The best NBA games that didn’t count

I Morant broke the internet on January 15th in a game against the San Antonio Spurs because of a poster dunk on the best rim protector in the NBA, Victor Wembanyama. It could have been the slam dunk of the year, but the only problem was that it didn’t count, at least not in the box score. Morant was fouled on the perimeter before getting up for the shot, so the technical never happened.

We certainly can’t forget about that and what it could have meant to count. Which got us interested in the other best games in NBA history that didn’t count.

1. Jae Crowder’s inbound bucket

Jae Crowder did what would be one of the best footage ever without wasting a single millisecond. But of course, that didn’t count. Crowder, who was dribbling for the Boston Celtics during a 2015 game, threw a pass across the court from the opposite baseline.

Instead of his pass finding the hands of one of his teammates, it somehow went off the glass and straight into the basket. This “way” would be the deepest in NBA history. But since it was out of bounds, it didn’t count, and the opposing Indiana Pacers put the ball back under their own basket.

The precision behind this shot was incredible, and the physics of the ball actually going in was almost impossible, which is why many fans want it to actually count.

2. Three-point corner by Paul Pierce

Paul Pierce is, of course, best known for being one of the the best players in Boston Celtics history. In the end, he was included in one of the worst trade ever and still moved to the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets were the first of three teams he played for past his prime, and that era included time with the Washington Wizards. While his streak with the Wizards was underwhelming, he had one game that would have made his time in Washington even more impressive if it counted.

In the 2015 Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Wizards were down by three with 6.4 seconds left in an elimination game against the Atlanta Hawks. The Wizards gave the ball to their best player, John Wall, but the guard couldn’t get a clean look, forcing him to pass to an aging Paul. Pierce took the dribble to his left, then took two long strides before making a three-pointer from the corner that would have sent the game into overtime.

Despite turning completely the wrong way and taking a super unusual shot, Pearce got a dry look at the buzzer. Unfortunately, he released the ball a little too late, meaning there was technically no shot.

Nikola Jokic has the ability to create circus shots due to his incredible shooting touch. Probably the most amazing thing that ever happened on 03.12.2018. Jokic’s Denver Nuggets inbounded the basketball with just over five seconds remaining, forcing the opposing Toronto Raptors to foul them.

Jokic knew this and despite hitting him squarely when he received the pass, he threw the ball toward the hoop to try to draw a foul. Jokić was so hit that he wasn’t looking, and his shot was not in the traditional form of a shot, but it still went through.

However, the referees ruled that the foul was on the ground, so the goal did not count. However, to make the shot even more impressive, the player who fouled it was Kawhi Leonard, one of the the best defensive players in NBA history.

4. Kobe Bryant’s putback shot

Everyone knows you can’t hang from the rim and hit the ball, but there’s something about it that looks so cool, especially for people who will never be able to dunk in their lives. Kobe Bryant can certainly dunk without using a hoop to boost it. But in 1999, he had to grab the rim – resulting in a goaltending call – while going for a rebound, or he would likely have been undercut and fell hard to the floor.

Even so, returning with one hand over Hakeem Olajuwon was an incredible display of athleticism and certainly one of the best dunks ever that didn’t count.

5. Richard Jefferson’s blast into the past

Richard Jefferson is another player who dunked quite often during his NBA career. However, as he grew older, it became less and less common. In his age-34 season, during his lone year with the Dallas Mavericks, the aging veteran looked more like his younger self with poster dunk over Michael Kidd-Gilchrist which was unfortunately ruled an offensive call.

The dunk was violent and brought out Jefferson, but it certainly shouldn’t have been called an offensive foul. Kidd-Gilchrist wasn’t ready, and Jefferson rose and towered over him for the shot. To make the play even more entertaining, the pass Jefferson received was well behind Devin Harris.

Jamal Murray may have been better known for his clutch jump shooting, but before his ACL injury, he could go up and shoot at any time. Unfortunately, Murray’s best poster dunk didn’t count. The game was held in 2020 against the Milwaukee Bucks. Murray went past his defender and had only DJ Wilson to meet at the rim.

Murray got up and stuffed it all over Wilson, even hanging on the edge for a second for good measure. Despite Wilson being in the restricted area, the referees charged Murray, overturning the dunk in the process.

7. Stephen Currywith one hand off the floor

Stephen Curry does a lot of seemingly impossible things with a basketball. It makes sense, too, given that he is the greatest shooter and one of the greatest ball handlers in NBA history. His skills were on full view during a bucket that didn’t count against the Houston Rockets.

Curry tripped while driving to the hoop, and after he fell to the floor. He backhanded the shot with his left hand without even looking at the cup, and, of course, somehow it went in.

8. Chauncey Billups’ euro lunge from deep

Chauncey Billups’ shot with the Denver Nuggets that didn’t count in 2010 definitely should have. Billups secured a rebound in the final seconds of the second quarter, so he had to pick up the shot quickly. He took one step and then the Euro stepped into the second step before launching a shot from three-quarters of the field.

The judges called the trip wrong, so the fact that he made a shot it didn’t even matter.

9. Ja Morant’s dunk on Victor Vembanyama

The most recent entry on this list is the play dated January 15, 2025, which prompted this article where Ja Morant somehow went over Victor Wembanyama for a dunk. Of course, Morant was fouled much earlier, so the dunk doesn’t count. With the whistle already gone, it’s hard to know how much Vembanyama was even trying to get a block. Regardless, this was a face-off situation between arguably the best dunker and arguably the best rim protector in the NBA right now.

This is just one of the many close-range dunks Morant has had throughout his career, and we could fill this entire list with magical plays by the Memphis Grizzlies star that didn’t really count.

10. Marco Belinelli’s off the back game-winner

On January 5, 2017, Marco Belinelli almost pulled off a magical game-winner. He was inbounding the ball for the Charlotte Hornets with just 0.5 seconds left in the game while trailing by one point. While you usually look for a lob in a situation like this, Belinelli saw an opportunity.

The defender wasn’t looking and had his back to him, so he threw the ball off the back of a Detroit Pistons defensive player (Marcus Morris) before sprinting to the offense, grabbing the ball and launching a 3-pointer that would go in. Unfortunately, the release of the jump was a little too late, so the mockup was canceled.