Lakers vs Rockets

The 2019–20 Lakers won the franchise's 17th NBA championship, defeating the Miami Heat in six games in the NBA Finals.

The 2019–20 Los Angeles Lakers season was the franchise's 72nd season, its 71st season in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and its 60th in Los Angeles. The Lakers were coached by Frank Vogel in his first year as team head coach. The team played its home games at Staples Center as members of the Western Conference's Pacific Division.

Quick Facts

First major playoff meeting

1987 Western Conference Finals

Most iconic series

2004 Western Conference Semifinals

Key lakers figures

Magic Johnson
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kobe Bryant
Shaquille O'Neal

Key rockets figures

Hakeem Olajuwon
Moses Malone
Yao Ming
Tracy McGrady

Total playoff meetings

5 times (1987, 1990, 2004, 2009, 2020)

Rivalry status

Historic Playoff Rivalry

Lore & Background

The team dedicated the season to retired Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant, who was killed in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020. On March 6, 2020, the Lakers clinched their first playoff berth since the 2012–13 season. Five days later, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the season was suspended. On July 5, the NBA announced a return of the season in the NBA Bubble, with 22 teams playing eight seeding games followed by a full postseason.

Play resumed on July 30, with all games being played in Orlando, Florida. On August 3, the Lakers clinched the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs for the first time since the 2009–10 season. The Lakers finished the shortened season 52–19, with a winning percentage roughly equivalent to 60 wins in a full season. They defeated the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets, and Denver Nuggets to advance to the NBA Finals, where they defeated the Miami Heat (LeBron James' former team) in six games to earn the franchise's 17th NBA championship.

The Lakers also became the first and only team in NBA history to be undefeated in a season when leading entering the fourth quarter, going a combined 57–0 record in the regular season and playoffs.