3. Charles Barkley
Sometimes, it’s better to be lucky than good; just ask Charles Barkley. When the Philadelphia 76ers drafted Barkley in 1984, they were adding him to a team that featured NBA greats like Julius Erving and Moses Malone (not to mention two-time All-Star Andrew Toney). But after making it to the Eastern Conference Finals in his rookie season, Barkley saw his 76ers teammates start to decline thanks to age and injury.
He wouldn’t get a chance to really compete for an NBA championship again until 1992, after Philadelphia traded him to the Phoenix Suns. Barkley won the MVP award during his first season in Phoenix, leading a historically underrated Suns team to the NBA Finals in 1993; of course, that guy named Michael Jordan thwarted Barkley’s last and best chance to win a ring.