Now that the 2025/26 NBA season has finished and the New York Knicks have won the NBA Finals, fans aren’t just talking about the championship winners. They’re also discussing which franchises they simply can’t stand.
From historic dynasties and super teams to fierce rivalries and passionate fanbases, some teams attract far more negativity than others. To find out which teams are the most hated, we carried out a survey that asked 2,000 fans to select the NBA team they dislike most. The results reveal which franchises receive the most criticism and which ones seem to fly under the radar.
The NBA teams fans love to hate
Success often comes with a downside. The teams that dominate headlines, attract superstar talent and regularly compete for championships tend to generate the strongest reactions from rival fans.
1. Los Angeles Lakers
Topping the rankings by a significant margin, the Los Angeles Lakers were named the most disliked team by 17.1% of fans.
The Lakers have spent decades as one of the league’s glamour franchises. With championship-winning eras led by Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James, they’ve built a global following that rivals any team in professional sports. Their success, combined with their enormous fanbase and constant media attention, makes them an easy target for rival fans.
2. Boston Celtics
The Celtics come in second with 12.5% of the vote – just 4.6% behind the Lakers.
Like the Lakers, Boston’s place near the top is largely driven by sustained success. With a record-setting championship history and one of the fiercest rivalries in sports, the Celtics have spent generations frustrating opposing fanbases. Their winning culture earns respect across the league, but it also creates plenty of resentment.
3. Chicago Bulls
The Bulls rank third, with 8.6% of respondents saying they dislike the team more than others.
Although Chicago hasn’t replicated the dominance of the Michael Jordan era, the franchise remains one of the most recognizable brands in basketball. Jordan’s legacy helped turn the Bulls into a global phenomenon, and that level of visibility continues to attract strong opinions decades later.
4. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors place fourth after being selected by 6.4% of respondents.
Golden State’s dynasty years transformed the franchise into one of the defining teams of the modern era. Multiple championships, a record-breaking regular season, and the rise of Stephen Curry created countless memorable moments. They also created plenty of rivals, with many fans growing tired of seeing the Warriors dominate the league.
5. New York Knicks
Rounding out the top five are the current NBA Champions, the New York Knicks, with 4.7% of respondents saying they dislike them.
Playing in the league’s largest market, the Knicks attract constant media coverage regardless of performance. This visibility often led to backlash from some NBA fans, who felt the team would receive more attention than its recent results justified. With New York finally snapping its 53-year title drought and becoming the champs, it’s also hard to argue that recent success doesn’t play a role in some fans’ decisions too.
Other basketball teams that receive negative attention
Several interesting storylines emerge from the remaining teams in the top ten.
The Cleveland Cavaliers rank sixth with 3.6%, which is a reminder that their LeBron James-led championship era still lingers in the minds of some fans.
The Brooklyn Nets and Dallas Mavericks share the next ranking down with 3.4%. Both teams have experienced recent stretches of heightened attention thanks to superstar-driven eras led by Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn and Luka Doncic in Dallas, making them more divisive than many other franchises.
The Atlanta Hawks and Detroit Pistons then tie at 3.3%. Detroit’s recent rise in the Eastern Conference has the franchise under the spotlight for the first time in decades, while most NBA fans are probably still thinking about Trae Young’s playoff outbursts from a few years back.
Notably, the gap between the top five teams and everyone else is substantial. The Lakers, Celtics, Bulls, Warriors, and Knicks collectively account for 49.3% of all responses, highlighting just how strongly fans feel about the league’s biggest brands.
The NBA’s most likable teams
At the opposite end of the rankings are the teams that attract very little negativity. Many play in smaller markets, have fewer rivalries, or simply haven’t spent enough time in the spotlight to become villains.
1. Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers are officially the least despised team in the NBA, receiving just 0.5% of votes.
Despite having an extremely passionate fanbase, Portland has largely avoided the kind of sustained success that often breeds resentment. The franchise is generally viewed as an underdog, making it difficult for neutral fans to actively dislike them.
