Because when Michael Jordan played, which half the time NBC had the contract with the NBA, he never played in NBA finals series that went to a game 7. This was actually the first time in 6 years the finals went to a game 7. The previous time was in 1988 with the Lakers and Pistons. Marv Albert pointed out that this was only the 3rd time in the past 15 years that the finals went to a game 7.
All these years and I've never thought about that😂 12 or so year-stretch dominated [largely] by the Bulls & Lakers, dispatching teams in 6 games or less.
@hectorlopez1069 Bro, you must be smoking the same thing Kenny Smith does 😂😂 Had Jordan 's father not been killed causing the retirement, the Bulls would've had 8 straight.
As a native Texan and Houston sports fan, witnessing all the disappointments from the Oilers in the late 80’s/early 90’s, the Astros in ‘86 and other years, and of course all of the disappointments from the Rockets, this was unequivocally the best day of my sports life! Houston’s first major Chip! It’s safe to say we deserved it...👌👍😎
It also probably helped them out that Michael Jordan left to go play baseball during that time, but Olajuwon and company were deserving of a championship nonetheless.
I didn't care who won this series, about the OJ Simpson drama, or how low scoring the games were. This series doesn't get the credit it deserves for being gritty, competitive, dramatic and fun to watch because of the effort these two teams put in. I was slightly pulling for the Knicks for the sole purpose of Ewing and Starks. Especially since Starks played really well in Games 2-6 and nearly won it for them in Game 6 and had a nightmare a few nights later.
Every game between knicks and rockets were won by less than 10...closest finals ever...2 equally matched teams...the rockets just hit more fts and 3s ..and hakeem was too special and Ewing just wasnt the same on offense....
If Starks would've hit just a handful of the shots he missed in Game 7, Knicks come out of Houston with the title, despite Ewing not being at his best on offense for most of the series until Game 5
Derek Harper would have won MVP had the Knicks won the series and while Ewing did get outplayed offensively by The Dream, Ewing did outplay him defensively and outrebound him.
New York came very close to becoming the fist city to win both the NBA and NHL championships in the same year. The New York Rangers won the 1994 Stanley Cup (ending a 54-year championship drought), but the Knicks lost Games 6 and 7 of the NBA Finals, preventing the Big Apple from scoring a historic first in North American professional sports.
To think my Knicks were this close to a championship! Who knows if we will ever be this close again. I know they made the finals in 1999, but they had no chance and were dismissed quickly.
With no Michael Jordan, you were able to get past the Bulls. If the Knicks - Nets first round series went to 5 games, New York would've had 26 playoff games that season. I think Ewing, well into his 30s, was a little beyond his prime, though he was still very good, especially with a Pat Riley - coached team. They had a nice playoff run during Pat Riley's time of 1992 to 1995.
I know I'm responding to an old comment but as a kid from Chicago I hated the Knicks. As an adult I lived a couple of years in Buffalo and started watching the Knicks. The Knicks winning a championship is something I would like to see. Funny thing is I would also like for the Magic to finally win one, both teams beaten by Houston where I currently live.
yup Knicks fan all the way, started watching in 94 for the playoffs.. but always respected everyone else's game...always loved Olajuwon, Kenny Smith, Horry, Cassell....these games will always be a huge landmark in my memory
Olajuwon’s best basketball was 1994 League MVP Defensive player of the year Finals MVP NBA championship Houston beats Utah in 6 games in the western conference semifinals Houston beats Phoenix in 7 games in the Western Conference finals Houston beats Patrick Ewing and the New York Knickerbockers in the Finals in 7 games to win a championship
Weird that the NY Rangers & Knicks both were not only in the finals of their leagues but also in game 7's as well. However only the Rangers were able to finish off their series and give NY a title.
Ewing should have been the defensive player of the year this season. Led the league in defensive win shares and defensive rating. Played better on the defensive end than Hakeem. Finished top 5 in mvp voting. Meaning he was a top 5 player that season and still didn’t make not a single all nba team or a defensive team. That season 4 of the top 5 best players where all centers!
Curious about this as an outsider: As a knicks fan during this era, which game was worse: This, the Charles Smith game or Reggie scoring 8 points in 9 seconds?
