Thirty years ago tonight, NBC weaved in and out of its broadcast of Game 5 of the NBA Finals to cover the peak of the O.J. Simpson drama.
Five days earlier, Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman were murdered, and, with each passing hour, authorities were zeroing in on Simpson as the lead suspect in the case.
Just hours before the tip-off between the Rockets and Knicks at Madison Square Garden, Simpson was formally charged after he failed to turn himself in to authorities at an agreed-upon time. Simpson then got in the back of Al Cowlings' Ford Bronco and led police on the now memorable low-speed chase on California freeways that ultimately wound up at Simpson's Brentwood home.
NBC Sports president Dick Ebersol, sitting four rows off the court, with an early model cell phone and small TV, was reportedly asked by NBA commissioner David Stern to stick to the game that night.
But as the Simpson drama unfolded, Ebersol — who hired Simpson to replace Ahmad Rashad on "NFL Live!" just five years earlier — realized he could not do so.
Bob Costas, who hosted "NFL Live!," was anchoring NBC's pregame and postgame shows for the NBA Finals. He was somber in his tone, not only to match the circumstance, but the host was also shellshocked about what had come of his colleague.
"It is our professional obligation to cover the ballgame tonight," Costas told the millions watching on TV that night. "And we will do that in what we hope is an appropriate fashion. There are no words that can come close to expressing the depth of our feeling over this entire tragedy, but we also hope you appreciate that we have chosen to proceed for the time being with the coverage of the game."
The scene created one of the most surreal days in sports history, one that prompted ESPN to later produce a "30 For 30" documentary entitled "June 17, 1994."
Because of the Simpson drama on that historic night, the ticket from Game 5 is very collectible. PSA has graded 46 total tickets from that series, and 63% of those are from Game 5. Those tickets sell for $500 to $1,500 depending on condition, much more than any other game in the series.
In April, the current owners of the Ford Bronco exclusively told cllct that they plan to auction off the vehicle this summer.
For the NBC team that night, this wasn't just any news story. There were some behind-the-scenes people who worked for both shows and had gotten to know Simpson in his role as an NFL pundit.
Tears were streaming down the eyes of producers and stage hands while watching the drama unfold across the country in Los Angeles.
NBC cut in and out seven times during the broadcast, including a huge block of time that represented 27 minutes in the third quarter at the height of the drama, when Simpson was approaching the house.
Marv Albert, who was calling the game, tossed to NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw when it was determined there needed to be a break in the action, and since the Internet was in its very early days, the only option to keep up with the game would be to switch to radio.
"You are looking at a Ford Bronco. We're told O.J. Simpson is almost back home," Brokaw said.
By the time the Bronco came to a stop, viewers missed more than seven minutes of clock time and an 18-5 Rockets run.
Costas, who said he first started talking about the broadcast on the 20th anniversary, told cllct Monday that Simpson had tried to call him that night.
"I learned, five months later, that O.J. was trying to call me from the back of the Bronco," Costas said. "He called our studio, but when he said he was O.J. Simpson, he was hung up on."
Costas confirmed the story with Simpson on a jailhouse visit and admits he thinks about what he would do, if mid-game, he had Simpson on the phone in front of the world.
"I think I'd have to be half-journalist and half-friend," Costas told cllct. "With a gun allegedly to his head, I would have calmed him down much in the way (investigator) Tom Lange did by telling him what he had to live for. But I would also have asked him if he did it. And if he said no, I would tell him that his actions weren't one of an innocent man."
While many fans were upset by NBC's call, arguing if viewers wanted coverage they could have gone to the other networks or CNN or ESPN. Costas says there were many scenarios where NBC might have done even less game coverage.
"If he shot himself or if there was some altercation in Brentwood, we might have cut away even more," Costas said. "We were in a very difficult juggling position."
For its part, cutting in and out didn't help NBC win in the ratings game. The network finished Game 5 with an all-time live television low rating of 7.8. It wasn't topped until nine years later when the San Antonio Spurs and the New Jersey Nets played in the 2003 Finals.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectibles market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.