NBA on Memorial Day
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The National Basketball Association's postseason tournament, the NBA Playoffs, lasts from late April to mid-June. As a result, nearly every postseason, NBA playoff games are played on Memorial Day. In past years, NBA Memorial Day games were a special affair, televised in the afternoon on over-the-air networks. Especially since 9/11, Memorial Day telecasts usually include taped messages from players thanking U.S. soldiers who are overseas. In 2005, ABC labeled their telecast ABC Salutes Memorial Day.
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Contents |
[edit] 2000s
| Year | Time | Teams | Series | Net. | Play-by-play | Color |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 8:15 p.m. | Detroit Pistons 78, Miami Heat 89 |
Game 4 East Finals |
ABC | Mike Breen | Hubie Brown |
| Notable: Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade's three-point play against Detroit, when he tossed up a lay-up behind his back while falling to the ground. | ||||||
| 2005 | 8:30 p.m. | Phoenix Suns 111, San Antonio Spurs 106 |
Game 4 West Finals |
ABC | Al Michaels | Hubie Brown |
| Notable: Phoenix Suns center Amare Stoudemire's block on Tim Duncan; Stoudamire made the block with his hand going back (risking possibly breaking his wrist) and helped preserve a Suns' lead late in the game. | ||||||
| 2004 | 9:15 p.m. | Minnesota Timberwolves 90, Los Angeles Lakers 96 |
Game 6 West Finals |
TNT | Marv Albert | Doug Collins Mike Fratello |
| Notable: Lakers' guard Kareem Rush's fourth-quarter performance; Rush hit six threes, en route to helping the Lakers come back from a deficit and advance to the NBA Finals. | ||||||
| 2003 | No game; New Jersey Nets-Detroit Pistons Game 5 unnecessary due to Nets' sweep. The game would have aired on ESPN with Brad Nessler, Tom Tolbert and Bill Walton announcing. | |||||
| 2002 | 5:30 p.m. | New Jersey Nets 94 Boston Celtics 92 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Mike Breen | P.J. Carlesimo |
| Notable: The New Jersey Nets nearly blowing another double-digit lead to the Boston Celtics; Boston's Paul Pierce missed a pair of free throws with seconds left that would have tied the game. | ||||||
| 2001 | 5:30 p.m. | Philadelphia 76ers 89 Milwaukee Bucks 83 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Mike Breen | Steve Jones Bill Walton |
| Notable: After missing Game 3 with an injury, 76ers guard Allen Iverson helped lead his team to a 2-2 tie; Philadelphia would eventually win the series. | ||||||
| 2000 | 5:30 p.m. | Indiana Pacers 89 New York Knicks 91 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Tom Hammond | Steve Jones Bill Walton |
| Notable: The Indiana Pacers trailed by as many as seventeen; though he was the leader of the team for more than a decade, this was another the several playoff games the New York Knicks won without then-injured Patrick Ewing. | ||||||
[edit] 1990s
| Year | Time | Teams | Series | Net. | Play-by-play | Color |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 5:30 p.m. | Portland Trailblazers 85, San Antonio Spurs 86 |
Game 2 West Finals |
NBC | Bob Costas | Doug Collins |
| Notable: San Antonio's Sean Elliott hits an off balance three-pointer while toeing the out of bounds line to put the Spurs ahead by the final margin in the waning seconds; the Spurs had trailed by as many as 18. | ||||||
| 1998 | 3:30 p.m. | Chicago Bulls 94 Indiana Pacers 96 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Bob Costas | Doug Collins Isiah Thomas |
| Notable: Indiana Pacers guard Reggie Miller hit the game-winning three pointer, leaving only 0.7 seconds on the clock; Michael Jordan's final attempt rimmed out at the buzzer. | ||||||
| 1997 | 3:30 p.m. | Chicago Bulls 80 Miami Heat 87 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Marv Albert | Matt Guokas |
| Notable: Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning, with his team trailing in the series 3-0, guaranteed a Game 4 victory. | ||||||
| 1996 | 3:30 p.m. | Chicago Bulls 106, Orlando Magic 101 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Marv Albert | Matt Guokas |
| Notable: The Bulls finish off a sweep of the Orlando Magic team that eliminated them in the previous year's conference semifinals. | ||||||
| 1995 | 3:30 p.m. | Orlando Magic 93, Indiana Pacers 94 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | N/A | Steve Jones Bill Walton |
| Notable: Indiana Pacers center Rik Smits hits a game winning jumpshot from the foul line at the buzzer; the shot comes after several lead changes in the final minute. | ||||||
| 1994 | 3:30 p.m. | New York Knicks 77, Indiana Pacers 83 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Marv Albert | Matt Guokas |
| 1993 | 3:30 p.m | New York Knicks 95 Chicago Bulls 105 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Marv Albert | Mike Fratello |
| Notable: Chicago's Michael Jordan scores 54 points in a win to tie the series; the Bulls will eventually beat the Knicks in six games. | ||||||
| 1992 | 3:30 p.m. | Chicago Bulls 85, Cleveland Cavaliers 99 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Marv Albert | Mike Fratello |
| 1991 | 3:30 p.m. | Chicago Bulls 115, Detroit Pistons 94 |
Game 4 East Finals |
NBC | Marv Albert | Mike Fratello |
| Notable: After several years of playoff battles, the Chicago Bulls finally defeat the Detroit Pistons, sweeping them in the Conference Finals; the game is infamous because Pistons players left the court before the game ended. | ||||||
| 1990 | 3:30 p.m. | Chicago Bulls 108, Detroit Pistons 101 |
Game 4 East Finals |
CBS | Dick Stockton | Hubie Brown |
[edit] 1980s
| Year | Time | Teams | Series | Net. | Play-by-play | Color |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | N/A | Detroit Pistons 86, Chicago Bulls 80 |
Game 4 East Finals |
CBS | N/A | N/A |
| 1988 | N/A | Boston Celtics 79, Detroit Pistons 78 |
Game 4 East Finals |
CBS | N/A | N/A |
| 1987 | N/A | Los Angeles Lakers 133, Seattle Supersonics 102 |
Game 4 West Finals |
CBS | N/A | N/A |
| 1986 | 3:00 p.m. | Houston Rockets 100, Boston Celtics 112 |
Game 1 NBA Finals |
CBS | Dick Stockton | Tom Heinsohn |
| 1985 | 3:00 p.m. | Los Angeles Lakers 114, Boston Celtics 148 |
Game 1 NBA Finals |
CBS | Dick Stockton | Tom Heinsohn |
| Notable: This game is remembered as the Memorial Day Massacre; though the Celtics won by an NBA Finals record 34 points, the Lakers came back to win the series in six. | ||||||
