1994 NBA Finals
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The 1994 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1993-94 National Basketball Association season, featuring the Eastern Conference's New York Knicks and the Western Conference's Houston Rockets.
This matchup was Hakeem Olajuwon's second NBA Finals series appearance, his other being the 1986 NBA Finals, where Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics defeated the Houston Rockets four games to two. The series was Patrick Ewing's first NBA Finals appearance. The Rockets came in with strong determination to win the franchise's first NBA championship, while the Knicks were looking to add a third NBA championship trophy, as the Knicks' last trophy came from the 1973 NBA Finals. The series was hailed as a meeting of the two great centers who had previously played for a championship in college. In 1984 while Olajuwon was with the University of Houston and Ewing was with Georgetown University, Georgetown had beaten Houston 84-75 in the 1984 NCAA Champoinship game. In this series however, Olajuwon is generally considered to have outplayed Ewing,[1] outscoring him in every game of the series and posting numbers of 26.9 ppg on 50.0% shooting compared to Ewing's 18.9 ppg on 36.3% shooting.[2] Ewing set an NBA finals record in the series with a total of 30 blocks, and he tied the single-game record of 8 blocks in game 5. [3] During the series, the Houston Rockets played seven low-scoring, defensive games against the New York Knicks. After splitting the first two games in Houston, the Knicks won two out of three games at Madison Square Garden. In Game 6, however, Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon blocked a last-second attempt at a game-winner by John Starks, giving the Rockets an 86-84 victory and forcing a Game 7. The Rockets beat the Knicks in Game 7, 90-84, enabling the city of Houston to celebrate its first NBA and fifth professional sports championship. It is also the first time a Houston team won a championship in a league that still exists. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.
Contents |
[edit] 1994 NBA Finals Roster
[edit] 1994 Houston Rockets
Head Coach: Rudy Tomjanovich
Hakeem Olajuwon |
Otis Thorpe |
Vernon Maxwell |
Robert Horry |
Mario Elie |
Sam Cassell |
Chris Jent |
Carl Herrera |
Scott Brooks |
Larry Robinson |
Matt Bullard |
Richard Petruska |
Earl Cureton |
Eric Riley |
Kenny Smith |
[edit] 1994 New York Knicks
Head Coach: Pat Riley
Patrick Ewing |
John Starks |
Charles Oakley |
Hubert Davis |
Charles Smith |
Greg Anthony |
Derek Harper |
Doc Rivers |
Rolando Blackman |
Anthony Mason |
Anthony Bonner |
Herb Williams |
Eric Anderson |
Corey Gaines |
[edit] Series Summary
| Game | Date | Home Team | Result | Road Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | June 8 | Houston | 85-78 | New York |
| Game 2 | June 10 | Houston | 83-91 | New York |
| Game 3 | June 12 | New York | 89-93 | Houston |
| Game 4 | June 15 | New York | 91-82 | Houston |
| Game 5 | June 17 | New York | 91-84 | Houston |
| Game 6 | June 19 | Houston | 86-84 | New York |
| Game 7 | June 22 | Houston | 90-84 | New York |
Rockets win series 4-3
[edit] Olajuwon vs. Ewing
Although many fans in New York, and some members of the national media, blamed John Starks poor performance in game 7 as the contributing factor in the Knicks loss in the series, another important factor in the Rockets series win was Olajuwon's performance. Olajuwon is generally considered to have outplayed Ewing.[1] Olajuwon outscored Ewing in all 7 games of the series and put up significantly better numbers overall: [2]
| 1994 NBA Finals | Gm 1 | Gm 2 | Gm 3 | Gm 4 | Gm 5 | Gm 6 | Gm 7 | Totals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hakeem Olajuwon | 28 | 25 | 21 | 32 | 27 | 30 | 25 | 26.9 ppg 50.0% fg |
| Patrick Ewing | 23 | 16 | 18 | 15 | 25 | 19 | 17 | 18.9 ppg 36.4% fg |
[edit] Telecast interrupted by O.J. Simpson car chase
During Game 5 (June 17, 1994) most NBC affiliates split the coverage of the game between NFL Hall of Famer O.J. Simpson's slow speed freeway chase with the LAPD. At the time, Simpson had been an NFL analyst on NBC. A visibly confused and distraught Bob Costas (NBC's anchor for their NBA Finals coverage) said during the telecast from Madison Square Garden that the Simpson situation was "not just tragic but now surreal."
[edit] John Starks and Pat Riley
During the 2006 NBA Finals, Pat Riley stated publicly for the first time, that sitting Rolando Blackman in favor of John Starks during Games 6 and 7 of the 1994 NBA Finals was a move he later regretted. Riley called it the biggest coaching mistake in his career and stated that he has never forgiven himself for it. Starks shot an abysmal 2 for 18 from the field in Game 7.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Araton, Harvey. ON PRO BASKETBALL: N.B.A. FINALS; Long-Sought Title That Ewing Needed Eludes Him Again, The New York Times, June 23, 1994, accessed April 21, 2007. Quote: " But he (Ewing) was just not as good as Hakeem Olajuwon, never has been."
* Kalb, Elliot. Who's Better, Who's Best in Basketball?: Mr. Stats Sets the Record Straight on the Top 50 NBA Players of All Time, McGraw-Hill Professional, 2003 pg. 163 ISBN 0071417885 Quote: "Olajuwon clearly outplayed Ewing."
* Daily Dime: Special Edition The game's greatest giants ever, espn.com, March 6, 2007, accessed April 12, 2007. Quote: "He (Olajuwon) outplayed Ewing, Robinson and O'Neal to lead Houston to back-to-back titles..." - ^ a b History of the NBA Finals: Hakeem Olajuwon: The NBA’s Best In The Mid ’90s, hollywoodsportsbook.com, accessed February 16, 2007.
- ^ Patrick Ewing Bio, nba.com, accessed April 19, 2007.
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