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The Los Angeles Lakers Kobe Bryant holds the MVP trophy and the Larry O'Brien Championship trophy - Source: Reuters -
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The Los Angeles Lakers captured their 15th championship and
first since 2002 with a 99-86 victory over the Orlando Magic in
Game Five of the NBA Finals on Monday.
Los Angeles won the best-of-seven series 4-1, giving coach Phil
Jackson his record 10th championship ring and 11-times All-Star
guard Kobe Bryant his fourth.
"It's been a long time since he had a champagne bath, and I knew
that, so I made sure he became part of our circle and we got him
pretty good," Bryant said following the Lakers' locker room
celebration.
"He took his glasses off, threw his head back and soaked it all in
because this is a special time, and for us to be the team that got
him that historic 10th championship is special for us."
The 30-year-old Bryant paced the Lakers with 30 points and was
named the most valuable player in the finals, the first time he has
received the award.
When he won his three previous titles (2000-2002), team mate
Shaquille O'Neal was named the MVP and Bryant said criticism he
could not claim the title without the 7-foot-1 center patrolling
the paint was "just silly".
"Every team has a dynamic duo," said Bryant, who averaged 32.4
points during the finals.
"It's a shame. But it is what it is. I wasn't going to try to argue
about it. That does nothing. So you just accept the challenge and
try to prove them wrong."
The Lakers took control of the game in the second quarter, scoring
16 straight points to turn a four-point deficit into a 52-40 lead
with three minutes left in the first half.
Misfiring Magic
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said "we just didn't handle the ball at
all" during the pivotal second quarter.
"I did not think that we handled the frustration really well, and
that's why one mistake, one bad play in that stretch kept leading
to another," he said.
"We fought hard in the second half, but they just had an answer for
everything."
Los Angeles saw their 10-point halftime lead sliced to 58-53, but
Lamar Odom hit two three-pointers during a 13-2 run to give the
Lakers a cozy 71-55 advantage with just over three minutes left in
the third quarter.
"Were they the better team in the series? Yeah, that's why they're
the champs," said Magic All-Star center Dwight Howard, who averaged
17 points in the series but lacked consistency.
"What we can learn from this experience is that we have to be able
to play 48 minutes, the whole game. They kept the pressure on us,
and they played like a team that was hungry for a
championship."
The Lakers reached the finals last year but lost to the Boston
Celtics in six games.
"Last year's experience, it made us tougher, it made us grow as a
team, and we all were hurt by it," said Lakers forward Pau Gasol,
who had 14 points at 15 rebounds in the series finale.
"To be able to get to this point today is hard to describe and put
in small sentences because it's so amazing what we accomplished, it
feels so good, and hopefully a lot of people enjoy this."
