206-880: The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles . The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference . The Lakers play their home games at Crypto.com Arena , an arena they share with the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association , and the Los Angeles Kings of
412-622: A Michael Jordan -led Chicago Bulls team beat the Utah Jazz by 42 points, 96–54. The Celtics also improved their overall record against the Lakers to 9–2 in Finals meetings, beating them in the Finals for the first time since 1984 . This was the Celtics' 17th championship, their first since 1986 , extending their record for most NBA championships won by a single team. All this capped off
618-417: A technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws . The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play ( overtime ) is mandated. Players advance the ball by bouncing it while walking or running (dribbling) or by passing it to a teammate, both of which require considerable skill. On offense, players may use
824-419: A 14–2 disparity in offensive boards), turnovers (7–19), steals (18–4), assists (33–16) and blocks (4–0). Five Celtics finished in double figures. Ray Allen hit seven three-pointers to tie what was then the Finals record (which he subsequently broke during the 2010 NBA Finals against the Lakers during game two), Rajon Rondo had an all-around spectacular performance (21 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 steals),
1030-561: A 24-win 2006–07 season , highlighted by a franchise-worst 18 straight losses. Nevertheless, the 2007 off-season saw Celtics GM Danny Ainge acquire Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to join franchise star Paul Pierce . This new formation became regarded as the most talented Boston Celtics team since the duo of Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce graced the floor of the "Garden" in the early 2000s. The newly formed 'Big Three,' joined by second year point guard and future all star Rajon Rondo , led
1236-419: A Laker, Chamberlain set a team record by averaging a league-leading 21.1 rpg. West, Baylor, and Chamberlain each averaged over 20 points, and Los Angeles won their division. The Lakers and Celtics again met in the finals , and Los Angeles had home court advantage against Boston for the first time in their rivalry. They won the first game behind Jerry West's 53 points, and had a 3–2 lead after five. Boston won
1442-404: A backboard that measures 6 by 3.5 feet (1.8 by 1.1 meters) and one basket is at each end of the court. The white outlined box on the backboard is 18 inches (46 cm) high and 2 feet (61 cm) wide. At almost all levels of competition, the top of the rim is exactly 10 feet (3.05 meters) above the court and 4 feet (1.22 meters) inside the baseline. While variation is possible in the dimensions of
1648-495: A basket mounted on a wall. Naismith wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto an elevated track. Naismith initially set up the peach basket with its bottom intact, which meant that the ball had to be retrieved manually after each "basket" or point scored. This quickly proved tedious, so Naismith removed the bottom of the basket to allow the balls to be poked out with a long dowel after each scored basket. Shortly after, Senda Berenson , instructor of physical culture at
1854-424: A book about the team's 2003–04 season, in which he heavily criticized Bryant and called him "uncoachable". The Lakers front office said that the book contained "several inaccuracies". The Lakers also traded Rick Fox and Gary Payton to Boston, for Chris Mihm , Marcus Banks , and Chucky Atkins before the 2004–05 season . Derek Fisher, frustrated with losing playing time, opted out of his contract and signed with
2060-467: A buzzer-beater by Mike Bibby , the Lakers were faced with a must-win game six. In one of the most controversial playoff games in league history ( Tim Donaghy 's betting scandal ), the Lakers would win by four points. The Lakers went on to win game seven in overtime, with the Kings missing numerous potentially game-saving shots and free throws. The Lakers then achieved a three-peat by sweeping Jason Kidd and
2266-501: A children's game called duck on a rock , as many had failed before it. Frank Mahan, one of the players from the original first game, approached Naismith after the Christmas break, in early 1892, asking him what he intended to call his new game. Naismith replied that he had not thought of it because he had been focused on just getting the game started. Mahan suggested that it be called "Naismith ball", at which he laughed, saying that
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#17327977088732472-405: A dribble, the player cannot carry the ball by placing their hand on the bottom of the ball; doing so is known as carrying the ball . A team, once having established ball control in the front half of their court, may not return the ball to the backcourt and be the first to touch it. A violation of these rules results in loss of possession. The ball may not be kicked, nor be struck with the fist. For
2678-603: A first-round loss to the Rockets , Johnson decided to retire for the final time after the season. During the 1996 off-season, the Lakers acquired 17-year-old Kobe Bryant from the Charlotte Hornets for Vlade Divac ; Bryant was drafted 13th overall out of Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, Pennsylvania in that year's draft , by Charlotte. Los Angeles also signed free-agent Shaquille O'Neal . Trading for Bryant
2884-497: A game-high 16 assists and Leon Powe scored 21 points on 6–7 shooting from the field and 9–13 from the line in 15 minutes of play, including back-to-back dunks in the last minute of the 3rd quarter, but his points weren't much needed for the Celtics at the time, as was his sole presence on the court(for the final 3 minutes of the third quarter, the Boston crowd was chanting his name, so you know just how much impact he left on them). Over
3090-466: A half-time break under FIBA, NBA, and NCAA rules and 10 minutes in United States high schools. Overtime periods are five minutes in length except for high school, which is four minutes in length. Teams exchange baskets for the second half. The time allowed is actual playing time; the clock is stopped while the play is not active. Therefore, games generally take much longer to complete than
3296-460: A key behind-the-scenes role in helping put together the deal and later the team. Inspired by Minnesota's nickname, "Land of 10,000 Lakes", the team rechristened themselves the Lakers. Hartman helped them hire John Kundla from College of St. Thomas , to be their first head coach, by meeting with him and selling him on the team. As the franchise had the worst record in the NBL the previous season, it got
3502-615: A knee injury. O'Neal averaged 26.2 ppg and 12.5 rpg and finished third in the league in blocked shots (2.88 bpg) in 51 games. The Lakers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs as O'Neal scored 46 points in Game ;1 against the Trail Blazers, marking the highest single-game playoff scoring output by a Laker since Jerry West scored 53 against the Celtics in 1969. In
3708-636: A miss which he said in June 2010 still haunted him more than 40 years later. Los Angeles won 53 games in 1962–63 , behind Baylor's 34.0 ppg and West's 27.1 ppg but lost in the NBA Finals in six games to the Celtics. After falling to 42–38 and losing in the first round of the 1964 NBA playoffs to the Hawks, the team won 49 games in 1964–65. The Lakers surged past the Baltimore Bullets in
3914-512: A name like that would kill any game. Mahan then said, "Why not call it basketball?" Naismith replied, "We have a basket and a ball, and it seems to me that would be a good name for it." The first official game was played in the YMCA gymnasium in Albany , New York, on January 20, 1892, with nine players. The game ended at 1–0; the shot was made from 25 feet (7.6 m), on a court just half the size of
4120-547: A new NBA scoring record when he scored 71 points in a victory against the New York Knicks while grabbing 25 rebounds. In doing so, Baylor broke his own NBA record of 64 points. Despite a losing record, the Lakers made the playoffs . They came within two points of the NBA Finals when they lost in game seven of their second round series against St. Louis. Led by Baylor and West at 38.3 and 30.8 ppg respectively,
4326-453: A one-point game. After the defensive play, James Posey hit two free throws to make it a 6-point game, and then the Celtics proved to have the league's best defense by forcing another Lakers turnover. After a hard-fought battle, the Celtics walked away with a 6-point win and the 2–0 series lead as the series shifted to L.A. Kobe Bryant finished the game with 30 points and 8 assists. For the Celtics, Paul Pierce scored 28 points, Rajon Rondo had
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#17327977088734532-441: A present-day Streetball or National Basketball Association (NBA) court. At the time, soccer was being played with 10 to a team (which was increased to 11). When winter weather got too icy to play soccer, teams were taken indoors, and it was convenient to have them split in half and play basketball with five on each side. By 1897–98, teams of five became standard. Basketball's early adherents were dispatched to YMCAs throughout
4738-434: A rebound. The team's starting power forward, Kermit Washington , who was averaging 11.5 points and 11.2 rebounds, entered the fight, and when Rudy Tomjanovich ran in from the bench to break up the action, Washington punched him in the face. Tomjanovich nearly died from the punch, suffering a fractured skull and other facial injuries, which prematurely ended his playing career. Washington, who stated that he assumed Tomjanovich
4944-516: A record for longest winning streak of any team in major American professional team sports. The Lakers won 69 games that season, which stood as the NBA record for 24 years until the Chicago Bulls won 72 games in 1995–96. Chamberlain averaged a low 14.8 points but led the league in rebounding at 19.2 a game. West's 9.7 assists per game (apg) led the league, he also averaged more than 25 points, and
5150-506: A series of venues, including Catholic University , Georgetown and George Mason . The National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament for Black High Schools was held from 1929 to 1942 at Hampton Institute . The National Invitational Interscholastic Basketball Tournament was held from 1941 to 1967 starting out at Tuskegee Institute . Following a pause during World War II it resumed at Tennessee State College in Nashville. The basis for
5356-423: A standard uniform consists of a pair of shorts and a jersey with a clearly visible number, unique within the team, printed on both the front and back. Players wear high-top sneakers that provide extra ankle support. Typically, team names, players' names and, outside of North America, sponsors are printed on the uniforms. A limited number of time-outs, clock stoppages requested by a coach (or sometimes mandated in
