1. The birth of Dame Time



Damian Lillard is not a stranger to the series-clinching buzzer beater shot. Before breaking the hearts of OKC fans this year, Lillard already had the Rockets' 2014 demise in his resume. In many ways, the 2014 shot was better because Lillard's Blazers were down by two (whereas they would have only gone to overtime if he missed the shot against OKC) and he had less than one second to catch the ball and make the shot.



2. John Stockton v Houston



If you think Lillard had an incredible shot against the Rockets, just remember that John Stockton did it first. Stockton is not primarily known for his scoring but his '97 dagger against Barkley and the Houston Rockets is definitely a moment we still remember to this day. Tied at 100 and with less than 3 seconds left to play, an inbound play left Stockton wide open and he took the three to take the Jazz to the NBA Finals.



3. Jordan's The Shot



There are three point shots, buzzer beating shots, and circus shots. Then there is The Shot. Michael Jordan's 1989 series-ending jumper (and the resulting celebration) against Craig Ehlo and the Cleveland Cavaliers remains as one of the most iconic moments in all of basketball history. When asked about the play, then Bulls head coach Doug Collins said "that was get the ball to Michael, everybody get the f*ck out of the way."



4. Ralph Sampson v Lakers



After appearing twice on the losing end in this list, it's time to give Houston some love. With just one second left and the game tied at 112, Ralph Sampson jumped up to grab the inbound pass and twisted his body midair to put up an awkward shot to knockout the LA Lakers and advance to the 1986 NBA Finals. This shot involved a lot of luck for sure, but it went in and that's all that matters.



5. Jordan eliminates the Cavs AGAIN



Boy, Cleveland must really hate Michael Jordan. Just a few years after hitting The Shot, Jordan once again eliminated the Cavs from the playoffs with a (heavily contested) jumper. While the original shot was more pressure packed as the series was tied then, this arguably had longer lasting effects in both teams' histories. The Bulls would eventually win the championship that year to complete their first three-peat while the Cavs would find themselves on a steady decline until they drafted LeBron James many years after.