NBA BASKETBALL - 2000/01 TO 2009/10
2000/01
Regular Season - Los Angeles Lakers (122) @ (125) Golden State Warriors - Only the 2nd game in history where 2 players from different teams each get 50 points; Antwaan Jamison (51) and Kobe Bryant (51). Jamison wins the day, winning in overtime (8, 2 Discs, KCal9 - Hearn/Lantz, PAL)
2001/02
All Star game - West (135) v (120) East - The Lakers Kobe Bryant (31 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals) put on a show in his return to his hometown of Philadelphia, becoming the first players to score 30 points in the game sinc 1993. The West roster also featured Shaquille O'Neal (Lakers), Kevin Garnett (Timberwolves) and Tim Duncan (Spurs) and All Star debutants Steve Nash (Mavericks), Dirk Nowitzki (Mavericks) and Peja Stojaković (Kings). The East roster featured Vince Carter (Raptors), Allen Iverson (76ers), Michael Jordan (Wizards) and Dikembe Mutombo (76ers). The moment of the game was East Guard Tracy McGrady's spectacular off-the-backboard-back-to-himself dunk. This was also the last All-Star Game to feature players wearing their respective team jerseys (8, 2 Discs, NBC - Albert/Jones/Walton, PAL)
Eastern Conference 1st Round Playoff Game 5 - Indiana Pacers (109) @ (120) New Jersey Nets - The Pacers Reggie Miller did all he could to beat the Nets, including a buzzer beater to force 1 overtime then a clutch shot with 3 seconds left to force the 2nd overtime, but it was not enough as the Nets and Jason Kidd (31 points) won through to the next round (9, 2 Discs, MSG & ESPN - Breen/Fratello/Van Gundy/Lynam, PAL)
Western Conference Final Game 7 - Los Angeles Lakers (112) @ (106) Sacramento Kings - The Lakers reached their 3rd straight NBA finals as they finally disposed of the Kings, but needed overtime to do it. Both teams star players played hard with the Lakers Shaquille O'Neal (35 points, 13 rebounds, 4 blocks) and Kobe Bryant (30 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists) equally matched by the Kings Mike Bibby (29 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) and Chris Webber (20 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists). But ultimately the Kings were undone by poor free-throw shooting (16-of-30) and 3 point shooting (2-of-20) as the Lakers pulled away in overtime to take the win. Disc 1 also includes the 4th quarter of Game 6 (8, Transfer from VHS, 2 Discs, NBC - Albert/Walton/Jones, PAL)
2002/03
Western Conference Semi-Final Game 2 - Sacramento Kings (110) @ (132) Dallas Mavericks - In a wild high-scoring game, the Mavericks set an NBA record for points scored in a half with an 83 point 1st half. Mavs back-up Guard Nick Van Exel set the pace with 36 points, turning a 44-40 Mavs lead at the end of the 1st quarter into an 83-61 half-time lead. The Kings were led by Chris Webber (31 points) and Peja Stojakovic (24 points). The Mavs also featured Dirk Nowitzki (24) and Steve Nash (19) (8, JIP 2:02 1st quarter, Missing 3rd quarter, JIP 9:40 4th quarter, 2 Discs, ESPN - Nessler/Walton/Aldridge, PAL)
Western Conference Semi-Final Game 3 - Dallas Mavericks (141) @ (137) Sacramento Kings - Both teams battled into double overtime in another wild, end-to-end, high-scoring game. Mavs back-up Nick Van Exel set a personal playoff scoring record with 40 points, matched by a career night from the Kings Peja Stojakovic, who scored 39 points. Van Exel was also helped by Dirk Nowitzki (25) and Steve Nash (31) while Peja was helped by Vlade Divacs (20) and Doug Chrstie (18) (8, 2 Discs, ESPN - Tirico/Tolbert/Tafoya, PAL)
