2009–10 Los Angeles Lakers season
The 2009–10 Los Angeles Lakers season was the 62nd season of the franchise, 61st in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and 50th in Los Angeles. During the offseason, the Lakers signed free agent and former defensive player of the year forward Ron Artest. Coming off from winning their fifteenth championship in the NBA Finals defeating the Orlando Magic in five games, the Lakers successfully defended their title. They spent the most money of any team on player salaries that season, totaling $112.7 million ($91.3 million on player salaries and $21.4 million on  luxury tax). The Lakers once again sold out all 41 home games for the season at Staples Center. The Lakers clinched the Pacific Division for the 21st time in franchise history. Despite winning eight games less than the previous season, they still held the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs and made it to the NBA Finals for the third straight season in which they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in six games in the first round, swept the Utah Jazz in four games in semifinals and the Phoenix Suns in six games in the Western Conference Finals in  which the Lakers were favored to beat the Suns en route to advancing to the NBA Finals where they defeated the Boston Celtics in a rematch of the 2008 NBA Finals won by the Celtics 4 games to 2. This time, the Lakers won the series 4 games to 3 for their 16th NBA title and handed Boston its first Game 7 loss in an NBA Finals in team history. Kobe Bryant won his second consecutive NBA Finals MVP as well as his fifth and final NBA Championship. After the Finals, Bryant underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in  July. On July 14, 2010, Phil Jackson won the 2010 ESPY Awards for Best Coach/Manager while Kobe Bryant won for Best NBA Player. Offseason. Injuries. The Lakers came into training camp with no serious injuries. All players were expected to be healthy enough to play in the season opener. After having surgery on his knee last season, Andrew Bynum was told that he has ligamentous laxity, which required him to wear a knee brace for the entire season. During training camp, D. J. Mbenga was not able to participate fully in practice due to a "malalignment of his hips /hip flexors". The imbalance was causing him pain in his abdominal, groin and hip flexor areas. He made a full recovery and played on opening night. Pau Gasol injured his hamstring during a preseason game and missed the first 12 games of the season. In December, Ron Artest revealed that he suffered a shoulder injury during the Lakers' opening exhibition game. He kept the injury quiet so it wouldn't seem like he was making excuses, telling neither the media nor his coaches. Departures. Trevor Ariza chose not to sign when the Los Angeles Lakers offered the Mid-Level Exception  (approximately $6 million per year). When the Lakers looked towards other free agents, Ariza agreed to sign with the Houston Rockets for slightly more money. The Lakers had a team option on Sun Yue to pick up his contract for one year paying him $736,000. But the Lakers decided to release him to keep the roster to 13 players. Sun eventually signed with the New York Knicks. Assistant coach Kurt Rambis left the Lakers to pursue a head-coaching position with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Rambis was believed to be the potential replacement to Phil Jackson if Jackson was  to leave in the offseason. Signings. The Lakers had team options to exercise contracts on Josh Powell and D. J. Mbenga. The Lakers decided to bring both Powell and Mbenga back, paying them $959,000 each. Kobe Bryant also had an option to terminate his contract this offseason, which would pay him approximately $23,000,000 for the season and $24,800,000 for the season after. He chose not to opt out of his contract and signed a 3-year contract extension. Ron Artest was the first player from another team to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers this offseason. On  July 2, Artest told CBSSports.com that he has agreed to a contract with the Lakers. He decided not to pursue a more lucrative contract from his former team (the Rockets) and signed a 5-year deal worth $33 million on July 8. The Lakers used their Mid-Level Exception to sign Artest. Artest has long wanted to play for the Lakers and was looking forward to playing with Kobe Bryant and childhood friend Lamar Odom. Artest changed his jersey number from 96 to 37 in honor of Michael Jackson's album "Thriller" which was the #1 selling album for  37 weeks. Jackson died 13 days earlier. Shannon Brown agreed to a contract with the Lakers on July 6. Brown turned down a more expensive offer from the Indiana Pacers and agreed to a 2-year $4.2 million deal. The Lakers used the Bi-annual exception to sign Brown. He has a player option to terminate his contract after the 2009–10 season. Lamar Odom was the last Lakers free agent to resign with the team. Before the previous season ended, Odom said he was willing to take a pay cut from the $11.4 million he made in his  final year of his contract (which was $14.1 million under the