Wow man, I wasn't alive for this but this is my favorite rockets team EVER. My late great grandfather gifted me the 1995 championship run DVD when I was 6 and he passed away the next year so I remember him everytime I watch this spectacular run.
I remember watching this game as a 10 yr old Spurs fan. When Elie hit that shot I said “Yes! We don’t have to play the Suns. We can beat Houston easy!” I was to young to know about intangibles. I just knew we were playing the 6th seed and not the 2nd. That WCF series was a life lesson!
"I think we can do it again" Very underrated post game statement by Hakeem. He knew he had to whoop Robinson's and Shaq's ass to get it done at that point. And he knew that's just what he was gonna do. Gangsta.
I was born and raised in Phoenix and never lived anywhere but here, but the Suns were such a weenie biter team at that time so I was rooting for Houston and I guaranteed everybody that they'd come back from being down 3-1 and win the series and go on to beat the Spurs and Magic to win it all. I was utterly broke at the time otherwise I would've started the betting at game 5 of the semi-finals.
Hakeem remained humble, and still liquified Robinson and teached a lesson to Shaq. IMHO Hakeem's 1995 playoff were the greatest ever by a single player.
@@lukasfontana7589 They were, no player meant more to a team than Hakeem to those Rockets. And Housto'n 1995 run will forever be the most improbable, odd-defeating and revealing playoff run of all time. If he was American, everybody would be still kissing his ass.
They were trailing and trailing, yet they kept pushing and pushing, kept fighting, kept coming back, refusing to die. And they won. Amazing. Inspiring. Overall, one of the greatest basketball games of all time.
Umm, they did this season. They're not the primary road uniforms but they're back. I wont to say they've worn them 7 times this season. Are you a current Rocket s fan?
Steve Jones called it: "Everybody imagines themselves making the winning shot. But it's going to have be somebody other than Olajuwon, Drexler, Johnson or Barkley."
KJ is a top 20 90's era player. Arguably top 10 if healthy for the whole decade.. The man was a bigger force and MVP than Steve Nash from 1988-1995 I'd argue.
What a game!!!!!!! Charles showing tremendous heart playing with a painful injury KJ playing out of his mind and Mario with the " Kiss of Death' three pointer.
I remember living with my parents and wachting the playoff in my room I was screamming for Houston to win and that 3 point from Mario Elie was crazy, KG is such a beast and with that crossover great ball control very underadet point guard
@@sebastianmatarelli5602 yeah. I was a Houston fan, but Phoenix was my favorite non Texas team at the time. Wish it could have been someone else, but hey, at least the Rockets didn’t waste your heartbreak by going forward to fizzle out. No huge shame losing to the 2 time straight Champions and you can always say you gave them their toughest challenge!
@@brockgeorge777they still could have and would have rather had have been the 93 Western Conference Champions 🏆 lose to the Bulls 2-4 94 WCSF 3-4 losers to #2 seed Houston Rockets 🚀 And then 95 NBA Champions 🏆 vs Houston, San Antonio and Orlando... Phoenix would have had a tougher time I suppose vs San Antonio and Orlando than Houston...
@@alecsanderhamilton9224 For sure matchups matter. Most often one team beats another because it is truly better. But sometimes, its more a case of how one happens to match up against the other. For example the 67 win 2007 Mavericks matched up poorly with the 42-40 Golden State Warriors. (As witnessed by their relative records, yet the Mavs going 0-3 against the Warriors in the regular season.) Unfortunately for them, their great records and the Warrior's poor record conspired to land them as Dallas' first round opponent. Result? One of the great upsets of NBA history with GS winning 4-2. Just think of it. 67-12 against the rest of the league, but 2-7 against a 42-40 team.
@@brockgeorge777 for sure. I believe the Rockets greatest advantage vs Orlando was the supreme confidence of Hakeem Olajuwon and the reverence with which he played with and received from SHAQ around that era. And Hakeem was the best playoff performer between Olajuwon, Robinson and Ewing and Barkley and Malone and Pippen and Drexler. Better than every other top 10 90's guy except for Jordan and Magic and he was on their level with just a little less sustained excellence in the postseason.
People forget, but no team had won a Game 7 on the road since 1982 til the Rockets did it here. To do that while also coming back from down 3-1(which also was more of a rarity back then) was doubly impressive. What's funny is the Pacers also won a Game 7 on the road the very next day.
"Well we believe in ourselves. We still are the champion. And uh just stay humble, play hard and I think we can do it again."... said THE BEST CENTER OF ALL TIME!! Ase'!!!
@user-gu4tv4hp6snot most important. Most popular, but certainly not most important. Name one Soccer player in that sports history with a bigger name than Michael Jordan, Lebron James, etc? I'll wait. I couldn't even name one Soccer player.
The amount of injuries these guys are playing with is amazing to me considering how much rest players take now for the most minute physical ailments. Different breed of man.
I always smile when I think about how sad Danny Ainge must have felt watching the kiss of death. If you listen closely, as Kenny Smith is running to hug Mario Elie you can hear him shouting “LET’S GO HOME LADIES AND GENTLEMEN”
One of the best playoff games in the history of the NBA. KJ played the finest game of his career and the Rockets showed why they were, truly, the best team in the league.
Nobody bringing up that charles barkley and the suns up 2-0 and 3-1 against the rockets and blew it. Barkley fans always talking about that 93 finals trip like it was the only year of barkley's career.
Facts bro. I live here in Phoenix and until 2021 when the Suns lost to the Bucks, that's all they talked about. And occasionally when the dbacks won the world series back in 01
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One of the main reasons the Suns could never beat that Rockets team? Dan Majerle.I've watched a bunch of games from the Suns/Rockets playoff series in both '94 & '95..Majerle just totally disappears.The guy couldn't buy a bucket.Of he just played like his normal self, the Suns win both years.
You’re exactly right bro! I got goosebumps when I saw ya post because it seems like this game just tipped off!!! Hoops was the absolute Shiz’ back them bro! Way too much Diva-Type drama in this era of basketball 🏀 Just get ya ass out there and kill or be killed my Soulja’ s!!! Great post my brother
@Conflicto He was still an All-Star, still a Dream-Teamer, still All-NBA at time of getting traded to the Rockets. They were old compared to the Big-3 of the 11 Heat, and a tad older than even the Big-3 of the 08 Celtics. Nonetheless, they were still a Big-3, still a SuperTeam in 97. People so love to make excuses for SuperTeams when they don't work out.
@@elnardowebster2842 You're right, he wasn't anymore. Karl Malone was a better PF than Barkley in 97. But Barkley was still playing at an all-star level, just not MVP level in 97.
Those old school America West Arena sound effects too. In the 90’s certain arenas had their own offense and defense sound effects. Phoenix had some very distinctive ones.
@David Kafaji Hakeem, KAJ, Shaq,Robinson, and Ewing. In no peticular order.If Bill Russell is considered a center then he might b the best. Chamberlain as an honorable mention even though we had that 100 point game his career average for points is under 20.
