Penny Hardaway’s 15 Best Games

Every so often a player comes into the NBA that has the power to transcend time and change the history of the game forever. A few names that roll off the tongue are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James.

However, there are other players that had the talent and potential to place their names in this list as well, but for varying reasons were not able to reach the same heights in their careers. One such player is Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway. A tall and scrawny 6-7 point guard out of Memphis State was doing major damage in the league in the early and mid-90s.

His ballhandling was unmatched, his ability to get to the paint was second to none and at 6-7, he had a post game that rivaled that of Shaq, his Orlando Magic running mate for the beginning of his career. To celebrate his birthday and Penny turning the young and ripe age of 42 years young, I compiled a list of the 15 best games of Penny’s sadly short-lived time at the top of the NBA pantheon.

[RELATED: Penny Hardaway’s 10 Best Commercials]

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15. Vs. Heat
12 points, eight assists, eight rebounds
Nov. 5, 1993

I would be doing this list an injustice if I didn’t include Hardaway’s professional debut. After being selected third overall by the Golden State Warriors and then traded to the Magic on draft night, Penny showed just why people were excited about the player he could and would become during his future years in the league. While 12 points doesn’t necessarily jump off the page, the eight rebounds and assists definitely showed that Hardaway could affect the game in more than one way.

14. Vs. Pacers
23 points, five assists, 13 rebounds, three steals
Feb. 26, 1999

1999 was the last season of top-notch Penny Hardaway. Unfairly to both Hardaway and fans alike, that year also happened to be a shortened season due to a NBA Lockout; games didn’t begin that year until February. Yet on this February night, Penny looked to be in midseason form. Hardaway might have been labeled as a point guard, but he hit the boards better than some of the big men he played against during his tenure in the league. The Indiana Pacers saw firsthand as he pulled down 13 rebounds to go along with 23 points, five assists and three steals. There wasn’t an empty slot in his whole stat sheet.

[RELATED: Penny Hardaway’s Top 10 NBA Plays]

13. Vs. Sixers
(28 points, nine assists, nine rebounds)
March 9, 1994

As I stated before Penny was capable of doing whatever he wanted on the court during his prime, however he didn’t record that many triple-doubles during his career. That wasn’t for a lack of trying, though. The Philadelphia Sixers found that out in the second half of his rookie season as he fell one assist and one rebound short of his first ever triple-double. Still a 28-9-9 line is impressive for any player, whether they are a rookie or it was their 15th year in the league.

12. Vs. Bulls
17-for-25 shooting, 39 points, six assists, five rebounds)
Feb. 26, 1995

One of the things that made the Magic such a dangerous team during the Shaq and Penny years was that it was much more than a two-man show. With players like Nick Anderson, Dennis Scott and Horace Grant on the roster they had five guys that could hurt an opposing team. On this February night in 1995 though, Penny would take the reigns and lead Orlando to victory while Shaq and Grant sat on the sidelines dressed in their Sunday best. And did I mention that they were playing Scottie Pippen‘s Bulls?

This game from the 1996 NBA Playoffs against Chicago could’ve made the list as well… if Orlando didn’t get completely annihilated.

11. Vs. Nets
15 points, seven assists, 11 rebounds
Nov. 20, 1993

Like his first game, his first recorded double-double deserves a place on this list as well. And only nine games into his rookie campaign he was able to get the first of many. Most would think that it would be points and assists that would lead Hardaway to the double-double mark, but it was his ability to use his length and height and pull down rebounds that allowed him to eclipse the 10-plus mark in two categories for the first time.

10. Vs. Heat
27 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds
Feb. 28, 1996

By 1996, the world knew Penny was the real deal, and if they tried to ignore it they had a multitude of commercials featuring the infamous Lil’ Penny to remind them. Miami didn’t need to be forewarned by the shouts and ramblings of a puppet; as the in-state rival to the Magic they had seen Hardaway’s development firsthand. On this night, they would see him almost get a triple-double, though he would ultimately fall one rebound shy.

