Signature Moves That Changed the NBA

We all have favorite players. These personal heroes leave everlasting impressions on sports fans.

How we choose to remember our own personal favorites varies, but in basketball, reminiscing on a player’s career conjures up specific memories, moments and moves.

Basketball is unique. Every single player has his own style, his own way of moving and a distinct arsenal of moves, refined into near perfection after years of competition. These are the moves that defined some of the best in NBA history.

Not everyone is old enough to have seen Magic Johnson in his prime, but thankfully for basketball nuts, YouTube exists.

The passes he would make in transition were unparalleled in precision, style and just overall coolness. Magic made these passes look easy and effortless, despite often being in full-speed attack with his eyes on his flanking teammates.

These iconic feeds from one of the best ever became the footprint for Showtime in Los Angeles. Magic’s style perfectly matched the city and the team he played for. He got everyone involved, made the correct play seemingly every time and never failed to amaze the Forum faithful.

It’s no wonder celebrities wanted a front-row seat to Showtime, because you had to get that close to appreciate the artistry of how Magic distributed the ball.

Whenever he retires — and it will happen at some point — Dirk Nowitzki will close the story of the best European career in NBA history.

Nowitki has been many things during his time on the court: an MVP, leader of a championship team and a franchise cornerstone.

The image that sticks out in the minds of most is the one-legged fadeaway from the big man. Nowitzki’s patented shot is completely unguardable.

Players like Kevin Durant and Anthony Davis have taken the evolution of the big man to the next level, combining the range of Dirk with guard-like dribbling and quickness.

But Nowitzki always will be regarded as the original 7-footer known more for his outside game. Nowitzki utilized his length advantage over nearly every other player to give himself open mid-range looks. He’s the first to show how a big man could create his own shot and dominate the league.

Seven feet tall. With some of the longest limbs in the league.

Kevin Durant is almost unstoppable because of his shot-making ability and length, which allow him so much room to get off a shot. When you combine those skills with the “Hesi-Jimbo,” it’s borderline unfair.

This hesitation pull-up jumper that Durant has become known for has carried him to MVPs, scoring titles and championships. The move will one day carry him to the Hall of Fame. The sheer combination of length and this quick-twitch movement give Durant the space to knock down dagger after dagger.

Durant’s game has the chance to age with grace based on this move alone, so expect to see KD sinking open jumpers until he decides to hang up the Nikes.

No player is as synonymous with a move as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is with the sky hook. The play led Kareem to score more points than anyone in NBA history and is cemented in NBA lore as the most unstoppable ever.

At 7 feet, 2 inches tall, with all the passing and post skills you ever could want, Kareem dominated the league. The sky hook made him untouchable. And unguardable.

The ball came out of his hand raised more than 10 feet in the air. Blocking the shot was impossible, and the way Kareem angled his body to isolate his right arm negated any challenge from less statuesque defenders.

The move has a lot to do with how he spent 20 years playing at the highest level, never averaging less than double-digit points in a season.