoff appearances however, they failed to participate in the NBA Finals. In 2012-13 the franchise won its first division title in 19 years, but were eliminated in the second round by the Pacers. 

1946 Boston Three Party

The Celtics are based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The franchise's seventeen championships are the most for any NBA franchise, which makes the Celtics the most successful franchise to date in the major four traditional North American professional sports. They dominated the league during the late 1950s and through the mid-1980s, winning eleven championships in thirteen years and eight in a row (1959–1966). The Celtics have met the Lakers a record twelve times in the Finals, including their most recent appearances in 2008 and 2010. Their mascot 'Lucky the Leprechaun' is a nod to the team's Irish heritage and to Boston's historically large Irish population. 

1941 Bad Boys

The Pistons are based in Auburn Hills, Michigan in Metro Detroit. They are members of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in NBA. The team was founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne (Zollner) Pistons as a member of NBL. In 1948, the team became the Fort Wayne Pistons, competing in the Basketball Association of America (BAA). Prior to the 1986–87 season, the Pistons acquired more key players, adopted a physical, defense-oriented style of play, which eventually earned them the nickname "Bad Boys". Since moving to Detroit in 1957, the Pistons have won NBA championships in 1989, 1990 and 2004.

1923 The Kings

The Kings are based in Sacramento, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in NBA. The Kings can trace their origins to a local semi-professional team based in Rochester, New York in the early 1920s. The team was officially established professionally in the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1945 as the Rochester Royals. In 1949, as a result of that year's absorption of the NBL by the BAA, the Royals became members of the newly formed NBA. They have won the NBA championship in 1951. The team moved to Sacramento in 1985.

1946 Professional basketball league

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is one of the four major North American professional sports leagues. The league was founded in New York City in 1946, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA). The league adopted the name National Basketball Association in 1949, after absorbing the rival National Basketball League (NBL). It has thirty franchised member clubs, 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. The final playoff round, a best-of-seven series between the victors of both conferences, is known as the NBA Finals. The victor in the NBA Finals wins the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy. Each player and major contributor - including coaches and the general manager - on the winning team receive a championship ring.