2000 NBA Finals

2000 NBA Finals

Team Coach Wins Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 4 Indiana Pacers Larry Bird 2
Dates:	June 7–19
MVP:	Shaquille O'Neal (Los Angeles Lakers)
Hall of Famers	Lakers: Shaquille O'Neal (2016) Kobe Bryant (2020) Pacers: Chris Mullin (2011) Reggie Miller (2012) Coaches: Larry Bird (1998, player) Phil Jackson (2007) Officials: Dick Bavetta (2015) Hugh Evans (2022)
Eastern Finals:	Pacers defeated Knicks, 4–2
Western Finals:	Lakers defeated Trail Blazers, 4–3
NBA Finals
← 1999
2001 →

The 2000 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1999–00 National Basketball Association season.

The Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers 4 games to 2. This was the Lakers' first championship in twelve years. Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the series, his first of three consecutive honors. The series was played under a best-of-seven format, with the Lakers holding home-court advantage.

Until 2008, this was the most recent NBA Finals to feature the number one seeds from both conferences.

2000 NBA Playoffs

Los Angeles Lakers (Western Conference Champion)			Indiana Pacers (Eastern Conference Champion)
67–15 (.817) 1st Pacific, 1st West, 1st Overall	Regular season		56–26 (.683) 1st Central, 1st East, 3rd Overall
Defeated the (8) Sacramento Kings, 3–2	First Round		Defeated the (8) Milwaukee Bucks, 3–2
Defeated the (5) Phoenix Suns, 4–1	Conference Semifinals		Defeated the (4) Philadelphia 76ers, 4–2
Defeated the (3) Portland Trail Blazers, 4–3	Conference Finals		Defeated the (3) New York Knicks, 4–2

Regular season series

Both teams split the two meetings, each won by the home team:

January 14, 2000

Los Angeles Lakers 102, Indiana Pacers 111

Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana

March 3, 2000

Indiana Pacers 92, Los Angeles Lakers 107

Staples Center, Los Angeles, California

Background

Los Angeles Lakers

Although the Lakers were one of the more talented teams in the NBA the previous year, they failed to win a single game against the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs in the 1999 NBA Playoffs. Twenty-four days after being swept by the eventual league champion, the Lakers signed Phil Jackson as head coach. Jackson, famous for coaching Michael Jordan and the six-time champion Chicago Bulls, would build his triangle offense around Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. General Manager Jerry West surrounded O'Neal and Bryant with effective role players such as Glen Rice, Ron Harper (who had experience with Jackson's triangle offense as part of the 1996–1998 Bulls), and A. C. Green (member of the last two Lakers championship teams in 1987 and 1988).

Along with these starters, the Lakers also possessed a strong bench. Robert Horry not only had championship experience with the Houston Rockets but also was a threat on the perimeter and a defensive star. Derek Fisher was a defensively minded point-guard with the ability to shoot well from long range. Rick Fox, acquired after being released by the Boston Celtics, was the Lakers' sixth man.

With a healthy O'Neal, the Lakers dominated the regular season. They posted a 33-7 record after 40 games, the second-best record after 40 games in franchise history, trailing only the 1971-72 Lakers who posted a record of 37-3 after 40 games. They posted winning streaks of 11, 16, and 19 en route to a 67–15 record, tying the 1992 Chicago Bulls and 1986 Boston Celtics as the fifth best record in NBA regular season history.

Although many expected the Lakers to reach the Finals, the road would be a rocky one. In the first round, the Lakers won the first two games against the Sacramento Kings, only to drop the next two games in Sacramento. The Lakers then defeated Sacramento in Game 5, 113–86, to face the Phoenix Suns in the conference semifinals. The Lakers clobbered the Suns, winning the series 4–1 (with their only loss coming in Game 4). In Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers, Rasheed Wallace earned two technical fouls and was ejected; the Lakers took advantage of Wallace's absence and secured victory. The Trail Blazers stormed back in the next game, giving the Lakers their worst home loss of the season in a 106–77 shellacking. This setback did not affect Los Angeles, as they assembled a 3–1 series lead by winning the next two games in Portland. The Lakers underestimated the Trail Blazers, however. Led by former Jackson linchpin Scottie Pippen, Portland won back-to-back elimination games and forced a series-deciding Game 7. Amid several controversial foul calls by referee Dick Bavetta against members of the Trail Blazers, Portland relinquished a 75–60 fourth quarter lead. Rallying back with a 25–4 run, the Lakers won the game and secured a berth in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1991.