5562-490: A teammate's field goal attempt. Goaltending is a defender's touching of a ball that is on a downward flight toward the basket, while the related violation of basket interference is the touching of a ball that is on the rim or above the basket, or by a player reaching through the basket from below. Goaltending and basket interference committed by a defender result in awarding the basket to the offense, while basket interference committed by an offensive player results in cancelling
5768-591: A total of three referees on the court. The table officials are responsible for keeping track of each team's scoring, timekeeping, individual and team fouls , player substitutions, team possession arrow , and the shot clock . The only essential equipment in a basketball game is the ball and the court: a flat, rectangular surface with baskets at opposite ends. Competitive levels require the use of more equipment such as clocks, score sheets, scoreboards, alternating possession arrows, and whistle-operated stop-clock systems. A regulation basketball court in international games
5974-562: A touring Canadian women's team based in Edmonton , Alberta, operated between 1915 and 1940. The Grads toured all over North America, and were exceptionally successful. They posted a record of 522 wins and only 20 losses over that span, as they met any team that wanted to challenge them, funding their tours from gate receipts. The Grads also shone on several exhibition trips to Europe, and won four consecutive exhibition Olympics tournaments, in 1924, 1928, 1932, and 1936; however, women's basketball
6180-513: A trade to either New York or Los Angeles. He was traded for Elmore Smith , Brian Winters , Junior Bridgeman , and Dave Meyers . Abdul-Jabbar had his fourth MVP season in 1975–76 , leading the league in rebounding, blocked shots, and minutes played. The Lakers struggled in January, going 3–10, and finished out of the playoffs at 40–42. West and Cooke settled their differences—and the former Laker's lawsuit—and Cooke hired him to replace Sharman as
6386-523: A variety of shots – the layup , the jump shot , or a dunk ; on defense, they may steal the ball from a dribbler, intercept passes, or block shots; either offense or defense may collect a rebound , that is, a missed shot that bounces from rim or backboard. It is a violation to lift or drag one's pivot foot without dribbling the ball , to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling . The five players on each side fall into five playing positions . The tallest player
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6592-627: A winter season (April–September) and did so until the completion of the 20th season in 1998 . The 1998–99 season, which commenced only months later, was the first season after the shift to the current summer season format (October–April). This shift was an attempt to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes . It features 8 teams from around Australia and one in New Zealand. A few players including Luc Longley , Andrew Gaze , Shane Heal , Chris Anstey and Andrew Bogut made it big internationally, becoming poster figures for
6798-492: Is 28 meters (92 feet) long and 15 meters (49 feet) wide. In the NBA and NCAA the court is 94 by 50 feet (29 by 15 meters). Most courts have wood flooring , usually constructed from maple planks running in the same direction as the longer court dimension. The name and logo of the home team is usually painted on or around the center circle. The basket is a steel rim 18 inches (46 cm) diameter with an attached net affixed to
7004-404: Is called a shot. A successful shot is worth two points, or three points if it is taken from beyond the three-point arc 6.75 meters (22 ft 2 in) from the basket in international games and 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m) in NBA games. A one-point shot can be earned when shooting from the foul line after a foul is made. After a team has scored from a field goal or free throw, play
7210-585: Is currently no tournament to determine a national high school champion. The most serious effort was the National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament at the University of Chicago from 1917 to 1930. The event was organized by Amos Alonzo Stagg and sent invitations to state champion teams. The tournament started out as a mostly Midwest affair but grew. In 1929 it had 29 state champions. Faced with opposition from
7416-430: Is out of bounds if it touches a boundary line, or touches any player or object that is out of bounds. There are limits placed on the steps a player may take without dribbling, which commonly results in an infraction known as traveling . Nor may a player stop their dribble and then resume dribbling. A dribble that touches both hands is considered stopping the dribble, giving this infraction the name double dribble . Within
7622-453: Is resumed with a throw-in awarded to the non-scoring team taken from a point beyond the endline of the court where the points were scored. Games are played in four quarters of 10 ( FIBA ) or 12 minutes (NBA). College men's games use two 20-minute halves, college women's games use 10-minute quarters, and most United States high school varsity games use 8-minute quarters; however, this varies from state to state. 15 minutes are allowed for
7828-593: Is the WNBA ( NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship is also popular), whereas the strongest European clubs participate in the EuroLeague Women . A game similar to basketball is mentioned in a 1591 book published in Frankfurt am Main that reports on the lifestyles and customs of coastal North American residents, Wahrhafftige Abconterfaytung der Wilden (German; translates as Truthful Depictions of
8034-599: Is usually the center , the second-tallest and strongest is the power forward , a slightly shorter but more agile player is the small forward , and the shortest players or the best ball handlers are the shooting guard and the point guard , who implement the coach's game plan by managing the execution of offensive and defensive plays (player positioning). Informally, players may play three-on-three, two-on-two, and one-on-one. Invented in 1891 by Canadian-American gym teacher James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts , in
8240-616: The 1951–52 season , the Lakers won 40 games, finishing second in their division. They faced the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals , which they won in seven games. In the 1952–53 season, Mikan led the NBA in rebounding, averaging 14.4 rebounds per game (rpg), and was named MVP of the 1953 NBA All-Star Game . After a 48–22 regular season, the Lakers defeated the Fort Wayne Pistons in the Western playoffs to advance to
8446-549: The 1972–73 season , and took another Pacific Division title. Wilt Chamberlain, playing in his final season, again led the league in rebounding and set the NBA record for field-goal percentage at 72.7% which stood for several decades. The team defeated the Chicago Bulls in seven games in the conference semifinals, then the Golden State Warriors in five in the Western Division Finals. They played
Los Angeles Lakers - Misplaced Pages Continue
8652-402: The 1982 draft established the Lakers as an NBA powerhouse throughout the 1980s. The franchise won five championships in a nine-year span, including two out of three marquee 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 . After Riley departed and Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, and Worthy retired,
8858-403: The 1993–94 season , Pfund was fired during the season that would result in the Lakers failing to make the playoffs for the first time since 1976. Magic Johnson, would coach the final 16 games of the season with former teammate Michael Cooper as his lead assistant. Johnson decided not to take the job permanently due to what he felt was a lack of commitment from certain players, and Los Angeles ended
9064-431: The 1999–2000 season , West was prepared to hire Rambis as the team's full-time coach before an outcry from fans and members of the organization caused him to seek out a bigger name. Los Angeles hired former Chicago Bulls coach Phil Jackson , who had coached that team to six championships, and gave him a lucrative $ 6 million a year contract. He brought along assistant Tex Winter and they installed Winter's version of
9270-473: The 2004 Athens Olympics , the United States suffered its first Olympic loss while using professional players, falling to Puerto Rico (in a 19-point loss) and Lithuania in group games, and being eliminated in the semifinals by Argentina . It eventually won the bronze medal defeating Lithuania, finishing behind Argentina and Italy . The Redeem Team , won gold at the 2008 Olympics , and the B-Team, won gold at
9476-513: The 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey despite featuring no players from the 2008 squad. The United States continued its dominance as they won gold at the 2012 Olympics , 2014 FIBA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics . Worldwide, basketball tournaments are held for boys and girls of all age levels. The global popularity of the sport is reflected in the nationalities represented in the NBA. Players from all six inhabited continents currently play in
9682-517: The All American Red Heads Team , which competed against men's teams, using men's rules. By 1938, the women's national championship changed from a three-court game to two-court game with six players per team . The NBA-backed Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) began in 1997. Though it had shaky attendance figures, several marquee players ( Lisa Leslie , Diana Taurasi , and Candace Parker among others) have helped
9888-641: The Basketball Association of America (BAA), and Mikan's 28.3 point per game (ppg) scoring average set a BAA record. In the 1949 BAA Finals they won the championship, beating the Washington Capitols four games to two. Following the season, the BAA and the NBL merged to form the National Basketball Association (NBA). In the newly formed league, the Lakers improved to 51–17 record and won their third straight professional championship. In
10094-519: The Denver Nuggets 4–0, then the Utah Jazz 4–2 and then dethroned the erstwhile defending champion San Antonio Spurs 4–1 in the conference finals, making their 29th NBA Finals appearance. The Boston Celtics won both games in the regular season series: Note: team in Bold won the game Going into the game, LA have found themselves on the road in game 1 for the first time that playoffs. On
10300-601: The Detroit Gems and played in the National Basketball League (NBL) during the 1946–47 season where it finished last in the league with only 4 wins in 44 games. Though the team was scheduled to continue in the NBL the following season, its ownership, faced with high losses due to low attendance and lack of homecourt, decided on selling the team to Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen of Minnesota for $ 15,000 Minneapolis sportswriter Sid Hartman played
10506-510: The Dwight Howard -led Orlando Magic in the 2009 Eastern Conference Semifinals . The Lakers experienced a resurgence in the subsequent season, winning 65 games and clinching the 2009 NBA championship title in five games after overcoming the Dwight Howard -led Orlando Magic . Even though another mid-season injury to Andrew Bynum threatened their title drive, he did come back late in the season. The 2008-09 Los Angeles Lakers became
