The NBA Finals: Story Arcs, Screenwriting and the 7-Game Series

It seems like everyone’s a screenwriter these days. Right now, down the hall or street from you someone is probably working on their own quirky masterpiece, a Saw meets Stick It low-budget grindhouse-gymnastics blockbuster in waiting. I’ll admit it, I’m taunted every time I turn on my computer by the FinalDraft software on my desktop. It stares at me forlornly like the unused guitars in the corner, a flavor-of-the-month gone sour. But what can I possibly add to the annals of American cinema when the greatest franchise of all time opens again tonight: The NBA Finals 60.

Since 1947, the NBA Finals have been turning out Oscar-worthy plots and characters with a regularity that would make the Weinstein’s drool. While the major studio alchemists are still hard at work in Hollywood trying to perfect the hit movie formula, David Stern and the NBA keep churning out blockbusters using the same seven-game series plot points. That's the beauty of the Finals, you always know what you're getting, but you never quite know where it's going to come from. Shaq may liken himself to Marlon Brando, but every so often in the Finals a Derek Fisher, Gerald Henderson or John Paxson can step up and outshine all the matinee idols.

So if writing the movie of your dreams is still a goal, you have two options: you can drop $500 on a course and see just how many others share your dream, or you can read on, watch the NBA Finals and learn for free.

Game 1 – The First Act (Meet the Cast)

At this point, you would think we already know all there is to know about the cast of characters in this year’s NBA Finals, but this is where the championship series succeeds while most other sequels fail. While we know that Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki have both been brilliant in the post-season, we have yet to see how they’ll perform on the NBA’s biggest stage. There’s also a feeling out process for Finals veterans like Shaq and Payton in Game 1. Are we getting the Al Pacino of The Godfather II or III? No matter how great the star has been in the past, you’re never quite sure.

According to Dona Cooper’s Writing Great Screenplays for Film and TV there are four basic needs for an audience: conflict resolution, new information, bonding and completion. Game 1 provides the new information and the bonding, and generally that’s it. It’s only the first step. Just enjoy it.

Game 2 – The Inciting Incident

Tension. It’s the screenwriter’s mantra and the reason Game 2 is the most important game of the Finals. In the past 25 years, the winner of Game 2 has gone on to win the Finals 18 times, but, more importantly, it is here that the plot really begins to boil. You learn two things here: 1) how the loser of Game 1 responds to being punched in the mouth or 2) how the winner of Game 2 responds to having the upper hand. Depending on your rooting interest, after Game 2 you know whether you’re watching Rocky, Rocky II or Rocky III. Is it an underdog story (0-2), a wait for the rematch (1-1) or the struggle of the champ to stay on top (2-0)? Any of those outcomes is a clear indication of the story arc for the rest of the series.

Games 3, 4, & 5 – The Second Act

The second act is said to be where screenplays come to die. Any hack can and will come up with an interesting concept to get the ball rolling, but how do you keep nudging it up the hill for the long middle portion of the movie? The NBA, always the best of the four major sports at highlighting individual performances, lets its actors take over. Think of these middle games as the home for all the surprise star-making moments and movie quotes your friends will be running into the ground for years to come. Jerry West’s 60-footer, Jordan’s flu game and Big Shot Rob’s dual daggers in 2002 and 2005 all called Act Two home.

And George Burns help us if there’s a sweep. The four and out is the obtuse indie short film of the NBA Finals. Few people understand it and no one enjoys it.

Game 6 – The Climax

If there’s a Game 6, there is one team playing to win it all. While logic dictates that Game 7 would be the likely climax of any good series, it is actually Game 6 that sets up the entire third act. With historic performances like Isiah’s 25-point 4^th quarter in 1988 and Kareem’s game-winning sky hook in 1974 setting the stage, Game 6 represents the peak, the only thing remaining is to see how the story ends. If we’re headed for seven, you’re likely to be emotionally drained and fully along for the ride. Which is right where you should be.

Game 7 – Denouement

Here it is, the big payoff. Sadly, it happens all too infrequently. Only 16 Finals series have ever gone to the “deciding seventh game” and that’s too bad as it’s a shame to have to cram all these screenwriting devices into five or six games. This why in the real movies, Hickory always has to take on South Bend Central and Permian always has to tackle Dallas Carter. Winner-take-all’s are the most exciting end to any performance. The NBA Finals will always declare a champion which will always provide the completion and catharsis, but rarely is it as exciting as coming full-circle. Eighty-two regular season games and four play-off series all culminating in one final showdown at high noon.

Maybe Shaq rides off into the sunset with a career-capper. Maybe Dirk becomes the inverse Hasselhoff, the German born star who wins over America. We’ll take our first step towards finding out tonight.

So forget about M:I-3, X3, and the inevitable 3 III (the ESPN biopic of Dale Earnhardt III, coming 2036). While Hollywood continues to search for the perfect dramatic formula, the NBA’s been quietly providing it all along. The perennial summer blockbuster is showing now on a TV near you.