What makes a memorable championship series or even just a game? It's an equal mix of great competition and drama. And when it comes to mixing competition and drama, the NBA Finals does it as well as anyone.
The NBA Finals have plotlines that rival the best "Game of Thrones" ever had to offer (without all the beheadings) and feature basketball's most iconic players and teams in their greatest moments.
Just like the game itself, the NBA Finals have evolved over the years. But classic series get better with age. These are the greatest NBA Finals matchups of all time.
The friendship between Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley took root during the 1992 Olympics when both of them were on the "Dream Team," and they became America's favorite basketball buddy duo.
Jordan, forever the competitor, took exception to Barkley being named NBA Most Valuable Player in 1993 and went at his throat in the NBA Finals.
How unstoppable was Jordan? He averaged 41.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 1.7 steals in six games. Then, he gave up the rock to John Paxson for the series-winning 3-point dagger.
We include this series just for the sheer resiliency it represented for the Washington Bullets. Before this win, the Bullets lost twice in the NBA Finals in the 1970s, including a crippling upset to the Golden State Warriors when they were swept in 1975.
This series included one of the all-time great Game 7 meltdowns in NBA history from Seattle guard Dennis Johnson. The Hall of Fame point guard averaged 16.6 points in the series but went 0-for-14 and scored just 4 points in Game 7.
Woof.
This was the second of three consecutive titles for the Lakers, so it's notable for being part of one of the greatest dynasties in NBA history. But if you ask a true basketball head what made it unforgettable, the answer is a little different.
Want to know how a series that only went five games is in the pantheon of NBA Finals greatness? Two words: Allen Iverson.
The shortest NBA Most Valuable Player in history stepped over Lakers guard (and future NBA championship-winning head coach) Tyronn Lue in a Game 1 win by the Philadelphia 76ers, creating one of the more iconic moments in NBA Finals history.
The 1976 NBA Finals featured the only triple-overtime game in NBA Finals history - a 128-126 win by the Boston Celtics over the Phoenix Suns in Game 5 at the Boston Garden.
The NBA Finals MVP has had some confusing winners over the years, and this was another head-scratcher. Jo Jo White averaged 21.7 points and 5.8 assists and was named MVP, but teammate Dave Cowens averaged 20.5 points, 16.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals.
This is one of just two finals appearances by the Suns, who didn't return until losing to the Bulls in 1993.
Hall of Fame center Arnie Risen led the Rochester Royals (now the Sacramento Kings) averaged 21.7 points and 14.3 rebounds against the New York Knicks in the 1951 NBA Finals.
Risen, 6-foot-9 and just 200 pounds, could've made the only championship in franchise history easier by making some more free throws. He went 48-of-75 at the free-throw line in the seven-game series.
The Royals led the series 3-0 before the Knicks stormed back to force a Game 7 in Rochester, which the home team won, 79-75, in front of 4,200 fans at Edgerton Park Arena - the first crowd to ever witness an NBA Finals Game 7.
Say what you will about the Detroit Pistons - love them or hate them - you have to give it up for how they've performed in the NBA Finals and for how absolutely devastating their teams were in winning back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990.
In those two years, the Pistons went 8-1 in the Finals, and they're 12-1 all-time in the three years they've won titles.
OK, stop screaming at your screen. We're done praising the Pistons.