Documentary2009–ESPN

The Best Episodes of 30 for 30

Every episode of 30 for 30 ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of 30 for 30!

Best episode
S1E25 Once Brothers
8.53,597 votes
Worst episode
S1E28 Marion Jones: Press Pause
5.3749 votes
Top season
Season 3
7.3avg
Binge time
7d 0h
141 episodes
BestEpisodes
WorstEpisodes
BestSeasons
AllEpisodes

Seasons4

All1234

Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 25 - Once Brothers
    8.5/10(3597 votes)

    S1:E25

    The story of Croatian Dražen Petrović and Serbian Vlade Divac, NBA players and Yugoslavian national teammates, and how upheaval in their homeland adversely and irretrievably affected their friendship. (90 minutes in length)

    Director:Michael Tolajian
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 7 - Survive and Advance
    8.5/10(1495 votes)

    S2:E7

    A look at the NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team's successful and improbable championship runs through the 1983 ACC and the 1983 NCAA tournaments. (2 hrs in length)

    Director:Jonathan Hock
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 16 - The Two Escobars
    8.4/10(3531 votes)

    S1:E16

    The lives of soccer player Andrés Escobar and drug lord Pablo Escobar; the intertwining of crime and soccer in their native Colombia; and the connections between the deaths of both men. (2 hours in length)

    Directors:Jeff Zimbalist, Michael Zimbalist
    Writers:Jeff Zimbalist, Michael Zimbalist

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  4. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 18 - Bad Boys
    8.2/10(2148 votes)

    S2:E18

    A look back at the Detroit Pistons of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Narrated by rapper Kid Rock, a native of nearby Romeo, Michigan. (2 hours in length)

    Director:Zak Levitt
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 17 - Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies (2)
    8.3/10(891 votes)

    S3:E17

    The Celtics-Lakers rivalry ramps up in the 1984 Finals as a cast of characters–led by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson–who changed the NBA finally went head-to-head for a title.

    Director:Jim Podhoretz
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 6 - You Don't Know Bo
    8.2/10(1813 votes)

    S2:E6

    A profile of Bo Jackson and how his college and professional feats in two sports (baseball and football) captured the public's imagination and made Jackson a cultural (and marketing) icon.

    Director:Michael Bonfiglio
    Writer:Unknown

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of 30 for 30

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  7. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 27 - Of Miracles and Men
    8.2/10(1215 votes)

    S2:E27

    An exploration of the Miracle on Ice from the point of view of the defeated Soviet Union team. The film features defenseman Viacheslav Fetisov returning to Lake Placid to recollect his team's defeat.

    Director:Jonathan Hock
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 6 - The '85 Bears
    8.2/10(1110 votes)

    S3:E6

    A 30-year retrospective on the 1985 Chicago Bears, from how they were assembled to their swaggering, dominant run to Super Bowl victory.

    Director:Jason Hehir
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 16 - Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies (1)
    8.2/10(1032 votes)

    S3:E16

    A three-part series, initially airing on consecutive nights, exploring the Celtics–Lakers rivalry, focusing mainly on the 1980s era of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson but also examining the entire history of the NBA through the rivalry.

    Director:Jim Podhoretz
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 18 - Celtics/Lakers: Best of Enemies (3)
    8.2/10(828 votes)

    S3:E18

    Conclusion of a look at the 1980s Celtics-Lakers rivalry, focusing on the three years after the 1984 NBA Finals, as the teams’ disdain for each other gradually turns to respect while meeting in two more Finals.

    Director:Jim Podhoretz
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 5 - Four Falls Of Buffalo
    8.1/10(1645 votes)

    S3:E5

    A profile of the Buffalo Bills teams of the early 1990s, when the franchise became the first team to play in—and lose—four consecutive Super Bowls.

    Director:Ken Rodgers
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 29 - The Best that Never Was
    8.1/10(1417 votes)

    S1:E29

    The 1981 recruiting of high school football player Marcus Dupree by multiple big-time college programs, his resulting injury-prone college and professional career, and how his pursuit by college and USFL teams changed the recruiting process. (2 hours in length)

    Director:Jonathan Hock
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 8 - Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. the New York Knicks
    8.0/10(2414 votes)

    S1:E8

    The impact of Indiana Pacer Reggie Miller on the New York Knicks in the 1990s, specifically focusing on the Pacers/Knicks battles in the 1994 and 1995 NBA Playoffs and on Miller's interaction with Knicks fan Spike Lee.