9. Vs. Hornets
7-for-10 shooting, 28 points, 13 assists
Dec. 8, 1995

In December of 1995, Christmas came early for Penny’s teammates. In a matchup against the Charlotte Hornets, Hardaway did his best Santa Claus impression and dished out 13 assists. Dimes were being dropped everywhere… as if the Salvation Army had stationed singing Santas all over the court. Yes, he tallied 28 points as well, but he only needed 10 shots to get it done.

8. Vs. Knicks
30 points, eight assists, 10 rebounds
April 6, 1999

Another lockout season gem from Hardaway. The New York Knicks were no match for Penny as he dropped 30 points, eight assists and 10 rebounds at the Garden. Penny made sure he got all he could out of the shorter season and after recuperating from a serious knee injury in 1997, the cutback in the number of games had to be well-received by him. Penny brought his lunch pale and A-game with him as he basically did everything necessary to get a win over the Knicks.

7 & 6. Vs. Heat
42 points, eight rebounds & 41 points, four assists, seven rebounds, four steals
April, 1997

Though the Magic made the playoffs multiple times while Penny played for them, there aren’t too many playoff moments that stand out amongst the rest of his career. However — as seen often on this list — the Heat fell victim to Hardaway’s prowess in back-to-back meetings during the first round of the 1997 NBA Playoffs. Orlando would lose the series 3-2 but if not for Penny, the Magic would’ve probably been swept. He posted averages of 41.5 points, 3.0 assists, 7.5 boards and 3.0 steals. Talk about putting a team on your back. Hardaway was much more of a pass-first point guard, but he was more than capable of putting the ball in the bucket when called upon.

5. Vs. Rockets
29 points, six assists, nine rebounds, seven steals
Nov. 23, 1994

The Houston Rockets and Magic would get very familiar in a short time. But before the Rockets would get the best of Penny and his teams in the NBA Finals later that season, Penny was pretty much an assassin against Houston in a late November meeting in 1994. Hardaway would finish the game with a career-high seven steals to go along with 29 points, six assists and nine rebounds. He messed around and almost found himself with a quadruple-double when the final buzzer sounded.

4. Vs. Spurs
10-for-15 shooting (5-for-5 from deep), 35 points, six assists, four rebounds
Jan. 13, 1996

Penny was never known as a shooter. Of course he would knock down the occasional jumper, but his game was much more predicated on getting in the painted area and finishing plays at the rim. During this game against the San Antonio Spurs in 1996, Hardaway showed off a stroke that was simply perfection. A third of the shots he took and half of the shots he made were from behind the arc. Penny would ride a perfect 5/5 shooting expo to the time of 35 points along with six assists and four boards.

3. Vs. Nets
13-for-21 shooting, 42 points, eight assists, eight rebounds
Nov. 8, 1995

If you noticed a pattern by now, well then, I applaud you. If not, pay close attention to the dates of these final games. Without giving away too much, Penny seemed to always have a knack for making statements early on in each season. The 1995-96 NBA season was no different. This time the opponent was the New Jersey Nets. He torched them for a career-high 42 points on just 21 shots — efficiency at its finest, ladies and gentlemen. Because he took so few shots, he was able to dish out eight assists and grab right rebounds as well to round out one spectacular night.

2. Vs. Bucks
15-for-23, 35 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds
Nov. 26, 1994

The moment that has been alluded to many times before in this article is finally here and unlike this piece, it didn’t take long for Mr. Hardaway to reach the triple-double plateau. Just three weeks into his sophomore season, Penny showed the Milwaukee Bucks just how much better he had gotten during his first offseason. And in the most Penny Hardaway-esque fashion, he did it efficiently: 35 points on only 23 shots (making 15 of them), ripping down 10 boards and handing out 12 assists in comparison to only five turnovers. Penny’s stat sheets were things of beauty to behold.

1. Vs. Bulls
12-for-18 shooting, 36 points, five rebounds
Nov. 14, 1995

Finally a game that will forever live on in the minds of both Magic and Penny fans forever — the night he got the best of the GOAT, MJ himself. With Shaq sidelined for this game as well, it looked liked the healthy Jordan-Pippen tandem would have the upper hand in this contest. Penny, on the other hand, wasn’t backing down at all. While his assist numbers weren’t around the numbers his usually posted, his 36 points bested Air Jordan’s 23 for the night and the Magic were able to hand the Bulls one of only 10 losses that season.

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