I am not so sure because Barkley got hurt towards the end of this series, he wouldn't of healed by the time the spurs series started and the spurs had the best record in the NBA that year
KJ's moves so predictable but yet unstoppable. That 40 point 3rd quarter by Rockets was the killer and Cassell+Drexler made that happen. Thanks for this upload. What a game!
Not going to lie. As a Rockets fan, my heart stopped beating from 1:59:21 to 1:59:25. We had the championship the year before, but the Houston sports curse was still a thing in May 1995 and Ainge making the heave at the end would have just added to the lore.
Funny thing is I forgot all about that, I only remembered the Kiss of Death and nothing that came after that in that game, although I always remembered the Rockets fouling the rest of the way to keep the Suns from getting a 3 point shot off.
I remember someone saying either on the radio or in the paper after the game that Ainge should've called a timeout and since the Suns were out of them, the Rockets would've shot a technical free throw and Phoenix would've gotten the ball back to inbound. With a couple seconds left, they could've set up an actual play down 2 points(assuming the Rockets make the free throw) and gotten a much better shot to tie or win.
A dude that barely make 11 points per game as starter with almost 35 minutes per game being the high numbers of his career blow you a "KISS OF DEATH" is the ultimate disrespect xDDDDDD
@@FecalMatador Their defensive rating in 95 was 19th out of 27 teams. That's 5 slots into the bottom half. Let's say the low end of middle of the pack?
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The 90's Western Conference was stronger than the current Western Conference. The strength of the modern Western Conference is overstated. They are regular season strong and that's it. The 7 different Western Conference teams made the NBA Finals during the 90's.
So does East. Eastern conference used to be tough in 90s too. Peak Bulls era faced a tougher opponent in the Eastern conference than the west at the time
I think it’s because he played through a BUNCH of injuries, so he pretty much spent all his of days resting for games as opposed to training and keeping the weight off.
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He was fried. Beginning of the end for him even though he was cracking from 94 already. He was the 94 and 95 1st round KING 👑 tho... Mr. 1st round in 94 and 95... When h was talking to God in 93 he should have asked God to scramble match his postseason success from 93 second and third rounds to the 94 and 95 second rounds and throw the towel into the Lakers or Spurs early in 93. God didn't like how he butchered their conversation to the public.
Ironic about the 95 Rockets is they actually arguably had the best duo of the 90s in this championship run... Drexler and Olajuwon only paled in comparison with Jordan and Pippen and that's because longevity. They were more successful in half the time than Stockton Malone, KJ Barkley, Price Daugherty, Penny SHAQ, Kemp Payton etc. Etc. They beat most of those groups too.. with Barkley they got Kemp and Payton.
I fucking agree so much plus how hungry would the league have been after mj disappeared for 1.5 seasons I’ve been watching these games all the playoff series in 94 95 (after I watched the blockbuster video game championships the winner of those is a legend!) these fuckin teams played so hard
Has anyone ever counted the number of last second game winning shots the Rockets had during those 2 championship seasons? It was the weirdest feeling I had during those 2 seasons that no matter how down the Rockets were, if the game was important, they would win with a last second 3-pointer. I have never had that feeling again for any team, regardless of the sport, even the Rockets, that I had for those 2 seasons. If it really mattered, you just knew that Maxwell, Horry, Ellie, etc... would sink the last second shot every time. But it happened so many times during those 2 championships that it got kind of weird. The only thing that sucked during those 2 championships was the fact that Jordan wasn't playing and put an asterisk next to those wins in a lot of NBA fans minds. I believe the Rockets would have won those 2 championship games regardless of if the Bulls had Jordan or not. I remember it being so bad that Sports Illustrated weren't even going to put out Rockets special cover edition like the way they had done for every other team that won the finals. SI only finally relented after a huge fan backlash.
It's jealousy. Everytime these Rockets are mentioned a lot of Jordan jock sniffers come out of the woodworks to make their comments. Truth be told and especially the 94 version with Thorpe beat Chicago easily in 5. They just had their number and this 95 team was so hot after beating Pheonix that NO ONE was beating them in a 7 game series.
@@elbertbass92591994 Rockets could have beat Chicago with Jordan in 5 but also could have lost to Jordan and Chicago in 5. The Bulls heading into 1994 were about to be Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Grant, Armstrong, Longley, Cartwright, Paxson, Scott Williams, Wennington, Perdue, Pete Myers, Steve Kerr etc. It would have been our best offensive team of the entire 90's decade. We had experience and guys that won 3 titles. We had Jordan playing for his first title after his father's death. Kukoc and Jordan were going to play together for the first time. Horace Grant on offense with Kukoc, Pippen and Jordan and Armstrong is better than Harper, Rodman, Jordan and Pippen on offense. With still quick and long and strong defense and rebounding. Lineups like Wennington, Kerr, Jordan, Kukoc, Grant or Longley, Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Armstrong can all pass, and shoot.. The 1994 Bulls 🐂 before the Oct 8, 1993 retirement of Michael AIR Jordan were going to be a lot to deal 🤝 with. It turned out Jordan didn't have the emotional stamina in him to attempt the 4 peat because of his tiring fame and cost of fame father's murder and having already 3 peated unlike Magic or Bird or Isiah and feeling like he leveled up and didn't have to keep chasing. So maybe you can argue the 94 Bulls just were prime to hit a wall 🧱 and Jordan needed the break or he would break 💔... And that's fair. But from 1993 to 1994, from 1992-1994, from 1988 to 1994, the Bulls had never been better than that 1994 projected lineup going into the regular season. They could have won anywhere from a relaxed and trotting 56-62 victories or really accelerated and gelled harmoniously and won anywhere from 63-72 games dare i say it. They had the team to be as good, as calm, as cool, as collected, as talented to put on a show like 1996. Plus the East lost Petrovic, Lewis (Reggie), and Larry Johnson for the meat 🍖 of the 1993-1994 season. So the Bulls had a softer East than they had had from 88-93. They may have been able to geddy up and run roughshod over the league but of course with Jordan's stamina already an issue I can see them not pushing the 70 wins so quickly if they pushed out to a comfortable lead. Just to use the time to maybe rest Jordan a little bit during the season and take care of him mentally and help maintain his charge physically, mentally and emotionally after all he'd been thru from about 84-93 and now with chasing 4 straight rings instead of that relaxing grace period the 1996 Bulls had. The 96 Bulls greatest motivations were getting knocked off the mountain 🏔️🏔️🏔️ and being embarrassed by Orl⭐ndo and Horace Grant..and they had already lost the championship 🏆 to Houston in 94 and 95 so they didn't have the pressure of 4 peating... But they had the challenge of reclaiming what was theirs. And Michael reclaiming everything that was his. The MVP, the World Championship 🏆.. But you do know Michael Jordan and the Bulls had great pride and considerably forceful talent and character. The challenge in 94 was set, to 4 peat, chase Bill Russell, become the greatest Eastern Conference franchise ever. Be better than the Lakers franchise an old BULLS Western Conference Rival. And beat Reggie Miller a new playoff opponent. And beat Ewing again. Or beat Wilkins again. Or beat SHAQ for the first time. With the advantage of Grant over SHAQ. Or beat Olajuwon, Jordan's truest contemporary rival. More so than Ewing, Barkley, Karl Malone or Drexler, Olajuwon was the no. 1 threat to MJ. If Houston comes out in 1993-94 and wins 15 straight games than it's established early the Bulls vs Rockets is the next challenger to Chicago's established throne and it's a journey of Jordan vs Olajuwon the two best players of the Jordan era. Notice, Jordan era. Hakeem and Houston were going to be a problem in 94 that Jordan Pippen and Chicago would have to deal with. But, it was the Jordan era for a reason. The Bulls won more than 58 games 5x during the 90's. The Bulls had greater capacity for greatness. Jordan had greater heights than Hakeem he could go to. And his team followed thru on the challenges Jordan brought them on the verge of taking. The Bulls level of greatness was on another level than Houston's. Houston could have beaten them. Pulled off a major upset & ruined a phenomenal streak.. but the Bulls were also capable of winning 4 straight, 5, 6, 7, 8... Regardless of what Kerr thinks. Regardless of what anybody thinks is possible or not. The Bulls had that potential.