All Star game - West (155) v (145) East - At the Philips Arena in Atlanta, the Wizards Michael Jordan (20 points, 5 rebounds), in his last All Star game, nearly wrote a fairytale ending as he hit a lead-changing shot with 4.8 seconds left in Overtime. But a foul on a last play shot by the West allowed the game to go into 2 overtimes where the game MVP Kevin Garnett (Timberwolves), closed the deal. Garnett top scored for the West with 37 points. The West roster also featured Kobe Bryant (Lakers), Yao Ming (Rockets) in his 1st All Star game, Tim Duncan (Spurs) and Shaquille O'Neal (Lakers - 19 points, 13 rebounds). The East roster also featured Tracy McGrady (Magic), Allen Iverson (76ers), Vince Carter (Raptors) and Jason Kidd (Nets) (8, 2 Discs, TNT - Albert/Fratello/Van Gundy/Sager, PAL)
2003
NBA Draft - One of the best drafts of all-time, 4 of the top 5 players picked ended up winning Gold in the 2008 Olympic games. The #1 pick was LeBron James (Cleveland) and was followed by #2 Darko Milicic (Detroit), #3 Carmelo Anthony (Denver), #4 Chris Bosh (Toronto) and #5 Dwayne Wade (Miami). Other players featured include #7 Kirk Hinrich (Chicago), #8 TJ Ford (Milwaukee), #28 Josh Howard (Dallas), #31 Jason Kapono (Cleveland) and #51 Kyle Korver (Philadelphia) (9, Full coverage, 2 Discs, ESPN - Tirico/Bilas/Tolbert/Anthony, NTSC)
2003/04
Regular Season - Cleveland Cavaliers (92) @ (106) Sacramento Kings - The opening day of the season saw Cavs Rookie LeBron James make his debut. James didn't disappoint, scoring 25 pts, 9 assists, 6 rebounds and 4 steals. The game belonged to the Kings, though, with Peja Stojakovic (22 points), Mike Bibby (19 points) and Vlade Divac (18 points) providing the points (9, 1st quarter interspersed with the overtime period from the Magic @ Knicks game, 2 Discs, ESPN - Nessler/Majerle/Elliott, PAL)
Regular Season - Dallas Mavericks (118) @ (116) Seattle Supersonics - Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki hits for 43 points including 8 3 pointers, including the buzzer beater to win the game (9, 2 Discs, UPN21 - Pinto/Ortegel, PAL)
Regular Season - New Jersey Nets (104) @ (107) Cleveland Cavaliers - Cavs rookie LeBron James single-handedly upset the Nets with a season high 41 points along with 6 rebounds and 3 steals. The Nets countered with Richard Jefferson and his season high 39 points. The Cavs also featured Carlos Boozer (9, 2 Discs, FOX - Reghi/Carr, PAL)
Western Conference Semi-Final Game 5 - Los Angeles Lakers (74) @ (73) San Antonio Spurs - The Spurs comeback from a 16 point deficit to take the lead on a last second Tim Duncan (21pts, 21reb) jumper from the top of the key with Lakers draped all over him. But there was still four tenths of a second left. The Lakers inbound to Derek Fisher who hits an impossible shot to give the Lakers an impossible win and a 3-2 series lead (9, 2 Discs, ABC - Michaels/Rivers, PAL)
Finals Game 1 - Detroit Pistons (87) @ (75) Los Angeles Lakers - The Pistons shock the Lakers on their home court despite Kobe Bryant (25 pts) and Shaquille O'Neal (34 pts) having good nights (9, 2 Discs, ABC - Michaels/Rivers, PAL)
Finals Game 5 - Los Angeles Lakers (87) @ (100) Detroit Pistons - Detroit wins the championship with a 4-1 series domination. The Pistons Defense, led by Ben Wallace (18pts, 22reb) dominates the Lakers offense. The last game together for Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal (9, 2 Discs, ABC - Michaels/Rivers, PAL)
All Star Weekend - NBA Sophomores (142) v (118) NBA Rookies - In the highest-scoring Rookies/Sophomores game ever, a strong Rookie team dominated the Sophomores at The Staples Center in Los Angeles. In retrospect, the game also featured the most future NBA All-Stars in a game of this kind, with a total of 10 players from both teams (6 Rookies and 4 Sophomores). The Rookies featured LeBron James (33 points, 6 assists), Dwayne Wade (22 points), Carmelo Anthony (17 points), Josh Howard (13 points) and Chris Bosh (8 points). The Sophomores featured Amare Stoudemire (36 points), Carlos Boozer (25 points), Yao Ming (6 points) and Manu Ginobli (4 points). LeBron and Carmelo ham it up with dunks and dishes galore (8, 2 Discs, TNT, PAL)
