Back to ‘99: Sean Elliott’s ‘Memorial Day Miracle’

SAN ANTONIO – Late one Monday afternoon, “Go Spurs Go” took on a whole new meaning.

But Game 2 of the 1999 Western Conference Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the visiting Portland Trail Blazers didn’t start off with that feeling quite yet.

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In fact, the Spurs had just finished playing one of their worst halves of the 1999 playoffs, resulting in a 14-point deficit.

Just over a minute into the third quarter, the Spurs were down 18 points.

During the nationally televised Memorial Day broadcast, basketball analyst Doug Collins said that if the Spurs were going to have a chance, they needed to get Sean Elliott going.

On cue, Spurs guard Avery Johnson found a wide-open Elliott for a three. It was Elliott’s third three-pointer of the game, sparking a tough back-and-forth comeback.

Elliott would finish 6-of-7 from three-point range on that day for 22 points, but it was his last two treys that were the most memorable.

Elliott had helped cut the lead down to three points midway through the third quarter. He would do so again with 56 seconds to play in the game, cutting the Portland lead to 84-81.

Trail Blazers point guard Damon Stoudamire made one of two free throws with 12 seconds to go, giving Portland an 85-83 lead. Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich called a timeout.

Many of the fans in the Alamodome saw the Memorial Day Miracle the only way a legendary Spurs memory could be made: against that large blue backdrop that cut the Alamodome in half. With that blue curtain behind Spurs guard/forward Mario Elie, the soon-to-be three-time NBA champion passed the ball down the sideline and found Elliott as he slipped by his defender, Stacey Augmon.

The next two parts in the sequence are the toughest parts to overcome with mere seconds to execute. After one bounce, Elliott gathered himself and raised his heels to shoot, keeping his toes in bounds while his heels hovered over the sideline.

As Elliott raises his arms to release the ball, he is tasked with shooting over the 6-foot-11 Rasheed Wallace as he barrels toward him. Wallace raised his arms to deter Elliott.

The fans — all 35,260 of them in the Alamodome — were all standing. They watched as Elliott’s three arched over Wallace and found the bottom of the net.

It became one of the loudest reactions the Alamodome had ever heard for a Spurs game.

Elliott’s sixth three gave the Spurs their only lead of the game. As play-by-play announcer Bob Costas said emphatically to basketball fans coast-to-coast that afternoon, this Spurs team was destined to be crowned.

The Spurs’ 86-85 win gave San Antonio a 2-0 series lead that would end with a sweep, and eventually, their first NBA Championship when they defeated the New York Knicks in five games.

“I got a hundred bucks right now to see him make the same shot again,” Trail Blazers head coach Mike Dunleavy said after the game.

“I could do it again right now,” Elliott said in response after the game. “Yeah, I’m still feeling it.”

Daniel P. Villanueva has worked with KSAT 12 for over 21 years and is an award-winning producer. To submit story ideas, email dvillanueva@ksat.com