@@elbertbass9259 Teams that used stretch forwards at C gave the Rockets the most trouble (Sonics and Suns). Kukoc was the only stretch forward the Bulls had and he couldn't play the C position obviously, Grant could shoot but only from midrange like most PFs.
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It was the Western Conference Semifinals, your memory is correct. The Rockets used to be in the Eastern Conference way back in the 70s and possibly early 80s, but by 1995 they had been in the Western Conference for a very long time.
I don't know but the ilegal defense rule was pretty inconsistent rule. Sometimes they call it. It's just made the 1v1 players take advantage of their isolation game and nobody could stop them.
There was no way to call it nearly every time, or even half the time, which is why it's to a certain extent a myth that there was no zone defense in the 90s. I did like that rule however for the NBA, and it did at least prevent teams from being blatant about it.
The Sonics were notorious for always playing zone defense and basically daring the officials to call illegal defense all the time, much the same way the Knicks and the Pistons basically dared officials to allow their entire teams to foul out of games.
The 90 Rockets were in a similar stage as Indiana. Talented, with some nice key players, a top dual Center in Hakeem Olajuwon, a bruising athletic Adonis Olympian type in Otis Thorpe, Mad Max Vernon Maxwell and Sleepy Floyd still among others like Buck Johnson and etc. But they were in limbo. David Robinson was a rookie and fastly approaching Olajuwons best Center in NBA crown, the Rockets had no direction seemingly and no promise of a ring on the horizon, and they hadn't seen the second round since 1987 postseason. They were lost. They hadn't even hit their bottom yet. They lost as #8 seed to Kareem less Los Angeles Lakers 1-3... and Hakeem Olajuwon was held to just 18.5 ppg in his lowest offensive postseason moments against the Vlade Divac, Mychal Thompson, AC Green led Lakers frontcourt. Which was depthually shallow and thin in production. However, Hakeem did average 5.8 bpg and 2.5 spg for the 4 games. With 11.5 rpg.
He was sick of the disrespect! When he got the ball on the baseline Joe Kline stayed with Olajuwon and Danny Ainge jogged over slowly & didn’t even come to guard him; also went to Olajuwon…so he jacked that 3 up. God Bless America!! Mario, I very much hope you have not paid for a meal or a drink in this city in 25+ years.
The 1990 Bulls were in the ECF for the 2nd straight postseason, and they had the 5th best record league wide in regular season. They were obviously a true contender and proved it from 91-93. From 89 they were knocking on the door for next as World Champions and they won 6 before their leading core of Jackson, Jordan and Pippen and Winters called it quits on Chicago. 90 Spurs had the leagues 4th best season and was a newcomer contender with the arrival of David Robinson and Sean Elliot and additions of new veterans like Terry Cummings, and Maurice Cheeks and paired with youth like Rod Strickland who was brought on by a trade of Maurice Cheeks and complimentary early Stephen Jackson, Derek Anderson, Manu Ginobili type Willie Anderson. A very underrated era now as compared to the Duncan Popvich era's that were foundationally built by this era that started in 90. Spurs made the second round sweeping an 80s West competition savvy tail end of Alex English era Nuggets team and then took the 90 Blazers a full 7 games in one of the standard 7 game series between West Conference Finalist contenders. Where the Bulls would takeoff ✈ from here, the Spurs would fall back though as we approached the mid 90s. The 90 Utah Jazz 🎺 were simultaneously building a regular season dynamite postseason choker reputation. The first of their 90s kind to sit atop the mantle. The 88 Jazz and birth of the Stockton to Malone era had set this franchise on a course for West dominance and NBA Finals contention with a 7 game thrilling coming out party against Magic and Kareem and the 5 time to be NBA champions. They followed this up in 88-89 with a league leading defense led by 88-89 DPOY Mark Eaton when Hakeem Olajuwon should have probably most realistically and fairly had won the award for the 2nd or 3rd time already. But you know, a #1 pick isn't always the best spotlight to have when considering expectation and result. But with their successful 88-89 51 win regular season, the Jazz, with the #2 seed were prime for another push at the 89 Lakers. They flopped. They were swept by Golden State 0-3 despite high volume offensive stats from Stockton and Malone. The defense had failed to stop a young and trigger happy Mullin, Richmond, Winston Garland and Terry Teagle lineup. This marked the first Jazz postseason failure. In 1990 they finished 55-27 and with the 6th best record in the league. Behind 4 San Antonio and 5 Chicago. They lost a tough 5 game series vs KJ and Chambers and the 90 Suns, a year removed from the WCF in 89 and again after defeats of the 90 Jazz and Lakers, again in the WCF in 90. Phoenix had catapulted past Utah. And Chicago and San Antonio were closer to the ultimate goal than Stockton and Malone. Even Barkley and Ewing in 1990 were as well, hotter contenders than the pretender Utah Jazz 🎺. The 1990 Pacers were still an Eastern Conference cannon fodder for the elites from 90 thru 93. They were swept 0-3 by the 90 Pistons catching their equal rights beatdown by the Bad Boys of the Central Division ➗ in the East. They had talent, Schrempf, Person, Smits, Miller, and others and could score, but their style was not yet Pistons or Knicks like and still more Celtics like with alot less effective results than the 89-93 Celtics. The 90 Rockets were in a similar stage as Indiana. Talented, with some nice key players, a top dual Center in Hakeem Olajuwon, a bruising athletic Adonis Olympian type in Otis Thorpe, Mad Max Vernon Maxwell and Sleepy Floyd still among others like Buck Johnson and etc. But they were in limbo. David Robinson was a rookie and fastly approaching Olajuwons best Center in NBA crown, the Rockets had no direction seemingly and no promise of a ring on the horizon, and they hadn't seen the second round since 1987 postseason. They were lost. They hadn't even hit their bottom yet. They lost as #8 seed to Kareem less Los Angeles Lakers 1-3... and Hakeem Olajuwon was held to just 18.5 ppg in his lowest offensive postseason moments against the Vlade Divac, Mychal Thompson, AC Green led Lakers frontcourt. Which was depthually shallow and thin in production. However, Hakeem did average 5.8 bpg and 2.5 spg for the 4 games. With 11.5 rpg. Pistons in 90, though they are often kept in the 80s locker room and lore, were very much the progenitors of 90s NBA basketball 🏀 that the BULLS came to dominate most greatly. Up until the 2014 NBA Finals the Pistons style had set the foundation for basketball 🏀 at the top level.. good offensive teams and good defensive teams made themselves more effective and equal to all or better than all by playing a Pistons philosophy kind of methodical, ball possession, defensively gripping game. They were the best team in the NBA from roughly 88-90... and arguably beat the 87 Celtics in the ECF and beat the 88 Lakers in the NBA Finals... without completing the journey on both of those series vs the Teams of the 80s. Either way, they had dethroned Boston, Los Angeles and kept Chicago, New York, Atlanta, and Portland at bay from stealing any rings from the early 80s youth of stars like Isiah Thomas, James Worthy, Dominique Wilkins, Mark Aguirre and the like. Isiah Thomas had defeated Bird, Magic and Jordan in-between dynasties while building their own.
