5 Most Memorable NBA Opening-Round Playoff Games Ever

You don't need to wait until the NBA Finals to gather your fondest memories of the postseason.

You don't even have to wait a week sometimes. Any fan can witness an incredible and lasting moment in the first round of the postseason.

While some may look at the first round as a preliminary where upsets rarely happen, they fail to remember that anything is possible in the sporting world. That's especially true when the postseason comes around and teams begin to play at their highest energy level.

The greatest thing about the playoffs is the potential for unpredictability. This is when you see teams play at their best. There are 16 teams vying for the chance to win a championship. Each and every team believes that they truly are the team that deserves to win the title.

Nobody is scared of the competition. The underdogs look to the favorites as equals.

While the NBA Finals will usually provide the most drama, there are still plenty of times to capture a lasting memory in the conference playoffs. We all remember the Miami Heat coming back from 12 points down in the final four minutes in last year's Conference Finals; Reggie Miller defeating the New York Knicks; and Ralph Sampson hitting one of the most incredible game winners you'll ever see.

All of those moments will be remembered for a long time—and they didn't even happen in the NBA Finals. Those are just instances where you are able to physically witness the heart and will of a champion exposed at the highest level.

We take the time to honor those lesser known rounds by giving you the five best opening-round games in NBA postseason history. They are listed in no particular order.

2009: Chicago Bulls vs. Boston Celtics Game 6

The Chicago Bulls in 2009 were much different than the Bulls you see today.

They didn't have the league's top record and didn't have the league's reigning MVP. They were a scrappy team that featured John Salmons, Joakim Noah, Ben Gordon and a rookie Derrick Rose. The Bulls finished the year as a seventh seed and was slated to take on the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics.

The Celtics still had the key components from their championship run, but were playing without emotional defensive leader Kevin Garnett. Even without Garnett, it would still be tough to believe that a team as young as the Bulls would be able to take on a reigning champion that featured Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo.

Instead of a moderately easy win for the Celtics that was originally predicted, we became witnesses to one of the greatest postseason series in NBA history.

The Bulls stole game one in Boston with a two point overtime victory and nearly took game two as well. Heading back to Chicago, the Celtics took back home court advantage with a 21-point win in game three which was followed up by a double overtime victory by the Bulls. With the series tied and heading back to Boston, the Celtics won yet another overtime thriller.

Outside of game three, the four other contests were decided by a grand total of 10 points. We thought that the series had reached its climax after the third overtime game of the series, but we were fortunately wrong as game six would become an instant classic.

Fighting for their playoff lives in front of their home crowd, the Bulls would take the Celtics to not one, not two, but three overtimes to decide the eventual winner. Despite Ray Allen pouring in 51 points, it wasn't enough as the Bulls were able to steal a 128-127 victory in a game that needed 15 extra minutes to be decided.

The game was capped off by Joakim Noah's steal and ferocious fastbreak dunk on Paul Pierce to give the Bulls the lead once and for all.

Unfortunately for the Bulls, and the rest of the NBA world, game seven was a dud with the Celtics controlling from the outset and eventually winning by ten points. However, it did little to diminish the ambition, tenacity and drive that we witnessed from a scrappy team that was believed to have no chance and a defending NBA champion.

2011: Portland Trail Blazers vs. Dallas Mavericks Game 4

When we look back at Brandon Roy's career, I truly hope we look at games like this rather than how his career came to a disappointing end.

Roy's career was already taking a big hit by the time the 2011 postseason started. He had played in 65 games the year before and only 47 the next. Knee injuries were beginning to plague Roy's career—and it would lead to his eventual retirement at the age of 26.

Before his retirement, however, Roy wanted to leave us with one last parting shot of what he was capable of. Prior to the knee injuries that began to deteriorate his play, Roy was well on his way to becoming a perennial All-Star.

He was arguably one of the top two guards in the league—amongst champions Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Manu Ginobili.

Like Grant Hill and Penny Hardaway, we'll never know what could have been with Roy. He had averaged as much as 23 points per game on 48 percent shooting. He was a complete player who provided help in rebounding and facilitating as a passer.