2004
NBA Draft - Top picks are Dwight Howard, Emeka Okafor, Ben Gordon, Jameer Nelson (8, 2 hour hi-lites of both rounds, 2 Discs, ESPN - Tirico/Bilas/Tolbert/Smith, PAL)
2004/05
Regular Season - Sacramento Kings (98) @ (107) Dallas Mavericks - The Mavericks blow out the Kings on opening night with Dirk Nowitzki (33 pts) unstoppable (9, 2 Discs, CSNS - Pinto/Ortegel, PAL)
Regular Season - Dallas Mavericks (113) @ (93) Miami Heat - The Mavericks outscore the Heat in a big offensive showdown. Dirk Nowitzki (41 pts) battles hard with Shaquille O'Neal (22 pts) and Dwayne Wade (20 pts) (9, 2 Discs, TNT - Harlan/Collins/Miller, PAL)
Regular Season - Houston Rockets (106) @ (113) Dallas Mavericks - In a wild overtime game, both teams stars refused to be beaten. Dirk Nowitzki (53 pts) finally gets the better of Tracy McGrady (48 pts) (9, 2 Discs, TNT - Alberts/Kerr/Sager, PAL)
Regular Season - Cleveland Cavaliers (98) @ (105) Toronto Raptors - LeBron James explodes for a career high 56 points and also chips in with 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals (9, 2 Discs, FOX - Swirsky/Rautins, PAL)
Regular Season - Orlando Magic (99) @ (112) Philadelphia 76ers - 76ers Guard Allen Iverson is unstoppable as he drops a career high 60 points on the Magic (9, 1 Disc, Sun Sports - Steele/Goukas, PAL)
Regular Season - Indiana Pacers (97) @ (82) Detroit Pistons - An early season re-match of the previous seasons Eastern Conference Finals was elevated to infamy as a last minute on-court altercation ended in an all-in fight between the players and the fans. The Pistons Ben Wallace and the Pacers Ron Artest got into a shoving match that brought both teams onto the court. A fan then threw a drink over Artest and he jumped into the crowd, along with Stephen Jackson, and started fighting with the fans. The game was abandoned and later Artest was banned for 86 games. Jackson was banned for 30 games (9, 1 Disc, ESPN 2 - Breen/Walton/Gray, NTSC)
2005/06
Regular Season - Toronto Raptors (104) @ (122) LA Lakers - The Lakers Kobe Bryant scored 81 points, the 2nd highest points ever in an NBA game. Kobe had 26 points in the 1st half and dropped an amazing 55 points in the 2nd half to beat the Raptors, who were led by Mike James (26 points) and Chris Bosh (18 points) (9, 1 Disc, FOX - Macdonald/Lantz, PAL)
2006/07
Eastern Conference Finals, Game 5 - Cleveland Cavaliers (109) @ (107) Detroit Pistons - The Cavaliers took a 3-2 lead in the series with a 2 Overtime win against the Pistons. The hero was LeBron James (48 pts, 9 rebs, 7 ass) whose 48 pts were a team playoff record. James was so dominant that he scored the final 25 points for the Cavs, the final 2 with 2 seconds left (10, 1 Disc, TNT - Albert/Kerr/Collins/Sager, PAL)
Finals Game 1 - Cleveland Cavaliers (76) @ (85) San Antonio Spurs - The Cavaliers finally made it to the Finals but were given a reality check by the Spurs, who dominated both ends of the floor to take Game 1. The Big 3 of the Spurs combined for 67 points as Tim Duncan (24 points), Tony Parker (27 points) and Manu Ginobli (16 points) took it to the Cavaliers' LeBron James (14 points) (9, 2 Discs, ABC - Breen/Jackson/Van Gundy, PAL)
Finals Game 4 - San Antonio Spurs (83) @ (82) Cleveland Cavaliers - Despite a strong 2nd half, the Cavaliers failed to halt the Spurs juggernaut as San Antonio claimed their 4th title since 1999. Series MVP Tony Parker scored 24 points while Cavs LeBron James scored 24 points in a losing effort (9, 2 Discs, ABC - Breen/Jackson/Van Gundy, PAL)