It's criminal that the Phoenix Suns did not win a championship with that talent level and that deep of a team, especially the two years that Jordan was essentially a non-factor in the NBA Finals. They were so deep that Danny Manning took a huge pay cut to sign with them.
Wow man, I wasn't alive for this but this is my favorite rockets team EVER. My late great grandfather gifted me the 1995 championship run DVD when I was 6 and he passed away the next year so I remember him everytime I watch this spectacular run.
I had that same dvd too. My grandma had it I watched it every time I went I went to her house.
How old are you now?
I was 17 then
That's cool 😎... Great memory. U can remember him for having the heart of a champion ❤️🏆
Hakeem is a soccer player. Imagine that
Wow. I can’t believe it’s been 25 years. These were some of my best childhood memories watching my Rockets.
00)000009
CLASSIC
Great Era in Baeketball.
I remember watching this game as a 10 yr old Spurs fan. When Elie hit that shot I said
“Yes! We don’t have to play the Suns. We can beat Houston easy!” I was to young to know about intangibles. I just knew we were playing the 6th seed and not the 2nd.
That WCF series was a life lesson!
Understandably you thought the Spurs would beat the Rockets easily because the Spurs swept the Rockets during the Regular Season.
@@LightStreak567 The Spurs actually won 5 of 6, but yeah either way they dominated the Rockets in the regular season especially after Thorpe was gone.
😂
So you would have rather David Robinson go against Hakeem Olajuwon instead of Joe Klein? Spurs would have beat the Suns in six games max.
@@ericthomas917 You missed the "as a 10-yr old" part buddy lol
"I think we can do it again"
Very underrated post game statement by Hakeem.
He knew he had to whoop Robinson's and Shaq's ass to get it done at that point.
And he knew that's just what he was gonna do.
Gangsta.
I was born and raised in Phoenix and never lived anywhere but here, but the Suns were such a weenie biter team at that time so I was rooting for Houston and I guaranteed everybody that they'd come back from being down 3-1 and win the series and go on to beat the Spurs and Magic to win it all. I was utterly broke at the time otherwise I would've started the betting at game 5 of the semi-finals.
Reminds me of Bill Russell. He used to say stuff like that to the reporters after the game. Then he’d just smile at them, haha!
Hakeem remained humble, and still liquified Robinson and teached a lesson to Shaq. IMHO Hakeem's 1995 playoff were the greatest ever by a single player.
@@lukasfontana7589 They were, no player meant more to a team than Hakeem to those Rockets. And Housto'n 1995 run will forever be the most improbable, odd-defeating and revealing playoff run of all time. If he was American, everybody would be still kissing his ass.
Olajuwon, Bagwell, and Biggio were the best athletes in the world in 95', and they knew it.
They were trailing and trailing, yet they kept pushing and pushing, kept fighting, kept coming back, refusing to die. And they won. Amazing. Inspiring. Overall, one of the greatest basketball games of all time.
those old rockets uniforms are dope - they should go back to those
Umm, they did this season. They're not the primary road uniforms but they're back. I wont to say they've worn them 7 times this season. Are you a current Rocket s fan?
The ones they changed to the following season were HORRIBLE
I was actually thinking that about the Suns uniforms.
@MANCHESTER UNITED F.C wtf does any of that has to do with the rockets and suns uniforms? Move along with your trolling soccer boy.
They changed Red to appeal to Chinese money. Now that these Chinese money gone, they should just revert to the old style. Thank you Daryl!
Steve Jones called it: "Everybody imagines themselves making the winning shot. But it's going to have be somebody other than Olajuwon, Drexler, Johnson or Barkley."
KJ is a top 20 90's era player. Arguably top 10 if healthy for the whole decade.. The man was a bigger force and MVP than Steve Nash from 1988-1995 I'd argue.
That was truly prophetic..
What a game!!!!!!! Charles showing tremendous heart playing with a painful injury KJ playing out of his mind and Mario with the " Kiss of Death' three pointer.
80-90's NBA to me are the best era
It was. That was basketball. I would even say early 2000's. Since then, it hasn't been anywhere near the same.
I'm so proud of our HOUSTON ROCKETS/ DOUBLE CLUTCH CITY
Yo Sam Cassell had like 12 straight points when the Houston bench came back from a double digit deficit
I see why he was on the bucks and was so good he was drafted in the 1990s
I remember living with my parents and wachting the playoff in my room I was screamming for Houston to win and that 3 point from Mario Elie was crazy, KG is such a beast and with that crossover great ball control very underadet point guard
KG or KJ?
3:34-3:41 Snapper really foreshadowed the events that took place late in the game.
Facts
3:38 Mario Elie answered the call
Mario Ellie was struggling all game and at the end he hit the game winning shot and blew the Phoenix Suns the kiss of death!
I love that.
sad for Phoenix. Such a good team ending this way.
It was incredible watching this game again. Just as intense as it was 30 years ago. 30 years. Wow, time flies.
The Suns should be happy no social media back then
I know right they would get destroyed im telling you bro lol
Greatest game in the greatest run in NBA Playoff history. Never more HEART than the 94-95’ Rockets.
As a suns fan, that game 5 overtime and this game were killers. Not to mention the previous year
@@sebastianmatarelli5602 yeah. I was a Houston fan, but Phoenix was my favorite non Texas team at the time. Wish it could have been someone else, but hey, at least the Rockets didn’t waste your heartbreak by going forward to fizzle out. No huge shame losing to the 2 time straight Champions and you can always say you gave them their toughest challenge!
