I was there, Laker fan. I was the only nut yelling when Magic made that shot. My friend tapped me on the shoulder and said, "you might wabt to keeo it down ...." !
I was listening to this game on the radio on the RTD bus, when I got to my stop I ran home hoping to see some of the game. I walked in through the door just in time to see that shot. Awesome
I remember RTD well. When we didn’t take our bikes to school we hitch a ride on the bus. Luther Burbank junior high. I still have the school I’d bus pass to this day.
The NBA's still the NBA, but the game has evolved. It happens every generation. Twenty years from now when the game is a clash between giant knuckleheads under the basket people will look back at the Warriors fast-paced motion offense highlighted by Steph Curry's and Klay Thompson's aerial assaults and say, "Aaah, that's when the NBA was the NBA."
@@edge224 An exhibition of what? Superior shooting? Because the outside shooting these days is far better than it was back in the day, thanks to Steph Curry turning the 3-point shot into an art form. People don't even care about the dunk contest at the AS game anymore; it's all about who'll win the Three Point Shooting contest or the Skills Competition. Or is it an exhibition of big man versatility? Because big men like Jokic and KAT and the Greek Freak can do things that even some of the greatest big men of the past couldn't do. Or is it an exhibition of Triple Double overachievers, because players like Westbrook, Jokic, Doncic, Draymond Green and others rack up more triple doubles than players of the past used to, with the exception of Oscar Robertson in the 60's and Magic in the 80's? None of this is to say that the game today is better than it used to be. But it's different. It's changed. And change can be good. Enjoy the game the way it is today, or you might miss it more than you think if it devolves into what it was in the 90's for a while: wrestling matches, massive fouling, and low-scoring games.
The most enjoyable Lakers season ever. Back to back champs. LaL were a sluggish 1sf half team, but turned on the afterburners in the 2nd half of many games. 3 game7 wins in the playoffs including closing out the nba finals vs the Bad Boys. Still my favorite and stress-filled season as a Lakers fan since 1986. 1st nba champs to repeat since 1969.
There are some players that can literally put their team on their back and lead them to victory almost all by themselves, even against great teams like the Celtics. And Magic Johnson did that for the Lakers.
What a shot! Magic was, according to Larry Bird, the greatest basketball player ever, at least the best he'd ever seen. He certainly got the best of Bird in their rivalry.
@@drew2fast489 But Larry Bird was far better in every aspect of the game than Magic, which most people now agree with. Magic played his entire career in a pathetic weak, Western Conference, and had an absolute cakewalk to The Finals, while Larry and the Celtics went through literal wars to get there. No, Bird was a humble man, and was far greater than Magic or Jordan could ever conceive of. But please don't refer to this lucky ass shot as any skill whatsoever. Magic put up an absolute prayer, and it was answered. NO skill whatsoever. PURE ASS LUCK. Just stop pretending like this was some great game winning shot. It was a 1 in 100. We all know this. And Magic probably went out and screwed 20 prostitutes in Boston after that shot, VERY typical of him. Not exactly a role model, but Larry Bird always will be so. And you know it's so true.
Watched this game with my Dad....was 15 years old.....and back then I think KHJ/KCAL 9 aired the east coast games on like a 1hr delay so it wasn't live. But you never knew because there was no going online or looking up the scores on cell phones back then. I remember my Dad and I jumped up and yelled after Magic made that shot and my Mom came running into the room thinking something bad had happened. Good memories.
The best regular season NBA game I've seen to this day still. Yep, it was on channel KHJ channel 9. Over 30 years later, still as exciting as watching the game that night on channel 9.
saw this game live on TV. great regular season game. coop not in the HOF is a shame. that game tying 3 alone showed how clutch he was and how his team trusted him in crucial moments.
Seen this game live KHJ TV laker channel 9 hosted by chick Hearn and Stu Lantz... I was 14 here in LA and jumping in front of the tube after magic made that happen.. Good times...
Still the greatest regular season NBA game I've ever seen. It was back and forth all night. Chick Hearn could be cranky on and off the air. Stu got it on the air, director Susan Stratton off the air. Good old channel 9.
This was the NBA in the 80's. Great rivalry of Johnson & Bird. Today I don't even watch it. When the Lakers won the 2020 championship, I wasn't really interested since I was once a Laker fan.
@thenewschmoo The tattoos and "everybody's got diamond stud earrings in their ears" league. Watched this game nearly 35 years ago, still consider it the greatest regular season NBA game I've seen.
I saw Magic's shot in a highlights video and realized that it wasn't a three, since he stepped on the line. With nothing other than the short clip, I spent the next hour trying to find which game it was to make sure it wasn't decided by a bullshit call. Haha finally found it. Looks like the refs called it right -- a two pointer.