2007/08
Regular Season - Boston Celtics (94) @ (74) Houston Rockets - The 2 hottest teams in the league met up to see who was best. The Celtics, led by Kevin Garnett (22 pts) ended the Rockets 22 game win streak with a strong 2nd half performance. Houston were led by Tracy McGrady (8 pts), who was made a non-factor by strong Celtics defense (10, 2 Discs, TNT - Albert/Collins/Aldridge, PAL)
Western Conference 1st Round, Game 5 - Dallas Mavericks (94) @ (99) New Orleans Hornets - The Hornets advanced to the next round with their first ever series win in the playoffs. The hero for the Hornets was Chris Paul (24 pts, 15 assists, 11 rebs). After the game the Mavericks sacked coach Avery Johnson (10, 3rd Quarter missing the last 3:56, 2 Discs, TNT - Devlin/Dunleavy/Oliver, PAL)
Finals Game 1 - Los Angeles Lakers (88) @ (98) Boston Celtics - The Celtics returned to the Finals for the first time in 22 years and started with a win. Kevin Garnett (24 pts, 13 rebs) and Paul Pierce (22 pts) paced the Celtics while the defense held Kobe Bryant to 24 points. Paul Pierce briefly left the game in the 2nd half with a twisted knee but returned to hit 2 3 point shots to bring the win closer (10, 2 Discs, ABC - Breen/Jackson/Van Gundy, PAL)
Finals Game 6 - Los Angeles Lakers (92) @ (131) Boston Celtics - The Celtics claimed their 17th championship with a dominating win over the Lakers. The margin of victory was a record for a deciding game in the finals. The Celtics were paced by Ray Allen (26 pts) and Kevin Garnett (26 pts, 14 rebs) while series MVP Paul Pierce (17 pts, 10 ass.) had a good game. Kobe Bryant had 22 points and was stifled by a Celtics defense that also forced a record 18 steals (10, 2 Discs, ABC - Breen/Jackson/Van Gundy, PAL)
2008/09
Preseason - Denver Nuggets (77) v (72) Phoenix Suns - On a chilly night on the Indian Wells Tennis court in California, the Nuggets and the Suns combined to play the 1st ever NBA game outdoors. The wind played a big factor in the scoring as both teams only shot about 30 percent from the field. The Suns featured Steve Nash (16 points) and Shaquille O'Neal (2 points, 7 rebounds) but were missing Amare Stoudemire and Leandro Barbosa. The Nuggets featured JR.Smith (12 points) and Nene (10 points, 7 rebounds) but were missing Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony to injury (10, 1 Disc, TNT - Albert/Miller/Barkley, NTSC)
All Star Weekend - NBA Sophomores (122) v (116) NBA Rookies - The Sophomores continued their win streak against the Rookies with Kevin Durant scoring a record 46 points. The Rookies featured Michael Beasley, OJ Mayo and Derrick Rose. The Sophomores also featured Jeff Green, Al Horford and Aaron Brooks. Disc also includes Shooting Stars competition, 3 Point shootout, Skills Challenge and the Slam Dunk competition (10, 1 Disc, TNT - Harlan/Smith/James/Sager, PAL)
Eastern Conference 1st Round, Game 2 - Chicago Bulls (115) @ (118) Boston Celtics - Boston evened the series at 1-1 but needed a 3 pointer with 2 seconds left to do it. In the battle of the former UConn guards, the Bulls Ben Gordon (42 points) won the battle but the Celtics Ray Allen (30 points) won the war as his 3 pointer was the difference in the game. The Bulls also featured Derrick Rose (10 points, 6 assists). The Celtics also featured Glen Davis (26 points, 9 rebounds) but were missing Kevin Garnett due to injury. Edited Re-broadcast missing action in 1st Quarter between 8:33 and 4:36, the 2nd Quarter between 12:00 and 9:06 and 7:23 and 6:28, the 3rd quarter between 5:58 and 2:51 (10, 1 Disc, TNT - Harlan/Collins/Aldridge, PAL)