His ability to shoot from outside, drive inside and nail clutch shot after clutch shot had convinced us that he was a force to be reckoned with.

Prior to his retirement, Roy would put on one of the most memorable and inspirational individual displays of playoff basketball.

With his Blazer team down by as much as 23 points near the end of the third quarter, Roy became the player we knew from two years prior. The Trail Blazers' opponent, Dallas Mavericks, were set to go back to Dallas with a 3-1 series lead.

Brandon Roy's team was down 18 points after 36 minutes. He only had six points up until the fourth. It wasn't the Brandon Roy we knew. He must have realized that as well; he decided to play like the Roy from 2009 for the next 12 minutes.

After seeing his team down by as much as 23 points, Roy found himself with the ball. The Blazers were down by four with a little over a minute remaining.

Roy dribbled at the top of the perimeter. Shot. Contact. Whistle. Swish.

Shawn Marion, the man who was defending him, could have put Roy in a bear hug and the shot still would have gone in. There was nothing that was going to deny him from making that shot and then making the ensuing free throw to tie the game at 82 apiece.

It didn't end there, however. Roy still had to win the game. The masterpiece wasn't quite complete until 20 seconds later when Roy took Marion off the dribble and banked in a jumper from the free-throw line to give the Blazers the lead for good.

Unfortunately for the Blazers, they'd lose the next two games. However, we haven't forgotten of the lasting image of Brandon Roy and of a career that was never able to reach its peak.

1989: Chicago Bulls vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Game 5

Even before 1989, we knew of the greatness that seeped from Michael Jordan come playoff time.

That greatness was apparent at all times, but like all of the other greats to play the game, it wasn't until the playoffs where we truly saw how prolific and amazing of a player Jordan was.

Jordan's 63 points against the Boston Celtics is a record that still stands to this day. It doesn't seem to carry as much significance because of the fact that he lost in what would turn out to be a sweep.

It was games like that which showed off his individual greatness, yet we yearned for more. We knew that Jordan could do it all, but we wanted to see a win that would establish the cornerstone of his career.

A few years after the Celtics game, Jordan's Chicago Bulls were taking on the No. 3 seed Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs had defeated the Bulls on all six occasions in the regular season, but it didn't mean anything once the postseason began. The Bulls won Game 1 by seven to immediately steal home-court advantage.

However, they'd give it back in Game 4 when they had the chance to take the series. With Game 5 back in Cleveland, the Bulls found themselves with their backs against the wall. After Jordan hit a jumper with six seconds left to put the Bulls up by one, the Cavaliers came right back with a layup of their own to take back the lead.

With only three seconds left, the Bulls only had one option to win. That was giving the ball to Michael Jordan and getting out of his way.

Sure enough, the ball went to Jordan. He did a quick change of direction to elude his initial defender, got to the free-throw line and took the shot over the passing Craig Ehlo. As history dictates, the shot went in at the buzzer to give the Bulls a 101-100 victory and the series victory.

The Bulls would make it to the Conference Finals, but would fall to the Detroit Pistons in six games.

While it may appear to be any other game-winning shot, this was the original building block of the most illustrious career in sports. When Jordan hit that game winner over Ehlo, he set the foundation for a legacy that would consist of nothing but success and coming through when his team needed him most.

Two years after Jordan hit the shot, he'd lead the Bulls to their first of three consecutive titles.

1993: New York Knicks vs. Indiana Pacers Game 3

While most of us were enraptured in the magic that was Michael Jordan and his six title runs, there happened to be a little rivalry developing between the New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers.

It's a strange rivalry if you think about it. The two cities have little to nothing in common in sports or any other aspect in society. The Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets/Giants? No rivalry to my knowledge. The New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks? They've both been in the NHL a long time, but never had a longstanding rivalry.

Yet when the Pacers and Knicks got together, there was just some sort of hatred between the two teams that was apparent from Game 1 in their first ever series together in 1993.

