The 10 greatest NBA Playoffs performances of all time

4. Magic Johnson, Game 4 of the 1987 NBA Finals, June 9, 1987

In 1987, there was no debate about who the two best basketball players in the world were. The universal consensus was that the best players were Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. However, there were varying opinions on which guy was number one and which guy was number two. The debate raged on in barbershops and on playgrounds across the country.

Larry Bird won three consecutive MVP awards from 1984 through 1986. In 1987, Magic Johnson ended that streak by winning the award for the first time in his career. In addition to being the best two players in the world, Bird and Magic were also the leaders of the NBA’s two premier franchises, the Boston Celtics and the LA Lakers. That spring, the two teams met in the NBA Finals for the third time in a four-year span.

The Celtics and Lakers had split their previous two Finals meetings of the 1980s. Bird’s Celtics won a classic seven-game series in ’84, with Magic’s Lakers exacting revenge in six games in ’85. The ’87 series would be the tiebreaker between the two teams vying for Team of the Decade.

The Lakers were dominant in Games 1 and 2, but the Celtics held serve on their home court in Game 3. Game 4 would be pivotal; the Celtics could tie the series or the Lakers could establish a commanding three-games-to-one lead. As is to be expected, the contest was a seesaw battle, with control of the game’s momentum fluctuating back and forth. With under a minute left in the game, Larry Bird hit a 3-pointer that gave his team a two-point lead.

On the Lakers’ next possession, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was fouled and sent to the free-throw line with a chance to tie the game. Abdul-Jabbar would make the first shot; the second shot ricocheted out of bounds off of a Celtics player who was attempting to grab the rebound. Down by one, the Lakers inbounded the ball to Magic Johnson.

Johnson had rotated to the perimeter after starting the inbounds play inside the paint. At the same time, Johnson’s teammate James Worthy had cut into the paint from the perimeter. This caused the Celtics’ defense to switch; Johnson was initially guarded by Dennis Johnson, and Worthy was covered by Kevin McHale. Johnson recognized the mismatch, drove into the lane, and delivered a hook shot that went through the net with two seconds left in the game.

The shot gave the Lakers a one-point lead, which would be their margin of victory. Johnson ended the night with 29 points, eight rebounds, and five assists. The win gave the team a commanding three games to one lead; they would go on to win the series in six games.

Magic’s hook shot that evening became the stuff of legend, but his overall performance should go down in history as one of the greatest in the history of the playoffs.