June 7, 1995: "Brick" Anderson

ORLANDO - The 1995 Finals was billed as the Battle of the Big Men. Orlando was led by a young Shaquille O'Neal, a third-year center who terrorized opponents with his brute strength. Opposing him was the defending champion Houston Rockets, led by veteran Hakeem Olajuwon, a defensive wizard known around the league for his "Dream Shake."

Olajuwon was playing at the absolute peak of his career. After winning the title the previous year, Houston didn't play nearly as well in 94-95, but turned things on in the playoffs. Their run through the Western Conference was capped by Olajuwon's dismantling of league MVP David Robinson and the Spurs in the conference finals.

Orlando, on the other hand, was just getting used to this winning thing. The three series they won in the Eastern Conference were the first three they had ever won. With Shaq and fellow superstar Penny Hardaway both only 23 years old during the playoffs, it seemed like no matter what the outcome of this series, the Magic would be the team of the future.

For all the hype about the centers, though, the series was essentially decided at the end of regulation in Game 1. Orlando's Nick Anderson, who had famously stripped Michael Jordan in a key possession in Orlando's series win against the Bulls, went to the line with the Magic up 3 with 10 seconds left, needing to make only one free throw to put the game out of reach. He missed both, but grabbed the offensive rebound from his second miss himself. Fouled again, he went back to the line. Again, he missed them both.

What happened next surprised virtually no one. Given new life, Houston went down on the next possession and saw Kenny Smith make his seventh 3-pointer of the game to tie it up at 110.

In overtime, it was Orlando's turn to make a clutch shot, as Dennis Scott made a 3 with 5.5 seconds left to tie the game. But Houston had one more possession. Clyde Drexler drove to the rim, shooting a high layup over a helping Shaq. Drexler's shot missed, but without Shaq there to box him out, Olajuwon was in perfect position for the tip-in rebound, giving Houston the 120-118 victory.

Orlando never recovered, getting losing the next three games for the sweep. The effects lingered for much longer, however. After a conference finals loss the next season, Shaq left for the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles. Left as the team leader, Hardaway suffered several key injuries to limit his once-infinite potential. And Anderson, already a below-average free-throw shooter, was deeply affected by his four Game 1 misses. His free-throw percentage continued to haunt him, dropping to as low as 40 percent in one season, and his career never fully recovered. What was supposed to be the next great dynasty was derailed, and it took Orlando 14 years to make it back to the NBA finals.

May 18, 1995: Merely mortal

CHICAGO - When Michael Jordan returned to basketball from his baseball-playing sabbatical, there was a little rust in his game. That was to be expected, as he hadn't played basketball for a year and a half. Wearing the number 45 - his previous number 23 had been retired - he had some good games mixed in with some subpar games, as he was clearly trying to get his basketball legs back underneath him.

That all seemed to change in game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against Orlando when, in the final seconds of a close game, Orlando's Nick Anderson stripped Jordan from behind, leading to a game-winning basket for the Magic. After the game, in which Jordan had scored a rather pedestrian (for him) 19 points, Anderson said, "That didn't look like the old Michael Jordan."

In most years, that was a mistake. You didn't trash talk Michael Jordan. Ever. So Jordan took Anderson's comments under consideration, changed his number back to 23, and took off, scoring 38 in game 2, 40 in game 3, and 39 in game 5. Despite this, though, the Magic had a 3 games to 2 lead in the series as the teams headed to Game 6 in Chicago.

Orlando was a legitimate force that season. With a young Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway leading the way, they looked like they would be the next NBA dynasty. But Chicago was the old dynasty, and they seemed to be proving their superiority by taking a 102-94 lead with 3:24 left in Game 6. Eight point lead at home, with Jordan and Pippen on their team? They weren't losing that one, right?

Well...

It started with a baby hook from Shaq, a strip on the other end, and a 3-pointer from Anderson. Still, not much to panic about for the Bulls - they still led by 3. But what's this - Pippen missed two near-point blank shots, followed by two Orlando free throws. With 1:01 left came maybe the most shocking sight of all: a Michael Jordan air ball. Anderson made another shot to give Orlando the lead.

OK, then. Still nothing to worry about. Jordan's back, the man with the greatest killer instinct in decades. He'll handle it. Well, the next two times down the floor, he jumped to shoot, saw both Anderson and Shaq get hands in his face, and tried to pass it off. Both possessions resulted in turnovers and Orlando free throws.

Perhaps the most surprising images from this night was the look of shock that came over Jordan over the final minute, like he couldn't believe he was failing. He thought he could come back to the NBA and continue dominating immediately, but Orlando had other thoughts.

By the time Shaq threw down a breakaway dunk to clinch the 108-102 win for Orlando, the wheels had been set in motion. Jordan basically disappeared after the season, spent the entire offseason training like he never had before, and came back the next season in the best shape of his life. The Bulls started the next season 41-3 on their way to a record 72 wins, a season inspired by the previous season's failure where Michael Jordan had, for the first time, seemed merely mortal.