Eastern Conference 1st Round, Game 6 - Boston Celtics (127) @ (128) Chicago Bulls - The Bulls extended their 1st round series with the Celtics to a "winner takes all" 7th game with a big win in 3 Overtimes. A back-and-forth regular time inevitably led to overtime (the 4th of the series) and, despite a franchise playoff record points total from Ray Allen (51 points), the Bulls held on at the death to win. The heroes for the Bulls were John Salmon (35 points), Derrick Rose (28 points) and Brad Miller (23 points, 10 rebounds) (10, 2 Discs, TNT - Harlan/Collins/Aldridge, NTSC)
2009/10
Pre-Season - Chicago Bulls (102) v (101) Utah Jazz - In a closely contested game at the O2 Arena in London, it was the Bulls that had the last word as they won the game on a buzzer-beating jump shot. The Bulls Forward Luol Deng marked his return to his hometown with 18 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists and helped lead the Bulls to a 71-58 lead in the 3rd quarter. But the Jazz fought back to take a 1 point lead with 25 seconds left. With time ticking down, Bulls rookie James Johnson (18 points) rebounded a missed 3 pointer and took the game winning shot with 0.6 left to win the game. The Bulls also featured Joakim Hoah (10 points, 3 rebs, 4 ass.), Jannero Pargo (16 points) and Kirk Hinrich (11 points, 7 rebs). The Jazz featured Deron Williams (16 points), Wesley Matthews (16 points) and Alexander Johnson (18 points). The game marked the first ever BBC broadcast of an NBA game and uses the Radio 5 Live commentary (10, NBATV pictures with BBC radio overlayed, 2 Discs, BBC - Pougatch/Fletcher/Amaechi, PAL)
All Star Weekend - NBA Rookies (140) v (128) NBA Sophomores - For the first time since 2002, the Rookies beat the Sophomores in a high scoring game. The MVP was Tyreke Evans (26 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists) and he was supported by DeJuan Blair (22 points, 23 rebounds) who also scored a spectacular dunk with an off-the-backboard-to-himself dunk. The Rookies also featured Brandon Jennings (22 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds), Stephen Curry (14 points) and Jonny Flynn (9 points, 7 assists). The Sophomores were led by Russell Westbrook (40 points) and also featured Michael Beasley (26 points), Kevin Love (12 points, 6 rebounds) and OJ Mayo (8 points, 10 assists) (10, 2 Discs, TNT - Harlan/Howard/McHale, PAL)
All Star Weekend - East All Stars (141) v (139) West All Stars - The largest crowd ever to watch a Basketball game (108,713) crammed into the new Dallas Cowboys stadium to watch the East, led by MVP Dwayne Wade, beat the West. Wade (28 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists) was the games top scorer. The East led 76-69 at the half but a strong 4th quarter put the West into contention and it needed 2 Free-Throws with 5 seconds left by Chris Bosh (23 points, 10 rebounds) to seal the win. The East also featured LeBron James (25 points) and Dwight Howard (17 points). The West were led by Carmelo Anthony (27 points, 10 rebounds), Amare Stoudemire (12 points, 10 rebounds) and home-town favourite Dirk Nowitzki (22 points). Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul, both selected to play, missed the game with injuries (10, 2 Discs, TNT - Albert/Collins/Miller, PAL)
Finals Game 7 - Boston Celtics (79) @ (83) Los Angeles Lakers - In a winner-takes-all Game 7, the Lakers fought back from a 13 point deficit in the 2nd half to win their 16th Championship. The star for the Lakers was Kobe Bryant (23 points, 15 rebounds), who turned in an MVP performance. The Lakers also featured Ron Artest (20 points, 5 rebounds) and Pau Gasol (19 points, 18 rebounds). The Celtics also featured Paul Pierce (18 points, 10 rebounds), Rajon Rondo (14 points, 10 assists) and Kevin Garnett (17 points) (10, 2 Discs, ABC - Breen/Jackson/Van Gundy, PAL)