Tonight will be the biggest game in Memphis’ history. It isn’t for San Antonio. Far from it. But they are playing for just as much, to save a dying era. Everyone knew this series was going to be a battle. But most figured the Spurs would find a way to get it done. Few honestly believed the Grizzlies had what it took. Tonight, they have a shot to prove they do.
If Memphis does pull this off, it instantly becomes one of the biggest playoff upsets in NBA history. Yes, it’s a great matchup for the Grizz, but we’re talking about San Antonio, veterans, All-Stars and champions, and owners of the best record in the West. They aren’t supposed to lose in the playoffs like this. To get you warmed up for tonight, here are the five biggest playoff upsets of this century.
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2007: Chicago over Miami (Eastern Conference First Round)
Miami had struggled all season to stay healthy and interested, and limped to the finish line with a 44-38 record. Still, they were going to face a young and inexperienced Chicago squad that they had beat in the playoffs the previous year. Many of the Heat’s older players had struggled to stay on the court during the regular season, but the team had surged during the second half of the schedule. Most figured the Heat would get it together and put together a worthy defense of their title. None of it mattered to Chicago. They got huge games from Ben Gordon and Luol Deng and surprisingly swept the defending champions right out of the playoffs.
2010: Boston over Cleveland (Eastern Conference Semifinals)
Coming into this series, Boston was supposed to be a mere pit stop on the way to the Finals for the Cavs and LeBron James. No one blinked an eye when Cleveland won Game 1 easily or when they went into Boston for Game 3 and blasted the aging Celtics by nearly 30. But Ohio quit playing, the Celtics figured them out, and before you knew it, it was all over for LeBron. If anyone tries to tell you they saw this coming, tell them they’re lying. Boston was left for dead, and no one really believed Cleveland would get upset two straight years in the Eastern Conference.
2009: Orlando over Cleveland (Eastern Conference Finals)
I feel bad putting this Cavs team on here twice, but it was either this or throw up a San Antonio/Dallas series, which are always so evenly-matched that I can’t ever say one team upset the other. Those games are like two brothers wrestling each other in their basement. But this Cleveland team was a monster all year. LeBron was on a completely different level than every other player in the game. Orlando wasn’t even supposed to be here. If Kevin Garnett is healthy, there’s no way they get out of the second round. But the Magic became the riddle no one in Ohio could figure out, even surviving LeBron’s game-winner in Game 2 and a maestro performance from the MVP in Game 5. This series marked the apex of Orlando’s three-ball, shoot-until-you-can’t-stop era, an era that looks to be coming to an end now.
2004: Detroit over L.A. Lakers (NBA Finals)
As surprising as their loss to Boston in the 2008 Finals was (remember, practically 80 percent of NBA analysts picked L.A. after they breezed through the playoffs and Boston struggled), the Lakers loss in the 2004 NBA Finals, with Kobe and Shaq and the Glove and the Mailman (injuries kept him from having an impact on this series), was even more eye-raising. Detroit was good, and had just knocked off the East’s number-one seed in Indiana. But they didn’t have any championship grit, and they lacked the Hollywood appeal of the Lakers. It wasn’t until Game 3 that people started to see the trouble L.A. was in. They gave Detroit their best shot in that game, and Shaquille O’Neal had a throwback performance. It still wasn’t enough. From that point on, the series was never in doubt again.
2007: Golden State over Dallas (Western Conference First Round)
Does any other upset even compare to this one? If Memphis pulls it off, could they compare? The Warriors weren’t anything special. Yes, they had a lot of talent and were fun to watch. But really, against the 67-win Mavs, coming off a heartbreaking Finals loss, no one thought Golden State had a chance. True story though: my best friend called this. The Warriors were his team on 2k (I believe that year was NBA 2k8), and his favorite player to use was Baron Davis. The dude was so convinced just based off playing the matchup in a video game that he put up $20 on the Warriors. I figured it was going to be the easiest money I ever made…
Which upset was the most surprising for you?
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