We all remember moments that forever converted us into NBA fans. It could have been a big-time player who played with such swag and wowed the crowd with every move he made. It could have been a team that collectively created the most memorable title runs or just made the game fun. It could also be an iconic moment in history that made an indelible mark on you.
Here is my Mount Rushmore of NBA moments.
2003-2004 Eastern Conference Finals: Detroit vs. Indiana
This was my first memory of the NBA. I remember waking up and going downstairs to my grandma’s house in Agdao, Davao City and seeing both my brother and older cousin glued to the TV screen. I honestly forgot what game it was or who won, but what I do remember is seeing them so excited about each play. It made me curious why they were so drawn by the NBA. From there, it became a rabbit hole for me from who the players were, what the Eastern Conference and what the playoffs were. I just kept chasing and chasing until I was overwhelmed and drowned in NBA history. That’s when I started to become an NBA fan.
Dwight Howard domination
When you see Dwight Howard’s body, it looks like it was created in a lab. He’s 6’10” with 265 pounds of pure muscle, boulder shoulders, and could jump out of the gym. Watching him in Orlando was such a treat. He would erase shots and send them 3-4 rows back into the stands. He would just swallow rebounds. He would also constantly dunk the ball so hard it felt like the rim would break. My eyes and jaw were wide open watching the highlights that he would create on a nightly basis. It got to a point that I wanted to be Dwight Howard. Now looking back it was quite foolish of me to believe that I could be like Dwight, but having someone that I could attach to in a basketball sense helped me further develop my love and fandom for the NBA.
Vince Carter dunk contest
As I kept watching more NBA games, it so happened that I managed to stumble upon the snippets of that dunk contest. In all of my history of watching dunk contests, this was the one where there was a great level of completion, but Vince Carter was just on a whole different level. Every time he went up, it was with unparalleled grace and power. You couldn’t have created a better dunk package. There was the iconic “Let’s go home, it’s over!” call that immortalized the moment. Everyone just had their flip phones and camcorders on and no one wanted to skip a beat. I wish I had the opportunity to watch it live. To end with a hot take, I believe that VC would have beaten Zach Lavine and Aaron Gordon in a dunk contest.
LeBron leads Cavs to title
I had to put this moment here in my Mt. Rushmore. It may be more current than the others on this list, but this is a moment that struck me right in the heart because you couldn’t have written a more perfect story.
The chosen one, born and raised in Akron, was poised to deliver a championship to Cleveland, but after eight years and only one finals appearance, he chose to leave. He was crucified and portrayed as a villain for his decision but managed to capture his first two rings in the process. He then chose to return and delivered Cleveland a championship, the city’s first NBA title and major sports title since 1964. As a fan, you wanna see athletes succeed and overcome challenges, narratives, and expectations. You could see that a huge weight was removed from LeBron’s shoulders when the final buzzer sounded and you could see the gravity of what he just accomplished. For me, that was truly an unforgettable moment.
