They set themselves up with plenty of time to digest the magnitude of their
accomplishment in those last game moments by building the second-largest
halftime lead in the NBA Finals history. The ending was a long time coming in
that sense—and in many other ways, too. After the final buzzer and just before
the confetti flew, LeBron James reveled in the embraces of teammates on the
court, and Anthony Davis sat alone nearby with his eyes buried in a towel.
Led by James and Davis in their first season together, the Lakers won the 2020
NBA championship Sunday with a 106-93 rout of the Miami Heat in Game 6 of the
NBA Finals. It was a unique accomplishment for this tightly knit group
isolated for 95 consecutive days in Florida, playing a season that covered
more than a calendar year because of the pandemic.
James spoke afterward about the incomparable elation of seeing teammates
become champions—and explained how his personal sentiment is shaped by how
long his journey goes.
“Live about the process,” James said, “and see the results. … We all live for
that moment.”
It was a long time coming also for the legions of Lakers fans, who are frankly
unaccustomed to going a decade without an NBA championship and rejoicing at
the return to glory now.
The Lakers’ only other such drought in the past 50 years started after their
1987-88 NBA championship won in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s age-40 season, the
penultimate season of his career. It’s fair to start wondering whether James,
who turns 36 in December, can produce that kind of excellence in longevity. It
would likely see him overtake Abdul-Jabbar as the league’s all-time leading
scorer despite losing much of 2019 to injury and 2020 to the pandemic.
James was this team’s true captain, offering “must-win” text messages to
teammates to spur their Game 4 and Game 6 victories. He delivered 28 points,
14 rebounds and 10 assists against just one turnover Sunday after urging his
teammates to “treat it like it was Game 7.”
James made the most of this entire bubble opportunity the NBA created to
finish his second Lakers season. He became the only players besides
Abdul-Jabbar and legendary Boston Celtics Bill Russell and Sam Jones to appear
in 10 NBA Finals series. Once there, he earned his fourth Bill Russell NBA
Finals MVP award, but his first with the Lakers—a distinction that matters to
him.
James came via free agency to join the list of great Lakers champions rather
than shiver in fear of their shadow. It’s why in a long embrace with Lakers
governor Jeanie Buss on the court Sunday that James said he offered this
sentiment: “I’m proud to be a Laker.”
It’s why Buss said on the Spectrum SportsNet postgame show about James: “A
Laker through and through.”
Unlike many of his peers who went anti-bandwagon when it came to successful
franchises, James has long been a fan of the New York Yankees, Dallas Cowboys
and Lakers.
“I’m a supporter of winners,” he once said.
James had said last week that it’s particularly meaningful for him to help
Buss to her first championship as Lakers governor. He referred to her as “an
incredible owner” and “a powerful woman.”
“I’m just honored to be a part of it,” James said. “I love the history of the
game, and I've read so much about Dr. Buss and his teams and his success. To
be playing while his daughter is the owner of the team, I think is pretty
cool.”
James averaged 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists in the NBA Finals in
his 17th professional season.
“He’s the greatest player the basketball universe has ever seen,” Lakers coach
Frank Vogel said Sunday night.
The clinching victory showcased several facets of the jewel that Vogel
polished this season: players starring in their roles, bouncing back after any
defeat, suffocating defense played till exhaustion.
Rajon Rondo had told everyone in the team meeting Saturday: “If we’re going to
win a championship, it has to be with defense.”
That’s how the Lakers’ lead swelled to 28 points by halftime, with surprise
starter Alex Caruso adding to the team’s perimeter agility.
The last time the Lakers won a title, Rondo was on the other other team. He is
the only player on either the Lakers or Boston Celtics from the 2010 NBA
Finals who is still an active player in the league—and on Sunday he again
looked an awful lot like the same player as back then. Sharp with decisions
and his finishes at the rim after puppeteer mastery in manipulating the Heat
defense to create the openings he sought, Rondo finished with 19 points and
four assists off the bench.
Davis added 18 points, but his all-out defense and 15 rebounds were crucial.
As usual, it all revolved around Davis and James.
Recalling that previous lull in championships for the Lakers, after Magic
Johnson led them to the 1988 title, it wasn’t until 2000 when the Lakers won
again. It was because of what Shaquille O’Neal came to call in himself and
Kobe Bryant the “greatest Laker one-two punch ever,” which is saying
something.
Johnson, whose work in the front office with Rob Pelinka turned the direction
of the franchise, helped bring James to town—and Pelinka did the deal to trade
for Davis. The traditions of tremendous Lakers tandems and dominant big men
certainly continued with this title. But Davis was someone who ranked first in
the league in loose balls recovered while towering at the rim, too.
The harmony between the two set the tone for this team. James even said after
winning the title: “I want A.D. to be better than me.”
“Respect. True friendship,“ said Davis, who won his first championship at age
27—same as legendary winners James and Michael Jordan. “We’re just two guys
who want to win. We were able to do it tonight.”
What they did was something Jerry Buss mentioned often wanting to accomplish:
a 17th all-time title, matching the Celtics for the most in league history.
The Lakers returned to the top, creating yet another formula for building a
team around two stars, and committing to find an ultimate positive at a time
in the world when there had been plenty of negative.
“It’s remarkable,” Kyle Kuzma said. “We are such a mentally tough team.
Everybody sacrificed something for the betterment of the team.”