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#173279770887310712-732: The EuroLeague and the Basketball Champions League Americas . The FIBA Basketball World Cup and Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament are the major international events of the sport and attract top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for national teams, like EuroBasket and FIBA AmeriCup . The FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament feature top national teams from continental championships. The main North American league
10918-496: The Golden State Warriors later achieved this feat in 2022 . In the 1985–86 season , the Lakers started 24–3 and went on to win 62 games and their fifth straight division title. The Rockets , however, defeated the Lakers in five games in the Western Conference Finals . Houston won the series when Ralph Sampson hit a 20-foot jumper as time expired in game five at The Forum. Prior to the 1986–87 season ,
11124-562: The NBA Finals in 10 years, they once again faced the Detroit Pistons . Hampered by injuries to Byron Scott and Johnson, the Lakers were swept by Detroit. Following the 1989 Finals, on June 28, 1989, after 20 professional seasons, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar announced his retirement. The Lakers still cruised through the Pacific Division, winning their ninth consecutive division crown with a 63–19 record. However, after beating
11330-498: The NBA Finals . In the Finals, they would lose to Detroit in five games. During the 2004 off-season, the team entered a rebuilding phase when O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom , Brian Grant , Caron Butler , and a first-round draft pick. Bryant and O'Neal had clashed in the past , and the media credited their feud as one of the motivating factors for the trade. Jackson did not return as head coach, and wrote
11536-682: The National Federation of State High School Associations and North Central Association of Colleges and Schools that bore a threat of the schools losing their accreditation the last tournament was in 1930. The organizations said they were concerned that the tournament was being used to recruit professional players from the prep ranks. The tournament did not invite minority schools or private/parochial schools. The National Catholic Interscholastic Basketball Tournament ran from 1924 to 1941 at Loyola University . The National Catholic Invitational Basketball Tournament from 1954 to 1978 played at
11742-634: The National Hockey League . The Lakers are one of the most successful teams in the history of the NBA with 17 championships, the second most in the league behind the Boston Celtics . The franchise began in 1946 as the Detroit Gems of the National Basketball League (NBL). After one season, a new ownership relocated the team to Minneapolis , Minnesota , and renamed the team as the Minneapolis Lakers . The Lakers won
11948-822: The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in New York, was organized in 1938; the NCAA national tournament began one year later. College basketball was rocked by gambling scandals from 1948 to 1951 , when dozens of players from top teams were implicated in game-fixing and point shaving . Partially spurred by an association with cheating, the NIT lost support to the NCAA tournament. Before widespread school district consolidation, most American high schools were far smaller than their present-day counterparts. During
12154-472: The New Jersey Nets in the NBA Finals . O'Neal won each of the Finals series' MVP awards, making him the only player besides Michael Jordan to win three consecutive Finals MVPs. The Lakers would attempt a four-peat the following year, but started the 2002–03 season 11–19. However, they finished the season 39–13 to finish 50–32. They defeated Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs , but
12360-595: The Nuggets , defeating the Warriors in five games, and sweeping the SuperSonics in the Western Conference Finals . The Lakers defeated Boston in the first two games of the Finals, and the teams split the next four games, giving Los Angeles their second championship in three seasons. The series was highlighted by Johnson's running "baby hook" shot to win game four at Boston Garden with two seconds remaining. Johnson
12566-708: The Original Celtics and two all-African American teams, the New York Renaissance Five ("Rens") and the (still existing) Harlem Globetrotters played up to two hundred games a year on their national tours. In 1946, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed. The first game was played in Toronto , Ontario, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and New York Knickerbockers on November 1, 1946. Three seasons later, in 1949,
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#173279770887312772-490: The Rockets in the first round, they lost four games to one in the second round of the playoffs to the Suns . Riley announced he was stepping down after the season citing burnout , and was replaced by Mike Dunleavy . Riley's departure received a mixed reaction from the players. They respected his contributions, but some, such as Worthy and Scott, had grown tired of his intense practices and felt he tried to take too much credit for
12978-572: The Soviet Union , Brazil and Australia rivaling the American squads. In 1989, FIBA allowed professional NBA players to participate in the Olympics for the first time. Prior to the 1992 Summer Olympics , only European and South American teams were allowed to field professionals in the Olympics. The United States' dominance continued with the introduction of the original Dream Team . In
13184-535: The Spurs in the first round of the Western Conference Finals before pulling out a tough seven-game series win over the Utah Jazz led by youngsters Karl Malone and John Stockton . A seven-game Western Conference finals win over the Dallas Mavericks propelled the Lakers to the NBA Finals once again. In their seventh trip to the Finals in nine years, they met the Detroit Pistons . Los Angeles would take
13390-608: The Syracuse Nationals in seven games. Following Mikan's retirement in the 1954 off-season, the Lakers struggled but still managed to win 40 games. Although they defeated the Rochester Royals in the first round of the playoffs, they were defeated by the Fort Wayne Pistons in the semifinals. Although they had losing records the next two seasons, they made the playoffs each year. Mikan came back for
13596-400: The University of Chicago , Columbia University , Cornell University , Dartmouth College , the University of Minnesota , the U.S. Naval Academy , the University of Colorado and Yale University began sponsoring men's games. In 1905, frequent injuries on the football field prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to suggest that colleges form a governing body, resulting in the creation of
13802-478: The University of Chicago , while Adolph Rupp , a student of Naismith's at Kansas, enjoyed great success as coach at the University of Kentucky . On February 9, 1895, the first intercollegiate 5-on-5 game was played at Hamline University between Hamline and the School of Agriculture, which was affiliated with the University of Minnesota . The School of Agriculture won in a 9–3 game. In 1901, colleges, including
14008-572: The Western Conference playoffs . In the NBA Finals , the Celtics were again the Lakers' final hurdle. Los Angeles lost game one of the NBA Finals by a score of 148–114, in what is remembered as the "Memorial Day Massacre". The Lakers, behind 38-year-old Finals MVP Abdul-Jabbar, recovered to defeat the Celtics in six games. The team won the title in the Boston Garden and became the first visiting team to ever win an NBA championship in Boston, as
14214-567: The playoffs , they swept Portland and defeated San Antonio four games to one to advance to the Western Conference Finals to face Sacramento . The series would go on to be known as one of the greatest playoff matchups in NBA history. The series extended to all seven games and ended in a Lakers victory. In game one, Bryant scored 30 points as the Lakers won, 106–99. The series would then shift in Sacramento's favor, with
14420-531: The triangle offense . The Lakers signed veterans Brian Shaw , John Salley , Ron Harper , and A.C. Green , who was a Laker during the "Showtime" era. The team also moved to a new arena, the Staples Center. Led by league MVP O'Neal, the Lakers won 31 of their first 36 games. They finished 67–15, the highest win total since they won 65 in the 1986–87 season . Then eliminated Sacramento and Phoenix in
14626-408: The 1948 NBL championship before joining the rival Basketball Association of America , where they won the 1949 BAA championship. Following 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 relocated to Los Angeles before the 1960–61 season . The Lakers made the NBA Finals six times in
14832-554: The 1950–51 season, Mikan won his third straight scoring title at 28.4 ppg and the Lakers went 44–24 to win their second straight division title. One of those games, a 19–18 loss against the Fort Wayne Pistons , became infamous as the lowest scoring game in NBA history. In the playoffs, they defeated the Indianapolis Olympians in three games but lost to the Rochester Royals in the next round. During
15038-404: 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 the retirement of Chamberlain, the team traded for superstar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar . Two big changes came in 1979, first, Jerry Buss purchased
15244-502: The 1994 Knicks, the first round was a best-of-five. Since the NBA Finals used the 2-3-2 format from 1985 until 2013 , no team has ever won the last two games on the road. After a rocky first quarter, the Celtics dominated the rest of the game. Maintaining a lead of more than 25 points, the Celtics' Big Three performed phenomenally, while the whole team smothered the Lakers' offense with their tight defense. Boston dominated in numerous statistical categories, including rebounds (48–29, with
15450-481: The 2008 postseason. Saša Vujačić scored 20 points in 28 minutes, Paul Pierce had a poor shooting game, making only two of his 14 field goal attempts. Kevin Garnett also had trouble shooting, finishing with only 12 points. Ray Allen was the only member of Boston's Big Three that scored over 13 points, with 25. The Lakers jumped out to a 35–14 lead after the first quarter, which was the largest first-quarter lead in NBA Finals history. The Lakers held their ground for most of
15656-546: The 2016–17 season, 980,673 boys and girls represented their schools in interscholastic basketball competition, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations . The states of Illinois , Indiana and Kentucky are particularly well known for their residents' devotion to high school basketball, commonly called Hoosier Hysteria in Indiana; the critically acclaimed film Hoosiers shows high school basketball's depth of meaning to these communities. There
