The Golden State Warriors completed the victory to avoid a repeat of the 2016 NBA finals, as the two-seed Houston Rockets couldn’t come back from a 3-1 series deficit. After losing Game 6, Buddy Hield scored 33 points to give the San Francisco franchise a season-defining win in Game 7.
With this confidence, they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves next, who knocked out the three-seed Los Angeles Lakers in another surprising series. But for now, let’s turn the pages of the history book and explore the teams that overturned a 3-1 deficit.
Some names spring to fans’ minds when ‘3-1’ is mentioned, especially in this list.
Teams That Overturned 3–1 Series Deficit in NBA Playoffs
- 1968 Boston Celtics:
The legendary Boston Celtics team, possessing talents like Bill Russell and Sam Jones, changed how fans viewed the franchise. They won eight consecutive NBA titles, and their biggest game came in 1968 against the Philadelphia 76ers. After winning the first game, the Celtics lost three games in a row.
Yet, the Celtics returned emphatically and won the series 4-3. The franchise then won the NBA finals against the Lakers to complete a historic season.
- 1970 Los Angeles Lakers:Â
Two years after the Celtics completed the comeback, the Lakers followed the same route after matching up with the Phoenix Suns. They completed a comeback with Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, and Elgin Baylor on the team, who pulled the team back from the perils of defeat. However, the team failed the last hurdle against the New York Knicks in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
- 1979 Washington Bullets:
During the 1978-79 season, the Washington Bullets recorded 54-28 and won the Eastern Conference regular season. They entered the playoffs on a high, defeating teams on their way to the Conference Finals. With George Gervin leading the San Antonio Spurs, the Bullets lost three out of the four games to dampen the mood.
However, the Bullets regained their mojo to complete the comeback, but they lost to the Seattle SuperSonics in the NBA finals.
- 1981 Boston Celtics:Â Â
After Larry Bird’s heroics made history, the Celtics’ 14th NBA title became memorable for the franchise. But on their way to the title, they faced a roadblock against the 76ers, as Julius Erving took a 3-1 series lead. With a long history of comebacks, the Celtics fought back and reclaimed the series on their way to becoming NBA champions.
- 1995 Houston Rockets:
The Rockets won the 1994 NBA championship courtesy of a Hakeem Olajuwon special. He averaged 28.9 points and 4.0 blocks in the series. But in 1995, he hit a roadblock and had to return from a 3-1 deficit against the Phoenix Suns. Olajuwon kept his cool and won the series and the 1995 NBA title, defeating the Orlando Magic. He averaged 33 points per game in the playoffs, cementing his place amongst the greats.
- 1997 Miami Heat:
Before Dwyane Wade brought the Miami Heat a title, Alonzo Mourning came close to breaking the franchise’s duck. They steamrolled past some opponents and then met the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
After a 3-1 deficit, Mourning and Miami completed a comeback and won the series. But the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls won the NBA title that year.
- 2003 Detroit Pistons:Â
Although the New Jersey Nets, led by Jason Kidd, ended the Detroit Pistons’ 2003 NBA postseason, they produced a memorable comeback against the Orlando Magic. Tracy McGrady helped the Magic attain a 3-1 lead, but Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton showed what they were capable of and helped them come back and win the round.
After the 2003 season, the Pistons gained from that experience, defeating the Lakers to win the NBA title in 2004.
- 2006 Phoenix Suns:
Shaquille O’Neal left the Lakers, and Kobe Bryant led the team during the 2006 playoffs. They met the Phoenix Suns and led the series 3-1. It shocked everyone because the Lakers didn’t have a strong supporting cast around Bryant to keep up with the Suns. But Steve Nash had the last laugh, helping the Suns to overcome a 3-1 deficit, only to lose to the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals.
- 2015 Houston Rockets:
If you look at the Rockets’ history, they have had solid teams in the past. But James Harden and Dwight Howard made them the entertainers, and when they went against the Los Angeles Clippers, it became a blockbuster show. Blake Griffin and the Clippers took a 3-1 lead in the series.
Though Harden and Howard faltered in the first few games, they produced a comeback to win the round. However, they lost to the Golden State Warriors in five games after that.
- 2016 Golden State Warriors:
During the same year, when they lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the legendary 2016 NBA finals, the Golden State Warriors had a comeback of their own. It went down in the history books after they failed in the 2016 NBA Finals, as the Oklahoma City Thunder almost knocked them out in the West Finals.
But Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson kept calm and clawed back to win the series 4-3. Nevertheless, that achievement gets overshadowed by the next team on the list.
- 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers:
Arguably the most remarkable comeback in sports history, the Cavaliers, led by LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, produced a sensational comeback to win the series 4-3 in the 2016 NBA finals.
James’ iconic block on Andre Iguodala remains strong in the memory of the Cleveland fanbase, who celebrated this title for ages. It became a low point for the Warriors, but for Cleveland, it got them their first NBA title.
- 2020 Denver Nuggets (twice):
No team in NBA history came back from a 3-1 deficit twice in the playoffs in the same year as the Denver Nuggets did. In the first round, they toppled the Utah Jazz after returning from a 3-1 deficit to get past the round. Then, they won against the Clippers similarly and produced a miracle 4-3 comeback to make history.
But the Lakers ended all that optimism to defeat them 4-1 in the Conference Finals and win the 2020 NBA title.
