2002 Western Conference Finals: Lakers vs Kings – The Most Controversial Series

[00:00:01] Did you know one of the most talked about playoff series wasn't an NBA Final? And the most talked about game in this series wasn't even a Game 7. It was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals shocked the Sacramento Kings by beating them in a game that seemed like the refs were intentionally forcing the Lakers to win.

[00:00:23] And it's a game and series shrouded by controversy and heart-stopping moments. And unfortunately, it's left us all wondering, is the NBA really rigged? Were the LA Lakers or was it just bad luck? Join us as we try to figure that out today on Daily Sports History. Let's go!

[00:00:43] Welcome to Daily Sports History. I'm Ethan Reese, your guide as you daily learn more about sports history increasing your sports knowledge as we go over the 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals.

[00:01:06] So, the 2001-2002 season. We're going to set up a clash between two franchises going in opposite trajectories. The Los Angeles Lakers were led by Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant and were the two-time defending champions, aiming for a three-peat to solidify their dynasty status. And the Sacramento Kings, meanwhile, well, they were steadily building a contender around Chris Webber, Lottie Divock, and newly acquired Mike Bibby.

[00:01:36] And they would finish with the best record in the regular season with 61 wins, giving them home court throughout the entire playoffs. So, let's look at these two teams that would clash in one of the most talked-about NBA playoff series ever. So, the Los Angeles Lakers were led by Shaquille O'Neal. Arguably, at the time, was the most dominant center. And you can argue one of the most dominant centers of all time.

[00:02:01] Along with him was Kobe Bryant, who was ascending every single year. And he was no longer Shaq's sidekick. He was Batman to Shaq's Superman. And they were surrounded by a great ensemble cast. Robert Ory, who was known as Big Shot Rob for his clutch gene. Then you had Derek Fisher, the consummate professional at point guard.

[00:02:25] And Rick Fox, who was a versatile player, providing them everything they needed to continue their dynasty. And they were faced off against the Sacramento Kings, who were led by Chris Webber, who had ascended to be an all-NBA forward. And they recently acquired Mike Bibby, who replaced Jason Williams at point guard, giving them more stability and more playmaking at the point guard position.

[00:02:51] And they had a veteran center who had been around in Lottie Divac, who was key for not only his defense, but his vision and his basketball IQ. And they had Peja Stojakovic, who was becoming one of the most elite shooters in the league. And Doug Christie was a great defensive and glue guy that helped him off the bench. So the series would actually start on May 18th in Sacramento.

[00:03:17] And despite the Kings actually being a higher seed and having home court advantage, they were actually the underdog in this series going in. Because the Kings had never really won anything. And the Lakers were the defending champs. And going into the series, you just thought whoever won this would probably win the title. As the East was not as powerful as the West. This was kind of a pre-championship game.

[00:03:44] So it was an important series, but no one thought it would become as talked about until it actually began. So in the first game, it happened in Sacramento. And the Lakers actually came out firing. Setting the tone, shooting 67%, scoring 36 points in the first quarter. And Kobe Bryant would go on to lead their way in the game, scoring 30 points while Shaq added in 26. But despite Chris Webber having 18 points and 14 rebounds, his supporting cast struggled, shooting under 40%.

[00:04:11] In a game the Lakers never trailed and took away that home court advantage, winning 106-99. Then in game two, Chris Webber got some help. He had 21 points and 13 rebounds. And Mike Bibby added in 20 points as well. And despite Shaquille O'Neal dominating with 35 and 13 rebounds, Kobe Bryant was battling food poisoning and shot below 50%. And they were able to tie it up before they headed back to LA.

[00:04:38] And the Kings seized control in the next game and would not look back. Webber and Bibby combined for 50 points as they would take a commanding 27 point lead and never trail the entire game. The Lakers made a push in the fourth quarter, making as many threes as they could. But O'Neal had a subpar game and they lost 103-90 as the Kings took the series lead 2-1.

[00:05:02] The next game happened on May 26th, again in Los Angeles, where Sacramento exploded for 40 points in the first quarter, building a 24 point halftime lead. But the Lakers would chip away at this. And in the final seconds, with the Kings up two, Kobe would miss a layup and Shaq would miss a putback. And the ball would get batted around and land in Robert Ori's hand, who drained a three pointer at the buzzer, giving them the lead.

[00:05:32] Living up to his big shot nickname as they won 100-99. But luckily game five, now the series was tied 2-2, going back to Sacramento. And this was a contest that went back and forth. No one would take over in this game. But when the fourth came, Mike Bibby was able to hit a jumper with just 8.2 seconds left. After scoring 23 points in the game and Weber scoring 29, they were able to get this one point lead 92-91.