15862-464: The BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the National Basketball Association (NBA). By the 1950s, basketball had become a major college sport, thus paving the way for a growth of interest in professional basketball. In 1959, a basketball hall of fame was founded in Springfield , Massachusetts, site of the first game. Its rosters include the names of great players, coaches, referees and people who have contributed significantly to
16068-428: The Celtics again came back with a 16–2 run to tie the game at 90. With less than one minute left in the game, the Celtics had the ball with the Lakers leading 97–95. Pierce beat Bryant off the drive, but Bryant knocked the ball out of Pierce's hands from behind. Lamar Odom picked up the loose ball and passed downcourt to Bryant for a breakaway dunk, giving the Lakers a 99–95 lead. The Lakers went on to win 103–98, sending
16274-465: The Celtics came back, taking a 62–60 lead behind the strong play of Paul Pierce . The Lakers finally regained their composure, outscoring Boston 24–18 in the 3rd quarter. In previous games, the Lakers were outscored by Boston in the 3rd quarter (22–31 in Game 1, 19–29 in Game 2, 17–25 in Game 3, and 15–31 in Game 4) by a total of 43 points (73–116). The Lakers built a 14-point lead in the 4th quarter, but
16480-490: The Celtics only turned the ball over seven times and set a Finals record with 18 steals, and every Boston player who saw action scored. The 39-point margin of victory was the largest ever in an NBA championship-clinching game, breaking the old record of 33, also set by the Celtics over the Lakers in Game Five of the 1965 NBA Finals , 129–96. This lead was close to the Finals point-spread record set in Game 3 in 1998 where
16686-537: The Celtics to a dramatic 42-game turnaround, finishing with 66 wins. In the playoffs, the Celtics were pushed to the brink by the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers , and despite not winning on the road, managed to prevail in a pair of Game 7s on their home court . The Celtics would finally break their road woes in a six-game win against the perennial Eastern Conference powerhouse Detroit Pistons , earning their first finals berth since 1987. After losing to
16892-410: The Celtics won the NBA Finals in 1986 before this championship. Roster Last transaction: March 4, 2008 Roster Last transaction: March 21, 2008 The Finals, produced by ESPN , were aired on ABC in the United States for the sixth consecutive year. This was also Michele Tafoya 's last Finals appearance as a sideline reporter due to her resignation shortly before the 2008–09 season . She
17098-414: The Celtics' best regular season (66–16) since their previous championship season in which they went 67–15. It was also a sense of relief, as the Celtics set an NBA record for most playoff games ever needed to win a championship, with 26, surpassing the previous record of 24 by the Lakers in 1988 . The Celtics' win was also seen as an addition to the recent success of Boston-area sports teams , following
17304-406: The Celtics, while others noted that a difference in playing styles may have led to the discrepancy, and that the actual foul discrepancy was only 28–21 in favor of Boston. The Lakers won game 3 on a strong shooting night from regular season MVP Kobe Bryant , who scored a series-high 36 points, leading the Lakers to their first win of the series and adding to their undefeated streak at home in
17510-533: The Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. Thus, the sport quickly spread throughout America's schools, colleges and universities with uniform rules for both sexes. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball . These round balls from " association football " were made, at the time, with a set of laces to close off the hole needed for inserting
17716-503: The Finals in 12 years. The 1991 Finals represented a changing of the guard as the Lakers were defeated in five games by the Chicago Bulls , led by superstar Michael Jordan . On November 7, 1991, Magic Johnson announced he had tested positive for HIV and would retire immediately. In their first season without Johnson, the team won 43 games to earn the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs . The Lakers were defeated in
17922-492: The G League has 31 teams. FIBA (International Basketball Federation) was formed in 1932 by eight founding nations: Argentina , Czechoslovakia , Greece , Italy , Latvia , Portugal , Romania and Switzerland . At this time, the organization only oversaw amateur players. Its acronym, derived from the French Fédération Internationale de Basket-ball Amateur , was thus "FIBA". Men's basketball
18128-665: The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS). In 1910, that body changed its name to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The first Canadian interuniversity basketball game was played at YMCA in Kingston , Ontario on February 6, 1904, when McGill University – Naismith's alma mater – visited Queen's University . McGill won 9–7 in overtime;
18334-405: The Kings winning the next two games. Facing a deficit in game 4, the Lakers had the ball with under 20 seconds to play. After misses by both Bryant and O'Neal, Kings center Vlade Divac tapped the ball away from the rim in an attempt to wind down the clock. It went straight into Robert Horry 's hands, who drained a game-winning three with under three seconds to play. After the Kings won game five on
18540-479: The Lakers and Celtics, with Los Angeles winning its 16th title. Jackson retired in 2011, and the Lakers endured their longest playoff drought in franchise history. Gasol departed 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 big man Anthony Davis . The Lakers—led by James, Davis, and coach Frank Vogel —won
18746-506: The Lakers defeated Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers four games to two win their first title since 1988 . West retired from his spot in the team's front office after the season after a power struggle between him and Jackson over control of the team's operations. After the season, starters Rice and Green left the team, and Los Angeles signed Horace Grant . The following season , the Lakers won 11 fewer regular season games than
18952-406: The Lakers finished 34–48, missing the playoffs for only the fifth time in franchise history and the first time since 1994 . Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court , compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately 9.4 inches (24 cm) in diameter) through
19158-403: The Lakers for the 2005–06 season . Jackson and Bryant would patch up their differences, but after a pair of first-round exits, Bryant demanded, but later retracted, a trade in the off-season. The Lakers' 2007–08 season saw the team win 57 games, along the way adding Spanish forward Pau Gasol in mid-season while Andrew Bynum was recovering from a mid-season knee injury. The Lakers eliminated
19364-460: The Lakers had the first overall pick (the result of a trade with Cleveland midway through the 1979–80 season, when the Lakers had sent Don Ford and a 1980 first-round pick to the Cavaliers for Butch Lee and their 1982 selection) and selected James Worthy from North Carolina . The Lakers won the Pacific Division at 58–24, but Worthy suffered a leg injury in the last week of the season and missed
19570-461: The Lakers improved to 54–26 in 1961–62 , and made the finals . In a game five victory, Baylor grabbed 22 rebounds and set the still-standing NBA record for points in a finals game with 61, despite fouling out of the game. The Lakers, however, lost to the Celtics by three points in overtime of game seven. Frank Selvy , after making two jumpers in the final 40 seconds to tie the game, missed a potential game-winning 18 foot jump shot in regulation,
19776-530: The Lakers moved A.C. Green into the starting lineup, and acquired Mychal Thompson from the Spurs. Johnson won his first career MVP Award while leading the Lakers to a 65–17 record, and Michael Cooper was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Before the season, Riley had made the decision to shift the focus of the offense to Johnson over the 40-year-old Abdul-Jabbar. The Lakers advanced to the NBA Finals by sweeping
19982-430: The Lakers on Christmas Day in a fateful finals rematch, bringing an end to their franchise-high 19-game winning streak. Shortly after the 2009 All-Star Game , Kevin Garnett suffered a devastating right knee injury which sidelined him for the remainder of the season. Despite finishing the season with 62 wins, the absence of Garnett had a noticeable impact on the team's performance as they were eliminated in seven games by
20188-468: The Lakers rallied to finish 47–35 and win the Pacific Division. They made the playoffs but managed just one win against Milwaukee in the conference semifinals. Following the season, West retired due to contract disagreements with Cooke, and filed a suit for unpaid back wages. After missing the playoffs in the 1974–75 season , the Lakers acquired Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , who had won three league MVPs by that time. Abdul-Jabbar wanted out of Milwaukee, demanding
20394-400: The Lakers struggled in the early 1990s. It was not until 1996 when the team traded with the Charlotte Hornets for the draft rights to Kobe Bryant and signed center Shaquille O'Neal that the Lakers returned to dominance during the early 2000s. The superstar duo, along with Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson , led the Lakers to three consecutive championships between 2000 and 2002 , securing
20600-469: The Lakers to come back from a 3–1 deficit, Jackson said, "We're young enough and dumb enough to do this." Entering Game 6, the Celtics set a record of most playoff games played in one season, with 26, breaking the previous record of 25 set by both the 1994 New York Knicks , whom Celtics Coach Doc Rivers played for, and the 2005 Detroit Pistons , both of whom lost in their respective finals in seven games (Knicks in 1994 , Pistons in 2005 ). However, for
20806-474: 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 . The combination of Johnson, a prodigy point guard , and dominant center in Abdul-Jabbar provided the Lakers with superstars to anchor their roster. The promotion of head coach Pat Riley in 1981 and addition of forward James Worthy through
21012-510: The Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at the Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. These rules, designed by Berenson, were published in 1899. In 1902 Berenson became the editor of A. G. Spalding 's first Women's Basketball Guide. The same year women of Mount Holyoke and Sophie Newcomb College (coached by Clara Gregory Baer ), began playing basketball. By 1895,
21218-489: The NBA Finals . They then defeated the New York Knicks to win their second straight championship. Though Lakers star George Mikan suffered from knee problems throughout the 1953–54 season, he was still able to average 18 ppg. Clyde Lovellette , who was drafted in 1952 , helped the team win the Western Division. The team won its third straight championship in the 1950s and fifth in six seasons when it defeated