@@brockgeorge777they still could have and would have rather had have been the 93 Western Conference Champions 🏆 lose to the Bulls 2-4
94 WCSF 3-4 losers to #2 seed Houston Rockets 🚀
And then 95 NBA Champions 🏆 vs Houston, San Antonio and Orlando...
Phoenix would have had a tougher time I suppose vs San Antonio and Orlando than Houston...
@@alecsanderhamilton9224 For sure matchups matter. Most often one team beats another because it is truly better. But sometimes, its more a case of how one happens to match up against the other. For example the 67 win 2007 Mavericks matched up poorly with the 42-40 Golden State Warriors. (As witnessed by their relative records, yet the Mavs going 0-3 against the Warriors in the regular season.) Unfortunately for them, their great records and the Warrior's poor record conspired to land them as Dallas' first round opponent. Result? One of the great upsets of NBA history with GS winning 4-2. Just think of it. 67-12 against the rest of the league, but 2-7 against a 42-40 team.
@@brockgeorge777 for sure. I believe the Rockets greatest advantage vs Orlando was the supreme confidence of Hakeem Olajuwon and the reverence with which he played with and received from SHAQ around that era. And Hakeem was the best playoff performer between Olajuwon, Robinson and Ewing and Barkley and Malone and Pippen and Drexler. Better than every other top 10 90's guy except for Jordan and Magic and he was on their level with just a little less sustained excellence in the postseason.
I REMEMBER LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY
OH BOY DID WE HAVE FUN IN HOUSTON THAT DAY...
Robert Horry out here looking like the Fresh Prince of Houston, Texas 😂
People forget, but no team had won a Game 7 on the road since 1982 til the Rockets did it here. To do that while also coming back from down 3-1(which also was more of a rarity back then) was doubly impressive. What's funny is the Pacers also won a Game 7 on the road the very next day.
I believe these Rockets and the 2016 Cavaliers are the only teams to actually complete a 3-1 comeback as the lower-seed. So it's very rare.
Against the Knicks
@@pomerlain8924also like the rockets, the Cavs won game 7 on the road
Kevin Johnson was a bucket. Very underrated player.
"Well we believe in ourselves. We still are the champion. And uh just stay humble, play hard and I think we can do it again."... said THE BEST CENTER OF ALL TIME!! Ase'!!!
@M I'm trying to get you banned you annoying bot
Are u still alive when soccer becomes no.1 sport in the world even badminton is more popular than soccer
@user-gu4tv4hp6snot most important. Most popular, but certainly not most important. Name one Soccer player in that sports history with a bigger name than Michael Jordan, Lebron James, etc? I'll wait. I couldn't even name one Soccer player.
@user-gu4tv4hp6s One day you’re gonna maybe realize that literally no one cares
Sam Cassell's play was so huge. I remember being in High School watching this game.
The amount of injuries these guys are playing with is amazing to me considering how much rest players take now for the most minute physical ailments. Different breed of man.
2:25 *OMG Hannah Storm back in they Days* 😍😍
So clear. Great quality upload.
3:34-3:41 Snapper really foreshadowed the events that took place late in the game.
I always smile when I think about how sad Danny Ainge must have felt watching the kiss of death. If you listen closely, as Kenny Smith is running to hug Mario Elie you can hear him shouting “LET’S GO HOME LADIES AND GENTLEMEN”
One of the best playoff games in the history of the NBA. KJ played the finest game of his career and the Rockets showed why they were, truly, the best team in the league.
I definitely wouldn't say they were the best, but they were definitely the most clutch team when it mattered most.
@@MEANDMYDAD2023 they beat the four best teams in the whole NBA. No other team has done that to win the championship.
The best Team i ever seen
3:26 - Snapper with the eye-opening prophecy. Wow!
Unbelievable game but WAY to many ads interrupting this classic
Waaaaay too many adds.🙄
Nobody bringing up that charles barkley and the suns up 2-0 and 3-1 against the rockets and blew it. Barkley fans always talking about that 93 finals trip like it was the only year of barkley's career.
Facts bro. I live here in Phoenix and until 2021 when the Suns lost to the Bucks, that's all they talked about. And occasionally when the dbacks won the world series back in 01
Acting like it was Barkley fault like he didn’t carry that suns team with a broken back
I think the Suns would have lost in one of the next 2 rounds anyway against the Spurs or the Magic. Those were the two #1 seeds that year.
Remember the Rockets were the 6th seed
FirLife i like that. Thank u for putting a time, that made me easy to find.
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Worst championship-winning team of the 3pt line era.
@@arsonhakobyan ????lol what????
@@terrireed404 3pt line was instituted in 79.
@@arsonhakobyan you know thats not what i meant lol
This is houston at 6th seed yet beating the higher seed teams
I remember this games like it was yesterday I love it
One of the main reasons the Suns could never beat that Rockets team? Dan Majerle.I've watched a bunch of games from the Suns/Rockets playoff series in both '94 & '95..Majerle just totally disappears.The guy couldn't buy a bucket.Of he just played like his normal self, the Suns win both years.
2 years later Charles Barkley gets traded to the Houston Rockets after blowing a 3-1 lead to them
You’re exactly right bro! I got goosebumps when I saw ya post because it seems like this game just tipped off!!! Hoops was the absolute Shiz’ back them bro! Way too much Diva-Type drama in this era of basketball 🏀
Just get ya ass out there and kill or be killed my Soulja’ s!!!
Great post my brother
@Conflicto He was still an All-Star, still a Dream-Teamer, still All-NBA at time of getting traded to the Rockets. They were old compared to the Big-3 of the 11 Heat, and a tad older than even the Big-3 of the 08 Celtics. Nonetheless, they were still a Big-3, still a SuperTeam in 97. People so love to make excuses for SuperTeams when they don't work out.
@@arsonhakobyan Bro Chuck was 3/4 done when he got traded to Houston, don't act like he was the shit.
@@elnardowebster2842 You're right, he wasn't anymore. Karl Malone was a better PF than Barkley in 97. But Barkley was still playing at an all-star level, just not MVP level in 97.
Can't beat them join em but not on Jordan's team
1:50:00 ahhh. The trusty, reliable commentator jinx. 😅
Olajuwon having a buffet feast on useless Joe Klein, Danny Schayes and Wayman Tisdale 😆 😂
The old unis, the old court, Jeff Munn on the PA, I miss this era of Suns ball.
Those old school America West Arena sound effects too. In the 90’s certain arenas had their own offense and defense sound effects. Phoenix had some very distinctive ones.
1:59:21 imagine if Ainge hit that shot. Crazy how one shot can change history.
Hakeem the greatest center of all time
Exactly correct!!!
@David Kafaji 🤣🤣
@David Kafaji tf??? You drunk
Nah most skilled yes
@David Kafaji Hakeem, KAJ, Shaq,Robinson, and Ewing. In no peticular order.If Bill Russell is considered a center then he might b the best. Chamberlain as an honorable mention even though we had that 100 point game his career average for points is under 20.