Less ego-driven. You don't know the history of this Game 7, you got to take a second look at the game. There is much more to this Game 7. Know that ball history.
This was the only season that it was only Marv Albert and Matt Guokas being the color analyst covering the finals. The following year, Bill Walton joined them as another color analyst (and was terrible at it).
If the Knicks were to have won the series, who would've been the Finals MVP? I think Hakeem would've had a case to winning MVP for the losing team, as he was still spectacular in this series, and Ewing was not great. (No other Knicks played great either).
This may seem weird but even weird can have its own logic Patrick Ewing being my favorite player all time one im glad espn first take didnt exist then and social media because in a weird way as a old knick fan during them ewing years if he had of won the title which i wished he could have the narrative would have been big just as kd leaving okc that the only reason he won is because mike was retired playing baseball i just hate those suspensions 3 years later that marred the series between another potential matchup with Chicago when they were peaking at the right time having beaten Chicago to stop them from winning 70 games again and had they had that chance i really believe barring nba not wanting to fix and keep jordan on top the knicks would have finally beaten the bulls in 97 . But i blame charles Oakley for that. Had he not been ejected pj brown would have never ever thrown Charlie ward upside down to me that is what really cost the knicks
Well it's tough cause Hakeem and the Rockets were better that year. Still, Ewing deserved at least one. He just lost to better teams in two finals appearances and he was hurt in 99.
The Rockets weren't that much better. Ultimately, the series probably came down to three things: (1) Houston had a better record by the slimmest of margins (one game), which gave them homecourt; (2) they won Game 3 in the last seconds; and (3) they won Game 6 in the last seconds. If one thing goes differently in that series, the Knicks win.
@@alyssalemus4462 Wow!! Thanks for your expert analysis that the rockets outplayed the Kincks plain and simlle truth. Looking at things plain and simlle truth is the clueless & easiest way to answer questions that have deeper scenarios. So if Ewing played his usual self on offense, the Kincks would've won plain and simlle truth, since he outplayed Olajuwon on the defensive side. And if Smith, Maxwell, and Cassell didn't get outplayed by Harper and Starks then it wouldn't have gone to seven games plain and simlle truth. But you won't know these things looking at this series plain and simlle truth. You may have been half right about the Rockets outplaying the Knicks in the regular season..but the playoffs/Finals are a whole different story. Yaneek Smith knows how close this series really was and how close it came to...definitely not a sweep like the regular season, which is just a way to look at things..plain and simlle truth.
The Sonics were really the team that gave the Rockets the most problems with their constant trapping low post defense, the Bulls on the other hand preferred using single coverage like most teams which would've been a good matchup for the Rockets. I actually feel this Rockets team would've been able to beat the Sonics with their halfcourt defense if they had faced off so they definitely have a strong chance against the Bulls.
Brian Mears yeah. Jordan was too afraid of facing Olajuwon and the Rockets in the Finals. He said "We wouldn't have had an answer for him" in regards to Olajuwon. Jordan also quit due to gambling problems. He took part in a gambling game where whoever won,got to take former MTV personality Kennedy upstairs to their room.
Crazy to think this was the only Finals Game 7 that NBC broadcasted! These intros were legendary.
That really is wild😂
Because when Michael Jordan played, which half the time NBC had the contract with the NBA, he never played in NBA finals series that went to a game 7. This was actually the first time in 6 years the finals went to a game 7. The previous time was in 1988 with the Lakers and Pistons. Marv Albert pointed out that this was only the 3rd time in the past 15 years that the finals went to a game 7.
All these years and I've never thought about that😂 12 or so year-stretch dominated [largely] by the Bulls & Lakers, dispatching teams in 6 games or less.
Finally! The NBA is back on NBC, where it belongs. Roundball Rock!
25 years ago today. Saddest sports day of my life. Still hurts.
Mine was Stockton’s game winner
@@Juanito825 mine was James harden Missing 20 something straight 3s 😭
@@nicholassmith277 got bad news for you. The pain never goes away. It’s been 28 years.
Same year, mine was Mutumbo embracing the ball while lying on floor...
Knicks were done after game 6, it was not the same after that game 6.