21424-484: The NBA) for a short meeting with the players, are allowed. They generally last no longer than one minute (100 seconds in the NBA) unless, for televised games, a commercial break is needed. The game is controlled by the officials consisting of the referee (referred to as crew chief in the NBA), one or two umpires (referred to as referees in the NBA) and the table officials. For college, the NBA, and many high schools, there are
21630-404: The NBA, and U Sports (Canadian universities) play for both sexes, and 30 seconds in NCAA play for both sexes), holding the ball while closely guarded (5 seconds), and remaining in the restricted area known as the free-throw lane, (or the " key ") (3 seconds). These rules are designed to promote more offense. There are also limits on how players may block an opponent's field goal attempt or help
21836-704: The NBA. Top international players began coming into the NBA in the mid-1990s, including Croatians Dražen Petrović and Toni Kukoč , Serbian Vlade Divac , Lithuanians Arvydas Sabonis and Šarūnas Marčiulionis , Dutchman Rik Smits and German Detlef Schrempf . In the Philippines, the Philippine Basketball Association 's first game was played on April 9, 1975, at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao , Quezon City , Philippines. It
22042-483: The New York Knicks in the 1973 NBA Finals . Los Angeles took the first game by three points, but New York won the series in five games. During the 1973–74 season , the team was hampered by the loss of West, who played only 31 games before his legs gave out. Goodrich, averaging 25.3 points, helped the team to a late-season surge. Trailing the Golden State Warriors by three games with seven left to play,
22248-641: The New York Knicks, who defeated them 4–3. The next season the Lakers were defeated by the Milwaukee Bucks , led by future Laker Lew Alcindor (now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ) in the Western Conference Finals. The 1971–72 season brought several changes. Owner Jack Kent Cooke brought in Bill Sharman as head coach, and Elgin Baylor announced his retirement early in the season after realizing that his legs were not healthy enough. Sharman increased
22454-535: The Pistons in the 2004 NBA Finals , despite a talent-laden roster, Phil Jackson abruptly retired. Soon after, the Lakers decided to rebuild by trading away Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom , Caron Butler and Brian Grant . The 2004–05 season saw the Lakers miss the playoffs for only the fifth time in team history. Even though he had written a book called The Last Season , going as far as calling Kobe Bryant "uncoachable," Jackson returned to
22660-593: The Savages : "Among other things, a game of skill is described in which balls must be thrown against a target woven from twigs, mounted high on a pole. There's a small reward for the player if the target is being hit." In December 1891, James Naismith , a Canadian-American professor of physical education and instructor at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School (now Springfield College ) in Springfield, Massachusetts ,
22866-428: The United States, and it quickly spread through the United States and Canada. By 1895, it was well established at several women's high schools. While YMCA was responsible for initially developing and spreading the game, within a decade it discouraged the new sport, as rough play and rowdy crowds began to detract from YMCA's primary mission. However, other amateur sports clubs, colleges, and professional clubs quickly filled
23072-459: The United States, basketball has evolved to become one of the world's most popular and widely viewed sports. The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the most significant professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition (drawing most of its talent from U.S. college basketball ). Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as
23278-454: The WNBA to break even this year." Measurements and time limits discussed in this section often vary among tournaments and organizations; international and NBA rules are used in this section. The object of the game is to outscore one's opponents by throwing the ball through the opponents' basket from above while preventing the opponents from doing so on their own. An attempt to score in this way
23484-492: The Warriors. The team hired Rudy Tomjanovich to replace Jackson. After sitting out the first half of the 2004–05 season , Malone announced his retirement on February 13, 2005. Tomjanovich coached the team to a 22–19 record before resigning due to health problems. Assistant Frank Hamblen was named interim head coach to replace Tomjanovich for the remainder of the season. Bryant (ankle) and Odom (shoulder) suffered injuries, and
23690-564: The Year Gary Payton to join O'Neal and Bryant, forming the first "superteam" of the 21st century. Three of the "big four", however, struggled with injuries: O'Neal suffered from a strained calf, Malone an injured knee, and Bryant an injured shoulder. The Lakers started 18–3 and finished 56–26 and won the Pacific Division title, entering the playoffs as the No. 2 seed. They defeated Houston , San Antonio , and Minnesota to advance to
23896-407: The act of shooting, depending on whether the shot was successful. One point is awarded for making a free throw, which is attempted from a line 15 feet (4.6 m) from the basket. 2008 NBA Finals The 2008 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association 's (NBA) 2007–08 season and conclusion of the season's playoffs . A best-of-seven playoff series that
24102-407: The allotted game time, typically about two hours. Five players from each team may be on the court at one time. Substitutions are unlimited but can only be done when play is stopped. Teams also have a coach, who oversees the development and strategies of the team, and other team personnel such as assistant coaches, managers, statisticians, doctors and trainers. For both men's and women's teams,
24308-409: The and-one poster. The Lakers, led by Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol , jumped out to an early 15–8 first quarter lead, when the Celtics brought in sophomore Leon Powe, who was able to bring the Celtics back in the game, as his physical style of play took him to the free-throw line 10 times in his first 3 minutes of action. Despite Powe's heroics, the Lakers could still keep up with the Celtics and have won
24514-490: The basket if one is scored. The defense gains possession in all cases of goaltending or basket interference. An attempt to unfairly disadvantage an opponent through certain types of physical contact is illegal and is called a personal foul. These are most commonly committed by defensive players; however, they can be committed by offensive players as well. Players who are fouled either receive the ball to pass inbounds again, or receive one or more free throws if they are fouled in
24720-414: The basketball is also regulated. For men, the official ball is 29.5 inches (75 cm) in circumference (size 7, or a "295 ball") and weighs 22 oz (620 g). If women are playing, the official basketball size is 28.5 inches (72 cm) in circumference (size 6, or a "285 ball") with a weight of 20 oz (570 g). In 3x3 , a formalized version of the halfcourt 3-on-3 game, a dedicated ball with
24926-473: The blowout was Leon Powe with back-to-back poster slams over the Lakers' defense. The Celtics' dominance transferred into the beginning of the fourth, as they jumped to a 24-point lead with little bit more than 7 minutes to play. Vladimir Radmanović and Saša Vujačić started shooting the lights out of the Celtics defense which had fallen asleep in the fourth, and before you knew it, the lead was down to 12. Kobe's shots also started falling, as he scored 22 points in
25132-516: The champion dwindled after 1954 when Brown v. Board of Education began an integration of schools. The last tournaments were held at Alabama State College from 1964 to 1967. Teams abounded throughout the 1920s. There were hundreds of men's professional basketball teams in towns and cities all over the United States, and little organization of the professional game. Players jumped from team to team and teams played in armories and smoky dance halls. Leagues came and went. Barnstorming squads such as
25338-419: The circumference of a size 6 ball but the weight of a size 7 ball is used in all competitions (men's, women's, and mixed teams). The ball may be advanced toward the basket by being shot, passed between players, thrown, tapped, rolled or dribbled (bouncing the ball while running). The ball must stay within the court; the last team to touch the ball before it travels out of bounds forfeits possession. The ball
25544-445: The course of the game, Powe shot 13 free throws while the Lakers shot 10. Despite injuries suffered by Pierce (sprained knee) and Kendrick Perkins (high ankle sprain), both players started in Game 2 and appeared to be mostly unhampered by the injuries, especially Pierce who finished with 28 points. Boston finished the game 27-for-38 from the line, while the Lakers were 10-for-10. Some analysts viewed this as favorable treatment toward
25750-439: The court and backboard, it is considered important for the basket to be of the correct height – a rim that is off by just a few inches can have an adverse effect on shooting. The net must "check the ball momentarily as it passes through the basket" to aid the visual confirmation that the ball went through. The act of checking the ball has the further advantage of slowing down the ball so the rebound does not go as far. The size of
25956-403: The defender's hoop (a basket 18 inches (46 cm) in diameter mounted 10 feet (3.048 m) high to a backboard at each end of the court), while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line , when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot
26162-626: The development of the game. The hall of fame has people who have accomplished many goals in their career in basketball. An upstart organization, the American Basketball Association , emerged in 1967 and briefly threatened the NBA's dominance until the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. Today the NBA is the top professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition. The NBA has featured many famous players, including George Mikan ,
26368-456: The division finals, behind West's record-setting 46.3 ppg in the series. They lost again to the Celtics in the Finals however, this time in five games. Los Angeles lost in the finals to Boston in seven games again in 1966, this time by two points. Down by 16 entering the fourth quarter, and 10 with a minute and a half to go, the Lakers mounted a furious rally in the closing moments, which fell just short. After dropping to 36 wins and losing in
26574-485: The division finals, they returned to the NBA Finals, but were swept by the Celtics, beginning their long rivalry. In their last year in Minneapolis, the Lakers went 25–50. On January 18, 1960, the team was coming off a loss and traveling to St. Louis when their plane crash-landed. Snow storms had driven the pilot 150 miles off course when he was forced to land in a cornfield. No one was hurt. Their record earned them
