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Just the other night, LeBron James put up 30 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for Miami Heat in one of the best playoff performances ever.
Well, on this day in history, June 1, 1993, the Phoenix Suns' Charles Barkley blew that LeBron game away with 43 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists in pivotal Game 5 to help the Phoenix Suns beat the Seattle Supersonics.
Yes, that's not a typo. 43 points, on 16-22 from the field plus 11-11 on free throws. 15 rebounds. 10 assists. Oh, and 2 blocks and 2 steals to boot.
The Phoenix Suns came into the game tied at 2-2 with the highly talented and well-coached Seattle Supersonics in the 1993 Western Conference Finals. Wins were traded back and forth as they both took one on the other's floor. The winner of game 5 wins the series more than 80% of the time. Thanks to 62 wins that year, it was the Suns who enjoyed the home court.
Watch Barkley absolutely dominate this game.
To dominate so much inside, the Suns had to be making lots of shots on the perimeter.
Shouting guard Dan Majerle provided the outside touch, making an astounding 8 of 10 three-pointers on the way to 34 points, along with 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
It was Majerle's 8th three-pointer, a league playoff record, that sealed the Suns victory.
"If Majerle misses that three, it might be a different ball game," Sonics head coach George Karl theorized after the dust settled. "You don't like to get beat by threes, but he was making them in a zone."
The Sonics kept it close with hot shooting and quick-strike offense of their own (14 steals and 11 blocked shots). Shawn Kemp put up 33 big points while Ricky Pierce lit up the sky with jumper after jumper for 27 of his own.
While you're watching the 2013 playoffs routinely net scores of like 93-86, don't forget how wonderful the game of basketball was played 20 years ago. In this game, the Sonics put up 114 points... and lost.
This game is now an NBA classic and will always be one of the warmest memories for 20+-year Suns fans.