Los Angeles Lakers 2009 Champions
Arena : Staples Center
Head Coach : Phil Jackson
Los Angeles Lakers Wallpaper Gallgey :
Los Angeles Lakers Players
| 2007-08 Los Angeles Lakers Seaaon | 2008-09 Los Angeles Lakers Seaaon |
* Lakers 2009 NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers
* Finals MVP: Kobe Bryant
The 2009 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2008–09 NBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Los Angeles Lakers, top-seeded champions of the Western Conference, defeated the Orlando Magic, third-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, four games to one in a best-of-seven series. This is both the Los Angeles Lakers' fourth NBA championship in the 2000s and the Magic's only Finals appearance without Shaquille O'Neal.
Statistics
The series was the third straight championship that the Lakers clinched on the road (after 2001 and 2002); the last time the Lakers clinched the championship at home was in 2000. With their team's win, Pau Gasol became the first Spaniard, and D. J. Mbenga the first Belgian Congolese player, to win an NBA championship. Bill and Luke Walton became the third father and son pair to each win a championship as a player; the other father–son combinations are Matt Guokas, Sr. (1947) with Matt Jr. (1967) and Rick Barry (1975) with son Brent (2005 and 2007).
For the Magic, Game 3 marked their first Finals game victory; the franchise lost their first six Finals games after being swept in their first Finals appearance in 1995. In Game 3, the Magic also set the Finals record for the best field goal percentage with 63 percent, and the Finals record for the best field goal percentage in the first half with 75 percent.
This was the first NBA Finals series since 1984 to have two games go into overtime (Games 2 and 4); both were won by the Lakers. Dwight Howard set an NBA Finals single-game record with 9 blocked shots in Game 4. Although the game went into overtime, all blocks were during regulation. The previous record holder was his assistant coach, Patrick Ewing, who had 8 in Game 5 of the 1994 NBA Finals while with the New York Knicks.
This is the seventh time in NBA Finals history that a team that lost the championship the previous season has won the Finals the very next year. It is the second time in Lakers history, after the 1984 and 1985 teams. Having achieved three Game 1 victories throughout the postseason (first round vs. Utah, conference finals vs. Denver, and NBA Finals vs. Orlando), Phil Jackson-coached teams are now 44-0 in series where they win Game 1.
This is also the first odd season since 2001 that the San Antonio Spurs did not win the NBA Finals; they won in 2003, 2005 and 2007.