The Golden State Warriors have already clinched their spot in the NBA Finals for the sixth time in eight years, and now we'll wait to see which team comes out of the Eastern Conference. This postseason has largely been a dud, filled with blowouts and injuries. Will the NBA Finals be the remedy for a lackluster playoffs? Hoop-heads can only hope. If not, there's always YouTube. And if the games get boring, let's rank the top-five NBA Finals of the last 30 years.
No. 5: Celtics over Lakers in 6 (2008) -- This series didn't reach seven, but it did feature four games decided by single-digits. And the first matchup between the Celtics and Lakers since the glory years of Bird and Magic was flush with nostalgia. Plus, it was Kobe Bryant's first trip to the Finals without Shaq. The first microwaved superteam was the 2008 Celtics, which brought Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to team with Paul Pierce.
The emotional series was marked by Pierce's wheelchair stunt in Game 1 and Boston's incredible Game 4 comeback win. The Lakers blew a 24-point lead at home, resulting in the largest comeback in Finals history. It gave the Celtics a 3-1 series lead, and they ultimately prevail in Game 6, remembered by Garnett screaming into the postgame air, "Anything is possible!"
No. 4: Rockets over Knicks in 7 (1994) -- Stylistically, it left plenty to be desired, but it was an impossibly tight series. Every game was a single-digit bout, and Houston won Game 3 by four points and Game 6 by two. The O.J. Simpson chase during Game 5 gave the series a shroud of bizarreness, and John Starks' historically woeful shooting night in Game 7 lives in infamy. The matchup of college rivals and the game's most dominant big men (Olajuwon vs. Ewing) was one of the greatest battles in Finals history. The city received its first major sports title, and the team overcame the moniker "Choke City."
No. 3: Heat over Spurs in 7 (2013) -- Ray Allen's corner three in Game 6 is perhaps the greatest shot in Finals history. Down 3-2 in the series, and trailing by five points with 28 seconds left, the Larry O'Brien Trophy was brought out for San Antonio. But, after a LeBron James three and a missed Kawhi Leonard free throw, the deficit was cut to three with just seconds to play.
James missed a game-tying three, but the rebound came out to Chris Bosh, who then shoveled it to Allen. His three from the corner lives forever, as fans who'd already left the arena started banging the doors to be allowed back in. The shot forced overtime, and the Heat outlasted the Spurs, 103-100, to knot the series. In Game 7, James scored a team-high 37 points with 12 rebounds, and Miami captured back-to-back championships.
No. 2: Bulls over Suns in 6 (1993) -- One of the five greatest NBA Finals in history, and by far the most intriguing of the Michael Jordan dynasty. Phoenix had the best team in the league, paced by Charles Barkley at the peak of his powers. Sir Charles was awarded MVP honors and the Suns won 62 games, while the Bulls had outlasted the Knicks in a brutal East Finals. Chicago was competing for its third-straight title. Game 3 was one of the wildest games in Finals history, with the Suns ultimately surviving, 129-121, in triple overtime.
Games 2 and 6 were decided by a single possession, and the Suns attempted a furious comeback after trailing 3-1 in the series. But John Paxson's shot with 3.9 seconds left gave the Bulls the championship in a brilliant deciding game, preventing Phoenix from hosting Game 7. Jordan would retire for the first time following this championship, and it was also the closest Barkley ever came to earning a ring. Game 6 put the Bulls in rarefied air, with a three-peat.
No. 1: Cavaliers over Warriors in 7 (2016) -- A 73-win team blowing a 3-1 series lead, capped off by one of the greatest defensive plays in NBA history tops this list. Golden State was a machine, as they won more regular season games than any team ever, including the iconic 1996 Bulls. In the NBA Finals, the Splash Brothers rolled over the Cavs to win three of the first four games. But, Draymond Green was suspended for a dirty play on LeBron for Game 5. And James went for 41-16-7 to take the series back to Cleveland, down 3-2.
He then followed with 41-11-8 in Game 6 to knot the series. Back in Oakland for Game 7, the Cavs got two of the greatest plays in modern history to seal their own. LeBron's chase-down block off the backboard kept the game tied at 89-89 with less than two minutes left. And Kyrie Irving's three-pointer with less than a minute to play gave Cleveland the lead. They completed a historic comeback and gave the city its first pro title since 1964. And James became immortal with his third ring, and another Finals MVP. He also became the first player ever to lead both teams in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks during a playoff series.