2019–20 Los Angeles Lakers season
The 2019–20 Los Angeles Lakers season was the franchise's 72nd season, its 71st season in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and its 60th in Los Angeles. The Lakers were coached by Frank Vogel in his first year as team head coach. The Lakers played their home games at Staples Center as members of the Western Conference's Pacific Division. The Lakers had the third best team defensive rating in the NBA. On March 6, 2020, the Lakers clinched their first playoff berth since the 2012–13 season. Five days later, due to the ongoing COVID-19  pandemic, the season was suspended. On July 5, the NBA announced a return of the season in the NBA Bubble, with 22 teams playing 8 seeding games followed by a full postseason. Play resumed on July 30 with all games being played in Orlando, Florida, and on August 3, the Lakers clinched both the Pacific Division title since 2012 and the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs for the first time since the 2009–10 season. The Lakers finished the season 52–19, with a winning percentage equal to 60 games in a full 82-game season. They defeated the Portland  Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets, and Denver Nuggets each in five games to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2010. There they defeated the Miami Heat (LeBron James' former team) in six games to earn the franchise's 17th NBA championship. The team dedicated the season and the Finals win to Kobe Bryant who was killed in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020. Previous season. The Lakers finished the 2018–19 season 37–45 to finish in fourth place in the Pacific Division and failing to qualify for the playoffs for the sixth consecutive year. Following the season , Magic Johnson stepped down as president of basketball operations. On April 12, 2019, head coach Luke Walton and the team agreed to part ways. On May 11, the Lakers hired Frank Vogel as head coach. The season marked the first time since 2005 that LeBron James did not appear in the playoffs and first time since 2010 that he missed the Finals. Offseason. Front office and coaching changes. On April 9, 2019, Magic Johnson stepped down as president of basketball operations. Three days after that, Luke Walton and the team agreed to part ways. On May 13, the team hired  Frank Vogel as their new head coach and Jason Kidd was named an assistant coach. Draft. The Lakers held one first round draft pick for the 2019 NBA Draft. They previously held the rights to two second rounders in this year's draft as well, but those selections were later traded to the Philadelphia 76ers and Atlanta Hawks as picks 34 and 41, respectively. On the night of the NBA draft lottery, the Lakers rose up seven spots from the projected 11th selection to the 4th pick of the draft. On June 15, the Lakers agreed to a trade that  would send players Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and Josh Hart, and multiple draft picks, including the Lakers' 2019 1st round draft pick, to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Anthony Davis. However, the trade was not finalized until July 6, during which time, the Washington Wizards were included in the deal as well. Trades. On June 15, 2019, the Lakers agreed to a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans to acquire six-time NBA All-Star power forward Anthony Davis, though the deal would not take full effect until July 6. In exchange for Davis, the Lakers agreed to  give up forward Brandon Ingram, guards Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart, three first round picks (including their No. 4 overall selection in 2019), and a first round pick swap in 2023. On June 27, the Washington Wizards joined the trade to get Moritz Wagner, Isaac Bonga, Jemerrio Jones and the Lakers' 2022 second-round pick in exchange for cash considerations. Regular season. Season notes. LeBron James and Davis would be selected to the All-Star Game for the 16th straight, and seventh straight years respectively. James would take Davis with the No. 1 pick in the All-Star draft. Additionally , Vogel was also selected to coach Team LeBron in the All-Star Game. Team LeBron would go on to win 157–155, with Davis hitting a game-winning free throw. By adding Davis, the Lakers got off to a fast start to the season, which included a 17–2 record by the end of November. Four months later, they were able to clinch their first playoff berth since the 2012–13 season with a win over the Milwaukee Bucks on March 6. However, five days after clinching their playoff berth, the NBA season was abruptly suspended by league officials after it was reported  that Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz tested positive for COVID-19. Two unidentified players of the Lakers would later test positive for COVID-19 on March 19. The season resumed, but Avery Bradley opted out of playing in the restart to remain with his family due to his oldest child, who had a history of struggling to recover from respiratory illnesses. The Lakers replaced him on the roster with J. R. Smith. Death of Kobe Bryant. On January 26, 2020, tragedy struck the Lakers organization when former All-Star guard Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash that also claimed the  lives of his daughter Gianna "Gigi" Bryant and seven other passengers. Bryant was 41 at the time of his death, and Gigi was 13. This prompted the Lakers to dedicate the rest of their season to his memory. Playoffs. Game log. † Originally scheduled for August 26. Game 5 was rescheduled due to a boycott from NBA players following the police involved shooting of Jacob Blake. Playoff notes. In the NBA playoffs, the Lakers faced off against the eight-seed Portland Trail Blazers in the first round and won the series in 5 games. In Western Conference semi-finals, they faced  off against the fourth seed Houston Rockets, again winning in five games. They advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2010, where they faced and defeated the Denver Nuggets in five games. They reached the NBA Finals for the first time in a decade, where they faced off the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat, marking the first meeting between the two teams in the NBA Finals. The Lakers won the series in 6 games, winning the championship for the first time since the 2010 season. They became the first team since the 2007–08 Boston Celtics to  go directly from a non-playoff season to a championship. This championship win also saw the Lakers tie the Celtics with the highest number of NBA championship wins at 17. The Lakers' LeBron James was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the fourth time in his career. He became the first player in league history to be named Finals MVP with three different franchises (two with the Heat, one with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and one with the Lakers) and he and Danny Green became the third and fourth players to win the NBA Finals with three different  teams. Lakers president Jeanie Buss became the first female controlling owner to guide her team to an NBA title.