Easily on of the most epic NBA games ever. Barkley gets his ring if they beat Houston.
I am not so sure because Barkley got hurt towards the end of this series, he wouldn't of healed by the time the spurs series started and the spurs had the best record in the NBA that year
Lol....this dude Bill Walton looking like a 7 ft Joel Osteen.
KJ's moves so predictable but yet unstoppable. That 40 point 3rd quarter by Rockets was the killer and Cassell+Drexler made that happen.
Thanks for this upload. What a game!
Hakeem the greatest center of all time
Facts his first step is crazy he is at the rim so easily and gets clear open layups with no problem
@@janetkien3210 No he’s not!
@@Maal7432 yes
Yes he is
Can't beat em join em-Charles Barkley
The rockets wanted Barkley and traded for him, Barkley didn't ask to go to the rockets
I remember watching this game. I was 22 years old. What a time to be alive
I was 23 then. What a great run by the Rockets those two years.
@@martyklestadt6766 amen 🙏
Not going to lie. As a Rockets fan, my heart stopped beating from 1:59:21 to 1:59:25. We had the championship the year before, but the Houston sports curse was still a thing in May 1995 and Ainge making the heave at the end would have just added to the lore.
Funny thing is I forgot all about that, I only remembered the Kiss of Death and nothing that came after that in that game, although I always remembered the Rockets fouling the rest of the way to keep the Suns from getting a 3 point shot off.
the curse still exists
I remember someone saying either on the radio or in the paper after the game that Ainge should've called a timeout and since the Suns were out of them, the Rockets would've shot a technical free throw and Phoenix would've gotten the ball back to inbound. With a couple seconds left, they could've set up an actual play down 2 points(assuming the Rockets make the free throw) and gotten a much better shot to tie or win.
@@doughbafett ya that would have been the better move for them. The way he reacts right after the steal looks like he was too caught up in the moment.
A dude that barely make 11 points per game as starter with almost 35 minutes per game being the high numbers of his career blow you a "KISS OF DEATH" is the ultimate disrespect xDDDDDD
Even if ellie missed, Hakeem would of gotten the rebound and put it back in. Watch the replay he had a wide open path to the basket
funny how ainge tried to miss and it went in
Phoenix Suns were never known to play any defense
They were a middle of the pack defensive team. Never good, never bad.
No titles but that 92 teams was a damn good team..need to get them on 2k
@@Cahluvca You mean 93 team?
@@FecalMatador Their defensive rating in 95 was 19th out of 27 teams. That's 5 slots into the bottom half. Let's say the low end of middle of the pack?
They're the opposite of the Pistons.
3:38 Mario Elie answered the call
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"Yeah but you don't run on your lips" - Bill Walton
this was Phoenix's last chance. Barkley and Marelje were traded after this year.
Clyde 'DA" Glyde 💪 Phi Slamma Jamma in the house. Also my Carolina guy Pete Chilcutt is balling. 👍
Shout out to Mattress Mack @ 1:14:25
Still be waiting for a 90's suns team to be in 2K!
2k doesn't even have a Charles Barkley player model
You couldn't even get him from the dream team
This was one of the first guaranteed gone wrong by Sir Charles
KJ WORKED KENNY SMITH ASS OUT sheesh
@nba gotta add this game into the playlist of nbatogether games
The 90's Western Conference was stronger than the current Western Conference. The strength of the modern Western Conference is overstated. They are regular season strong and that's it. The 7 different Western Conference teams made the NBA Finals during the 90's.
So does East. Eastern conference used to be tough in 90s too. Peak Bulls era faced a tougher opponent in the Eastern conference than the west at the time
@@oneactoneda4393 Wrong
@@bolebole5793 East was better during the 90s
@@oneactoneda4393 Do your homework.
@@bolebole5793 bruhh East was better during the 90s and West became tougher in 2000s onward
Is the Chuck Wagon behind Barkley? Was Barkley out of shape that season? He looks bigger from when he played against the Bulls.
I think it’s because he played through a BUNCH of injuries, so he pretty much spent all his of days resting for games as opposed to training and keeping the weight off.
1:50:51 here it is
FirLife i like that. Thank u for putting a time, that made me easy to find.
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@@breinvidhighlights3352 what are you doing????
@@terrireed404 i upload nba highlights.🙂
1:24:10 Bill Walton pretty much explained how the Suns ended up losing this series, Barkley constantly disappearing in the 4th.
He was fried. Beginning of the end for him even though he was cracking from 94 already. He was the 94 and 95 1st round KING 👑 tho... Mr. 1st round in 94 and 95... When h was talking to God in 93 he should have asked God to scramble match his postseason success from 93 second and third rounds to the 94 and 95 second rounds and throw the towel into the Lakers or Spurs early in 93. God didn't like how he butchered their conversation to the public.
Hakeem had no weak teammates and almost everyone was clutch… kill the narrative that he carried weak teams to a title
Talent wise compared to other greats they were weak
Ironic about the 95 Rockets is they actually arguably had the best duo of the 90s in this championship run... Drexler and Olajuwon only paled in comparison with Jordan and Pippen and that's because longevity. They were more successful in half the time than Stockton Malone, KJ Barkley, Price Daugherty, Penny SHAQ, Kemp Payton etc. Etc. They beat most of those groups too.. with Barkley they got Kemp and Payton.
I fucking agree so much plus how hungry would the league have been after mj disappeared for 1.5 seasons I’ve been watching these games all the playoff series in 94 95 (after I watched the blockbuster video game championships the winner of those is a legend!) these fuckin teams played so hard
Holy shit when did the NBA start uploading full games?
This was an amazing game! Wow.
The Suns and Rockets were so evenly matched.
Bill Walton " expansion list"... 😂😂😂
Has anyone ever counted the number of last second game winning shots the Rockets had during those 2 championship seasons? It was the weirdest feeling I had during those 2 seasons that no matter how down the Rockets were, if the game was important, they would win with a last second 3-pointer. I have never had that feeling again for any team, regardless of the sport, even the Rockets, that I had for those 2 seasons. If it really mattered, you just knew that Maxwell, Horry, Ellie, etc... would sink the last second shot every time. But it happened so many times during those 2 championships that it got kind of weird.
The only thing that sucked during those 2 championships was the fact that Jordan wasn't playing and put an asterisk next to those wins in a lot of NBA fans minds. I believe the Rockets would have won those 2 championship games regardless of if the Bulls had Jordan or not. I remember it being so bad that Sports Illustrated weren't even going to put out Rockets special cover edition like the way they had done for every other team that won the finals. SI only finally relented after a huge fan backlash.
It's jealousy.
Everytime these Rockets are mentioned a lot of Jordan jock sniffers come out of the woodworks to make their comments.
Truth be told and especially the 94 version with Thorpe beat Chicago easily in 5.
They just had their number and this 95 team was so hot after beating Pheonix that NO ONE was beating them in a 7 game series.
