Record 56–26 (.683) Head coach Phil Jackson Owner Jerry Buss Arena Staples Center | Period 2003 – 2004 General manager Mitch Kupchak Radio KLAC | |
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Place Division: 1st (Pacific)
Conference: 2nd (Western) Playoff finish NBA Finals
(Lost to Pistons 1–4) Television Fox Sports Net West, KCAL Similar 2001–02 Los Angeles, 2000–01 Los Angeles, 2003–04 NBA season, 2009–10 Los Angeles, 2012–13 Los Angeles | ||
The 2003–04 NBA season was the Lakers' 56th season in the NBA and 44th in the city of Los Angeles. During the offseason, the Lakers signed veteran free agents and former All-Stars Karl Malone and Gary Payton, who were recruited by Superstar center Shaquille O'Neal, plus re-signing free agent Horace Grant. Payton struggled with coach Phil Jackson's triangle offense, which limited his ball-handling and post-up opportunities.
Contents
- West First Round
- West Conference Semifinals
- West Conference Finals
- Series Summary
- Aspects
- Game One
- Game Two
- Game Three
- Game Four
- Game Five
- Award winners
- References
The off-season is notable for seeing Superstar guard Kobe Bryant getting accused of sexual assault in Colorado, which proved to be an ongoing distraction during the season.
The Lakers went on an 18-3 run to start the season. However, they ran into struggles when Malone went down with a knee injury in December, soon followed by ailments to Shaq and Kobe. The "Big Four" of O'Neal, Bryant, Malone, and Payton played in only 20 games together. Despite all of this, the injury-depleted Lakers still managed a 56–26 record and entered the playoffs as the number 2 seed in the Western Conference, thanks to a pair of Kobe Bryant buzzer-beaters in Portland.
They easily blew past a Houston Rockets team featuring Steve Francis and a young Yao Ming in five games in the first round. The second round pitted the Lakers against the defending NBA champions the San Antonio Spurs, who defeated the Lakers in last year's playoffs. Though the Spurs took the first two games, the Lakers won the next four games, including Derek Fisher's miracle shot with 0.4 seconds left in Game 5 (a 74–73 Lakers victory) and a Game 6 88–76 victory at home to advance to the Western Conference Finals against the Kevin Garnett-led Minnesota Timberwolves. The Lakers managed to get through a tough Minnesota team, defeating them in six games to advance to the NBA Finals where they would meet the Detroit Pistons. Though the Lakers were heavily favored to win the title, the heavy-underdog Pistons proved too much for the Lakers as they easily went on to win the series in five games.
Game 4 of the NBA Finals was Karl Malone's final NBA game as injuries forced him to sit out the fifth and final game of the series. Grant also retired the following season.
Game 5 was the last time that O'Neal and Bryant would play together as teammates as O'Neal would be traded to the Miami Heat following the season after an acrimonious relationship between the duo. Meanwhile, Fisher signed as a free agent with the Golden State Warriors and Payton, who only spent one season with the Lakers, and Rick Fox were both traded to the Boston Celtics.
For head coach Phil Jackson, he left the team at the conclusion of the Finals and later wrote a book about the team's season in which he voiced disdain for Kobe Bryant, calling him "uncoachable". 2004 was the first time the Lakers had lost the NBA Finals under Jackson. He returned for the 2005-06 season and led the team to another NBA Finals appearance in 2008, where they fell to the Boston Celtics in six games. However, the Lakers won two more titles the following two seasons before Jackson retired from coaching in 2011.
West First Round
(2) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (7) Houston Rockets: Lakers win series 4–1
Last Playoff Meeting: 1999 Western Conference First Round (Los Angeles won 3-1)
West Conference Semifinals
(2) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (3) San Antonio Spurs: Lakers win series 4–2
Last Playoff Meeting: 2003 Western Conference Semifinals (San Antonio won 4-2)
West Conference Finals
(1) Minnesota Timberwolves vs. (2) Los Angeles Lakers: Lakers win series 4–2
Last Playoff Meeting: 2003 Western Conference First Round (Los Angeles won 4-2)
Series Summary
The Finals were played using a 2-3-2 site format, where the first two and last two games are held at the team with home court advantage. This is only used in the Finals, all other playoff games are held in a 2-2-1-1-1 format (the team with home court advantage starts).
Aspects
The Lakers had a lineup of stars such as Karl Malone, Gary Payton, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O'Neal - their offensive capability was expected to overpower Detroit's defensive-based gameplan.
Payton and Malone also added to the publicity of the Finals. Perennial All-Stars who had both previously reached the Finals, Payton had led the Seattle SuperSonics there in 1996, while Malone had led the Utah Jazz there in 1997 and 1998. However, Michael Jordan and the Bulls denied them championship rings a total of three times. By the time of Jordan's retirement in 2003, the two veterans were aged and failed to lead their teams deep into the playoffs. Thus, this Finals series was seen as the last chance for two of the greatest players in NBA history to finally become NBA champions (Later on, Malone retired while Payton became a champion as a key bench player for the Miami Heat).
Game One
Sunday, June 6, 2004, 14:30 at the Staples Center.
Considered to be a stunning upset by most of the NBA world, the Detroit Pistons managed to defeat the Lakers with imposing defense. Defensively clamping down on everyone but Bryant and O'Neal, the Pistons managed to hold everyone else to a total of 16 points.
The Pistons trailed the Lakers 41–40 at halftime, but a 10–4 surge capped by Billups's 3-pointer gave the Pistons the lead. O'Neal's foul trouble furthered the scoring gap, with the Pistons leading by 13 points early in the fourth quarter.
Box Score
Game Two
Tuesday, June 8, 2004, 15:04 at the Staples Center.
The second game was close throughout the first half, but in the third quarter Detroit would score 30 points, cutting the deficit 68–66. However, at the end of the fourth quarter, Kobe Bryant's 3-point shot at 2.1 seconds to go would tie the game at 89–89. The Lakers and Pistons would then go to overtime, with the Lakers outscoring the Pistons 10–2.
Box Score
Game Three
Thursday, June 10, 2004, 14:31 at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
The Pistons beat Los Angeles by 20 in their first NBA Finals appearance together at The Palace of Auburn Hills since 1989 to take a 2–1 lead in the series. The 68 points scored by the Lakers set a franchise record for the fewest number of points scored in a playoff game. Previous night, a group of overzealous Pistons fans made it difficult for the Lakers to get their rest by harassing them until 4am at their hotel in nearby Birmingham. Fans were screaming outside the building until management at the hotel called the police.
Box Score
Game Four
Sunday, June 13, 2004, 14:49 at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
Again, the Pistons defeated the Lakers, although this time by eight, to take a 3–1 series advantage.
Box Score
Game Five
Tuesday, June 15, 2004, 14:32 at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
In Game 5, the Pistons won their first championship since 1990, and Larry Brown finally won his title. The Pistons defense had overcome the high-scoring Laker offense, winning the game by 13, winning the series 4-1, and also ending a long Laker dynasty that lasted for many years. The game saw the end of Phil Jackson's first run as the coach (he returned for the 2005-06 season), and saw O'Neal, Payton, and Malone's last games in Laker uniforms (O'Neal and Payton were both acquired by the soon-to-be NBA Champions Miami Heat and Malone retired).
Box Score