2010 NBA Finals Tribute: Top Game 7s of the Past Two Decades

Later tonight the Celtics and Lakers will square off at the Staples Center in game seven of the NBA Finals.

There's always a special aura to these seventh symphonies, where everything is on the line and a champion will be crowned. It could have been a boring series, a boring playoffs, but once it's game seven of the championship series, you have to tune in.

So it got me thinking, what are the best title deciding game sevens? I'll keep it in my lifetime, only back through the past twenty years, and it's only those that were for the trophy. There have been just 13 of them since 1990...here are the seven best:

7. 1994—Rockets 90, Knicks 84

John Starks has a disastrous night (2-18 FG, 0-11 from three), as Hakeem Olajuwon scores 25 and wins the title for Houston and the Knicks' championship drought continues.

6. 1994—Rangers 3, Canucks 2

The Rangers win their first championship in 54 years, with the Garden going crazy and captain Mark Messier scoring the game-winner.

5. 2005—Spurs 81, Pistons 74

In a low-scoring affair tied at 57 going into the fourth quarter, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili turn it up to overpower the tight Detroit defense. 

 

4. 2009—Penguins 2, Red Wings 1 

Max Talbot scores both Penguins goals and Marc-Andre Fleury staves off a last-second Detroit onslaught to win the Cup on the road. 

3. 1997—Marlins 3, Indians 2, 11 inn.

Cleveland's heartbreak continues. Jose Mesa blows a one-run lead in the ninth, then Edgar Renteria's 11th inning single scores Craig Counsell, paving the way for the Florida fire sale.

2. 1991—Twins 1, Braves 0, 10 inn. 

Nine innings isn't not enough for either side to notch a run on the scoreboard. The Twins' Jack Morris pitches 10 scoreless innings, then Gene Larkin finally breaks through with the title-winning hit and game's only RBI.

1. 2001- Diamondbacks 3, Yankees 2

It's the night the Yankees' dynasty ended in the desert. The seemingly invincible Mariano Rivera looks mortal, giving up the game-winning bloop hit to Luis Gonzalez... and it's a fall classic finishing in November.

 

Tonight will be another one of these nights; game seven, title at stake. 

Appreciate it. We don't get too many of these. And if we're lucky it will be a special one, one that lives on in lore on lists like this down the line.