This day in sports history

This Day in Sports History NBA Edition: May 8

MJ Aranda-Norman

Here’s a recap of the greatest NBA moments on this day in sports history. To help you travel back in time, we’ve put at your disposal the resources available about what happened on May 8th over the years.
Without further ado, let’s begin.

May 8, 2017

Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors, NBA Playoffs, this day in sports history
Nov 8, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) rebounds in the first quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images

The first-seeded Golden State Warriors, who were still in Oakland, led by the great team formed by Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, swept the competitive but overmatched Utah Jazz in 4 games.

The Jazz entered the playoffs in 5th place in the standings. At that time, their roster included the NBA Block Leader for that year, Rudy Gobert, Gordon Hayward,  and Joe Ingles, among others.

Here you can see Game 4.

May 8, 2016

The Cleveland Cavaliers, featuring LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love, defeated the Atlanta Hawks, who battled until the end.
Atlanta had the game’s final shot, but the ball failed to go in.
The game was nearly sealed on an earlier play when LeBron James took the flow of the game away from Dennis Schroder with a two-pointer before he could even get a shot off. The game ended 100-99, winning the series 4-0 in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

That year, Cleveland was crowned NBA champion, and that series produced LeBron James’ legendary block of Andre Igoudala.

Here you can find the best moments from Game 4.

May 8, 2000

  • John Nucatola died at the age of 92.
    He was one of the original referees in the NBA, which was formed as the Basketball Association of America in 1946.
    Nucalota officiated in more than 2,000 collegiate, Olympic, and professional games.
    He was once called basketball’s “greatest official” by Hall of Famer Clair Bee.
    Nucatola was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a referee in 1978 and was the NBA’s Supervisor of Officials from 1970 to 1977.
    Born November 17, 1907, in New York, played and coached for 22 years before becoming a referee in the East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC).
    He later officiated games in the ACC and Ivy League and became one of the founders of the College Basketball Officials Association. He officiated in 18 NCAA and 18 NIT tournaments and conducted over 1,200 clinics worldwide.

May 8, 1999

Utah’s Karl Malone (3,712 points) surpassed Magic Johnson (3,701) and placed sixth on the all-time playoff scoring list.

Karl was the season’s MVP this year; you can see him here in one of his games against the New York Knicks from that season.

May 8, 1988

The Los Angeles Lakers held the Utah Jazz to just eight points in the first quarter of Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series, setting a record for points scored in the first quarter in an NBA Playoff game.
The Lakers’ 110-91 victory over the Jazz in Game 1 kicked off a series that went to Game 7, where the Lakers emerged victorious, claiming the league title that year.

Here you can see a review of the series.

More Great Content