NBA Playoffs: 30 best Game 7 performances in NBA Playoffs history

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Deron Williams (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

Best Game 7 performances in NBA Playoffs history: 29. Deron Williams (2007)

Stat line:

20 points
14 assists
53.8% from the field

The last few years in the career of Deron Williams were brutal to watch. His slide was a pretty fast one. He went from below average starter, to sixth man to flat-out unplayable. Yet, before he fell from grace, he was considered quite possibly the best point guard in the league and a future Hall of Famer. That, of course, didn’t materialize.

Still, when Williams was in the middle of his prime and on the court, he was a handful. For those who don’t believe that he was ever a dominant player, look no further than his Game 7 stat line in the first round of the 2007 NBA Playoffs. Williams lit the Houston Rockets on fire, he dropped 20 points on 53.8 percent shooting, he shot 83.3 percent from the charity stripe and he also dished out 14 assists. He wasn’t alone of course, as Carlos Boozer had a monster game himself, dropping 35 and 14 but many of his baskets came from Williams placing him in perfect position.

Even more impressive, Williams and the Utah Jazz got things done on the road against two Hall of Famers in Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady who combined for 58 points. At the time, you simply couldn’t discuss the best players in the league without mentioning Williams’ name.