By: Pedro Heizer
The fairytale 2010 NBA Finals came to a thrilling conclusion when then Los Angeles Lakers held off a furious Boston Celtics rally on route to their 16th NBA championship.
Just because they won the championship, it doesn’t mean that they didn’t have to work the hardest they ever had. Kobe Bryant himself said, “This one is by far the sweetest, because it’s them…This was the hardest one by far. I wanted it so bad, and sometimes when you want it so bad, it slips away from you. My guys picked me up.” Out of an unsightly 6-for-24 shooting performance, Bryant led the Lakers to a sweet repeat with 23 points and 15 rebounds in game 7. While he could barely make a shot or even hold onto the ball at times, Bryant relentlessly drove the lane to earn nine free throws in the fourth quarter while Los Angeles erased a 13-point second-half deficit. “I wanted it so, so bad, and on top of that, I was on E. Man, I was really, really tired, and the more I tried to push, the more it kept getting away from me.” Explained a joyful Bryant of his off shooting night.
Ron Artest #37 and Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates as the Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in Game Seven of the 2010 NBA Final
Exactly two years ago, the Boston Celtics beat the Lakers by 39 points to clinch the 2008 title; Not only was that an embarrassment, but it became sour to Bryant himself after former teammate Shaquille O’Neal “rapped” about it. Bryant’s response to Shaq’s comments now? “Just got one more than Shaq. You can take that to the bank. You know how I am. I don’t forget anything.”
Bryant had tremendous help from his teammates, during the entire series but in game 7 in particular, he had help from Ron Artest. Yes, the same Ron Artest that was the instigator at the infamous Palace Brawl back in 2004. Upon winning the championship, Artest had one of the most interesting interviews to date “Well, first of all I want to thank everybody in my hood…I definitely want to thank my doctors … my psychiatrist, she really helped me relax a lot.” Said a grateful Artest. Although Bryant won the Finals MVP award, the Game 7 MVP was clearly Artest with his 20 points, 5 steals, and 5 rebounds.
The Lakers’ defense slowed Rajon Rondo and the Celtics’ offense to a trickle in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles reclaimed the lead midway through and hung on with a few more big shots from Gasol, who had 9 of his 19 points in the 4th quater, and a remarkable clutch performance by Artest, a first-time champion as the only newcomer to last season’s roster.
The Lakers held their parade June 21, with the team riding floats from Staples Center down Figueroa Street to the USC campus in downtown Los Angeles. A rally at the Coliseum last year attracted 95,000 fans, but the Lakers are skipping the arena in favor of a more interactive celebration.
The Celtics had never lost a seventh game in the finals. Despite having the lead through most of the game while holding the Lakers to a ridiculously low shooting percentage (32.5 percent shooting), Boston couldn’t close it out on the coast, becoming just the seventh team to blow a 3-2 finals lead after winning Game 5.
Boston faces some offseason uncertainty with Allen’s free agency and coach Doc Rivers’ decision atop the list.
Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates after the Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in Game Seven of the 2010 NBA Finals
“There’s a lot of crying in that locker room,” Rivers said. “A lot of people who care. I don’t think there was a dry eye. A lot of hugs, a lot of people feeling awful. That’s a good thing. Showed a lot of people cared.”
The Celtics composure from the opening tip in Game 7 was much greater than that of the Lakers, playing vicious defense that forced Los Angeles to miss 21 of its first 27 shots. Bryant and Gasol were a combined 6 for 26 in the first half.
But forget how it looked early on, because history will. Bryant even did something Jerry West and Magic Johnson never could: He beat the hated Celtics in Game 7 of the finals.
“Close is not enough,” said Glen Davis, who was the Celtic to contribute from the the bench. “You’ve got to win it. I don’t know what’s going on with who’s coming back, but I’ll be ready when training camp comes around.”
The Lakers are now just one championship way of tying the Boston Celtics with the most championships in NBA History.