Lakers salary cap because the difference was paid upfront as a "trade-kicker" when he joined the Lakers). Early in July, the Lakers presented two offers to Odom: When Odom and his agent did not respond quickly enough, owner Jerry Buss pulled both deals off the table. At the same time, the Miami Heat actively pursue Odom. Heat President Pat Riley and Dwyane Wade met with Odom in Los Angeles in an attempt to get Odom to return to Miami. Afterwards, Odom spoke with Jerry Buss, and Odom 's agent and Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak kept an open dialogue. On July 30, Lamar Odom agreed to a four-year deal, reportedly for $33 million, with a team option for the final year. Odom said he did not want to leave Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Derek Fisher and the rest of the Lakers, especially Kobe Bryant. On September 28, the Lakers signed four players to non-guaranteed contracts: Tony Gaffney, Srdjan Pejicic, David Monds, Mickaël Gelabale and Michael Fey. On September 30, the Lakers also signed Thomas Kelati to a non-guaranteed contract, bring their total player  roster to 18 players. By the beginning of the season, they had to reduce their roster to a maximum of 15 players. On October 10, the Lakers cut Mickaël Gelabale, David Monds, and Michael Fey, bringing the roster to 15 players. On October 21, Thomas Kelati was cut from the team. On October 24, the Lakers cut Gaffney. Trades. The Lakers traded their first round draft pick (#29) to the New York Knicks for $3,000,000 and the Knicks 2011 second round draft pick. The Lakers traded their second pick (originally from the Charlotte Bobcats for the Kareem Rush trade ) for cash. Draft. The Lakers originally had three picks entering the Draft. Their 29th pick was used to pick Toney Douglas from Florida State, and chose Patrick Beverley from Arkansas with their 42nd pick, a pick which they got from a previous trade with Charlotte. The Lakers traded both each for a 2011 second-round draft pick and cash. They kept their final pick and selected Chinemelu Elonu. The Texas A&M center earned All-Big 12 honors last season after averaging 9.8 points and a team-best 7.3 rebounds and 53 blocked shots. He set a school record by making  66.5 percent from the field and was named the Big 12's most improved player. Season summary. The Los Angeles Lakers opened the season at home against their intra-city rival the Los Angeles Clippers. Before the game, the remaining Lakers on the team from last year received their 2009 NBA championship rings. Pau Gasol missed the first 11 games due to his hamstring injury, so Lamar Odom moved to power forward and was placed in the starting lineup. The season opened with the starting lineup being: The Lakers started off 7–1, then lost two in a row. Luke Walton  was another player who was injured, suffering a pinched nerve in his back on November 16. He was out for approximately six weeks. However, Gasol came back soon after and the Lakers returned to their normal lineup (with Odom coming off the bench): Through the first 14 games of the season, the Lakers ranked second in the league in defensive field-goal shooting (41.7%). They also had to deal with poor play by reserve players. After Gasol's return, the Lakers went 10–0, which included a game on December 4 when Bryant made a three-pointer as time expired to  lift the Lakers past the Miami Heat 108–107. Their 11-game winning streak ended on December 12 against the Utah Jazz. On December 11, Bryant suffered a fracture in his right index finger in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, but it didn't force him to miss any games. On December 16, Bryant made another game-winning shot, this time against the Milwaukee Bucks in overtime. The Lakers went on a five-game winning streak heading into their Christmas Day game at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers. They lost the game for their third home defeat of the season . Later that night, Ron Artest suffered a concussion from tripping over a box and falling down a flight of stairs. He missed five games to recover. The Lakers struggled with his absence, giving up 100 or more points in four consecutive games. On January 1, Bryant made a three-pointer at the buzzer to beat the Sacramento Kings. It was the third time that season that Bryant made a buzzer-beater to win a game. On January 3, Gasol mildly strained his left hamstring in the first quarter against the Dallas Mavericks and had to leave the game. Artest returned  to play the next game versus the Houston Rockets, and Odom almost recorded a triple double with 17 points, 19 rebounds, and 9 assists. After Christmas, the Lakers struggled, going 6–5. Since then, both Walton (28 games) and Gasol (six games) returned from injuries and the Lakers played with a full roster for the first time that season against the Clippers on January 15. On January 21, the Lakers began the second half of the season by playing eight consecutive road games in 12 days. Beginning with a rematch of the Christmas Day game against the Cavaliers and concluding on  February 1 against the Memphis Grizzlies, the defending champions also visited the White