Meanwhile, at the trade deadline, the Lakers pulled themselves back into the championship conversation by adding All-Star big man Pau Gasol.“All of a sudden, everything fit,” Heisler reflects. That pressure got to “Losing is one thing,” says Ryan. Everything felt different in the building.”Celtics coach Doc Rivers summoned Wallace to replace Perkins in the starting lineup.
“He always said, ‘everybody who was taken before me (in the 1996 Draft), I’m taking a personal vengeance to go at them,’ and you could see that.””Afterward,” Heisler says, “Ray told the Seattle writers it wasn’t going to be long before Kobe told Jerry Buss he wanted out of (LA).” “He basically said that everybody expected Kobe to do what he ultimately did: in 2007, he demanded a trade. Neither team did,” recalls Helin. He was never in shape. Fisher grabbed the headlines with 11 points in the fourth quarter of Game 3, including a backbreaking bucket in the final minute. Kobe was guarding Ray Allen. The guy that I ended up meeting was completely different. The entire rest of the game, the Lakers outscored the Celtics each quarter, chipping away at Boston’s advantage. (James) Posey and Eddie House, specifically, were very important components of that team. Three moe titles followed to start the new Millennium.By mid-decade, the two most storied franchises in NBA history found themselves among the NBA detritus. “That’s probably why he wanted to win it so badly.”Heisler also remembers Bryant’s postgame jab at his former teammate and : “I think the first thing he said was, “one more than Shaq.”“The feud with Shaq was still there and now he had one more,” says Helin. “I think Phil Jackson called him the MVP. “There was a sense that they were going to be as good or better than anyone for as long as they could tolerate each other.
I don’t think there was a sense that team was going to last, or could have lasted in the same way. “He was like Michael (Jordan): he lived for the clutch and he always came up big, but this was the one time in his life that he didn’t. You have this historically momentous Lakers-Celtics game and he’s not able to be Kobe.”“Kobe was horrid in that game,” Maxwell states. “He was still in his prime and capable of doing amazing things. Literally. The first two games in Boston were a showcase for the role players. Ray Allen coolly steps to the free throw line and drains both shots. “Give us one goddamn good game when we really need it in Game 7.
The Celtics were also-rans in a weak Eastern Conference, bottoming out during a 24-win 2007 campaign.
The following month, The Celtics survived a 13-0 fourth quarter run to escape LA with the victory.By April, Boston had sunk to the 4 seed in the Eastern Conference, while 57 wins were enough for the Lakers to secure top spot out West.The switch flipped, Boston surprised everyone by beating the three biggest superstars (LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Dwight Howard) in the East in succession to advance to the Finals.
“I think they gave it their all. Kobe had 26. With 6:29 left, Boston’s 13-point lead is down to one. Tempers flared during the third quarter of game one of the NBA... Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty ImagesLA Laker Kobe Bryant takes control of the ball during a practice scrimmage in at the University of Hawaii- Manoa in Honolulu, Hawaii, Friday, Oct. 7, 2005.
“It takes more than three people to win a championship. For a veteran team, it felt like a missed opportunity.“(The Celtics) easily could have done it in ‘09,” Ryan laments.