2001 NBA Finals Game 4 vs Philadelphia 76ers

Lore & Background

The franchise began in 1946 as the Detroit Gems of the National Basketball League (NBL), and are one of only eight teams from the NBA's first decade that are still operating today. After one season, a new owner moved the team to Minneapolis, and renamed it the Minneapolis Lakers. The Lakers won the 1948 NBL championship before joining the rival Basketball Association of America, where they won the 1949 BAA championship. After the merger of the NBL and the BAA into the NBA in 1949, the Lakers won four of the next five NBA championships. After struggling financially in the late 1950s, they moved to Los Angeles before the 1960–61 season.

In Their Own Story

The air inside the First Union Center was thick with tension so palpable it felt like static electricity. Every time Shaquille O'Neal lowered his shoulder, the floorboards groaned under the weight of history, but tonight the giant stumbled against Philadelphia's physical defense. Iverson, small and scarred, moved like water through the Lakers’ defense, slipping through cracks that shouldn’t have existed. The crowd roared with a primal frequency as Allen sank another jumper, the net snapping with a sound that echoed off the rafters. As regulation expired without a winner, the game stretched into overtime, draining the Lakers' energy reserves while Iverson's legs held firm. Shaq stared at the scoreboard in the final minute, realizing for the first time in months that the invincibility spell had been broken. Kobe watched from the bench, jaw set, knowing the perfect run was over but the battle remained alive.

Reader's Guide

The Lakers made the NBA Finals six times in the 1960s, but lost every series to the Celtics, beginning their long and storied rivalry. In 1968, the Lakers acquired four-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Wilt Chamberlain, and won their sixth NBA title in 1972, led by coach Bill Sharman. After Chamberlain retired, the team traded for superstar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Two big changes came in 1979; first, Jerry Buss purchased the Lakers and pioneered a vision of basketball as entertainment as well as sport. Second, the Lakers drafted Magic Johnson first overall in the 1979 NBA draft. Johnson, a prodigy point guard, and dominant center Abdul-Jabbar became Lakers superstars. The promotion of head coach Pat Riley in 1981 and addition of forward James Worthy in the 1982 draft established the Lakers as an NBA powerhouse in the 1980s. The franchise won five championships in nine years, including two of three Finals matchups against the Celtics. The Lakers were defeated by their Boston archrivals in the 1984 Finals, but triumphed over them in 1985 and 1987. The Lakers struggled in the early 1990s after Riley left and Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, and Worthy retired. In 1996, the Lakers traded with the Charlotte Hornets for the draft rights to Kobe Bryant and signed center Shaquille O'Neal. This superstar duo, along with Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson, led the Lakers to three consecutive championships between 2000 and 2002, securing the franchise's second 'three-peat'. The 'Shaq-and-Kobe' era ended when the Lakers traded O'Neal after the team lost to the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 Finals. The Lakers returned to the NBA Finals after trading for Pau Gasol, losing to the Celtics in 2008 but winning championships in 2009 and 2010—the latter the most recent Finals matchup with the Celtics. After Jackson retired in 2011, the Lakers endured their longest playoff drought in franchise history. Gasol left in 2014, and Bryant retired in 2016. After rebuilding seasons with young, highly rated prospects, the Lakers signed superstar LeBron James in 2018. In 2019, the team traded several of those prospects for star Anthony Davis. Led by James, Davis, and coach Frank Vogel, the team won its 17th championship in 2020, tying the Celtics for the most titles until 2024. In February 2025, the team traded Davis to acquire Luka Dončić.

Did You Know?

• The Lakers hold the record for NBA's longest winning streak, 33 straight games, set in 1971–72.
• 26 Hall of Famers have played for Los Angeles, while four have coached the team.
• Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, O'Neal, and Bryant won a combined eight NBA MVP awards with the Lakers.