House to meet President Barack Obama. Against the Memphis Grizzlies, Bryant surpassed Jerry West to become the Lakers' all-time leading scorer. The Lakers finished the road trip 5–3. In February, Gasol was named winner of two of the three most prestigious annual awards given to European players, based on performances during the 2009 calendar year for both national and club teams. On December 27, Gasol was announced by the Italian magazine "Superbasket" as the winner of its "Mr. Europa" award and on December 28, Gasol was  announced by the Italian sports newspaper "La Gazzetta dello Sport" as the winner of its "Euroscar". On February 6 against the Portland Trail Blazers, an injured Bryant sat out for a game for the first time since 2007. Odom matched a career high with 22 rebounds in the Lakers' win, the first time they had won in Portland since 2005. Gasol produced 21 points, 19 rebounds, eight assists and five blocks in a win on February 8 against the San Antonio Spurs, joining five other players to accomplish the feat. The Lakers headed to the All-Star break on a  three-game winning streak. All three victories came without Bryant and the final two were without Bynum. Bryant was voted as a starter for the 2010 NBA All-Star Game, but sat out due to injury. Gasol was selected as a reserve for the West and logged 13 points and six rebounds in 20 minutes. Brown entered the dunk contest but was defeated in the second round. Bryant returned from injury on February 23 against the Memphis Grizzlies. The Lakers went 4-1 without him. Bryant made a three-pointer with 4.3 seconds left to lift the Lakers to a  99-98 victory. However, the Lakers went 4-4 in the eight games after Bryant's return. Since the All-Star break, the Lakers have struggled, recording a 5-5 record including the first three-game losing streak since Gasol joined the team in a trade two years earlier. The team also had to deal with injuries to Sasha Vujacic and Luke Walton. The Lakers responded by winning five games in a row, but Bynum suffered an injury and was removed from the active roster. It was revealed that Bynum strained his Achilles tendon against the Minnesota Timberwolves on March  19, and that he was expected to miss almost two weeks (six games) to recover. After their three-game losing streak, the Lakers responded by winning seven games in a row, then lost two of their next seven. They were the eighth best team in the Western Conference between the All-Star break and April 5 by record, but still held the top seed. Bryant chose to miss three of the final four regular-season games to recover from injuries. Bynum returned from injury for the first game of the playoffs. Post-season summary. Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers played  the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the playoffs. Both Bryant and Bynum returned from injury to start in the first game. In game one, the Lakers outscored the Thunder 27-13 in the first quarter. The Thunder attempted to close in on the lead, but the Lakers held on in the 2nd half, matching the Thunder's point total in the 3rd and 4th quarter. Although Bryant led the Lakers in points scored (21), Gasol had the most impressive night statically, collecting 19 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, and three blocks. The series went to Oklahoma City  for games three and four. The Thunder won both games including a 21-point win in game 4. Kevin Durant averaged 30.5 points in the two games to lead the Thunder. During the two games, the Thunder used their speed to run on the Lakers which translated into 24 fast-break points and 23 second-chance points in game 4. In game 5 in L.A., Gasol and Bynum combined for 46 points, 22 rebounds, and six assists in a 111-87 win. Game six saw the Lakers returning to Oklahoma City where they could clinch the series with the win . The Lakers' bench outscored the Thunder's 30-16, however the Thunder claimed a one-point lead with 3:04 to play. With time winding down, Gasol caught an offensive rebound off of a missed jump shot by Bryant and scored a layup with 0.5 seconds remaining in the game for the win. Utah Jazz. The Lakers next opponent was the Utah Jazz who advanced to the second round of the playoffs by defeating the Denver Nuggets 4-2. This was the third straight year the two teams met in the playoffs. The Lakers started off the first quarter shooting 79.8 % from the field, and leading by 10 at half time. The Lakers gave up the lead in the 4th quarter before Bryant scored 11 points in the final four minutes to lead the Lakers to a 104-99 victory. Although Bryant had the most successful night in game 2, it was the Lakers front court of Gasol, Bynum, and Odom who dominated the game. Each had at least 11 points, 14 rebounds, and two blocks while the team outrebounded the Jazz 58-40 to a 111-103 victory. Andrei Kirilenko returned in game 3 from more than a month out  with a strained left calf. While the Lakers' big men were dominate in the first two games, they had to rely on their backcourt in game 3 with Bynum and Odom being held in check. Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said the Jazz's effort to keep the Lakers out of the middle opened up some 3-point shots and Los Angeles capitalized. Artest scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half while overcoming his three-point range slump in the playoffs. The fourth quarter had 12 lead changes, including Bryant and Fisher making back-to-back 3-pointers  during an 8-2 run in the final minute. In the final four seconds, Deron Williams missed a shot and Wesley Matthews rebound and tip missed just before the end of the game. The Lakers won 111-110 and were on the verge of sweeping the Jazz. In game four, the Lakers jumped ahead and led by 22 points in the first half. The Jazz opened the third quarter with an 11-2 run and were able to cut the lead to 70-65, but the Lakers responded by finishing the period on a 10-2 run and led 80 -67 at the end of the third quarter. The Lakers led by 10 for most of the 4th quarter. Coach Phil Jackson called it "the first really consistent game we have played...We controlled the game and forced our will on our opponent." Bryant scored at least 30 points in all four games and the Lakers swept the series 4-0. Phoenix Suns. The Lakers then faced the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference Finals. In game 1, the Lakers blew out the Suns 128-107 led by Bryant's 40 points including 23 in the third quarter. Odom came  off the bench to tally 19 points, 19 rebounds, and three assists. In game 2 Bryant played the role of facilitator, putting up 13 assists, while Gasol recorded 29 points, 9 rebounds, and five assists. The teams were tied at 90-90 heading into the fourth quarter, but Bryant and Gasol led the fourth quarter rally and the Lakers won the game 124-112. Game 3 was played in Phoenix, where the Suns used their big men and physical play to win the game. Amar'e Stoudemire scored 42 points and grabbed 11 rebounds while Robin Lopez 20 points. Odom and  Bynum, however, both picked up fouls early and were ineffective for the Lakers for most of the game. The Lakers only scored 15 points in the second quarter and were down 86-84 in after three quarters. The Lakers were able to take the lead 90-89 with 8:47 to play, but the Suns rallied back to win 118-109. After battling each other in game 4 and slugging out a 23-23 first quarter, the Suns erupted for a 41 points in the second quarter, shooting 74%. Early in the 4th quarter the Lakers led 87-85. However, the  Suns reserve players (who outscored the Lakers reserves 54-20) produced and 18-3 run in the 4th which the Lakers never recovered from despite Bryant's 38 points and 10 assists. In game 5, the Lakers surged to a 16-point lead in the first half including a 21-4 run and led by 18 points by half time. Steve Nash, who had 29 points and 11 assists in the game, led the Suns to a 16-4 rally in the third quarter to trim the lead to six by the end of the period and one with 2:52  left in the game. Jason Richardson made a three pointer with 3.5 seconds left in the game to tie the score 101-101. On the next possession, Bryant, who had 30 points and 11 assists in the game, air-balled a three, but Artest offensively rebounded and made a game winning layup as time expired. In game 6 in Phoenix, the Lakers had the lead for most of the game. Los Angeles outscored the Suns 23-10 over the last eight minutes of the second quarter to lead 65-53 at the break and were up by 17 entering the  fourth. However the Suns went on a 16-4 run and cut the Lakers lead to 95-90 with 6:09 remaining in the game. Artest scored 25 in the game and Bryant had a 37-point performance including nine points in the final two minutes to win the game 111-103 and clinch the series 4-2. Boston Celtics. The Los Angeles Lakers took game one against the Boston Celtics, winning by 13 (102–89). Kobe Bryant scored game high 30 points. Pau Gasol lead game high of rebounds (14). Celtics took game two to tie the series (1–1), with a  victory of (103–94). Ray Allen scored 32 points (including then–NBA Finals record eight three–pointers a record remained for eight years until Stephen Curry breaks his own record with nine three–pointers in the 2018 NBA Finals.) with Rajon Rondo lead in rebounds (12). In game three, it was a close fought game, Lakers came out with a (91–84) victory with a 29 point performance by Kobe Bryant in Boston to take (2–1) lead in the series. Game four in Boston, the Celtics out rooted the Lakers with a (96–89), performance to tie the series again (2–2). Kobe Bryant  still lead the game high points of 33. Celtics took advantage of home court in game five with a (92–86) victory. Paul Pierce scored 27 points to lead the Celtics to a (32) lead in the series. With a crucial game six, the Lakers put on a dominant performance at the Staples Center with a 19-point victory (89–67) to tie the series 3 games apiece (3–3). In a pivotal game seven, the rivalry of the Lakers and the Celtics once again met in a game seven. The Lakers struggled the first half as the Celtics had control of the  game for the most of the three quarters. Within five minutes left in the game, Kobe Bryant made crucial plays to lead the Lakers to the 16th NBA title and also making Kobe Bryant a five-time NBA Champion.