Just an amazing intro to a game 7 of the NBA Finals. Man i miss NBC!
What's the music in the intro? Not the NBA on NBC theme.
@@brianmears3388 Vagnelis- conquest of the paradaise.
Why did the NBA on NBC stopped showing it on tv after 2002?
@@bumblebity2902 It's the Opening Titles music from the movie Gettysburg.
@@fernandoifill-ruiz6410 : Because ABC/ESPN signed an exclusive deal with the NBA that year.
This was apex Hakeem. What a legend. Wish we got to see Rockets vs. Bulls finals in the 90s
Rockets in 7 games. The team that can beat the bulls in the Finals.
@hectorlopez1069 Bro, you must be smoking the same thing Kenny Smith does 😂😂
Had Jordan 's father not been killed causing the retirement, the Bulls would've had 8 straight.
As a native Texan and Houston sports fan, witnessing all the disappointments from the Oilers in the late 80’s/early 90’s, the Astros in ‘86 and other years, and of course all of the disappointments from the Rockets, this was unequivocally the best day of my sports life! Houston’s first major Chip! It’s safe to say we deserved it...👌👍😎
It also probably helped them out that Michael Jordan left to go play baseball during that time, but Olajuwon and company were deserving of a championship nonetheless.
@@jasonboileau8542 Jordan still won't beat olajuwon and those rockets.
@@jasonboileau8542Bulls were 1-5 against the Rockets from 91-93.
I didn't care who won this series, about the OJ Simpson drama, or how low scoring the games were. This series doesn't get the credit it deserves for being gritty, competitive, dramatic and fun to watch because of the effort these two teams put in. I was slightly pulling for the Knicks for the sole purpose of Ewing and Starks. Especially since Starks played really well in Games 2-6 and nearly won it for them in Game 6 and had a nightmare a few nights later.
Every game between knicks and rockets were won by less than 10...closest finals ever...2 equally matched teams...the rockets just hit more fts and 3s ..and hakeem was too special and Ewing just wasnt the same on offense....
If Starks would've hit just a handful of the shots he missed in Game 7, Knicks come out of Houston with the title, despite Ewing not being at his best on offense for most of the series until Game 5
myfight23 it was boring. You know why the 2003 Finals are forgotten despite being competitive? They were BORING! Revisionist history don’t change that
Well sorry if you favor players and teams who always jack up 3's and play no damn defense.
Derek Harper would have won MVP had the Knicks won the series and while Ewing did get outplayed offensively by The Dream, Ewing did outplay him defensively and outrebound him.
New York came very close to becoming the fist city to win both the NBA and NHL championships in the same year.
The New York Rangers won the 1994 Stanley Cup (ending a 54-year championship drought), but the Knicks lost Games 6 and 7 of the NBA Finals, preventing the Big Apple from scoring a historic first in North American professional sports.
Fast forward LA Dodgers and Lakers both won in 2020
also at the time before the strike the Yankees were leading their division as well, totally titletown!
@@robertdredden5474fast forward to 2024 and I’m here to tell you you’re retarded because the Dodgers are not in the NBA or NHL 🤡
Between 1988 and 2005 this was the only Finals G7
Of the 90s. Wow.
Only one broadcasted by NBC.
Rip to my boy #NYKNICKFORLIFE#WILLISREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED WE LOVE YOU RIP
To think my Knicks were this close to a championship! Who knows if we will ever be this close again. I know they made the finals in 1999, but they had no chance and were dismissed quickly.
With no Michael Jordan, you were able to get past the Bulls. If the Knicks - Nets first round series went to 5 games, New York would've had 26 playoff games that season. I think Ewing, well into his 30s, was a little beyond his prime, though he was still very good, especially with a Pat Riley - coached team. They had a nice playoff run during Pat Riley's time of 1992 to 1995.
I know I'm responding to an old comment but as a kid from Chicago I hated the Knicks.
As an adult I lived a couple of years in Buffalo and started watching the Knicks. The Knicks winning a championship is something I would like to see.
Funny thing is I would also like for the Magic to finally win one, both teams beaten by Houston where I currently live.
i don't understand how someone could possibly create such a perfect theme song for the NBA on NBC
brings back such good memories growing up
Hakeem showed up in a bad ass Benz and locked his car from the outside with his key and no alarm. Ha
He loved his car. He made sure nobody breaks into it.
