Has any team overcome a 3-0 deficit in the NBA Playoffs? Inside pivotal Game 7s with historic comebacks on the line

Perhaps the hardest thing in sports is for a team to come back from a 3-0 deficit in a playoff series.

Once the postseason comes around, it is extremely difficult for one team to beat another team four straight times, let alone all while facing elimination. The feat has only been done a handful of times in sports history, proving its difficulty.

In the NBA, coming back from down 3-0 might be even tougher due to home-court advantage being a bigger factor than in other sports, such as baseball and hockey. When a team does come close to completing a 3-0 comeback in the NBA, it's especially noteworthy.

So, how often has a team overcome a 3-0 deficit in the NBA? Here's a breakdown.

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Has any team overcome a 3-0 deficit in the NBA Playoffs?

No team has ever come back from down 3-0 in a series during the NBA playoffs. In fact, only four teams have even forced a Game 7 while facing four straight elimination games in one series.

Teams to force a Game 7 after trailing 3-0

Heat defeat Celtics (Conference Finals, 2023)

In 2023, the Heat shocked the NBA by making the Eastern Conference Finals as a No. 8 seed after a 44-38 regular season, but they ran into a tough opponent in the Celtics. Boston went 57-25 in the regular season and were coming off a loss in the NBA Finals a year before.

Miami came out hot and won Games 1 and 2 in Boston before taking the first game in Miami, as well. However, the Celtics didn't go anywhere, winning the next three games, including on a buzzer-beater in Game 6 to avoid elimination.

DERRICK WHITE FOR THE WIN.
ALL ANGLES.#TissotBuzzerBeater to force Game 7! pic.twitter.com/HOKXLh3YoU

— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2023

After re-gaining home-court advantage, the Celtics returned to Boston for Game 7 feeling good about their chances. This was just a year after Boston beat the Heat in an Eastern Conference Finals Game 7 as a road team.

However, the momentum halted when star Jayson Tatum injured his ankle early in the game.

Jayson Tatum ankle injury on the first play of Game 7 vs Heat 😬 pic.twitter.com/qYgynUw3HS

— LeBron's Legacy (@LeBronsLegacy99) May 30, 2023

Tatum was able to play 42 minutes in the game, but he struggled with just 14 points on 5-13 shooting. As a result, the Heat took a double-digit lead into halftime and didn't relinquish it en route to a 103-84 victory.

On Miami's side, Jimmy Butler scored 28 points, and Caleb Martin was right behind him with 26, as they were the only two players to score at least 20 points in the game. Butler finished the series averaging 24.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 6.1 assists, leading the Heat back to the NBA Finals.

— NBA (@NBA) May 30, 2023

The Heat would go on to lose to the Nuggets in the NBA Finals, while the Celtics went home knowing a 3-0 deficit was tough to overcome.

"We felt like we had momentum and an opportunity," Al Horford said after the game, via The Athletic. "The guys in the locker room, I believe, gave it their all. We gave it our all. This was a very hard series. To go down in the hole 3-0 in that way, there’s a lot that goes into it. It’s not only physical I feel like, it’s emotional. It’s very draining. I feel like (in Game 7) we kind of felt it a little bit."

Mavericks defeat Trail Blazers (First round, 2003)

Led by future Hall-of-Famers Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash, the 2003 Mavericks were coming off a 60-22 regular season and drew a first-round matchup with the 50-32 Trail Blazers, who had Rasheed Wallace and Bonzi Wells leading the way.

The Mavericks took a conventional 3-0 lead, winning the first two games at home and the first game in Portland, before the Trail Blazers won the next three to set up a pivotal Game 7. Portland actually entered the series having lost seven straight playoff games, a number that grew to 10 before the Game 4 win.

Dirk Nowitzki had been dominating the series, scoring at least 35 points in three of the first five games, but he struggled in Game 6 with just four points. Meanwhile, the Blazers found their groove in Game 6, as Zach Randolph scored 21 points while Wallace and Wells combined for another 31.

— NBA Cobwebs (@NBACobwebs) May 2, 2023

In the lead-up to Game 7, Dallas felt the pressure as a team that hadn't seen much postseason success before.

Game 7 was a tight affair, as the two teams were tied at halftime and Portland had a two-point lead after three quarters. However, Dallas exploded in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Trail Blazers 36-22 to take the game 107-95.

— Hard Rock Bet (@HardRockBet) May 27, 2023

Nowitzki ended the game with a 31-point, 11-rebound double-double, and Steve Nash scored 21 and totaled seven assists, as both players played 46 minutes.

After Game 7, the Mavericks acknowledged how difficult the series was and how grateful they were to pull off the victory.

"It's hard to beat a good team four times (in a row)" head coach Don Nelson said. "We couldn't do it to them, and thank goodness we had this one at home and we rose to the occasion."

