On this day, Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird went basket for basket with the Atlanta Hawks’ Dominique Wilkins in the final frame of Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Boston would squeak out a 118-116 win despite the Human Highlight Film — as Wilkins was called — scoring 47 points, while Bird logged 34 — 20 of them coming in the fourth quarter.
“The basket was like a well, I couldn’t miss,” recalled Wilkins via the NBA. “He couldn’t miss. That’s the greatest game I’ve ever played in or seen played. It was two guys who just did not want to lose.”
The Celtics won the series against the Hawks to advance to the NBA Finals, but would fall to longtime rivals the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.