26780-833: The ending of the game was replayed three times until the Soviet Union finally came out on top. In 1950 the first FIBA World Championship for men, now known as the FIBA Basketball World Cup , was held in Argentina. Three years later, the first FIBA World Championship for women, now known as the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup , was held in Chile. Women's basketball was added to the Olympics in 1976, which were held in Montreal , Quebec, Canada with teams such as
26986-444: The fact that Kobe exploded in that third quarter, hitting and defending shots from anywhere inside the arc, before getting himself in foul trouble late in the third. Paul Pierce scored 15 points on 4-4 shooting from the field in the third quarter to give Boston the lead going into the fourth. Then in the fourth, the Celtics never trailed. Kobe sitting out the first half of the quarter due to foul trouble allowed Boston to slowly increase
27192-478: The first decades of the 20th century, basketball quickly became the ideal interscholastic sport due to its modest equipment and personnel requirements. In the days before widespread television coverage of professional and college sports, the popularity of high school basketball was unrivaled in many parts of America. Perhaps the most legendary of high school teams was Indiana's Franklin Wonder Five , which took
27398-803: The first dominating "big man"; ball-handling wizard Bob Cousy and defensive genius Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics ; charismatic center Wilt Chamberlain , who originally played for the barnstorming Harlem Globetrotters ; all-around stars Oscar Robertson and Jerry West ; more recent big men Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , Shaquille O'Neal , Hakeem Olajuwon and Karl Malone ; playmakers John Stockton , Isiah Thomas and Steve Nash ; crowd-pleasing forwards Julius Erving and Charles Barkley ; European stars Dirk Nowitzki , Pau Gasol and Tony Parker ; Latin American stars Manu Ginobili , more recent superstars, Allen Iverson , Kobe Bryant , Tim Duncan , LeBron James , Stephen Curry , Giannis Antetokounmpo , etc.; and
27604-441: The first half of game 1, as he scored 16 points in the first half. For the Lakers, Kobe got himself into foul trouble and the technical, which he got for taunting Ray Allen after making a tough lefty layup over him, didn't help. The Lakers team effort was the only thing keeping them alive in this game. The first half ended with the Boston Celtics holding a commanding 54–42 lead. While the Lakers might have looked like something in
27810-594: The first overall pick. It took Johnson's teammates time to acclimate themselves to his passing ability, as his "no-look" passes often caught them unaware. Once they adjusted, his passing became a key part of Los Angeles' offense. The Lakers won 60 games in Johnson's rookie year, and defeated the Philadelphia 76ers in six games in the 1980 NBA Finals . Johnson won the Finals MVP award, after starting at center for
28016-470: The first pick in the 1947 Professional Basketball League of America dispersal draft, which they used to select George Mikan . Led by Mikan, the Lakers had a solid roster, which also featured forward Jim Pollard and playmaker Herm Schaefer . In their first season, they led the league with a 43–17 record, later winning the NBL Championship that season. In 1948, the Lakers moved from the NBL to
28222-428: The first quarter with a score of 22–20. In the second quarter, the Celtics decided to up the pace, and were able to rack up 10 unanswered points, as their defense has stopped LA's offense who haven't scored for the first 3 minutes of the quarter. The Celtics' defense also forced 9 turnovers by the Lakers (for reference, they had 8 turnovers in all of game 1) Paul Pierce decided to make up for his poor offensive efforts in
28428-533: The first round by Portland . Following the season, head coach Mike Dunleavy was fired. The Lakers would lose 43 games in 1992–93 under Randy Pfund , their first losing season since 1976. The Lakers would still make the playoffs, and would become the first eighth seed to win the opening two games on the road against a number one seed when they took a 2–0 lead against Phoenix . They lost the next two games at home however, then game five in Phoenix in overtime. During
28634-488: The first round of the 1967 NBA playoffs , they lost in the finals to the Celtics again in 1968. Los Angeles moved to a brand-new arena, The Forum , in 1967, after playing seven seasons at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena . On July 9, 1968, the team acquired Wilt Chamberlain from the Philadelphia 76ers for Darrell Imhoff, Archie Clark , and Jerry Chambers . In his first season as
28840-447: The first team since the 1988–89 Detroit Pistons to win the NBA Finals after losing it in the previous year. Both teams would eventually meet again in 2010 , where the Lakers exacted revenge by finding themselves pitted against the Boston Celtics for the first time in two years. The Lakers avenged their 2008 NBA Finals loss and repeated as NBA Champions after besting Boston in seven games, winning their fifth NBA Championship title in
29046-490: The first three games. However, Kevin McHale 's hard clothesline foul of Lakers forward Kurt Rambis on a fast break is credited as a turning point of the series. Boston won three of the next four to win the title and send Los Angeles's record to 0–8 in Finals series against the Celtics. Using the past year's Finals defeat as motivation, the team won the Pacific Division for the fourth straight year and lost just two games in
29252-470: The first three rounds and had not trailed a series in that same time, now had to do without both luxuries for the first time. From the tip-off, this game was bound to be legendary. One of the first plays of the game has shown us how much the Lakers needed the win here: Kobe ran down the floor after getting the rebound and passing it to Pau Gasol who was posting up Kevin Garnett. He made one drop step, pushed of Garnett with his body, and then went up with it for
29458-406: The first two rounds of the playoffs . After the Lakers took a three games to one lead in the Western Conference Finals against Portland , the Trail Blazers won the next two games to force a game seven. The Lakers, who trailed by 15 points in the fourth quarter, would go on 19–4 run to tie the game and eventually win 89–84 to advance to the NBA Finals . In their first trip to the Finals since 1991 ,
29664-406: The first-ever rights fees to be paid to a women's professional sports league. Over the eight years of the contract, "millions and millions of dollars" were "dispersed to the league's teams." In a March 12, 2009, article, NBA commissioner David Stern said that in the bad economy, "the NBA is far less profitable than the WNBA. We're losing a lot of money among a large number of teams. We're budgeting
29870-455: The four-peat attempt ended as they were eliminated by San Antonio in six games in the second round. During the 2003–04 season , the team was the subject of intense media coverage generated by the teaming of four stars and the sexual-assault case involving Kobe Bryant . Before the season, the Lakers signed two-time MVP Karl Malone formerly of the Jazz , and former Seattle Defensive Player of
30076-408: The franchise's second " three-peat ". The dynamic " Shaq-and-Kobe " era ended when the Lakers traded away O'Neal after the team lost to the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 Finals . It was not until the Lakers traded for Pau Gasol that Bryant and Jackson returned to the NBA Finals, losing to the Celtics in 2008 but winning championships in 2009 and 2010 . The 2010 Finals marked the latest matchup of
30282-425: The game had spread to colleges across the country, including Wellesley , Vassar , and Bryn Mawr . The first intercollegiate women's game was on April 4, 1896. Stanford women played Berkeley , 9-on-9, ending in a 2–1 Stanford victory. Women's basketball development was more structured than that for men in the early years. In 1905, the executive committee on Basket Ball Rules (National Women's Basketball Committee)
30488-489: The inflatable bladder after the other sewn-together segments of the ball's cover had been flipped outside-in. These laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith (whereas in American football , the lace construction proved to be advantageous for gripping and remains to this day). The first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, and it
30694-458: The injured Abdul-Jabbar in game six, and tallying 42 points, 15 rebounds, and seven assists. The team fell off in the 1980–81 season , though, as the Lakers lost Johnson for most of the season to a knee injury. The team turned in a 54–28 record and finished second behind the Phoenix Suns in the Pacific Division. The Rockets , led by Moses Malone , defeated Los Angeles in the first round of
30900-496: The last half of the 1955–56 season , but struggled and retired for good after the season. Led by Lovellette's 20.6 points and 13.5 rebounds, they advanced to the Conference Finals in 1956–57. The Lakers had one of the worst seasons in team history in 1957–58 when they won a league-low 19 games. They had hired Mikan, who had been the team's general manager for the previous two seasons, as head coach to replace Kundla. Mikan
31106-589: The last ten seasons. The Lakers would not return to the NBA Finals again until a decade later, where the 2019-2020 team , led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis , won the NBA championship . The Celtics would not return to make another appearance in the Finals again until 12 years later in 2022 , where the Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum -led team eventually succumbed to the Stephen Curry -led Golden State Warriors in six games. Two years thereafter,
31312-452: The lead all the way up to 10. Garnett's putback dunk over 2 Lakers defenders sealed the Celtics victory, completing his 24 points alongside 13 rebounds performance. For the Lakers, Kobe Bryant had 24 points. The Boston Celtics ended up winning game 1 with a final score of 98–88. Pierce apparently injured his knee by falling awkwardly on Kendrick Perkins' leg, and was taken off the court in a wheelchair. Despite what Pierce's reaction suggested
31518-556: The league's popularity and level of competition. Other professional women's basketball leagues in the United States, such as the American Basketball League (1996–98) , have folded in part because of the popularity of the WNBA. The WNBA has been looked at by many as a niche league. However, the league has recently taken steps forward. In June 2007, the WNBA signed a contract extension with ESPN . The new television deal ran from 2009 to 2016. Along with this deal, came
31724-423: The mezzanine balcony of the playing court, but this proved impractical when spectators in the balcony began to interfere with shots. The backboard was introduced to prevent this interference; it had the additional effect of allowing rebound shots. Naismith's handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006, indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated rules from
