2002
Los Angeles Lakers
Series Flow
4
Wins
0
Losses
Regular Season
58–24
Win–Loss
Playoff Record
15–1
Win–Loss
Finals
4–0
vs New Jersey Nets
Finals MVP
O'Neal
Shaquille
Los Angeles Lakers
58–24New Jersey Nets
52–30The Nets were a Cinderella story — Jason Kidd had transformed a lottery team into Finals participants in one season. They were simply overmatched against the most dominant one-two punch in the NBA.
Finals MVP
Shaquille O'Neal
#34 · Center
36.3
PPG
12.3
RPG
4.0
BPG
65.0%
FG%
The most dominant Finals performance since Wilt Chamberlain. 36 points and 12 rebounds per game while shooting 65%.
3rd consecutive Finals MVP — joined Michael Jordan (1991-93) as the only players to achieve that
His 65% FG in the Finals is one of the highest in NBA history for a Finals run
How the Series Unfolded
G1 · W
1–0
G2 · W
2–0
G3 · W
3–0
G4 · W
4–0
99
LAL
94
NJN
Shaq overpowered the Nets from tip-off with 36 points and 12 rebounds. Kobe added 20. The blueprint was set.
Los Angeles Lakers
Shaquille O'Neal
36 pts · 12 reb · 4 blkThe Nets had no answer. No team did.
NJN
Jason Kidd
18 pts · 10 ast · 9 rebA valiant near triple-double from the Nets' engine — not enough.
106
LAL
83
NJN
Total annihilation. The Nets had no solution for Shaq's combination of size, athleticism, and skill.
Los Angeles Lakers
Shaquille O'Neal
40 pts · 12 rebPut on one of the most dominant Finals performances in the history of the game.
Kobe Bryant
26 pts · 9 rebEfficient and threatening alongside a dominant Shaq.
106
LAL
88
NJN
Shaq continued his assault. Kobe's slashing and Horry's role player excellence closed the Nets out in New Jersey.
Los Angeles Lakers
Shaquille O'Neal
36 pts · 12 reb · 3 blkThree straight dominant games. The sweep was a formality.
NJN
Jason Kidd
22 pts · 10 ast · 7 rebPut up his numbers but Nets had no frontcourt support.
113
LAL
107
NJN
The Nets made it competitive in Game 4 but Shaq's 34 points and Kobe's 25 closed out the three-peat.
Los Angeles Lakers
Shaquille O'Neal
34 pts · 14 rebClosed out the sweep with another statement — 3 consecutive Finals MVPs.
Kobe Bryant
25 pts · 5 astMade winning look routine at the highest level.
The Champions
They Pushed Us to the Limit
The Nets were a Cinderella story — Jason Kidd had transformed a lottery team into Finals participants in one season. They were simply overmatched against the most dominant one-two punch in the NBA.
17.5
PPG
9.8
APG
6.8
RPG
Posted a near-triple-double every game. Was the best player on the floor in the series who wasn't named Shaq or Kobe.
History Written in 2002
Los Angeles Lakers
14th NBA Championship — third consecutive (2000, 2001, 2002)
Shaquille O'Neal
3rd consecutive Finals MVP — tied Michael Jordan's record (1991-93 Bulls)
Phil Jackson
9th championship as a head coach — surpassed Red Auerbach's all-time record
Los Angeles Lakers
Only team in NBA history to sweep an opponent in the Finals while going 15-1 in the playoffs overall
Beyond the Box Score
The 2001-02 Lakers won 15 of 16 playoff games and swept the Finals. Phil Jackson called it the greatest basketball he had ever been a part of. Shaq's back-to-back-to-back Finals MVPs placed him alongside Michael Jordan as the only player to accomplish that feat.
The three-peat validated the Shaq-Kobe era as one of the great dynasties in NBA history — even as the relationship between the two superstars was beginning to fracture beneath the surface.
The Full Story
Three titles. Three years. One sweep. The 2002 NBA Finals was less a competition than a coronation. Shaquille O'Neal averaged 36.3 points and 12.3 rebounds while shooting 65% from the field. There was simply no team in the NBA equipped to stop him.
The New Jersey Nets — themselves a remarkable story, transformed in one year by Jason Kidd — competed admirably but were overwhelmed. The sweep gave Phil Jackson his 9th championship, surpassing Red Auerbach's all-time record. It gave Shaq his 3rd consecutive Finals MVP. And it gave the Lakers their third consecutive title — the last dynasty the NBA has seen.