@@UpChuckTheBoogie nope, Lakers year. They were hungry, and teams just didn't repeat, until Riles made his guarantee That Championship experience, the Purple and Gold way
bird made the game winning shot with 12 seconds to go ; after that i am still looking for where kareem got fouled , and how the ball was given out of bounds to the lakers after kareem missed the second free throw ; should have been boston ball and game over ; doesn't the home team get the calls at the end of games ? not when stern wants the lakers to win ! it actually should have been boston ball after kareem missed the shot he took with 8 seconds on the clock that bird rebounded
I always fucking hated the lakers but respected magic, Kareem, Kobe and co now I still hate the lakers but have no respect for lebron James.... he makes my job easier 😂
You got to love Chick Hearn for loving the game so much not wanting to go to commercials. Listening to him was almost half the excitement of the game. Miss his voice.
CHICK HEARN IS THE ONE & ONLY LAKERS LEGEND THAT THE LAKERS WILL NEVER EVER BE ABLE TO REPLACE NO MATTER WHAT. REST IN PARADISE CHICCEY# THE CITY OF LA LOVES & MISSES YOU & YOUR AMAZING VOICE SO MUCH.
'This game is in the refrigerator! The Door is closed, the Lights are out, the Eggs are cooling, the butter is getting hard and the Jello is Jigglin'!'. People brought their headphones into the Fabulous Forum to Hear Chicky even though they were watching the game from inside the arena. RIP Chicky! You were something!
@@keenakaur6314 of course this clip was not in the fabulous forum. As someone who saw virtually every home game from 1979 to 1986 in the fabulous forum is what my post was based on..
@@Dbusdriver71 And of course I KNOW it wasn't in The Forum. I also loved the great Chick Hearn, the greatest basketball announcer of all time. But no matter what anybody says, that shot by Magic Johnson was just flat out lucky as HELL. Had Magic just said it afterword, that "hey, I threw up a prayer, and it was answered", I would have had nowhere near as much of a problem with it. Because luck happens, right? But for him to say he practiced that shot, is a total joke. Yeah, just like he practiced that almost full court shot, he hit against the Nuggets, right before halftime in The Forum, in the 87 playoffs. Let's just admit it, those were two of the luckiest shots in NBA history, and move on from it. I'd respect Magic Johnson, and Laker fans a lot more if they did so, and for them to stop taking credit for championships they won in an entirely different city AND state. The Boston Celtics are the ONLY true 17 time World Champions, and if not for their own gutless ways, since 86, they'd be at a bare minimum of 23 time World Champions. But, that's on the Celtics, and I blame them totally.
@@keenakaur6314 He also shot it off the wrong foot. Yes, he was very lucky. Half court heaves require a lot of luck. What your describing is what took place during that time period. The histories of both Lakers and Celtics are intertwined. The Rivalry is gone now as the modern NBA is a shell of its former selves. Political correctness (amongst other things) have brought the NBA down.
@@Dbusdriver71 I agree with you all the way on that, my friend. My Celtics are total cowards on their home court, and the Lakers signed the likes of LeBron James, who I have zero respect for. All the game is, is "let's see who can make the most 3 pointers". Not good. When you look at the 86 Celtics, and even the 87 Lakers, you saw COMPLETE teams. The passing was unreal. Totally unselfish legends like Larry Bird, Dennis Johnson, Bill Walton, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge (who I have always found sexy♥♥♥), Robert Parish, and super valuable bench guys like Scott Wedman, and Jerry Sichting, and on the Lakers side, Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Cooper, Scott, Jeff Lamp, Mike Smrek, Mychael Thompson, and even that thug, Kurt Rambis!!! LOL Yes indeed, the 86 Celtics are the greatest team of all time, and the 87 Lakers are number 2. Lebron's teams would be totally lost against these guys. Especially Mike Smrek! 🤭🤭🤭
Yes, very true, in G4 of 87 finals he hit basically the same 3 pointer to cut a 106-100 Celtic lead to 106-103 with about a minute to play in 4th quarter.
I remember watching this game live when I was 8 years old. You never forget those crushing losses when you were a kid lol. I miss the NBA. They act like entitled trophy wives now lol
Ha. Good analogy. I was a huge Atlanta Hawks fan back in the 'Nique/Spud days, and while I'm glad the Hawks advanced, I'm not a huge fan of this NBA era. That loss to Boston in '88 is something I still think about a lot. That said, there was controversy. In game 6, Dennis Johnson got by with a blatant double-dribble at a hugely-pivotal point. Still, I do admire that Boston team, the best half-court team ever.
I don't understand why Kareem is not included in any GOAT conversations. He was such a presence underneath and is still the leading scorer of all time. And he played four years of college ball. Freshmen didn't play varsity then but then he won three national championships. I think UCLA lost only two games in his three years on varsity.
I'll never forget this game, I was over my cousin house, he was a Celtics fan, he thought they had that game going off, then magic hit that shot and I went off! And he was quite after that! Fun memories
I was 17 when this game was played and 2 of my friends came over to my house and my mom made us some good food and we enjoyed this game....GO LAKERS!!!!.....well let me amend that, I will be a Lakers fan again once LeCrybaby leaves this once great franchise....lol
This was recorded from a satellite feed... I always got to hear Chick during "commercial " time. He ruled these telecasts with an iron fist... he'd occasionally get upset about something every now and then, but this was as tense as I ever saw him.