Watching this on the 30th anniversary!
After 28 years later. 2 NBA championship and 2 World Series for the Astros. Yes Houston is now a Title Town USA
AND ALSO CHEATERS
Ewing is a legend and absolutely deserved a ring, but as a Rockets fan I had to say not today
yup Knicks fan all the way, started watching in 94 for the playoffs.. but always respected everyone else's game...always loved Olajuwon, Kenny Smith, Horry, Cassell....these games will always be a huge landmark in my memory
Not that nba finals, not on Olajuwon.
Knicks were right there man. Damn. Smh.
I still love this team as much as ever to this very day! Go Knicks!
It's so depressing watching this as a Knick fan knowing what comes next
What comes next is Knicks getting hammered by 6 points to the Rockets.
Olajuwon’s best basketball was 1994
League MVP
Defensive player of the year
Finals MVP
NBA championship
Houston beats Utah in 6 games in the western conference semifinals
Houston beats Phoenix in 7 games in the Western Conference finals
Houston beats Patrick Ewing and the New York Knickerbockers in the Finals in 7 games to win a championship
You forgot about the Rockets beat the Trail Blazers in western conference 1st round
Houston beats Utah in 5 games, not 6 games.
Weird that the NY Rangers & Knicks both were not only in the finals of their leagues but also in game 7's as well. However only the Rangers were able to finish off their series and give NY a title.
Ewing should have been the defensive player of the year this season. Led the league in defensive win shares and defensive rating. Played better on the defensive end than Hakeem. Finished top 5 in mvp voting. Meaning he was a top 5 player that season and still didn’t make not a single all nba team or a defensive team. That season 4 of the top 5 best players where all centers!
30 years ago today - June 22, 2024.
Why is Hakeem dressed like a waiter at an outdoor restaurant?
As a knick fan this game hurts my soul but loved the intro
Curious about this as an outsider:
As a knicks fan during this era, which game was worse:
This, the Charles Smith game or Reggie scoring 8 points in 9 seconds?
What did Bob mean when he said the Rockets had a near miss?
Who else misses these days? 😢❤
this is way better then the GSW/CAVS game 7 intro
Ashley Rodriguez meh. Not really
Less ego-driven. You don't know the history of this Game 7, you got to take a second look at the game. There is much more to this Game 7. Know that ball history.
@@Brenyon : The history between Dream & Ewing from college championships to pros alone made this one of the best Game 7 Finals ever!
Clutch City. What era for the NBA. Back to Back Champs for Htown
Rockets still beat the bulls in those finals too.
Game seven went to the Houston Rockets of 1994.
This aired on my 16th birthday
Hakeem looks like a casino dealer
Does anyone know the name of the track that plays in the first part of the video? The one with the sweet guitar riffs.
It’s the soundtrack from “1492” by Vangelis
@@gregoryjohnson7756 Actually I was thinking more of 0:01-0:12. Thanks for the other identification though!
27th anniversary of the best opening in broadcasting history
You could not be more right.
The Original title town in Houston before the Astros would give the town a championship run from 2017- now
This was the only season that it was only Marv Albert and Matt Guokas being the color analyst covering the finals. The following year, Bill Walton joined them as another color analyst (and was terrible at it).
Wow. Starks looked scared at 3:20. A precursor of what was to come.
I think that nervous look definitely destroyed his confidence in that game 7. He was done and over.
If only Jordan didn't retire
Wouldn't have mattered. The Bulls were 1-5 against the Rockets in the three-peat seasons.
Rockets played so better than the bulls. They still do that to Jordan and the bulls in the Finals.
HTown's glory years.
superstar did does and will describe patrick ewing while legend did does and will describe hakeem olajuwon
Gotta love the cheesy Jim Fagan voiceover @ 2:02
The Knicks play in 25 playoffs Game which was challenge there
If the Knicks were to have won the series, who would've been the Finals MVP? I think Hakeem would've had a case to winning MVP for the losing team, as he was still spectacular in this series, and Ewing was not great. (No other Knicks played great either).
