Stephon Marbury

More confident than the average No. 8 seed after claiming the regular season series, Stephon Marbury’s Phoenix Suns used Game One to show that, while the San Antonio Spurs’ bank-shot making Most Valuable Player was impressive, two could play at that game. Commanding the moment with Phoenix down by two and only 5.1 seconds remaining, the All-Star guard corrals a rebound, setting the stage for what he deemed to be his prolific career’s biggest bucket. Spry enough in his dribble to get to a reasonable spot along the 3-point arc, Marbury elevates through traffic and then some, burying a game-winning trifecta off the glass to secure a Game One heist. Bank shots — including one from Marbury’s future All-Star teammate to force overtime — were Phoenix's chosen method during April 19, 2003’s win. Unguardable down the stretch, Marbury, who scored or assisted on 16 of Phoenix’s final 20, finished with 26 points, six assists, two steals, and one 3-pointer. A memorable footnote in one of the Western Conference’s great 2000s rivalries, the electrifying guard set the tone for a competitive series against the eventual NBA champions, with four of the six games finishing in single-digits.