    Director:Dan Klores
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 7 - Fantastic Lies
    8.0/10(1331 votes)

    S3:E7

    A 10-year retrospective of the Duke lacrosse case, in which a party thrown by members of the school's men's lacrosse team led to an accusation of rape—a claim that, though later proven to be false, ignited both a firestorm that damaged the school's prestige and an investigation that ruined careers.

    Director:Marina Zenovich
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 7 - The U
    7.9/10(2022 votes)

    S1:E7

    The racial and cultural evolution of Miami during the 1980s as represented within the University of Miami football team.

    Director:Billy Corben
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. 30 for 30 Season 4 Episode 16 - Once Upon a Time in Queens Part 1
    8.0/10(389 votes)

    S4:E16

    An in-depth examination of the 1986 New York Mets.

    Director:Nick Davis
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 24 - Nature Boy
    7.8/10(1373 votes)

    S3:E24

    The life and times of professional wrestling legend Ric Flair.

    Director:Rory Karpf
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 28 - I Hate Christian Laettner
    7.7/10(1949 votes)

    S2:E28

    A look at the life and basketball career of Christian Laettner and the intense dislike some fans still harbor for the former Duke University and NBA star.

    Director:Rory Karpf
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 15 - June 17, 1994
    7.7/10(1844 votes)

    S1:E15

    Quick-cut archival footage captures the various US sporting events on the day in question and the emotions they generated, including the opening of the World Cup soccer tournament, the Knicks/Rockets NBA Finals, Arnold Palmer's last round in the U.S. Open, and the New York Rangers' Stanley Cup victory celebration. One event, however, overshadows them all: O. J. Simpson's run from the police.

    Director:Brett Morgen
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 8 - This Magic Moment
    7.7/10(1397 votes)

    S3:E8

    A profile of the Orlando Magic teams of the mid-1990s, led by Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway, who gained prominence both on the NBA hardwoods and in popular culture, before Shaq's departure to the Los Angeles Lakers in free agency and injury issues for Penny ended the Magic's budding dynasty before it could ever take flight.[62]

    Directors:Gentry Kirby, Erin Leyden
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 23 - Into the Wind
    7.7/10(759 votes)

    S1:E23

    Terry Fox's attempt to run 5,373 kilometres (3,339 mi) across Canada in support of fundraising for cancer research captures the attention of his fellow Canadians and the world.

    Directors:Steve Nash, Ezra Holland
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. 30 for 30 Season 3 Episode 25 - The Two Bills
    7.7/10(684 votes)

    S3:E25

    A look at the relationship between NFL coaches Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick. Co-produced with NFL Films.

    Director:Ken Rodgers
    Writer:Unknown

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  23. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 8 - Elway to Marino
    7.6/10(1266 votes)

    S2:E8

    A look at the 1983 NFL Draft and the six quarterbacks taken in its first round, specifically John Elway (the first overall pick) and Dan Marino (the last QB picked in Round 1). The film features the recollections of Martin Demoff, the agent for both Elway and Marino, who shares a personal diary he kept to chronicle teams' interest in his two future-Hall of Fame clients. This includes the indecision the Baltimore Colts had with drafting Elway with the first pick or trading it away, and how Marino's selection status plummeted after recording weaker senior year statistics and rumors of recreational drug use.

    Director:Ken Rodgers
    Writer:Unknown

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  24. 30 for 30 Season 1 Episode 30 - Pony Excess
    7.6/10(1232 votes)

    S1:E30

    The rise, fall, and rebirth of the SMU Mustangs football program, which received a 1-year "death penalty" for major infractions after former SMU player David Stanley blew the whistle on the long-suspected program. Patrick Duffy, known for starring in TV's Dallas at the time of the scandal, narrates. (2 hours in length)

    Director:Thaddeus D. Matula
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. 30 for 30 Season 2 Episode 2 - 9.79*
    7.6/10(1074 votes)

    S2:E2

    A profile of the Men's 100-meter final at the 1988 Summer Olympics and the lives of the eight men who participated, including Ben Johnson (whose world record of 9.79 seconds was annulled after he tested positive for anabolic steroids) and Carl Lewis (who was awarded the gold medal after Johnson's disqualification).

    Director:Daniel Gordon
    Writer:Unknown

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Best Episodes Summary

"Once Brothers" is the best rated episode of 30 for 30. It scored 8.5/10 from 3,597 votes. Directed by Michael Tolajian and written by Unknown, it aired on October 12, 2010.

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