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With the NBA Finals around the corner, we will finally witness a showdown between two elite teams. Toronto Raptors, the first time finalists will face off against the two-time defending champions, the Golden State Warriors in the best of seven game series starting Thursday night. Many teams tried hard but perished in pursuit of the Larry O'Brien trophy.
Along the way, there were many noteworthy performances by individual players on these teams who deserve some recognition for their individual brilliance. There are players on this list who oftentimes put their teams on their backs, led them to victory and also the ones who surprisingly played out of their skin when their teams needed them the most.
From clutch performances in the fourth quarter to insane game winners, from go-to signature moves to an incredibly versatile display of playmaking, there are many ways a player has impacted the outcome of the games in these playoffs. We will cover ten such individual performances in this article.
For this list, we have only put forward the single best performance (one entry per player) as standouts like Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, and Stephen Curry have had numerous mind-boggling performances which if included, would make the list long and tedious. Further, aside from the regular stats such as points, rebounds, and assists, we have also considered advanced metrics such as effective field goal percentage, and Box Plus/Minus (BPM) to rank the performances from the least impressive of the lot, to the most impressive.
Honorable Mentions:
Giannis Antetokounmpo: 30 Points,17 Rebounds, 5 Assists (10-20 FGM) vs Toronto Raptors, Game 2, Eastern Conference Finals
Jamal Murray: 34 Points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, (10-20 FGM) vs Portland Trail Blazers, Game 4, Western Conference Semi-Finals
So without further ado, here are the ten best individual performances of this postseason so far
#10 Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors) | Game 3, Western Conference Finals vs Portland Trail Blazers
Stat line: 20 points (6-12 FGM), 12 assists, 13 rebounds, 4 steals, box plus/minus +11
Draymond Green is at his absolute best when he's running the floor as a small ball center for the Warriors, dishing out dimes for the 'Splash Brothers'. This is exactly what he was doing against Portland in game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, dropping his third triple-double of these playoffs to put Warriors up 3-0 in this series.
In this game, his offense was clicking and he was his disruptive self on the defensive end as he recorded four steals to go along with 20 points, 12 assists, and 13 rebounds. The 29-year-old power forward dominated in all aspects of the game as the Trail Blazers had no answer for his all-around game.
His energy was pivotal as the Dubs overcame a huge deficit in the third period to take the game away from the Trail Blazers.
#9 Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) | Game 6, First Round vs San Antonio Spurs
Stat line: 43 points (19-30 FGM), 9 assists, 12 rebounds, 38 minutes
The Joker has been absolutely phenomenal for the Denver Nuggets this season leading his team to the Western Conference Semifinals for the first time since 2009. However, it was in this game against the Spurs in the first round that he put on a sheer clinic and scored an efficient 43 points (career-high) to go along with 9 assists and 12 rebounds.
The 24-year-old Serbian sensation shot an impressive 63 percent from the field and was one assist short of recording a 40-point triple double which would have been the first in his young playoff career.
Unfortunately for Jokic and the Nuggets, the Spurs led by DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge had an insane shooting night, knocking down an eye-popping 57.1 percent of their attempts as a team, hence denying the Nuggets of the victory. Regardless, it was one of the best outings in Jokic's NBA career although it came in a losing effort.
#8 Derrick White (San Antonio Spurs) | Game 3, First Round cs Denver Nuggets
Stat line: 36 points (15-21 FGM), 5 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, box plus/minus +30
If ever there was going to be a coming out party for the 6'4 Spurs guard, it was this outing against the Denver Nuggets in the first round. White torched the Nuggets to score 36 points on an insanely efficient 71 percent from the field and 5 of 6 from downtown. He also shut down Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray on the other side of the floor, restricting him to a paltry 6 points who finished the night with more turnovers than assists.
The 24-year-old NBA G League alumnus was an absurd +30 on the Box Plus/Minus column and led his team to a 118-110 convincing victory over the Nuggets. White, who played in the G League until last season was thrust into the starting guard spot after starting guard Dejounte Murray tore his ACL in a pre-season game. He also recorded 5 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 block in 33 minutes of action.
#7 Lou Williams (Los Angeles Clippers) | Game 2, First Round vs Golden State Warriors
Stat line: 36 points (13-22 FGM), 11 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, box plus/minus +7
With 7:28 minutes left to play in the third quarter, the dubs were cruising and it looked like the Clippers were going to go down 0-2 in the series, but on the back of a Lou Williams masterpiece, the Clippers staged the largest comeback in franchise history and the biggest in NBA Playoffs history as the Clippers took the win at the Oracle.
In the Clippers' 135-131 win, the 6'1, 175 pound diminutive guard who often comes off the bench and leads the team in scoring, had one of the best games of his career as he made bucket after bucket on his way to 36 points shooting 13-22 FG from the floor overall and 2 of 4 from downtown. Sweet Lou was equally good in the playmaking department as he set up his teams for timely easy buckets.and finished the night with 11 dimes.
#6 CJ McCollum (Portland Trail Blazers) | Game 7, Second Round vs Denver Nuggets
Stat line: 37 points (17-29 FGM), 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, box plus/minus +6
This series between the Trail Blazers and the Nuggets was one of the most closely contested and entertaining series in recent memory. After 6 games, both teams split 3 games each and it was down to the decider to see which team would advance to the Western Conference Finals.
