Ranking Best Buzzer-Beaters of 2012-13 Season Thus Far

There have been no shortage of exciting moments so far this season, and it's pretty much lived up to the billing as one of the most exciting seasons going in.

This entire season has been punctuated by a series of buzzer-beating shots that ended up changing the course of a game, or just ending them altogether.

Of course, the most recent buzzer-beater came at the hands of Damian Lillard as he knocked down a straightaway three-pointer at the end of regulation to give the Portland Trail Blazers the win over the New Orleans Hornets.

In honor of the extremely exciting first six weeks of the year, let's take a look back at the most impressive buzzer-beaters of the young season.

10. Ibaka's Crouching Tiger

You know, when you start talking about buzzer-beating three-pointers, the 194th person I think of is Serge Ibaka. I'd give you all the guys before him, but I don't think you'd want to sit here and read it all.

Let's just say Jerry Stackhouse is somewhere up above Ibaka.

Ibaka squares around at the end of the half against the Los Angeles Clippers, rises and fires like he's done it a few hundred times before.

The best part about it all is the pose he takes as he's shooting, going down to one knee when the shot is about halfway through its arc.

9. Norris Cole's Half-Courter

Norris Cole isn't good for much for the Miami Heat. He's got a high-top fade and a decent three-point shot, and that's about the extent of his contributions.

However, when he can add a deep three-ball to knock down a buzzer-beater before the end of the half, it's like playing with house money.

Cole nonchalantly drains this deep three-pointer from just a few feet away from the giant flaming basketball in the middle of Miami's court.

It didn't seem like it was that out of the ordinary for the little dude either.

8. Monta Ellis Street Ball Moves

Sometimes things end up going right, other times they end up going so ridiculously right that nobody can really believe it.

Here we see Monta Ellis try to pass the ball around his defender, who gets his body out and knocks it away with the tip of his fingers.

"No worry," says Monta as he collects the ball off the high bounce and sends it flying toward the hoop on a runner from behind the three-point line.

All 48 people in their seats in New Orleans seemed to enjoy this one.

7. Jarrett Jack's Half-Courter

This is my favorite non-game-winning buzzer-beater of the season. A seemingly impossible shot falls like it's just another jumper.

Jarrett Jack lines up from three quarters of the way down the court, puts it up over D.J. Augustin's outstretched arm and crouches emotionlessly as the shot falls.

It seems to be a lot better when the guy who makes it reacts with nothing, while his teammates go crazy, the crowd freaks out and the other team looks on in awe.

6. Brandon Jennings Ends It

The Cleveland Cavaliers have fallen victim to some ridiculously hot shooting so far this season, and this deep game-winner from Brandon Jennings may have just been the start of it all.

With the game tied at 102, Milwaukee had no choice but to go with the first shot possible, and it just so happened to be a Jennings straightaway three-pointer as Anderson Varejao does his best to disrupt the shot.

Jennings then swags out, struts around the court and confetti falls from the ceiling.

You know, just a normal NBA game in the middle of November.

5. Money Joe Johnson

Deron Williams had a chance to win the game for the Brooklyn Nets in regulation, but the shot clanked off the rim.

Joe Johnson had the Nets for the rest of the evening.

With a chance to tie the game in the first overtime period, Johnson hit a shot in the lane to tie it up and send it to a second overtime.

This time around, he got the ball with the clock winding down, took a few steps toward the rim and pulled up on a shot with his foot just on the three-point line.

It all makes it worthwhile just to see Lawrence Frank look on solemnly as his team dropped yet another game, this time against his old team.

4. Tony Parker Wins It

Tony Parker kicked off our buzzer-beating run in the second game of the season for the San Antonio Spurs, just nights after hitting a game-winner against the New Orleans Hornets.

This time around, Parker squared up with the game tied against the Oklahoma City Thunder, giving San Antonio their second win of the season.

Russell Westbrook gets entirely lost in the middle playing defense, so Parker bounces out to the perimeter, dribbles over to a bit more open look just inside the three-point line and sinks it.

Parker has been magnificent so far this season, and it seems like he and the Spurs are on their way to yet another 50-win season.

3. Mo Williams Against the San Antonio Spurs

This shot really had everything necessary for a terrific buzzer-beater to go down.

First of all, it was in Utah where it was set up for a stellar home-court reaction if the shot were to fall, a terrific game had been going on up to this point and it was a battle between a decent team and one of the best in the league.

Mo Williams never really saw an opening, he was just determined to put up a shot and win it if he could.

Danny Green mans him up about as well as he can, forces Williams into a shot from a good two feet behind the three-point line, but he sinks it regardless.

Tens of thousands of Utes go crazy.

2. Damian Lilard Beats the Clock

Damian Lillard's recent game-winner is definitely one of the best of the season, but it doesn't quite crack the No. 1 spot.

Lillard has had his chance to make big, late-game shots for the Portland Trail Blazers, but they haven't been falling at a terrific rate.

This time, he squares up and jumps with two seconds left on the clock. He releases a high-arcing shot that ends up falling through the hoop just as the red ring circles the backboard.

Portland goes crazy, Lillard gets pumped and the Blazers get the win.

1. J.R. Smith's Career in a Nutshell

The end of this game was J.R. Smith's career in a nutshell, making terrible decisions but ending up with a shot that falls.

Before this play, Smith decided it was a better choice to dribble out so that New York could have the last shot, rather than get to the rim to hit a go-ahead layup.

Of course, he ends up getting the ball off the inbound pass, dribbles to the right side of the floor and jacks up an off-balance, fade-away shot.

Nothing but net.

It was one of the most J.R. Smith-y shots of the man's career, and hopefully not the last.