Costas nearly single handedly ruined these finals. He was a rockets and Knicks hater. Even ended the finals with “the rockets are champions… for now”
Wish the Knicks wulda won.....the was a great series.... lotta pple dis this series cuz it wasn't "exciting".....but it was very competitive
This may seem weird but even weird can have its own logic Patrick Ewing being my favorite player all time one im glad espn first take didnt exist then and social media because in a weird way as a old knick fan during them ewing years if he had of won the title which i wished he could have the narrative would have been big just as kd leaving okc that the only reason he won is because mike was retired playing baseball i just hate those suspensions 3 years later that marred the series between another potential matchup with Chicago when they were peaking at the right time having beaten Chicago to stop them from winning 70 games again and had they had that chance i really believe barring nba not wanting to fix and keep jordan on top the knicks would have finally beaten the bulls in 97 . But i blame charles Oakley for that. Had he not been ejected pj brown would have never ever thrown Charlie ward upside down to me that is what really cost the knicks
Signing with the Knicks was the worst decision Pat Riley ever made
Not winning anything like he did with the Lakers in the 80s.
I wanted ewing to win.
Well it's tough cause Hakeem and the Rockets were better that year. Still, Ewing deserved at least one. He just lost to better teams in two finals appearances and he was hurt in 99.
The Rockets weren't that much better. Ultimately, the series probably came down to three things: (1) Houston had a better record by the slimmest of margins (one game), which gave them homecourt; (2) they won Game 3 in the last seconds; and (3) they won Game 6 in the last seconds. If one thing goes differently in that series, the Knicks win.
Yaneek Smith I didn't say they were much better, but the Rockets did beat the Knicks both times during the regular season.
@@smithyamiami the rockets were better in the season and in the finals rockets outplayed kincks plain and simlle truth
@@alyssalemus4462 Wow!! Thanks for your expert analysis that the rockets outplayed the Kincks plain and simlle truth. Looking at things plain and simlle truth is the clueless & easiest way to answer questions that have deeper scenarios. So if Ewing played his usual self on offense, the Kincks would've won plain and simlle truth, since he outplayed Olajuwon on the defensive side. And if Smith, Maxwell, and Cassell didn't get outplayed by Harper and Starks then it wouldn't have gone to seven games plain and simlle truth. But you won't know these things looking at this series plain and simlle truth. You may have been half right about the Rockets outplaying the Knicks in the regular season..but the playoffs/Finals are a whole different story. Yaneek Smith knows how close this series really was and how close it came to...definitely not a sweep like the regular season, which is just a way to look at things..plain and simlle truth.
30th Anniversary
Guarantee of Michael Jordan would have been on the bulls that they would have had the rockets versus the bulls in the finals that year
Rockets still win it with Jordan on the bulls. Jordan had problems with Houston.
Rockets had Jordan's numbers
Peak Costas
1994
Donald Trump was a New York Knick
Kamala Harris was [who recalls what]
We were spending our best hours at
Varsity
Dang opening gave me chicken skin!
94 or 95 Bulls vs Rockets would have been amazing finals. Im a Rockets fan but I think it would be Bulls in 7
Well, I think otherwise
The Sonics were really the team that gave the Rockets the most problems with their constant trapping low post defense, the Bulls on the other hand preferred using single coverage like most teams which would've been a good matchup for the Rockets. I actually feel this Rockets team would've been able to beat the Sonics with their halfcourt defense if they had faced off so they definitely have a strong chance against the Bulls.
Come on, rockets in 7. Rockets were the nemesis of tbe bulls. I wish the rockets were in the east with the bulls.
Series never would've been if Michael Jordan hadn't retired.
Brian Mears yeah. Jordan was too afraid of facing Olajuwon and the Rockets in the Finals. He said "We wouldn't have had an answer for him" in regards to Olajuwon. Jordan also quit due to gambling problems. He took part in a gambling game where whoever won,got to take former MTV personality Kennedy upstairs to their room.
Retired lol. He was suspended
@@charismatic9904 David Stern denied that theory years ago.
@@mrsportsguy134 and you believe that? Lmao. You believe everything everyone says?
I still think the Bulls may have dropped one in 94 or 95 if Jordan didn't retire
OJ