The Mavericks and Jazz were locked in another intense battle in Game 4. With one minute left on the clock, the Mavericks held a three-point lead, 90-87.
Karl Malone drew a foul on Nowitzki and sank both free throws. Stockton followed with a mid-range jump shot… the Jazz scored four unanswered points to take a 91-89 lead!
As the tragedy of Game 1 threatened to repeat itself, Nash stepped up first, silencing Stockton and the Jazz with a clutch mid-range jumper.
92-91, the Mavericks regained the lead.
With 22 seconds remaining, the Jazz prepared for their final offensive play. After Stockton controlled the ball at mid-court, the Mavericks defended aggressively against Malone, preventing a direct connection with Stockton. Stockton called for Marshall, intending to pass through him to get the ball to the Jazz's hands.
Marshall's pass was fumbled, and Finley intercepted it, delivering a crucial steal. Russell was forced to foul Finley, sending him to the free-throw line.
Finley sank both free throws under pressure, giving the Mavericks a 94-91 lead and maintaining their undefeated streak. This forced the Jazz into a last-second three-point attempt.
With only 8 seconds left, the Jazz had the final possession.
Coach Sloan had intended to draw up a catch-and-shoot three-pointer for Russell, but Coach Nelson anticipated the Jazz's strategy. Finley guarded Russell tightly, denying him any space to receive the pass.
Stockton was forced to execute his second option: take the shot himself!
Stockton was a top-tier playmaker but never a top-tier scorer. In this crucial moment, he used his experience to isolate Nash, managing to create some shooting space. However, the space was limited, the shot was contested, and the final three-point attempt bounced off the rim. The Jazz lost by three points, dragging the Mavericks into a decisive Game 5.
This Western Conference playoff series’ only Game 5 did not start as excitingly as fans had anticipated.
The experienced Jazz defense held the Mavericks to a mere 33 points in the first half.
At halftime, the Jazz led by 15 points. By the end of the third quarter, they still held a 14-point advantage.
The Mavericks fans at the arena began to despair, with some of the more anxious ones even leaving early. However, these departing fans were destined for regret, as they missed an incredibly classic comeback!
Nash ignited the Mavericks' comeback with three three-pointers. In the following eight minutes, the Mavericks went on a 22-8 run, tying the game!
Coach Sloan called two timeouts to barely halt the Jazz's collapse, bringing the score to a stalemate.
In the final three minutes, the game became fierce. Shots were mostly missed, and the score was primarily accumulated through free throws.
As the game entered its final minute, Finley missed a driving layup, Nash missed a three-pointer, and Nowitzki missed a low-post fadeaway.
On the Jazz's side, Malone missed a mid-range jumper, Russell missed a three-pointer, and Stockton missed a driving layup.
With the game nearing its end, the Jazz led the Mavericks 83-82 by one point.
Finley drove to the basket and, with the shot clock about to expire, passed to the center Calvin Booth, who had come off the bench.
Booth was a second-round pick in 1999, acquired by Dallas mid-season as a minor piece in the Antoine Walker trade from Washington.
In this game, Booth had played 19 minutes, attempted only one shot which he missed, and scored his only point from a free throw.
At this critical juncture, Booth would not have seen the court if Juwan Howard hadn't fouled out.
Yet, it was this player, with minimal presence, who received a pass from Finley at the moment of impending defeat… Finley didn't want to pass, but he likely would have been blocked by Malone or Russell if he hadn't. Passing to Booth offered a glimmer of hope.
Honestly, Booth himself hadn't expected Finley to pass. He was already preparing to fight for the rebound. In his confusion, Booth caught the ball, drove, and scored 2 points!
Yes, the Mavericks had gone almost three minutes without scoring from the field, and it was the relatively unknown Booth who broke the drought!
84-83, Booth gave the Mavericks the lead with 9 seconds left on the clock!
All the pressure shifted to the Jazz. Nine seconds was enough time for a complete offensive possession. Facing the Mavericks' tight interior defense, Coach Sloan entrusted the final play to Russell!
Unfortunately, Russell couldn't carry the burden. After the ball bounced off the rim, Stockton, against all odds, secured the offensive rebound and immediately passed to Malone. Malone attempted a mid-range buzzer-beater… but regrettably, the ball rimmed out.
In the final 9 seconds, the Jazz had two opportunities to win the game, but they failed to capitalize on either…
Was it fate or fortune?
The player who sealed the Jazz's fate was not Finley, Nash, or Nowitzki, but Booth, a role player who averaged only 4.5 points per game this season…
The Mavericks won Game 5 by one point against the Jazz and advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals with a 3-2 series victory.
In recent years, the Jazz's performance had been declining, and this year they were eliminated in the first round.
Ultimately, the four teams advancing from the Western Conference were all from the top half of the bracket: the Spurs, the Lakers, the Kings, and the Mavericks.
In the Eastern Conference first round, the new dominant force, the Philadelphia 76ers, faced the former Eastern Conference powerhouse, the Indiana Pacers!
In Game 1, the home team 76ers established a 16-point lead by halftime. Just as all the fans expected a decisive victory, the game took a dramatic turn in the second half! The Pacers mounted a relentless comeback, narrowing the deficit to just 2 points!
With 11 seconds left, the Pacers took their final possession. Jalen Rose drove and passed to Miller, who caught and shot, hitting a game-winning buzzer-beater on the Philadelphia 76ers' home court!
After being stunned by the loss, Iverson exploded for 45 points in Game 2, and Reggie Miller responded with 41 points!
If not for Aaron McKie stepping up from the 76ers' bench to score 19 points during the rotation, overwhelming the Pacers' reserves, the 76ers might have been swept at home by the Pacers! In that scenario, the Pacers might have even pulled off a shocking upset.
But unfortunately, Miller's 41 points were not enough to defeat the 76ers. And this foreshadowed the Pacers' fate in the subsequent games…