They'd go on to face each other six times in the postseason over the next seven years. However, the hatred was there from the start.

Possibly the main reason for the rivalry is the fact that both teams possessed hard-nosed players who didn't like to be pushed around. The Knicks had Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley and John Starks and the Pacers came out with Reggie Miller, Dale Davis and Rik Smits.

These were guys that did a lot of talking and would leave you with a lot more than just emotional pain after the game.

The first-round series overall in 1993 wasn't memorable in the slightest. The Knicks won the first two games and ended it in Game 4 to take the series in five games. However, it's what happened in Game 3 that would create the outline for this rivalry over the next seven years.

Reggie Miller liked to talk. He liked to talk a lot. When he was being defended by John Starks, his main purpose in the game was to constantly throw verbal jabs at him in order to make him do something asinine. We can only guess that Starks had heard enough about two games because it spilled over in Game 3.

Instead of ignoring Miller, Starks did the worst possible thing he could do by headbutting Miller and getting himself ejected from the game.

The Pacers would go on to win Game 3, but it wasn't even about the win. What we witnessed was the beginning of one of the NBA's greatest rivalries. The rivalry created memory after memory that are still firmly implanted in our heads today.

The best moment was seeing Starks' teammates fiercely yell at him. Everybody on the team knew that Miller liked to talk and he was attempting to make Starks fall into a trap. The Knicks were just angry that he was foolish enough to fall for the incessant noise from  Miller.

When Starks headbutted Miller, he threw a lit match in a barrel full of gasoline. This was a fire that needed to be sparked. We knew in the end that Michael Jordan and the Bulls were going to end up winning everything, so we needed some other form of entertainment that would give us a suspense.

2012: Los Angeles Clippers vs. Memphis Grizzlies Game 1

This most recent addition of the list, but there was no conceivable way to exclude Game 1 between the Los Angeles Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies from a few nights ago.

There's been a lot more focus on the Miami Heat's potential title run and the injuries to All-Stars like Derrick Rose and Dwight Howard than the series featuring the Clippers and Grizzlies.

It's obvious why those stories would be considered more popular, but we are still missing out on what potentially could be the best first-round series of the 2012 playoffs.

The Clippers and Grizzlies are two teams with unique strengths. Memphis gets by on their vaunted frontcourt—featuring Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and Rudy Gay—while also relying on defensive specialist Tony Allen, high-volume scorer O.J. Mayo and solid point guard Mike Conley, Jr.

This is a blue collar team that wins games by rebounding and constantly pounding it inside.

The Clippers are a flashy team that recently found success in the form of Chris Paul and Caron Butler—along with Blake Griffin, Mo Williams and DeAndre Jordan. A team laden with young athletes, as well as crafty veterans, hasn't exactly exceeded their heavy preseason expectations. Yet, they still knew how to win games and provide plenty of entertainment.

For the first 36 minutes of their first ever postseason matchup against each other, it appeared that we were going to be in for a series that wasn't going to be as thrilling as anticipated.

The Grizzlies absolutely dominated the Clippers. They completely shut down Blake Griffin, harassed Chris Paul and basically didn't give the entire starting lineup much of a voice.

The Grizzlies went into the fourth quarter up by 21 points. They had led by as much as 27 in the third quarter. Needless to say, we didn't expect what happened next; Reggie Evans, Nick Young and Kenyon Martin sparked a comeback that will be remembered for years to come.

Behind Evans' rebounding, Young's shooting and Martin's defense, the Clippers found their way back into the game. Once they got close, Chris Paul eventually took over and ended up leading the Clippers all the way back from 27 to an improbable one-point victory. The game ended with Gay missing a potential game winner.

Even in the first round, we have been spectators of some of the greatest individual and team performances of all time. This game is a clear-cut example of never giving up and always having the mindset that there is a possibility of winning. That's true even when your back is against the wall and everything seems to be weighing against you.

All it takes is some toughness and some necessary shots.

Your opponent collapsing and playing the complete opposite of how they played to build up the lead helps, too.