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Photo Gallery: Celebrating 75 Years of NBA Action

From Bird and Magic to Shaq and Kobe, we share our favorite images of the all-time greats.
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Over the years, Sports Illustrated has captured the NBA's best in action. Jordan scoring. LeBron soaring. Giannis roaring. And so much more.

With the NBA celebrating its 75th anniversary this season, we dug into the archives to select our favorite photos. Enjoy!

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Boston Celtics vs. Fort Wayne Pistons, Nov. 19, 1955.

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Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets, March 16, 2008.

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Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, May 27, 1985.

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Chicago Bulls vs. Detroit Pistons, June 2, 1989.

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Miami Heat vs. Oklahoma City Thunder, June 14, 2012.

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NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Feb. 12, 2000.

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Washington Bullets vs. Golden State Warriors, May 20, 1975.

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San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder, March 09, 2017.

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Los Angeles Lakers vs. Utah Jazz, April 6, 1999.

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Minneapolis Lakers vs. New York Knicks, Nov. 7, 1954.

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Miami Heat vs. Houston Rockets, Feb. 15, 2017.

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Portland Trail Blazers vs. Philadelphia 76ers, June 3, 1977.

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San Antonio Spurs vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, June 7, 2007. 

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Philadelphia 76ers vs. Washington Wizards, Jan. 22, 2002. 

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Miami Heat vs. Dallas Mavericks, June 13, 2006. 

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Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, June 7, 1987.

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Boston Celtics vs. Miami Heat, Nov. 11, 2010.

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Philadelphia Warriors, 1962.

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Los Angeles Lakers vs. Boston Celtics, Feb. 15, 1987. 

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NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Feb. 18, 2006. 

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Boston Celtics vs. Chicago Bulls, April 7, 2011. 


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Houston Rockets vs. New York Knicks, June 17, 1994.

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Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Houston Rockets, Dec. 2, 2006. 

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Los Angeles Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks, May 6, 2011. 

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Los Angeles Lakers vs. New York Knicks, May 3, 1972. 

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New Orleans Hornets vs. New York Knicks, Feb. 17, 2012. 

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Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, June 9, 2017. 

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Golden State Warriors vs. Houston Rockets, May 16, 2018. 

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Dallas Mavericks vs. Atlanta Hawks, Feb. 25, 2015. 

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Seattle SuperSonics vs. Sacramento Kings, May 3, 2005. 

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Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Miami Heat, Feb. 14, 2013.

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San Antonio Spurs vs. Phoenix Suns, May 12, 2007. 

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Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers, June 8, 2008. 

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Miami Heat vs. San Antonio Spurs, June 8, 2014. 


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Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Lakers, May 2, 2011. 

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San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder, April 30, 2016. 

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Detroit Pistons vs. Los Angeles Lakers, Nov. 14, 2003. 

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Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors, June 14, 2015. 

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Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder, May 24, 2016. 

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Washington Wizards vs. Atlanta Hawks, April 22, 2017. 

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Los Angeles Lakers vs Orlando Magic, June 7, 2009. 

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Chicago Bulls vs. New York Knicks, March 8, 1998. 

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Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder, Nov. 22, 2017. 


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Philadelphia 76ers vs. Milwaukee Bucks, March 17, 2019. 

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Miami Heat vs. Indiana Pacers, Dec. 27, 2019. 

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Los Angeles Lakers vs. Boston Celtics, June 17, 2010. 

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Miami Heat vs. San Antonio Spurs, June 20, 2013. 

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Phoenix Suns vs. Milwaukee Bucks, July 20, 2021. 

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