2004 NBA Finals

[KembaWalker]

Nope. Luke Walton was the unsung hero of Game 2's win.

[J Shuttlesworth]

That is a pretty damn cool pic. Especially considering Kobe would go on to get 2 of his own

Reminds me of the pic of Westbrook eyeing KD's MVP trophy

[Clifton]

You have to remember how low-scoring these games were.

If you've got a guy shooting 60% from the floor, against a Pistons defense that is holding everyone else under 40%... what if Kobe has 2 fewer misses per game and Shaq has 2 more makes? 4 point swing means more in that era than in the current one. Shaq's dunks also had more of an effect on momentum than Kobe's teammate-alienating fadeaways did. What was the iconic moment in the Lakers' 2000 comeback against the Blazers? Was it Kobe's clutch jumpers in the middle of the run? No, it was a Shaq dunk. Not a coincidence.

Also more touches for Shaq means more foul trouble for Big Ben. Ben didn't shut down Shaq but he was still the cornerstone of the Pistons' defensive attack. Everyone would have had an easier job with him sitting or afraid to foul.

Now, the fact is Shaq did get touches, and the Pistons made it fairly difficult for him... but when you've got Shaq and the other team has no 7 footers, and the best perimeter defense since MJ's bulls, you find a way to get him the ball in scoring position as much as you can. Nothing else was working.

[aj1987]

Shaq got more touches in the Finals than he did all year..it wasn't enough because even though Shaq's numbers were good, the rest of the team struggled due to injuries and poor chemistry. Pistons nearly swept the Lakers. Kobe passing the ball a little more wouldn't have won them the series.

Shaq averaged 13 FGA and 12 FTA the first 3 rounds of the Playoffs.
He got 4 more shots per game on average in the Finals.
Lakers were 1 - 3 in the Playoffs with Shaq getting 20 or more FGAs, that one win was thanks to Kobe hitting the game-tying 3 and taking over OT in the Finals.

Shaq scored 6 points in the OT on 3-3 shooting. Kobe scored 4 on 4 shots and had a TOV.

[ImKobe]

Shaq scored 6 points in the OT on 3-3 shooting. Kobe scored 4 on 4 shots and had a TOV.

he missed two shots in the last minute of OT with the Lakers up 8 points...2 of Shaq's baskets were set up by Kobe, Lakers only needed 3 points to win OT as Pistons only scored 2 points

footage doesn't lie, Kobe took over OT

https://youtu.be/2ivTetD1oNY?t=642

all of Shaq's baskets were assisted, first one Kobe draws the defense and all Shaq does is stand under the rim, catch the ball and put the ball in, 2nd one was set up by Kobe, a contested shot, 3rd basket a wide open alley oop from Walton...

Kobe was 2 out of 3 with 2 assists

on the other end, Kobe was defending Rip Hamilton, who missed 3 out of 4 shots

[HOoopCityJones]

Again, Kobe doesn't hit a clutch 3 , Lakers get swept.

[Magic 32]

The cast of veterans that Phil Jackson brought in to surround Kobe and Shaq in 2000 was either gone, injured or too old in 2004 (if not 2003).

Instead of dependable guys like Shaw, Fox and Horry, the Lakers had to rely on young "talent" like Walton, Rush, Medvedenko and George.

You add an injury to Karl Malone and a distracted Kobe, and you have the near sweep in the making.

[HighFlyer23]

Kobe shot 38% and he was only averaging 5 FTA per game ... he didn't even grab 3 boards a game for this series

If he had stepped up or dumped the ball to Shaq more, they would've won

More defensive attention geared toward Shaq would open up the floor for the rest of the team, including Kobe

Kobe wanted to be the man and failed ... yeah the Lakers were banged up but they still should've beaten Detroit ... Shaq was shooting 63% against the best defensive front court in the league ... Kobe lost the 2004 Finals for LA.

[JellyBean]

Lets just say that Kobe simply decides to pass the ball to Shaq .... is it a stretch to say that LA would sweep Detroit?

Even if Kobe passed the ball to Shaq more, the Lakers were not sweeping the Pistons. The Lakers might have won the series if they were playing more as a team rather than as individuals. But I gotta give the Pistons credit. They were hungry. Played great team basketball. And they out played my Lakers.