Guard Nick Van Exel, who played a key role for the team, was blunt in describing the team's feeling before the game after blowing the 3-0 lead.

"It was an embarrassing feeling," Van Exel said. "I couldn't wait to get to the gym today to get it all over with."

Dallas went on to beat the Kings in the second round before losing to the eventual-champion Spurs in the Western Conference Finals.

Jazz defeat Nuggets (Conference semifinals, 1994)

The 1990s Jazz were one of the great teams to never win a title, but they almost made the wrong kind of history in the 1994 second round against the Nuggets.

Utah was a No. 5 seed that year, but it caught a break when Denver defeated the top-seeded Seattle SuperSonic, despite being down 2-0, to advance to become the first No. 8 seed to defeat a No. 1 seed. That meant that the Jazz had home-court advantage for the series after a 53-29 regular season.

While the Jazz took a 3-0 series lead before the Nuggets won three straight, this series had many close games, including Game 3 and Game 4, which were decided by one point each. Both teams were in each game, and Utah could've closed the series out in either Game 4 or Game 6.

Instead, Utah faced a historic Game 7, as Denver appeared to be a team of destiny. The Nuggets had just won six straight elimination games, three against Seattle and three more vs. Utah, and appeared to be on a magical run.

— NBA Cobwebs (@NBACobwebs) May 19, 2024

Entering Game 7, Denver was feeling good after making the improbable run, as the team somehow kept avoiding elimination.

"We've already made history once," former Nuggets guard Bryant Stith said after Game 6. "There's no pressure on us at all."

However, the Jazz put up their best defensive performance of the series, holding the Nuggets to 12 points in the first quarter and 81 on the game. Future Hall-of-Famer Karl Malone led the way with 31 points and 14 rebounds, while Utah held Denver to 38.4 percent shooting from the field.

— Hard Rock Bet (@HardRockBet) May 27, 2023

Despite the comeback, the Jazz would go on to lose to the Rockets in the Western Conference Finals 4-1.

Royals defeat Knicks (NBA Finals, 1951)

The first time a team almost completed a comeback down 3-0 was in 1951 when the Rochester Royals held off the Knicks in seven games. Rochester made the Finals as a No. 3 seed out of the West with a 41-27 record, while the Knicks represented the East as a two seed at 36-30.

The Royals' team featured Arnie Risen, who averaged a double-double during this series, and Bob Davies, who made first-team All-NBA that year. On the other side, New York had Vince Boryla, Max Zaslofsky, and Harry Gallatin leading the way.

Rochester won the first two games at home, both by double-digits, then took Game 3 in New York for a 3-0 lead. The Knicks responded with three close wins, two at home and one in Rochester, setting up a decisive Game 7.

The final game of the series was close throughout, as Rochester had a two-point lead after three quarters. However, New York was up 74-72 late in the game when Risen and Davies drew a couple of fouls and forced a crucial turnover to put the Royals in the lead for a 79-75 win.

This was before the shot clock was invented, so the Royals needed to force turnovers to get back in the game, which is exactly what happened.

— Hard Rock Bet (@HardRockBet) May 27, 2023

Risen and Davies were the game's two leading scorers with 24 and 20, respectively, and they combined to average 38.7 points per game for the series. The Royals remained in Rochester until 1957, and Cincinnati and Kansas City before becoming the Sacramento Kings in 1985. 

H2: Teams to force a Game 6 after trailing 3-0

Besides the four teams to force a Game 7, eight other teams have forced a Game 6 while being down 3-0 in the series since 1996, and 11 have done it overall. Here's the full list of the teams who were able to get the series to six games down 3-0.

Year	Round	Series result
2022	Eastern Conference First Round	No. 4 76ers def. No. 5 Raptors 4-2
2015	Eastern Conference First Round	No. 3 Bulls def. No. 6 Bucks 4-2
2013	Western Conference First Round	No. 1 Thunder def. No. 8 Rockets 4-2
2013	Eastern Conference First Round	No. 2 Knicks def. No. 6 Celtics 4-2
2010	Eastern Conference Finals	No. 4 Celtics def. No. 2 Magic 4-2
2007	Eastern Conference Semifinals	No. 1 Pistons def. No. 5 Bulls 4-2
2000	Eastern Conference Semifinals	No. 1 Pacers def. No. 5 76ers
1996	NBA Finals	No. 1 Bulls def. No. 1 SuperSonics 4-2
1962	Western Division Finals	No. 1 Lakers def. No. 3 Pistons 4-2
1949	BAA Finals	No. 2 Lakers def. No. 1 Capitols 4-2
1947	BAA Semifinals	No. 1 Stags def. No. 1 Capitols 402