Kobe, Jackson lead LA to victory

Bloomberg

The Los Angeles Lakers captured their 15th National Basketball Association title as Kobe Bryant proved he could win without Shaquille O’Neal and Phil Jackson chalked up the most championship wins by a coach.

Bryant scored 30 points Monday morning Turkish time to lead the Lakers to a 99-86 victory over the Orlando Magic at Amway Arena in Orlando. Los Angeles won the best-of-seven NBA Finals 4-1.

It’s Bryant’s fourth championship, his first since O’Neal left the Lakers after the duo won three titles from 2000-02. The title is the 10th for Jackson, who also won six with the Chicago Bulls and now moves past Hall of Fame member Red Auerbach for the most all-time by an NBA coach.

"For this moment to finally be here and to be able to reflect back on the series, the season, and everything we’ve been through, it’s top of the list," Bryant said during a news conference. "We as a team answered the call."

The Lakers’ win comes a year after they lost the championship series in six games to the Boston Celtics and moves them within two of Boston’s record 17 NBA titles.

"Last year’s experience made us tougher, it made us grow as a team," said Lakers center Pau Gasol, who added 14 points, 15 rebounds and four blocked shots last night. "We were hurt by it. We were very disappointed when we lost. It really made us want it even more and it got us to this point."

MVP

Bryant was voted the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player after averaging 32.4 points a game in the series. He’s one of four active players to have won four titles, the others being O’Neal, Tim Duncan and teammate Derek Fisher. Bryant said he’s thrilled to no longer hear questions about his failure to win a championship without O’Neal as a teammate.

"That feels good because you proved people wrong," Bryant said. "It was annoying. It was like Chinese water torture, like a drop of water on your temple. I would cringe every time I heard it because there was no way to argue it."

Jackson, 63, wore a hat with the Roman numeral ’X’ on it after the game to signify his milestone victory. While Jackson said his players deserve the attention and credit for the title, he acknowledged the rarity of his feat. "Having won 10 championships is a remarkable accomplishment, there’s no doubt about it," Jackson said during his news conference. "But I’ve always said this before -- the journey is what’s really important."



Lakers’ run

The Lakers trailed 40-36 in game 5 with just under six minutes left in the first half when Fisher and Trevor Ariza made consecutive three pointers to spark a 16-0 scoring run.

Los Angeles seized the lead for good, opening a 54-42 advantage, as the Magic went scoreless for almost five minutes.

"In that second quarter we just didn’t handle the ball well and ran them into easy opportunities. It really turned on that," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I don’t think we handled the frustration well. That’s why one mistake, one bad play in that stretch kept leading to another."

The Lakers took a 76-61 lead into the fourth quarter and Orlando never got closer than 11 points the rest of the way. Rashard Lewis scored 18 to lead the Magic, while Dwight Howard finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

The Lakers won the first two games of the NBA Finals at home, taking Game 1 by 25 points and Game 2 101-96 in overtime after Magic rookie Courtney Lee missed a potential winning layup as time expired in regulation.

While the Magic rebounded with a 108-104 victory in Game 3 when the series moved to Orlando, they still faced long odds. Under the NBA Finals current format, 11 of the previous 12 teams to win the first two games at home went on to claim the title. Orlando missed an opportunity to tie the series in Game 4, blowing a 12-point halftime lead at home in a 99-91 overtime loss. The comeback gave the Lakers a 3-1 series lead. In each of the 29 times teams led by that margin, they went on to win the championship. The Lakers now make it for 30-for-30.

While Bryant and Jackson each collected a signature title, Fisher pointed to a cereal box in front of him that celebrates the Lakers’ latest title with a picture of the whole team. "The focus belongs to the whole group," he said. "It’s not just about Kobe and Phil. This is something we did as a team all season and that’s what makes it so special."