2010 NBA Champions: With Help From His Friends, Kobe and Co. Stun Celtics
On a night where NBA legend Kobe Bryant had one of his poorest performances in terms of scoring, the stage was set for the supporting cast to step up and be counted.
Outstanding performances from Pau Gasol, Derek Fisher and most notably Ron Artest, led the Lakers to an 83-79 victory over the Boston Celtics to secure there second NBA title in as many years.
While Bryant may not have been on top form offensively, on the other side of the ball Bryant was outstanding with 11 defensive rebounds.
That allowed Artest, in his first year with the Lakers shine with a workmanlike 20 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist. This included 12 points in the first half leading all scorers, and a big steal to tie it up at 23 with 8 minutes of the half remaining.
Before the start of the game, all eyes were on Bryant looking to see if he could bring a performance suited for a game 7 of the NBA finals.
But number 24 didn't have it all his way to begin with, from the opening tip-off Boston playing the more confident ball.
By the end of the first period, the Celtics had built a 9-point lead over the Lakers and 6-points by the half, with the Lakers shooting just 22% for the half.
Guard Rajon Rondo and forward Kevin Garnett led from the front and alongside the other Celtics, had Bryant under wraps as well as team mate Lemar Odum.
That left space for a certain 7-foot Spaniard, Pau Gasol, to get 19 points in the game (FG-6-16, FT-7-13).
Once the game was tied up for a fifth and final time late in the 4th, and then when the Lakers took the eventual lead, they started to move away from the Celtics who led the 7 match series 3-2 before a hard earned Lakers defensive win in game 6.
The game seemed to be over when Bryant was handed 3 go's from the line after drawing a foul from a 3-point shot.
After being successful with all 3, it was followed up by a brace of Artest points and then a Derek Fisher 2-pointer had all but put the match to bed.
with just over a minute to go Wallace made a 3-pointer to cut the deficit back to 2, but almost immediately Artest stepped up with one of his own.
despite Allen respond yet again with a 3-pointer, penalties cost the Celtics, with Bryant putting away two more free throws taking his count to 11 of 15 for the night.
That all but sealed it and with a late 3 point attempt from Rondo, giving Gasol his 18th total rebound of the night, back-to-back titles were sealed for the Lakers.
Despite under-performing on the night Bryant was named finals MVP but was quick to hail the performances of his team-mates, especially the Spaniard Gasol.
He said: "We couldn't have won it without him".
After collecting his trophy, Bryant described his fifth NBA title as "the sweetest yet".
With the season coming to a close, all eyes will now be on Lakers coach Phil Jackson will sign a new contract or whether or not this was actually his last game as Lakers coach.
