Top 3 Craziest NBA Moments of 2025 -

By Sam Bergstrom

With 2025 coming to a close, the National Basketball Association (NBA) will be moving on from an immaculate year of hoops. This year featured its fair share of photo finishes to games, jaw-dropping highlights, passionate performances, and historic milestones being reached. Off the court, there were dramatic headlines, blockbuster trades, and rumors that kept fans buzzing. Before we move on to the new year, let’s take a moment to recount three of the craziest moments that 2025 granted for us basketball junkies.

Image Courtesy of Dallas News

#3 – All the Dallas Mavericks Saga

On February 2nd, Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick. The trade was baffling to comprehend at the time, and it still is to this day. Why would Dallas trade a generational talent and their franchise player who just willed them to the finals the year prior? Especially considering Dončić never requested a trade—he was more surprised than anyone that he was heading to LA.

While this trade shocked virtually every fan and player, it was even more surprising when the Mavericks won the draft lottery on May 12. Despite having only a 1.8% chance to win the lottery, Dallas received the #1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. This led Dallas to draft Duke standout Cooper Flagg, and potentially regain the stardom they threw away with the Luka trade. Either the Mavericks have extreme luck on their side, or there is one heck of a conspiracy to unpack here.

Following the Luka trade, fans of the Mavericks viewed general manager Nico Harrison as a villain. “Fire Nico” chants would become a custom during their home games, and there were even protests outside American Airlines Center after the trade. The disgruntled fanbase finally got their wish on November 11, as Harrison was relieved of his duties as general manager. This ended his five-year tenure with the franchise that will forever be headlined by his shocking decision to trade Dončić.

Image Courtesy of NBA.com

#2 – Buzzer Beaters Galore

Every NBA fan loves to watch a dramatic game-winning shot (as long as it isn’t against your favorite team). This is especially true when the shot is made as that red light flashes on the shot clock and the blaring buzzer in the arena sounds. In 2025, there have been a whopping twenty (and counting) game-winning buzzer beaters. The first of 2025 came on January 7, when Atlanta’s Trae Young waved off Utah Jazz fans with a cold-blooded half-court heave. On March 27, Chicago’s Josh Giddey also sank a half-court game winner, his coming against the Los Angeles Lakers. This occurred after the Bulls shockingly pulled off a comeback on a frantic sequence of last-minute plays. On April 26, Aaron Gordon dunked home a Nikola Jokić airball to beat the horn and stun the Clippers in Game 4 of the Western Conference First Round Playoffs.

If you read about the electric NBA endings from November 10, then you know about Desmond Bane and Andrew Wiggins improbably hitting game winners at the buzzer on the same day. The most recent game-winning buzzer beater came on a corner three from Lakers forward Rui Hachimura against the Toronto Raptors on December 4. During this game, LeBron James’ 1,927-game double-digit scoring streak came to an end. But considering James got the assist on Hachimura’s dagger, I think he’s satisfied with that being the case.

Image Courtesy of Forbes

#1 – Playoff Mania

The 2024-25 NBA Season will always be remembered for the action-packed playoffs that took place. The Oklahoma City Thunder finally claimed their first championship, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander capped off a legendary season, winning regular-season MVP, the scoring title, and finals MVP.

The New York Knicks were also a huge story, especially during their semi-finals matchup with the Boston Celtics. Many believed Boston would take care of business, considering how easily they swept the Knicks in the regular season. However, New York proved everyone wrong. In both Game 1 and Game 2, the Knicks found themselves down by 20 points, but they stormed back both times to defeat the Celtics in stunning fashion; Mikal Bridges amazingly made the game-clinching steal on the last play during both of these games. To the delight of the electric Madison Square Garden crowd, the Knicks would win the series 4-2, knocking out the defending champs in gritty fashion.

Another exciting headline from the playoffs was the unexpected surge of Tyrese Haliburton during the Indiana Pacers’ improbable finals run. Every series the Pacers played in featured either a game-winning or game-tying shot from Haliburton in the fourth quarter. Three of these shots came in road games, where he sucked the life out of the crowd each time. He was truly on a heater, averaging 17.3 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 8.6 APG during the playoffs. In Game 7 of the finals, Haliburton sadly tore his right Achilles tendon after scoring 9 points in the first 7 minutes. It will forever remain a mystery if Indiana would have held off Oklahoma City had Haliburton not gone down.