NBA Finals 2013: Game 7 defines the agony and ecstasy of any sport
They remain two of the most attention-grabbing words in sports, perhaps just a few rungs below “Beer here,” and “Swimsuit Issue.” For some of us, these two words can create flashbacks and palpitations. They can be nerve-frazzling and teeth-grinding and heart-seizing. They can represent something frantic, idyllic or quixotic. And they always provoke a strong reaction, because they represent a season’s moment of truth.
These are the words: Game 7.
They define the agony and ecstasy of any sport, but particularly the NBA, which will host the 113th Game 7 of its playoff history tonight in Miami. And the best part of it is that we have little idea of what the Heat and Spurs have in store for us in the last 48 minutes (or more) of the 2012-13 playoffs.
But no matter how it turns out, we know this much: Game 7 is eternal. It has authored great legacies, and made others infamous. And on virtually every occasion, it has forever changed the life of every man who has been through it.
“I remember one game with Sam Jones taking a last shot, and another with (Frank) Ramsey,” Celtics patriarch Red Auerbach once said. “We’re in the final seconds, trailing or tied in a Game 7, and in each case the ball hit the rim, then the backboard, then the rim, and finally rolled in. And I walked off thinking, ‘Boy, I guess that makes me one hell of a coach.’ ”
Either way, more often than not, it’s usually one hell of a show.
Welcome back, Game 7.
THE FIRST GAME 7
It predates the NBA itself. It was played on April 6, 1948, when the Philadelphia Warriors crushed the St. Louis Bombers, 85-46, in the semifinal round of the BAA (Basketball Association of America) playoffs. One year later, George Mikan and the Minneapolis Lakers joined the BAA; two years later, the league became the NBA.
GREATEST GAME 7 DEBUT
Probably the one made by a Boston rookie named Tommy Heinsohn, who was just four years out of St. Michael’s High School in Union City. He had 37 points and 23 rebounds in Game 7 of the 1957 NBA Finals, helping the Celtics survive a 125-123 epic against St. Louis in double overtime. Timely? Consider: Boston’s Hall of Fame backcourt of Bill Sharman and Bob Cousy shot a combined 5-for-40 that night.
BEST GAME 7 PERFORMER
Probably Bill Russell, who was 10-0 in such games. But Russell himself would choose teammate Sam Jones (9-0), who holds the all-time Game 7 scoring record with 47 points in the 1963 East Finals, a mark matched by Dominique Wilkins in 1988.
COACHES AND THEIR VAUNTED TRIOS
Miami’s Big 3 has played only two Game 7s as a group and won both games, but Eric Spoelstra has been through three of them. His only Game 7 loss was a first-rounder against Atlanta on May 3, 2009. The Spurs’ Big 3 is 2-1, as is coach Gregg Popovich.
ROAD RARELY TRAVELED
The last road team to win a Game 7 of the NBA Finals? The ’78 Bullets, who won at Seattle. This may not serve as inspiration for the Spurs, because sometimes the road team has to rely on the weird, such as: The super backcourt of Dennis Johnson and Gus Williams shot a combined 4-for-26 for the Sonics; and the game was clinched only after MVP Wes Unseld — a 55 percent free-throw shooter — hit a pair at the line with 12 seconds left.
GAME 7, BY THE NUMBERS
2 — Number of road teams that have won Game 7s in the last three postseasons, including this year’s Bulls triumph at Brooklyn. Road teams are 2-5 in the last three playoffs.
5 — Number of triple-doubles in Game 7 history, achieved only by Jerry West (1969 NBA Finals), Larry Bird (1984 East semis), James Worthy (1988 NBA Finals), Scottie Pippen (1992 East semis), and Russell Westbrook (2011 West semis).
14 — Game 7 experience on the entire San Antonio roster.
32 — LeBron James’ scoring average in splitting his four Game 7s.
41 — Tim Duncan’s point total in the only Game 7 he lost (2006, in OT).
48 — Game 7 experience on the entire Miami roster, though Ray Allen is the only one to appear in a Game 7 of an NBA Finals.
.895 — Winning percentage of home teams in Game 7s of the Conference Finals or NBA Finals since 1985. They’re 17-2.
2.3 — Amount, in millions, that the winning team will share.