[00:06:00] Taking a series lead 3-1, being one game away from NBA Finals. Then came game six on May 30th, 2002. It's widely regarded as the most controversial game in NBA history. And has even been more so after when it was found out that disgraced referee Tim Donahue, who had gambled on games, actually officiated in this game.

[00:06:26] With the Kings up 3-2 on the verge of their very first NBA Finals appearance, the Los Angeles Lakers were able to force a game seven. But what made it so controversial? Well, a lot of it was officiating. The Lakers had attempted 27 free throws in the fourth quarter alone, compared to just nine for the Kings. That is a huge momentum. It's always said that you don't want to let the officials decide the game. But this looked like the officials wanted to decide the game.

[00:06:54] And several key players for the Kings fouled out. Their two centers, starting center Lottie Divac, fouled out. As well as their backup center, Scott Pollard, fouled out. While Chris Webber and Mike Bibby were saddled with high fouls throughout the entire game, making it more challenging for them to be effective. And one of the most infamous calls came late in the game, in which Kobe Bryant elbowed Mike Bibby in the face. And a foul was called on Bibby instead of Bryant. Fueling outrage.

[00:07:24] And it just had everyone asking, what was going on? And we mentioned that Tim Donahue refed this game. And he later claims that these refs were what they call company men. Meaning they made calls favoring the Lakers, as the NBA wanted the Lakers to be in the Finals to help ratings, as LA was a better market than Sacramento. Now, that's going off a guy that lied and cheated all the time.

[00:07:52] But he's got no reason to lie anymore. So was it true? It's hard to say. The Lakers would go on to win the game, 106-102. And despite all the controversy and bad calls, it was hard to watch. But it was game six. It meant there was one more game. So it wasn't over yet. Sacramento still had a chance. And they fought for it. There were 16 ties and 19 lead changes in this game.

[00:08:18] And within the final seconds, the Lakers were up 99-98 when Pejic Stojakovic airballed a wide open three. And Shaq would be fouled following the rebound and hit one of two of his free throws. Bibby was then fouled by Bryant. And he made both his free throws, tying the game, forcing it to go into overtime. In overtime, the Kings offense fluttered. They could not keep up. They shot just two of 20 from threes in the entire game and made only half of their free throws.

[00:08:48] And it continued into the overtime period. And they lost out. The Lakers would win 112-106. Shaq and Kobe scored 65 points between them. And all the Lakers starters were in double figures. Bibby finished with 29 points with Weber finishing with 20 points and 11 rebounds and 8 assists. Lottie Divac had 15 points and 10 rebounds. And the game remains the last time a conference final game 7 went to overtime.

[00:09:15] And the Lakers would go on to face the New Jersey Nets, who were really not equipped. Their center, Kimi Mutombo, was hurt. And so they had no answer for Shaquille O'Neal, who went on to win his third straight finals MVP, averaging over 36 points and 12 rebounds a game as they swept the Nets in four games. And after this, there was lots of rumbling from the public about the officiating of Game 6.

[00:09:39] Now, I know that refs can change, but the officiating was so bad that Ralph Nader, a consumer advocate who actually ran for president at one point, called for a formal investigation into Game 6. The controversy was around forever. The Kings were robbed. If they would have made the finals, everyone predicts that they would have swept the Nets as well. They would have won their very first championship.

[00:10:05] But it was taken away because everyone thought the NBA wanted the Lakers to win. Maybe, maybe that happened. We've talked about some controversies in the NBA that could have happened, but it doesn't change anything. Maybe things have gotten better now that we have replay and we have more parity in the NBA. The last seven champions have all been different, and hopefully that continues. But the Kings were lost after this. They were considered the best team in the league that year,

[00:10:33] but they would slowly lose their core. And Chris Webber would get injured in the following seasons and never be the same. And so this was their one shot. And they didn't make the playoffs again until 2024. Over 20 years since this iconic moment. Sometimes you just get devastated enough that you can't fight back. Sometimes luck is not on your side. As much skill and practice you can put into a game,

[00:11:01] there's so much in sports that you do not control. Somebody always has to win. Somebody has to lose. That's why we love sports. The question is, do you think the NBA actually rigged Game 6 of the 2002 NBA Finals? I want to thank you for listening to today's Daily Sports History. If you like this, make sure you like and subscribe wherever you're listening. And if you want, go to our YouTube channel. The link is in the description below.

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