As a Celtics fan, I was rooting against the Los Angeles Lakers when they entered this season as title contenders with heir acquisition of superstar big man Anthony Davis. But, as a fan of the NBA as a whole and someone who is interested in narratives, I wanted the Lakers to beat the Heat and win their 17th NBA Championship. As the clock winded down on the Lakers game six 106-93, title-clinching win, over the Miami Heat the presence of Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash along with his daughter Gianna Bryant and seven others earlier this year, hung heavily over the final moments.
When this game was over, the Lakers have been in the NBA bubble for over four months straight. In his postgame comments, Finals MVP LeBron James expressed how difficult the experience had been. “This was very challenging and very difficult,” James said afterward. “It played with your mind, and it played with your body. You’re away from some of the things you’re so accustomed to [that] make you the professional you are.”
James was stellar in the finals putting up a 30-12-8 and grabbing his fourth finals MVP while winning his fourth championship with his third team. James has already been a hot topic of discussion in where he stands in the pantheon of all-time NBA greats. While that conversation has seemed circular, James has definitely cemented himself as a Mount Rushmore NBA player and this title with L.A. feels like the icing on the cake. “I have always believed in LeBron James,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. “He’s the greatest player the basketball universe has ever seen, and if you think you know, you don’t know, ok, until you’re around him every day. You’re coaching him, you’re seeing his mind, you’re seeing his adjustments, seeing the way he leads the group. You think you know … [but] you don’t know. It’s just been a remarkable experience coaching him and seeing him take this group that was not in the playoffs last year, the roster was put together, you know, overnight, and just taking a group and leading us to the promised land, so they say.”