31930-489: The nation by storm during the 1920s, dominating Indiana basketball and earning national recognition. Today virtually every high school in the United States fields a basketball team in varsity competition. Basketball's popularity remains high, both in rural areas where they carry the identification of the entire community, as well as at some larger schools known for their basketball teams where many players go on to participate at higher levels of competition after graduation. In
32136-402: The nearby Smith College , went to Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by the new sport and the values it could teach, she started to organize games with her pupils, following adjusted rules. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played barely 11 months later, between the University of California and the Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at
32342-400: The new sport and the values it could teach, she instantly introduced the game as a class exercise and soon after teams were organized. The first women's collegiate basketball game was played on March 21, 1893, when her Smith freshmen and sophomores played against one another. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played later that year between the University of California and
32548-436: The next round, the Lakers lost in five games to the Utah Jazz . In the 1997–98 season , O'Neal and the Lakers had the best start in franchise history, 11–0. O'Neal would miss 20 games on the season due to an abdominal injury. Los Angeles battled Seattle for the Pacific Division title most of the season. In the final two months, the Lakers won 22 of their final 25 games, finishing 61–21, but still finished second to Seattle in
32754-458: The number two pick in the 1960 NBA draft . The team selected Jerry West from West Virginia University . During the 1960 off-season, the Lakers became the NBA's first West Coast team when owner Bob Short decided to move the team to Los Angeles. Led by Baylor's 34.8 ppg and 19.8 rpg, Los Angeles won 11 more than the year before in West's first season. On November 15 that season, Baylor set
32960-458: The off-season, Los Angeles picked up Jamaal Wilkes from Golden State and signed first-round draft pick Norm Nixon . In the first two minutes of the first game of the 1977–78 season, Abdul-Jabbar punched Bucks center Kent Benson for an overly aggressive elbow and broke his hand. Two months later, a healthy Abdul-Jabbar got into an altercation with Houston Rockets center Kevin Kunnert after
33166-458: The offense, a violation of these rules results in loss of possession; for the defense, most leagues reset the shot clock and the offensive team is given possession of the ball out of bounds. There are limits imposed on the time taken before progressing the ball past halfway (8 seconds in FIBA and the NBA; 10 seconds in NCAA and high school for both sexes), before attempting a shot (24 seconds in FIBA,
33372-456: The other hand, Boston, who were the league's best team, had home court advantage for the series. The game started very tight, with teams trading buckets and turnovers. For Boston, the go-to guy was Kevin Garnett , who had racked up 10 first-quarter points. For the Lakers, Kobe was struggling with his shot, as he went 1/7 for the quarter, but was dishing out assists and playing defense very solid, as he looked to get others involved early. Paul Pierce
33578-440: The other hand, Kobe Bryant was a non-factor offensively but was making up for it with the same kind of defense that earned him the 1st team All-defense . The Lakers ended the half on a 10–2 run. In the beginning of the third quarter, Celtics forward Paul Pierce was injured after a collision with Lakers center Kendrick Perkins . He was taken out of the game with 8:42 left in the quarter. The following offensive possession, Perkins
33784-526: The playoffs . Early in the 1981–82 season , Johnson complained to the media about head coach Paul Westhead and demanded a trade. Westhead was fired shortly after Johnson's criticisms, and although Lakers' owner Jerry Buss stated that Johnson's comments did not factor into the decision, Johnson was vilified by the national media and booed both on the road and at home. Buss promoted assistant coach Pat Riley to "co-head coach" with Jerry West (although West considered himself Riley's assistant) on November 19 and
33990-528: The prior year, but swept the first three rounds of the playoffs , defeating the Portland , Sacramento , and San Antonio . They met Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Finals . Although the Sixers took game one in overtime, the Lakers won the next four games to win their second straight title. Their 15–1 postseason record was the best in NBA history. The Lakers won 58 games in 2001–02 . In
34196-468: The rest of the season. Nevertheless, they advanced to play Philadelphia in the 1983 NBA Finals after defeating Portland and San Antonio . The Sixers, however, won the series and the championship in four games. After the season West replaced Sharman as the team's GM. In the 1983–84 season , Los Angeles went 54–28, and played Boston in the Finals for the first time since 1969 . The Lakers won two of
34402-582: The score was 7–7 at the end of regulation play, and a ten-minute overtime period settled the outcome. A good turnout of spectators watched the game. The first men's national championship tournament, the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball tournament, which still exists as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) tournament , was organized in 1937. The first national championship for NCAA teams,
34608-481: The season with a 10-game losing streak to finish 33–49. Under new coach Del Harris , Los Angeles made the playoffs each of the next two seasons but was eliminated in the second and first rounds respectively. The team was led by young guards Nick Van Exel and Eddie Jones . Johnson came out of retirement to return as a player in the 1995–96 season to lead the then 24–18 Lakers to a 29–11 finish. After some run-ins with Van Exel, displeasure with Harris's strategies, and
34814-502: The second half alone. Phil Jackson then decided to go small and has left only Lamar Odom on the court of the big men, and has subbed in 4 of the best shooters that he had. That has showed out to be very effective, as the Lakers would go on a historic 31–9 run spanning 7:34 to the final 38.4 seconds. But all that effort was nothing for Paul Pierce, who seemed unfazed by the pressure, and who has scored 2 free throws with 20 seconds remaining, and then blocked Vujačić's three to potentially make it
35020-428: The second quarter, that something fell apart in the third. The Celtics have held them scoreless until 7:52 remaining in the third as their lead began getting bigger and bigger. Everything has seemed to be falling for the Celtics, including back-to-back triples by Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Just nobody was there for the Lakers as the Celtics have built up a comfortable 20 point lead to end the third. The exclamation point on
35226-420: The series back to Boston. Kobe Bryant had 25 points, to go with five steals. Pau Gasol contributed 19 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists, Odom 20 points and 11 rebounds. For Boston, Pierce had a memorable 38 point effort, but outside of Allen (16 points) and Garnett (13 points and 14 rebounds) did not receive enough support from his teammates to clinch the championship at Staples. As for the odds stacked against
35432-399: The series in seven games however, and earned their 11th NBA Championship in 13 seasons. West was named the first-ever Finals MVP ; this remains the only time that a member of the losing team has won the award. In 1970 , West won his first scoring title at 31.2 ppg, the team returned to the finals , and for the first time in 16 years, they did not have to face the Celtics; instead playing
35638-410: The series in seven games, and James Worthy's game seven triple-double earned him a Finals MVP award. The win marked their fifth title in nine years, but would also mark their last title until 2000 . In the 1988–89 season , Los Angeles won 57 games and their eighth consecutive Pacific Division crown. They swept through the playoffs defeating Portland , Seattle , and Phoenix . In an eighth trip to
35844-468: The sport in Australia. The Women's National Basketball League began in 1981. Women began to play basketball in the fall of 1892 at Smith College through Senda Berenson , substitute director of the newly opened gymnasium and physical education teacher, after having modified the rules for women. Shortly after Berenson was hired at Smith, she visited Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by
36050-623: The standings. The Lakers defeated Portland three games to one in the first round to advance to face Seattle. Although the Sonics won the first game, the Lakers responded with four straight wins, taking the series, but were swept by the Jazz in the Western Conference Finals . During the 1998–99 season , All-Star guard Eddie Jones and center Elden Campbell were traded to the Charlotte Hornets. The team also acquired J. R. Reid , B. J. Armstrong , and Glen Rice . Head coach Del Harris
36256-434: The team won 17 of its next 20 games. Nicknamed " Showtime " due to the team's new Johnson-led fast break-offense, the Lakers won the Pacific Division title and swept both the Suns and Spurs in the 1982 playoffs . Los Angeles stretched its postseason winning streak to nine games by taking the first contest of the NBA Finals from the 76ers . The team won the Finals 4–2 to finish a 12–2 playoff run. On draft night in 1982 ,
36462-404: The team's 17th championship in 2020 , tying the Celtics for the most titles until 2024. 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. The franchise was founded in 1946 as
36668-485: The team's coach. West became upset, however, when Cooke refused to spend the money necessary to acquire forward Julius Erving , who the Nets were selling. Behind another MVP season from Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles won the Pacific Division, finishing the 1976–77 season a league-best 53–29. They defeated the Warriors in a seven-game series to open the postseason before being swept by Portland in the Western Conference Finals. During
36874-611: The team's discipline. He introduced the concept of the shootaround , where players would arrive at the arena early in the morning before a game to practice shots. They won 14 straight games in November and all 16 games played in December. They won three straight to open the year of 1972 but on January 9, the Milwaukee Bucks ended their winning streak by defeating the Lakers, 120–104. By winning 33 straight games, Los Angeles set
37080-424: The team's original "Big Three" through the retirements of Larry Bird and Kevin McHale and the departure of Robert Parish , the Celtics suffered through several tragedies such as the passing of Reggie Lewis in 1993; a franchise-worst 15-win 1996–97 season ; the ill-fated hiring of head coach Rick Pitino ; and the deaths of franchise patriarch Red Auerbach and former player Dennis Johnson , which culminated in