@@jph4852 You got that right! There were a bunch when they were ON I can only imagine when they were OFF!!! Poor Stu. He really had to sit there and take it from Chickie now and then. But hey it came with the territory! Gotta love Chickie!!! 🎙🏀🏆👍🏼
@@shehanagaraj1063after Magic hit this shot, I used to practice it. Same bank. Surprisingly it went it quite often. 😂. I never did get a chance to shoot this type of shot in a league I used to play in but I did hit a half court shot. I used to practice it too. It was a half time shot though. Somebody yelled lucky shot. Since we went out to shoot practice shots before half time ended, I threw up another half court and it went in. 😂. Heard some ooh’s then silence.
True. However, as a Lakers fan, I was elated. Incredible shot by Magic. Refs effed up but it took an amazing shot to take advantage of the gift from the officials.
I remember how angry I was that the Lakers won this game. I felt like the Celtics had been cheated out of a victory in the last few minutes. The thing that really hurts though is magic hit the shot in almost the same place that Larry shot was in game 4 of the finals not too many months before this. So almost 35 years later I've come to appreciate what the Lakers meant to the league back then. There was no shame in losing to them.
As a Laker fan, I felt the same way about the Celtics. Absolutely I was pissed off when LA lost to Boston in 84, because we would have swept were it not for mental mistakes in G2 and G4. While the Lakers were probably a slightly "better" team that year, the fact is, the Celtics were the more mentally tough team, and in that area, it wasn't even close. I marveled at the Celtics ability to take the Lakers totally out of their game, even Kareem was not immune to the Celtics' head games. At that time, I would have fully expected Magic, Worthy and Scott to be caught up emotionally, but never Kareem! Yes, KAJ could be emotional sometimes, but I expected him to keep his cool, he knew what was at stake. But Boston took him out as well. Even though the Lakers beat Boston 2 out of 3 finals, I've always considered the 84 finals to have been the best of those finals... what more can you ask for other than a seven game series between those two?
The Lakers handed the Celtics their worst postseason and regular season losses in the history of the Garden. Both by Magic and in back to back seasons. And this is coming from a lifelong Celtics fan. Two absolutely crushing defeats.
@@Mrd9960 the Lakers are the greatest franchise because they have the most in the modern era (1979 -). I love Bill Russell he's easily in my top 3, but there was little to no player movement back then, for example, if you had the best team in 1964, then you would have the best team in 1965, and halfway throughout his career u had the ABA, so he didn't play against the best competition. I root for neither LA or BOS so no bias here.
@@anthonynegron788 Completely disagree, there was very good competition back then, because you had fewer teams, there were very good players on most teams, the Lakers had great players, a super team in 69 and still couldn't beat the Celtics, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, there were great players then because there wasn't expansion to water down the league.
I remember watching this game live on TBS, I went nuts when Magic hit the shot. It was then shown on tape delay on the local channel here in L.A. a couple hours later. My sister, not knowing the game was on a delay thought the game was live and thought the game was over with 3 seconds left, I bet her 5 bucks that the Lakers would win. Easiest five bucks I ever made!!
I remember this play very well. I was waiting for my order while the fast food restaurant had the game on and saw the final moments including this play. I went "Man, Magic Johnson did it again, yeah".
Bird and Jordan do this and it's on every highlight package for life, but for Magic just another amazing play among hundreds showing why he's the greatest overall player ever.
@Iman • If Bird, Jordan and Magic hit that same or similar shot against the worst team in the league during that season (Clippers were 17-65), the meaning of the shot would not be as great. Hitting that shot against your immediate rival(Celtics), or those teams who are becoming elite(Pistons, Bulls, Mavericks, Blazers) then that winning shot becomes a great deal.
Susan response was…. Last I checked Chicky, we have sponsors. not like anyone was sticking around for a post game interview…..lol. I remember this game. I completely forgot about this shot.
I watched this game on a little black and white tv in college. Years later, I remember that Van Exel last second shot in the Garden that reminded me of this one.
So good the Lakers purposely tanked the houston series to avoid giving Boston the satisfaction of aveniging the 85 finals. The 87 series was a pure mismatch with how decimated Boston was.
I, too, thought the Celtics were going to win. When Magic hit that shot, I jumped off the sofa and started screaming like a madman. I opened my back door and kept on screaming. Great warm up for Kirk Gibson's walk off homer several months later.
5:53 As a Laker fan, watching the ☘️ fan in utter exasperation stand up & do a 360 after the 🏀 banked in wearing a light colored long sleeve shirt 👔 behind the basket (near the white arm of the goal) was and always will be a thing of beauty
This is why Michael Jordan is the greatest. Remember this comment because it will be copied. Jordan is the branch between these two types of play. He got hisself into shape to take a beating and still win. They say the rules were changed because of him but that is just haters complaining. He beat the best of the old stlye and beat the best of the new style. There hasn't been a player come a-long that is so good that they could have stopped Michael Jordan from winning from 91-98. Ive watched games now and back then and nobody can touch Michael Jordan in his prime. We judge by their prime, by their best, and Michael Jordans best is the best of anyone.
Was a huge Lakers fan. Actually saw Wilt Chamberlains last game in person. Game 5 loss against the Knicks. Don’t watch basketball, baseball or football anymore. Go woke, go broke.