@@elbertbass92591994 Rockets could have beat Chicago with Jordan in 5 but also could have lost to Jordan and Chicago in 5. The Bulls heading into 1994 were about to be Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Grant, Armstrong, Longley, Cartwright, Paxson, Scott Williams, Wennington, Perdue, Pete Myers, Steve Kerr etc. It would have been our best offensive team of the entire 90's decade. We had experience and guys that won 3 titles. We had Jordan playing for his first title after his father's death. Kukoc and Jordan were going to play together for the first time. Horace Grant on offense with Kukoc, Pippen and Jordan and Armstrong is better than Harper, Rodman, Jordan and Pippen on offense. With still quick and long and strong defense and rebounding. Lineups like Wennington, Kerr, Jordan, Kukoc, Grant or Longley, Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Armstrong can all pass, and shoot.. The 1994 Bulls 🐂 before the Oct 8, 1993 retirement of Michael AIR Jordan were going to be a lot to deal 🤝 with. It turned out Jordan didn't have the emotional stamina in him to attempt the 4 peat because of his tiring fame and cost of fame father's murder and having already 3 peated unlike Magic or Bird or Isiah and feeling like he leveled up and didn't have to keep chasing. So maybe you can argue the 94 Bulls just were prime to hit a wall 🧱 and Jordan needed the break or he would break 💔... And that's fair. But from 1993 to 1994, from 1992-1994, from 1988 to 1994, the Bulls had never been better than that 1994 projected lineup going into the regular season. They could have won anywhere from a relaxed and trotting 56-62 victories or really accelerated and gelled harmoniously and won anywhere from 63-72 games dare i say it. They had the team to be as good, as calm, as cool, as collected, as talented to put on a show like 1996.
Plus the East lost Petrovic, Lewis (Reggie), and Larry Johnson for the meat 🍖 of the 1993-1994 season. So the Bulls had a softer East than they had had from 88-93.
They may have been able to geddy up and run roughshod over the league but of course with Jordan's stamina already an issue I can see them not pushing the 70 wins so quickly if they pushed out to a comfortable lead. Just to use the time to maybe rest Jordan a little bit during the season and take care of him mentally and help maintain his charge physically, mentally and emotionally after all he'd been thru from about 84-93 and now with chasing 4 straight rings instead of that relaxing grace period the 1996 Bulls had.
The 96 Bulls greatest motivations were getting knocked off the mountain 🏔️🏔️🏔️ and being embarrassed by Orl⭐ndo and Horace Grant..and they had already lost the championship 🏆 to Houston in 94 and 95 so they didn't have the pressure of 4 peating... But they had the challenge of reclaiming what was theirs. And Michael reclaiming everything that was his. The MVP, the World Championship 🏆..
But you do know Michael Jordan and the Bulls had great pride and considerably forceful talent and character. The challenge in 94 was set, to 4 peat, chase Bill Russell, become the greatest Eastern Conference franchise ever. Be better than the Lakers franchise an old BULLS Western Conference Rival. And beat Reggie Miller a new playoff opponent. And beat Ewing again. Or beat Wilkins again. Or beat SHAQ for the first time. With the advantage of Grant over SHAQ. Or beat Olajuwon, Jordan's truest contemporary rival. More so than Ewing, Barkley, Karl Malone or Drexler, Olajuwon was the no. 1 threat to MJ. If Houston comes out in 1993-94 and wins 15 straight games than it's established early the Bulls vs Rockets is the next challenger to Chicago's established throne and it's a journey of Jordan vs Olajuwon the two best players of the Jordan era.
Notice, Jordan era. Hakeem and Houston were going to be a problem in 94 that Jordan Pippen and Chicago would have to deal with. But, it was the Jordan era for a reason. The Bulls won more than 58 games 5x during the 90's. The Bulls had greater capacity for greatness. Jordan had greater heights than Hakeem he could go to. And his team followed thru on the challenges Jordan brought them on the verge of taking.
The Bulls level of greatness was on another level than Houston's. Houston could have beaten them. Pulled off a major upset & ruined a phenomenal streak.. but the Bulls were also capable of winning 4 straight, 5, 6, 7, 8... Regardless of what Kerr thinks. Regardless of what anybody thinks is possible or not. The Bulls had that potential.
@@elbertbass9259 Teams that used stretch forwards at C gave the Rockets the most trouble (Sonics and Suns). Kukoc was the only stretch forward the Bulls had and he couldn't play the C position obviously, Grant could shoot but only from midrange like most PFs.
WOW the Rockets was a good team Rockets vs Bulls would have been one of the best NBA finals of all time.
It might have happened in 1997 if Utah hadn't been holding Charles Barkley during their winning shot against the Rockets in the WCF.
1:50:49 💋 OF DEATH
FirLife i like that. Thank u for putting a time, that made me easy to find.
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Superb work.....🙂.............
Thanks bro😁
But horry committed a backcourt violation to set up the shot
Much Gratitude
Kevin Johnson was absolutely incredible. Marie ellie so clutch tho wow
Somehow I remember it as the Western Conference Semifinals, not Eastern Conference. Now I could be wrong... but I don't think so.
It was the Western Conference Semifinals, your memory is correct. The Rockets used to be in the Eastern Conference way back in the 70s and possibly early 80s, but by 1995 they had been in the Western Conference for a very long time.
@@brucewayne1662 I agree with you. In the Video Description it says Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals
That foul-out call on Cassell was criminal.
I don't know but the ilegal defense rule was pretty inconsistent rule. Sometimes they call it. It's just made the 1v1 players take advantage of their isolation game and nobody could stop them.
There was no way to call it nearly every time, or even half the time, which is why it's to a certain extent a myth that there was no zone defense in the 90s. I did like that rule however for the NBA, and it did at least prevent teams from being blatant about it.
The Sonics were notorious for always playing zone defense and basically daring the officials to call illegal defense all the time, much the same way the Knicks and the Pistons basically dared officials to allow their entire teams to foul out of games.
@@arsonhakobyan Bill Walton: "Who was Hakeem guarding that time?"
@@brucewayne1662 Olajuwon did get away w/ some illegal defenses.
Shots
4:08
5:05
7:46
8:04
10:54
11:57
16:37
17:17
18:01
Kevin johnson was bussim kenny smith ass😵😵😵
1:49:04 how is that a foul on Horry?!
Let them play!!