2. Sacramento Kings
Tied for second-least disliked, the Sacramento Kings received only 0.8%.
The Kings have become something of a fan favorite across the league. Years of struggle followed by a recent return to competitiveness have created a feel-good narrative that many neutral fans appreciate.
3. Phoenix Suns
The Suns also recorded just 0.8%, which may come as a surprise. Given recent playoff appearances and high-profile roster moves, many might have expected Phoenix to rank much higher. Instead, the team appears to generate less hostility than several franchises with longer histories of success.
4. Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves continue to build momentum as an NBA contender. However, they remain largely free from widespread dislike, with just 1% of respondents choosing them as their most despised team.
5. Memphis Grizzlies
Memphis developed a strong identity a few years back led by Ja Morant and Dillon Brooks, yet only 1% of fans named them as their most disliked team.
The Grizzlies simply haven’t reached the level of sustained success that typically generates league-wide resentment.
6. New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans attract little negativity despite boasting several exciting young stars over recent seasons. Just 1.1% of our 2,000 respondents named them as their most disliked team.
A smaller market and limited playoff success have helped keep them off the radar of rival fanbases.
7. Milwaukee Bucks
Championship-winning teams often appear much higher in rankings like this, making Milwaukee’s position notable.
The Bucks’ success has largely been driven by the widely respected Giannis Antetokounmpo, whose popularity may soften perceptions of the franchise. As a result, they tie with the Pelicans, with just 1.1% of NBA fans feeling hostility toward them.
8. Toronto Raptors
As the league’s only Canadian team, the Raptors occupy a unique position within the NBA.
While they’ve enjoyed championship success, they remain relatively well-liked compared to many other franchises. Just 1.4% of basketball fans say they dislike them the most.
9. Indiana Pacers
The Pacers have historically been competitive without ever really dominating.
As a result, they’ve avoided the backlash that often follows teams with repeated championship runs, as only 1.5% said they felt animosity toward them.
10. Three teams share the spot
The Washington Wizards, San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets all received 1.7% of the votes, putting the three franchises at joint tenth for most-liked team.
Why do NBA fans hate certain teams?
The rankings reveal that winning teams attract the most criticism as well as the most admiration.
The Lakers, Celtics and Warriors have built their reputations through decades of championships, playoff appearances and superstar-led success. While their own fans celebrate those achievements, rival supporters often grow tired of seeing the same teams dominate headlines and trophy presentations.
Star players also play a major role. LeBron James, Stephen Curry and other household names bring enormous attention to their teams, which naturally increases scrutiny and criticism. The more a team is discussed, the more opportunities there are for fans to form strong opinions one way or another.
Historic rivalries remain another major factor. The Lakers-Celtics rivalry has shaped professional basketball for generations, helping to explain why both franchises occupy the top two spots in the rankings.
Media attention contributes as well. Teams such as the Lakers and Knicks receive extensive coverage regardless of performance, creating frustration among fans of smaller-market franchises who feel their teams are overlooked.
Ultimately, being disliked is often a sign of relevance. The teams that fans talk about most frequently, whether positively or negatively, are usually the ones competing for championships, attracting superstar talent and shaping the direction of the league.
The teams everyone is talking about
After another exciting set of NBA Finals games, these rankings show that some franchises continue to dominate conversations both on and off the court.
The Lakers, Celtics, Bulls, Warriors, and Knicks remain among the most polarizing brands in sports, generating strong reactions from fans across the league. At the same time, teams such as the Trail Blazers, Kings and Suns demonstrate that staying out of the spotlight can sometimes be an advantage when it comes to public perception.
Whether they’re loved, hated or somewhere in between, one thing is clear: the teams that provoke the strongest emotions are often the ones that leave the biggest mark on the game.
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Methodology
A survey of 2,000 NBA fans was conducted during the 2025/26 season. Respondents were asked to select the NBA team they dislike most from all 30 franchises. Results show the percentage of fans who chose each team, forming the final rankings.
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