14 worst choke-jobs in NBA playoff history — and yeah, sorry, Warriors

A list like this is not somewhere any NBA player wants to find his team. It’s difficult enough, of course, to get to the NBA playoffs, and even more difficult to win games once there. But what can be truly difficult is to find yourself in a comfortable position in a playoff game or series, then blow it utterly.

Lakers blow 3-1 lead over the Suns.

Suns (again) can’t close out Rockets.

MORE: Conspiracy theorists will happily say this was rigged

Lakers ‘superteam’ loses to Pistons.

Lakers lose Game 7 vs. Celtics.

Spurs blow Game 6 against Heat.

Magic lose 3-1 lead to Pistons.

Blazers blow 16-point lead in Game 7.
What you remember: The Lakers were on the ropes, having already blown a 3-1 series lead to even open the way for a Game 7. They trailed, 75-60, with 10:28 to play, and Lakers coach Phil Jackson would say, “I never …  had a team that I thought had run out of gas as much as I thought they had in the third quarter.” But the Lakers got some spark together in the fourth quarter, going on a 15-0 run to tie the game, and taking an 85-79 lead on a memorable alley-oop pass from Kobe Bryant to Shaquille O’Neal that nearly blew the roof off the Staples Center.

Clippers blow 3-1 lead to the Rockets.

Sixers blow 3-1 lead to Celtics.

Top-seeded Sonics lose to Nuggets.

No. 1 Mavericks lose to eighth-seeded Warriors.

You remember this one. It started so well. The Warriors were the greatest team in NBA regular-season history and dominating the Finals through four games. Then Draymond Green got suspended for Game 5. Then Andrew Bogut missed Games 6 and 7. Then LeBron James went absolutely nuts. And it was over. No team had ever come back from 3-1 in the Finals. To do it against the best regular-season team ever. Whew.