In game 7, the Denver Nuggets came out firing on all cylinders and for a brief period, looked destined to make it to the Western Conference Finals but CJ McCollum had different plans. He torched the Nuggets for 37 points on an ultra-efficient 17-29 from the field and gobbled down 9 rebounds. However, what made this performance special is the fact that the Trail Blazers were down 17 points to the Nuggets going into halftime. Moreover, McCollum's running mate Lillard had one of the worst shooting nights of his playoff career (3-17 from the field).
Yet, CJ singlehandedly led his team to victory, making shots in the clutch with the highlight of the game being a chase down block on Nuggets guard Jamal Murray in the final minutes. As a result, the Trail Blazers beat the Nuggets 100-96 to reach the Western Conference Finals for the first time since the year 2000.
#5 Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) | Game 1, First Round vs Los Angeles Clippers
Stat line: 38 points (11-16 FGM), 7 assists, 15 rebounds, 8-12 3FG, box plus/minus +27
The fifth best performance of this year's playoffs belongs to Stephen Curry. Chef Curry started the playoffs with a bang, tormenting the Clippers' defense on his way to 38 points, career-high 15 rebounds and 7 assists.on an incredible 11-16 from the field and 8-12 from downtown.
He was unstoppable in this game as the Clippers had no clue whatsoever about how to guard or stop him. By virtue of his performance, the Dubs gained a resounding victory over the Clippers and took a 1-0 in the series. It was one of the best shooting nights of the 6'3 guard's career who is widely regarded as the greatest shooter of all time. He was an insane +27 on box plus/minus and helped the Dubs beat the Clippers 121 to 104.
#4 Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers) | Game 4, First Round vs Brooklyn Nets
Stat line: 31 points (12-21 FGM), 16 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 blocks, and 2 steals
Coming off of a minor setback in game 3 where he was out of the lineup, Embiid suited up for game 4 and played as a man possessed. Against the Brooklyn Nets, he had the best playoff performance of his career as he racked up 31 points on 12-21 shooting, 16 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 blocks, and 2 steals in just 31 minutes of action.
The seven-footer scored a bulk of his points in the fourth quarter (12 points), one point shy of his playoff high for scoring in a quarter. It was an absolutely dominant performance as he became just the sixth player in NBA history to record at least 30 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 blocks since blocks became an official stat.
#3 Kawhi Leonard (Toronto Raptors) | Game 1, Eastern Conference Semi-Finals vs Philadelphia 76ers
Stat line: 45 points (16-23 FGM), 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, box plus/minus +26
Some might argue that game 7 against the 76ers in which Kawhi scored 41 points and topped it with a series-clinching game-winner was the best individual performance by Leonard. However, The Klaw in game 1 had one of the most efficient and dominant performances in recent memory as he made his way to 45 points on an otherworldly 16-23 shooting from the floor at a 70 percent clip.
The former two-time Defensive Player of the Year led his team to a resounding 108-95 victory over the 76ers with an absurd box plus/minus of +26. He was equally up to the challenge on the defensive end as he along with his team restricted Philly to just 39 percent shooting from the field and their star player Joel Embiid to 5-18 from the field (27.8 percent).
#2 Kevin Durant (Golden State Warriors) | Game 6, First Round vs Los Angeles Clippers
Stat line: 50 points (15-26 FGM), 5 assists, 6 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, box plus/minus +18
Kevin Durant is one of the most efficient and lethal scorers this game has ever seen and he showed everyone why he is known so, as he put on an absolute clinic in game 6 against the Clippers in the first round.
Durant, through a combination of mid-range fadeaways and three-point shots, erupted with 50 points to go along with 5 assists and 6 rebounds as the Warriors eliminated the Clippers from the playoffs. He made 15 of the 26 shots he attempted overall and connected on 6 of 14 shots from 3-point land.
Add in some timely playmaking and valuable defense and the former league MVP and two-time reigning Finals MVP was virtually unstoppable in this game. This is why, it not only makes this game the second best game of this year's playoffs but also, one of the best games of Durant's illustrious career.
#1 Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers) | Game 5, First Round vs Oklahoma City Thunder
Stat line: 50 points (17-33 FGM), 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 10-18 3FG, box plus/minus +9, DAME TIME
Arguably the best performance of Damian Lillard's career was capped off by one of the greatest game winners this sport has ever seen. Just when it looked like the game was slipping away from Portland's hands, Lillard kept them close throughout the game dropping bombs from near half-court.
Logo Lillard as he's known around the league scored 50 points, connecting on an incredible 10 shots from three-point land. He single-handedly led his team to a come-from-behind victory over the Thunder and sent them packing, who at one point, during the start of the fourth quarter, were leading by as many as 16 points.
With 13.4 seconds left on the clock and both teams tied at 115 apiece, Lillard brought the ball down the court at the top of the key as Paul George was guarding him. With roughly two seconds left on the clock, Lillard launched the three from 35 feet which went in as the time expired, reminiscent of his series-clinching game-winner against the Rockets a few years back, thereby giving the Portland Trail Blazers the victory and eliminating the Thunder from the playoffs.
