A lot can happen in half a century, and basketball is no exception. The sport has come a long way in 50 years, from increased popularity to the game’s own evolution.
Here are 50 images that show how far the game of basketball has come in 50 years:
1.
Fifty years ago, the Boston Celtics were on top of the league, Jo Jo White was the NBA Finals MVP.
2.
Professional basketball saw the expansion of the National Basketball Association (NBA), which grew from 18 teams to 22 in 1976. That meant great ABA players crossed over to the NBA, one of them was an all-time great in George Gervin.
3.
Speaking of ABA players, if you want an MD in basketball, look no further than the play of “Dr. J” Julius Erving. From the dunks to the big hair, the man might be the biggest icon to help launch the NBA into the star-powered league it is today.
4.
Like the Harlem Globetrotters, basketball was seen as flashy and entertaining (just look at how amazed Goldie Hawn is in this photo). Overly competitive? Yes, but not what it could be. But, more importantly, check out those short shorts! Not only did the game grow, but so did the shorts.
5.
Enter Michigan State superstar Ervin “Magic” Johnson and the “Hick from French Lick,” Indiana State’s Larry Bird. The 1979 NCAA Championship game between the two men remains the most-watched college basketball game ever, achieving a 24.1 rating.
6.
Those two would become legends and run the NBA in the ’80s. Magic a Laker. Bird a Celtic. The two franchises and their players gave rise to what NBA experts call the “Golden Age of Basketball.”
7.
In Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals, a rookie Magic Johnson would play center. Magic would play all five positions through the course of his rookie year to fill in for injured players. This is merely a tease of the positionless basketball that fans know today.
8.
Basketball was very physical back then, but in a time of division, these two men actually had a great deal of respect for each other. From photoshoots to commercials, they showed that a heated rivalry could still be a whole lotta fun.
9.
Am I just a biased Boston Celtics fan for including an image of Chris Ford shooting a basketball? No! He is actually a very important player in basketball’s history. Ford was the first NBA player to hit a 3-pointer with the introduction of the “three-point line” into the game. The 3-pointer would evolve into the biggest shot in modern basketball, but at the time, it was simply a new part of the game.
10.
You’re cool, but are you “Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hitting a sky hook over Hakeem Olajuwon” cool? There’s a legitimate case for Kareem being the GOAT, and I would argue his “big man” brand of basketball shows how much the game has evolved away from that style.
11.
The Chicago Bulls drafted North Carolina Tarheel Michael Jordan in 1984, and the league isn’t prepared for what he is about to do the following decade.
12.
In the ear of these prestigious franchises, like the Celtics and Lakers, were the “Bad Boys” of the NBA, the Detroit Pistons. Led by Isiah Thomas, the team’s toughness, elbows, and general fighty attitudes were the perfect formula for an elite defense, which helped the franchise earn two rings.
13.
Here’s an image of Magic posting up against Jordan. The true “time capsule” of this image is the post-up itself. The art of the post-up started to disappear in the 2010s, and the game has become more open and less physical in its offensive strategies.
14.
Michael Jordan dunking at the 1987 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. Enough said.
15.
The world had the privilege of meeting Team USA’s “Dream Team” in 1991. Argued to be the greatest basketball team ever assembled, Team USA would cruise on to win gold in a flashy fashion that made them icons of the sports world.
16.
Michael Jordan finally won his first NBA title in 1991, sharing an emotional moment with the Larry O’Brien trophy. He would go on to dominate the ’90s with a total of six rings.
17.
MJ might have been the most famous person in the world in the ’90s and 2000s. Everyone wanted to “Be Like Mike.” But at the end of the day, he was a basketball player, and that stardom only elevated the league.
19.
While many of Vince Carter’s dunks could have made this list, here’s an image of him jumping over another, much larger, human being, Frederic Weis (France), during a Team USA game in 2000.
20.
Check out this mid-game reverse dunk by a young Kobe Bryant. The Staples Center would get a treasure trove of moments from the Black Mamba.
21.
In the NBA’s journey to become a world sport, the league welcomed two expansion teams in 1998: the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies. Welcome, Canada! Although the Grizzlies would move to Memphis, the Raptors would eventually win a title thanks to Kawhi Leonard.
22.
Even with Jordan’s rise, the league still had its edge. Exhibit A.I.: “The Answer” Allen Iverson stepping over Tyrone Lue after nailing a shot in the 2001 NBA Finals.
23.
They’re backkkkk. The Lakers’ dynasty begins in the 2000s as Kobe finds his equal in superstar teammate Shaquille O’Neal, who comes from the Orlando Magic. Shaq and Kobe become as iconic a duo as any in sports history.
24.
Yao Ming towering over Jordan in a photoshoot for the 2003 NBA All-Star Game. Standing at 7-foot-6, Yao’s presence in the NBA was huge for both big men and international players.
25.
Like those old-school gym short-shorts, fashion is also part of the game’s evolution. Who could forget the oversized suits of the 2003 NBA Draft? Pass.
26.
Enter Lebron James. Straight out of high school, the Cleveland Cavaliers land their hometown golden child in 2003.
27.