37286-481: The team's successes. Following the season, 1987 Defensive Player of the Year winner Michael Cooper decided to play in Europe and was waived at his request. The 1990–91 Lakers failed to win the Pacific Division for the first time in 10 years, but still finished with a 58–24 record. After cruising through the Western Conference playoffs , the Lakers found themselves in the NBA Finals once again, their ninth trip to
37492-416: The third quarter, leading by as many as 24 points. However, the Celtics went on a 21–3 run to end the third quarter, closing the deficit to only two points (73–71). With 4:07 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Celtics took their first lead in the game when Celtics' reserve Eddie House made an 18-foot (5.5 m) jumper. With House's shot, the Celtics were in the lead for good. The Celtics' victory in Game 4
37698-572: The three players who many credit with ushering the professional game to its highest level of popularity during the 1980s and 1990s: Larry Bird , Earvin "Magic" Johnson , and Michael Jordan . In 2001, the NBA formed a developmental league, the National Basketball Development League (later known as the NBA D-League and then the NBA G League after a branding deal with Gatorade ). As of the 2023–24 season,
37904-657: The void. In the years before World War I , the Amateur Athletic Union and the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (forerunner of the NCAA ) vied for control over the rules for the game. The first pro league, the National Basketball League, was formed in 1898 to protect players from exploitation and to promote a less rough game. This league only lasted five years. James Naismith
38110-727: The wins by the New England Patriots in Super Bowls XXXVI , XXXVIII , and XXXIX (2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons) and the Red Sox 's World Series wins in 2004 (death of the Curse of the Bambino ) and 2007 . The Celtics won this series by winning Games 1, 2, 4, and 6; coincidentally, the last time the two teams met in 1987 , the Lakers won that series in identical fashion. It was also the same identical fashion when
38316-408: Was West's idea, and he was influential in the team's signing of the all-star center. "Jerry West is the reason I came to the Lakers", O'Neal later said. They used their 24th pick in the draft to select Derek Fisher . During the season , the team traded Cedric Ceballos to Phoenix for Robert Horry . O'Neal led the team to a 56–26 record, their best effort since 1990–91, despite missing 31 games due to
38522-624: Was a combatant, was suspended for two months by the NBA, and released by the Lakers. The team won 45 games despite being down a starter in Washington and not having Abdul-Jabbar for nearly two months, but lost in the first round of the playoffs to Seattle. During the 1978–79 season, the team posted a 47–35 record but lost to the SuperSonics in the semifinal round of the playoffs. In the 1979 NBA draft , Los Angeles selected 6-foot, 9-inch point guard Magic Johnson from Michigan State with
38728-446: Was a highly debilitating injury, he returned to action minutes later to raucous cheering from the crowd. Pierce admitted during coverage of the 2019 NBA Finals that he just had to use the bathroom. He soon hit two three-pointers on consecutive offensive possessions that gave Boston the lead for good and finished with 22 points. It was later dubbed by some as the "Wheelchair Game". The Lakers, who had had home court advantage throughout
38934-522: Was also struggling, and has gotten himself into foul trouble early, as he hed 3 points and 3 fouls going into the third quarter. In the second quarter, Garnett had racked up 8 more points and had already matched his playoff points average at 18.8. Despite Garnett's monstrous efforts, the Celtics found themselves down 51–46 at halftime. The main reason for the Lakers lead was Pau Gasol , who was hitting tough fadeaways and layups, and had also gotten P.J. Brown in foul trouble with his physicality and footwork. On
39140-403: Was common by 1896, with a rule against the double dribble by 1898. The peach baskets were used until 1906 when they were finally replaced by metal hoops with backboards. A further change was soon made, so the ball merely passed through. Whenever a person got the ball in the basket, his team would gain a point. Whichever team got the most points won the game. The baskets were originally nailed to
39346-632: Was created by the American Physical Education Association . These rules called for six to nine players per team and 11 officials. The International Women's Sports Federation (1924) included a women's basketball competition. 37 women's high school varsity basketball or state tournaments were held by 1925. And in 1926, the Amateur Athletic Union backed the first national women's basketball championship , complete with men's rules. The Edmonton Grads ,
39552-628: Was fired in February after a three-game losing streak and replaced on an interim basis by former Laker Kurt Rambis . The team finished 31–19 in the strike-shortened season, which was fourth in the Western Conference. The Lakers defeated Houston in the first round of the playoffs, but were swept by San Antonio in the next round. Game four of the series would be the last game ever played at the Great Western Forum . Before
39758-416: Was fired in January when the team was 9–30, and Kundla was rehired. The Lakers earned the top pick in the 1958 NBA draft and used it to select Elgin Baylor . Baylor, who was named NBA Rookie of the Year and co-MVP of the 1959 NBA All-Star Game , averaged 24.9 ppg and 15.0 rpg helping the Lakers improve to second in their division despite a 33–39 record. After upsetting the Hawks in six games in
39964-506: Was first included at the Berlin 1936 Summer Olympics , although a demonstration tournament was held in 1904. The United States defeated Canada in the first final, played outdoors. This competition has usually been dominated by the United States, whose team has won all but three titles. The first of these came in a controversial final game in Munich in 1972 against the Soviet Union, in which
40170-601: Was founded as a "rebellion" of several teams from the now-defunct Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association, which was tightly controlled by the Basketball Association of the Philippines (now defunct), the then-FIBA recognized national association. Nine teams from the MICAA participated in the league's first season that opened on April 9, 1975. The NBL is Australia's pre-eminent men's professional basketball league. The league commenced in 1979 , playing
40376-569: Was hit in the leg by the sneaker of Pau Gasol. He soon also left the game. But despite the injuries of their star players, the Celtics went on a 6–0 run and have regained the lead. But then Paul Pierce miraculously came back in the game, reinvigorating the crowd, and carried the Boston Celtics in the third quarter. Following his return Paul Pierce would shoot 6-6 from the field and hit three straight three pointers. He also started cooking from 3-point range, scoring 3 straight threes. Not to ignore
40582-485: Was instrumental in establishing college basketball . His colleague C. O. Beamis fielded the first college basketball team just a year after the Springfield YMCA game at the suburban Pittsburgh Geneva College . Naismith himself later coached at the University of Kansas for six years, before handing the reins to renowned coach Forrest "Phog" Allen . Naismith's disciple Amos Alonzo Stagg brought basketball to
40788-429: Was later succeeded by Doris Burke (2009–19), Rachel Nichols (2020), Malika Andrews (2021), and Lisa Salters (2022–present). Local TV broadcasts of the competing franchises were Los Angeles' KABC-TV and Boston's WCVB-TV . In the 2008–09 season , the Celtics got off to an impressive start with a 27–2 record, marking the best start through 29 games in NBA history. However, their momentum halted when they faced
40994-563: Was named MVP of the 1972 NBA All-Star Game . The team failed to score 100 points just once all year, and at the end of the season, Bill Sharman was named Coach of the Year . The Lakers went on to reach the finals against the New York Knicks where they would avenge their 1970 finals loss by defeating them 4 games to 1. Chamberlain tallied 24 points and 29 rebounds in game five and won the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award . The Lakers won 60 games in
41200-420: Was named the NBA Finals MVP, in addition to regular season MVP. At the Lakers' championship celebration in Los Angeles, coach Riley brashly declared that Los Angeles would repeat as NBA champions, which no team had done since the 1968–69 Boston Celtics . Looking to make good on Riley's promise in the 1987–88 season , the Lakers took their seventh consecutive Pacific Division title with a 62–20 record. They swept
41406-412: Was not an official Olympic sport until 1976. The Grads' players were unpaid, and had to remain single. The Grads' style focused on team play, without overly emphasizing skills of individual players. The first women's AAU All-America team was chosen in 1929. Women's industrial leagues sprang up throughout the United States, producing famous athletes, including Babe Didrikson of the Golden Cyclones , and
41612-424: Was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle , searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use. Dribbling was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls. Dribbling
41818-460: Was played from June 5–17, 2008, the series was contested between the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics and the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers . It was the eleventh Finals meeting in the history of the Celtics–Lakers rivalry . Led by the "Big 3" of Paul Pierce , Kevin Garnett , and Ray Allen , and holding home court advantage, the Celtics defeated the Lakers, led by Pau Gasol and MVP Kobe Bryant , in six games. It
42024-400: Was the largest comeback in the NBA Finals since 1971 . The Celtics bench outscored the Lakers bench 35–15, 29 of those points coming from House and James Posey . Kevin Garnett finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds in support of Allen (19) and Pierce (20). As in Game 4, the Lakers jumped out to an early lead, leading 43–24 with 11 minutes to play in the second quarter. And as in Game 4,
42230-401: Was their first title in twenty-two years and their 17th title overall. Pierce was named the Finals MVP . The Celtics would not win another championship until 2024 . The Celtics made their first NBA Finals appearance since a six-game loss to the Lakers in 1987 . Over the next 20 years the Celtics endured lean years, not making the playoffs in nine of those years. Following the dissolution of
42436-402: Was trying to keep his gym class active on a rainy day. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums , he invented a new game in which players would pass a ball to teammates and try to score points by tossing the ball into
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