The Houston Rockets CLUTCH CITY was Awesome
Bacio 💋 della morte 💀 grande Mario Elie
Wilt,Kareem, Hakeem, Moses, Shaq, Robinson,Ewing D. Howard, Russell, Jokic/Yao/Sabonis
My favorite teams of all time
1994 sonics
1994 Nuggets
1994 Knicks
1994 Bulls
1994 Pacers
1995 Lakers
1995 rockets
1995 magic
1999 Knicks
1993 suns
1993 hornets
Wow u have a very specific mold and timeframe
@@alecsanderhamilton9224 these my favorite teams 🤷♂️
Hakeem was unreal man…
I always thought he was puffing on a victory cigar Red Aurebach style
The 90 Rockets were in a similar stage as Indiana. Talented, with some nice key players, a top dual Center in Hakeem Olajuwon, a bruising athletic Adonis Olympian type in Otis Thorpe, Mad Max Vernon Maxwell and Sleepy Floyd still among others like Buck Johnson and etc. But they were in limbo. David Robinson was a rookie and fastly approaching Olajuwons best Center in NBA crown, the Rockets had no direction seemingly and no promise of a ring on the horizon, and they hadn't seen the second round since 1987 postseason. They were lost. They hadn't even hit their bottom yet. They lost as #8 seed to Kareem less Los Angeles Lakers 1-3... and Hakeem Olajuwon was held to just 18.5 ppg in his lowest offensive postseason moments against the Vlade Divac, Mychal Thompson, AC Green led Lakers frontcourt. Which was depthually shallow and thin in production.
However, Hakeem did average 5.8 bpg and 2.5 spg for the 4 games. With 11.5 rpg.
He was sick of the disrespect! When he got the ball on the baseline Joe Kline stayed with Olajuwon and Danny Ainge jogged over slowly & didn’t even come to guard him; also went to Olajuwon…so he jacked that 3 up. God Bless America!! Mario, I very much hope you have not paid for a meal or a drink in this city in 25+ years.
53:35 Kenny smith looks like he telling Mario Elie to shut up man after the offensive foul call
Barkley , Phoenix Suns najlepsza, totalnie piękna koszykówka
1:50:50...the setting of the Suns.
The 1990 Bulls were in the ECF for the 2nd straight postseason, and they had the 5th best record league wide in regular season. They were obviously a true contender and proved it from 91-93. From 89 they were knocking on the door for next as World Champions and they won 6 before their leading core of Jackson, Jordan and Pippen and Winters called it quits on Chicago.
90 Spurs had the leagues 4th best season and was a newcomer contender with the arrival of David Robinson and Sean Elliot and additions of new veterans like Terry Cummings, and Maurice Cheeks and paired with youth like Rod Strickland who was brought on by a trade of Maurice Cheeks and complimentary early Stephen Jackson, Derek Anderson, Manu Ginobili type Willie Anderson. A very underrated era now as compared to the Duncan Popvich era's that were foundationally built by this era that started in 90. Spurs made the second round sweeping an 80s West competition savvy tail end of Alex English era Nuggets team and then took the 90 Blazers a full 7 games in one of the standard 7 game series between West Conference Finalist contenders. Where the Bulls would takeoff ✈ from here, the Spurs would fall back though as we approached the mid 90s.
The 90 Utah Jazz 🎺 were simultaneously building a regular season dynamite postseason choker reputation. The first of their 90s kind to sit atop the mantle. The 88 Jazz and birth of the Stockton to Malone era had set this franchise on a course for West dominance and NBA Finals contention with a 7 game thrilling coming out party against Magic and Kareem and the 5 time to be NBA champions. They followed this up in 88-89 with a league leading defense led by 88-89 DPOY Mark Eaton when Hakeem Olajuwon should have probably most realistically and fairly had won the award for the 2nd or 3rd time already. But you know, a #1 pick isn't always the best spotlight to have when considering expectation and result.
But with their successful 88-89 51 win regular season, the Jazz, with the #2 seed were prime for another push at the 89 Lakers. They flopped. They were swept by Golden State 0-3 despite high volume offensive stats from Stockton and Malone. The defense had failed to stop a young and trigger happy Mullin, Richmond, Winston Garland and Terry Teagle lineup. This marked the first Jazz postseason failure. In 1990 they finished 55-27 and with the 6th best record in the league. Behind 4 San Antonio and 5 Chicago. They lost a tough 5 game series vs KJ and Chambers and the 90 Suns, a year removed from the WCF in 89 and again after defeats of the 90 Jazz and Lakers, again in the WCF in 90. Phoenix had catapulted past Utah. And Chicago and San Antonio were closer to the ultimate goal than Stockton and Malone. Even Barkley and Ewing in 1990 were as well, hotter contenders than the pretender Utah Jazz 🎺.
The 1990 Pacers were still an Eastern Conference cannon fodder for the elites from 90 thru 93. They were swept 0-3 by the 90 Pistons catching their equal rights beatdown by the Bad Boys of the Central Division ➗ in the East. They had talent, Schrempf, Person, Smits, Miller, and others and could score, but their style was not yet Pistons or Knicks like and still more Celtics like with alot less effective results than the 89-93 Celtics.
The 90 Rockets were in a similar stage as Indiana. Talented, with some nice key players, a top dual Center in Hakeem Olajuwon, a bruising athletic Adonis Olympian type in Otis Thorpe, Mad Max Vernon Maxwell and Sleepy Floyd still among others like Buck Johnson and etc. But they were in limbo. David Robinson was a rookie and fastly approaching Olajuwons best Center in NBA crown, the Rockets had no direction seemingly and no promise of a ring on the horizon, and they hadn't seen the second round since 1987 postseason. They were lost. They hadn't even hit their bottom yet. They lost as #8 seed to Kareem less Los Angeles Lakers 1-3... and Hakeem Olajuwon was held to just 18.5 ppg in his lowest offensive postseason moments against the Vlade Divac, Mychal Thompson, AC Green led Lakers frontcourt. Which was depthually shallow and thin in production.
However, Hakeem did average 5.8 bpg and 2.5 spg for the 4 games. With 11.5 rpg.
Pistons in 90, though they are often kept in the 80s locker room and lore, were very much the progenitors of 90s NBA basketball 🏀 that the BULLS came to dominate most greatly. Up until the 2014 NBA Finals the Pistons style had set the foundation for basketball 🏀 at the top level.. good offensive teams and good defensive teams made themselves more effective and equal to all or better than all by playing a Pistons philosophy kind of methodical, ball possession, defensively gripping game. They were the best team in the NBA from roughly 88-90... and arguably beat the 87 Celtics in the ECF and beat the 88 Lakers in the NBA Finals... without completing the journey on both of those series vs the Teams of the 80s. Either way, they had dethroned Boston, Los Angeles and kept Chicago, New York, Atlanta, and Portland at bay from stealing any rings from the early 80s youth of stars like Isiah Thomas, James Worthy, Dominique Wilkins, Mark Aguirre and the like. Isiah Thomas had defeated Bird, Magic and Jordan in-between dynasties while building their own.
I want this comment
What is the garbage comment!?
Partidazo de K. Jonhson; un gran equipo de los Suns, una lastima. Con un buen jugador centro (pivot) hubieran logrado mejores resultados.
"It's tough to back up what you say"
Suns haven't changed a bit
😘 the kiss of death game!
1:50:42 Kiss of Death!
5:47 ball was still in Barkley’s hand as his foot lands. Should not have counted
How close we were to getting Shaq and Barkley in the finals!
It's criminal that the Phoenix Suns did not win a championship with that talent level and that deep of a team, especially the two years that Jordan was essentially a non-factor in the NBA Finals. They were so deep that Danny Manning took a huge pay cut to sign with them.