Toronto Raptors superstar Kawhi Leonard hit one of the most incredible buzzer-beaters you will ever see in Game 7 of his team's second-round Eastern Conference playoff series with the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday night.
With 4.2 seconds remaining in a tie game, Leonard got the ball at the top of the key, drove to his right and then launched a fading jumper from the corner over the outstretched arm of 7-foot-1 Joel Embiid. The ball then bounced off the front of the rim and bounced around the basket four times overall before eventually falling to send the Raptors to the Eastern Conference Finals.
So, just where does this shot rank among the best in NBA history?
Well, Fox Sports analyst and Hall-of-Fame wide receiver Cris Carter thinks that it was second only to Michael Jordan's famous game-winning shot against the Utah Jazz in the 1998 NBA Finals:
"It's the most iconic shot that I've seen absent of Jordan making one to finish off the Utah Jazz." — @criscarter80 on Kawhi's game winner pic.twitter.com/wuLcT7oUSs
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) May 13, 2019
As amazing of a shot as it was, I'm not sure we can go that far.
There is an embarrassment of riches to choose from in terms of iconic shots. The first few that come to mind since Jordan's career capper are Derek Fisher's shot with 0.4 seconds left, Ray Allen's game-tying three-pointer in the 2013 NBA Finals and Kyrie Irving's go-ahead triple in leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a finals victory over the 73-win Golden State Warriors three years ago.
Of course, recency bias is likely playing a role here, as the most recent big shot always seems to be the biggest one ever, but there is no denying that Leonard's shot was iconic in its own right.
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