In this special series, I’ll be ranking each major professional sports franchise (MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, MLS, etc.) in each of the states with at least two teams.
The teams will be ranked by the amount of success they’ve had in their current market, not accounting for previous locations of the franchise. However, if the team played in a different league but still played in its current home state, those records will contribute to the rankings.
Any playoff or tournament appearances, wild card berths, division titles, conference/league titles, major championships, and the franchise’s single season wins/points records are accounted for, as well as the overall success of the team and certain eras of its history.
Next up is the state of Arizona, home of the NBA’s Suns, NFL’s Cardinals, NHL’s Coyotes, MLB’s Diamondbacks, and the WNBA’s Mercury.
No. 5 — Coyotes (est. 1972, relocated 1996)
- 9 playoff appearances
- 2011-12 Pacific Division title
- Franchise single-season points record – 107 in 2009-10
After playing 24 seasons as the original Winnipeg Jets, the franchise relocated to the desert and became the then-Phoenix Coyotes in 1996.
Success came early for hockey in Phoenix, as the team reached the playoffs five times in its first six seasons after relocating.
Six non-playoff seasons followed before the Coyotes reached the playoffs three times in a row from 2010-12. The 2011-12 team won the franchise’s only division title, topping the Pacific Division and reaching the conference finals while winning the first two playoff series since the team moved to Arizona.
Since that franchise-best run, however, Arizona has struggled. They have reached the playoffs just once in the last 10 seasons (2020) and are currently in rebuild mode while struggling to find a permanent arena home in the Phoenix area.
No. 4 — Cardinals (est. 1920, relocated 1988)
- 6 playoff appearances
- 3 NFC West Division titles
- 2008 NFC title
- Franchise-best record – 13-3 in 2015
The oldest continuously running professional American football franchise (1898), the Cardinals joined the NFL for its first season in 1920. The team played in Chicago and St. Louis before moving to Arizona in 1988.
Since relocating to the desert, the Cardinals have had their fair share of ups and downs. After 11 seasons, the team reached the playoffs for the first time since relocating in 1998.
A nine-year playoff drought followed, before Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald guided the team to back-to-back NFC West titles from 2008-09 and a Super Bowl appearance following the 2008 season.
After not reaching the playoffs for four years, Arizona returned as a wild card team in 2014 before winning a franchise-record 13 games and the NFC West in 2015.
More recently, Kyler Murray led the Cardinals to the 2021 playoffs as the team hopes to build on the success in 2022.
No. 3 — Diamondbacks (est. 1998)
- 2017 NL Wild Card berth
- 5 NL West Division titles
- 2001 NL pennant
- 2001 World Series champions
- Franchise-best record – 100-62 in 1999
Awarded as an expansion franchise, the Diamondbacks debuted in 1998. By year two, Arizona was champions of the NL West, winning a franchise-record 100 games.
After a winning season in 2000, the D-backs put it all together in year three. Led by the pitching duo of Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling, Arizona won the NL West title and defeated St. Louis and Atlanta to clinch the NL pennant. Facing the heavily favored three-time defending champion New York Yankees in the World Series, the Diamondbacks walked off in Game 7 to win their only championship to date.
After repeating as NL West winners in 2002, Arizona went through a five-year playoff drought before winning the division again in 2007.
The Diamondbacks also won the NL West in 2011, and in 2017 clinched the first NL Wild Card berth in team history.
Having not reached the playoffs in five years or won its division in 11 years, Arizona will look to snap both droughts when the 2023 season begins.
No. 2 — Suns (est. 1968)
- 31 playoff appearances
- 8 Pacific Division titles
- 3 Western Conference titles
- Franchise-best record – 64-18 in 2021-22
First playing in 1968, it only took the Suns until year two to make their first postseason. By their eighth season, Phoenix reached the NBA Finals for the first time in 1976, falling to Boston in a classic series.
After missing the playoffs the next season, the Suns reached the postseason eight times in a row from 1978-85, reaching the conference finals twice and winning the franchise’s first division title during the 1980-81 campaign.
After three non-playoff seasons from 1985-88, Phoenix reached the postseason each of the next 13 years. This era of Suns basketball was highlighted by a pair of division titles and an NBA Finals appearance in 1993 led by Charles Barkley, Kevin Johnson, and Tom Chambers.
Following the end of the playoff streak in 2001, Phoenix missed the playoffs twice in the next three seasons. The lack of success didn’t last long though, as two-time MVP Steve Nash and All-NBA center Amar’e Stoudamire led the “seven seconds or less” Suns to five playoff appearances in six years from 2004-10. Phoenix won three division titles during the run and reached three conference finals while recording the league’s best record during the 2004-05 season.
Phoenix followed multiple runs of success with a franchise-record-long playoff drought that lasted 10 seasons (2011-20). Now led by Devin Booker, Chris Paul, and Deandre Ayton, the Suns have reached the playoffs and won its division in back-to-back seasons, highlighted by an NBA Finals run in 2021 and a franchise single-season wins record in 2022.
No. 1 — Mercury (est. 1997)
- 17 playoff appearances
- 5 Western Conference titles
- 3 WNBA championships
- Franchise-best record – 29-5 in 2014
One of the WNBA’s original franchises, it didn’t take long for the Mercury to find success. Reaching the playoffs in their inaugural season, Phoenix followed up with a run to the WNBA Finals in 1998.
The early success was short-lived, however, as the Mercury missed the postseason seven of the next eight seasons.
Since that stretch of struggles, Phoenix has become one of the league’s best teams. Beginning in 2007, the Mercury have made the playoffs 14 times in 16 years. The run has been highlighted by a league-single-season wins record in 2014 (29), as well as four appearances in the WNBA Finals and all three of the team’s championships in 2007, 2009, and 2014.