Here’s a photo of Andrew Bynum. Why? He would become the last player in the NBA to come out directly from high school without attending college. Even today, the NBA is still trying to figure out its NBA Draft and Draft lottery rules for the betterment of the league.
28.
In the 2000s, we saw the rise of the superstar point guard. Phoenix Suns PG Steve Nash won two MVPs for being a great passer and shooter that the team could rely on. Floor generals like Nash, Jason Kidd, and Rajon Rondo were pure point guards who were all about creating plays. The PG position saw a rise in superstars, and it seemed the game would shift toward the “one” spot as the most valuable part of the team.
29.
The aftermath of the shocking 2004 incident involving players versus fans after a Detroit Pistons fan threw a bottle at Indiana Pacers player Ron Artest. The brawl would go on to be remembered as “Malice at the Palace,” and much-needed security measures were put in place not just for the NBA but for all sports.
30.
The NBA tried, and failed, to switch to microfiber composite basketballs in 2006. The new ball was HATED by the players. Who would’ve guessed a game of sweaty men would make the ball virtually ungrippable?
31.
The San Antonio Spurs’ 2000s dynasty proves it doesn’t take the best player anymore to build a well-coached, team-oriented franchise.
33.
What if a team decided to make moves to get three superstar players? The Boston Celtics made it happen by keeping their franchise player, Paul Pierce, trading for Ray Allen, and signing Kevin Garnett. They would go on to win a title their first year together. Anything’s possible! Including the start of a bold new strategy in the NBA: finding a “Big 3” to build around.
34.
Dwight Howard revived the 2008 NBA Dunk Contest, where he performed a playlist of unforgettable dunks, including Superman entering the building.
35.
Say hello to “The Decision” that would rock the NBA to its core in 2010. The decision LeBron James made was a spectacle: leaving his hometown of Cleveland to play with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat. It was a shock to sports fans and angered many who felt James was simply hopping on the Miami train that had already committed to two superstars.
36.
*sighs as a Celtics fan* Enter the new Big 3. The Miami Heat ruled the NBA from 2011 to 2014. Despite having only two rings, the team made four straight Finals appearances and was the most talked-about franchise in all of major sports.
37.
Here is a seemingly unimportant portrait of forward Chris Andersen of the Denver Nuggets. He was the first player called up from Fayetteville of the NBDL. Anderson, aka Birdman, would become an important bench player on the Miami Heat during their Big 3 run, thus creating a trail for basketball players in a minor league system. It went from being called the NBDL to the D-League to the G-League, which has become an avenue for players who want to surpass college basketball.
38.
With the rise of Jeremy Lin’s quality play in 2012, the era of “Linsanity” was born. Social media and sports media in general were at their golden age in the early 2010s, and Lin gave New York Knicks fans at the Garden something to cheer, and, to be frank, obsess over. His jerseys were selling out worldwide.
40.
As the NBA Dunk Contest seemed to have two legs in the grave, Aaron Gordon decided to dunk a ball by going under both his legs, thus sending me into an early grave…because…HOLY…CRAP. (Few sports moments send me to my feet as an adult, and this was one of them) Gordon and Zach LaVine had an unforgettable dunk battle in 2016.
41.
Promise kept. LeBron James returns home and brings Cleveland its first NBA Championship in 2016.
42.
Maybe the most influential player in NBA history, Steph Curry, arguably changed the NBA the most with his output of 3-pointers made. Behind the arc would become the go-to for modern NBA players, but few could hit with the consistency of Curry.
43.
The Warriors would go on to make six finals appearances and four championships, making their team synonymous with titles in the 2010s. Curry’s four rings also place him up there with the greatest shooters of all time.
44.
The NBA became more vocal in social matters, including movements that spoke out against systemic racism and police killings of Black people. The stance seemed to anger those on the right, while opening eyes to those willing to educate themselves.
45.
Gone are the years of franchise players. The modern NBA sees superstars swap teams like socks. Twelve-time All-Star Chris Paul (CP3) leaving New Orleans was a big deal at the time, but the superstar would go on to play for seven different franchises. Other players like James Harden and Kevin Durant would do the same.
46.
With the WNBA’s rising popularity, a game featuring Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark set a record high for the league since its inaugural game, drawing 2.2M viewers.
47.
A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces grabs a rebound and arguably the title of the best women’s basketball player on the planet. A three-time WNBA champion and four-time WNBA MVP, the former South Carolina Gamecock has proven she is in a class of her own.
48.
America is no longer the only game in town to find elite basketball talent. While international players had always had a presence in the NBA, it has never been this stacked with superstars. This includes Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece), Nikola Jokic (Serbia), Luka Doncic (Slovenia), Victor Wembanyama (France), and many others.
49.
That Lebron guy is still playing, btw. He stayed around long enough for him to play on the same team as his son, Bronny James. They recently became the first father-son duo to record an assist and score together.
50.
And lastly, in 2025, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder hoisted their very first Larry O’Brien trophy as NBA champions. The Thunder are the seventh different champion in a row in the past seven seasons to win a title. Has the basketball world seen the death of dynasties? Will we make a decade of 10 different champions? Only time will tell…
What is a basketball moment you will never forget? Comment below!