Indiana Pacers

In the 1997–98 NBA season, the Chicago Bulls narrowly defeated the Pacers, 4 games to 3, in the Eastern Conference Finals. The 1998–99 NBA season began with a lockout, but saw Indiana return to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost to the eighth-seeded New York Knicks. The 1999–00 NBA season brought several major changes to the Pacers. It was their first season at Conseco Fieldhouse, as well as their first since 1993 without center Antonio Davis, who was traded for the rights to the No. 5 overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft. Jalen Rose replaced Chris Mullin in the starting line up, winning the NBA Most Improved Player award, while Austin Croshere replaced him as the sixth man.

The Pacers started the season 7–7 but eventually finished with an Eastern Conference best 56–26 record, including a franchise-best 25 game win streak at home. The Pacers, like the Lakers, struggled in the playoffs. They needed a clutch Travis Best three-pointer to dispatch the Milwaukee Bucks in five games. Indiana faced the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round and took the series in six games, earning a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pacers would face their rivals, the New York Knicks, winning a memorable six game series in a reversal of fortunes from years past. With the victory, Indiana advanced to their first NBA Finals in franchise history, becoming the second former ABA team to do so after the San Antonio Spurs the previous season.

Series summary

Game	Date	Home Team	Result	Away Team
Game 1	June 7	Los Angeles	104–87	Indiana
Game 2	June 9	Los Angeles	111–104	Indiana
Game 3	June 11	Indiana	100–91	Los Angeles
Game 4	June 14	Indiana	118–120 (OT)	Los Angeles
Game 5	June 16	Indiana	120–87	Los Angeles
Game 6	June 19	Los Angeles	116–111	Indiana

The Finals were played using a 2–3–2 site format, where the team with home court advantage would receive the first two games and the last two games at home. The NBA, after experimenting in the early years, restored this original format for the Finals in 1985. So far, the other playoff series are still running on a 2–2–1–1–1 site format. The Finals returned to a 2-2-1-1-1 format in 2014.

This was the second time a Finals game was played on a Monday night since the NBA switched to the Wednesday-Friday-Sunday rotation in 1991. In the previous five series (1992–94, 1996, 1998) that needed a Game 6, the game was played on a Sunday. In this series, however, the NBA chose to play the game the Monday night after Father's Day. The previous Finals game played on a Monday night was Game 3 in 1999.

Game 1

June 7 9:30 pm ET	Recap	Indiana Pacers 87, Los Angeles Lakers 104				Staples Center, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 18,997 Referees: No. 43 Dan Crawford No. 35 Jack Nies No. 31 Terry Durham	NBC
		Scoring by quarter: 18–33, 25–22, 28–22, 16–27
		Pts: Mark Jackson 18 Rebs: Dale Davis 8 Asts: Mark Jackson 7		Pts: Shaquille O'Neal 43 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 19 Asts: Bryant, Harper 5 each
		Los Angeles leads the series, 1–0

The Lakers dominated from the start. The Lakers shot 15-for-20 (75%) in the first period while the Pacers shot only 7-for-20 (35%). Reggie Miller would miss all of his shots in the first quarter to give the Lakers a 15-point lead. Austin Croshere came off the bench to keep the Pacers alive in the 2nd quarter, scoring 9 points and grabbing 4 rebounds in the quarter. Although the Pacers attempted a comeback in the 2nd quarter, they were still down by 12. In the 3rd quarter, it would be Mark Jackson who led the Pacers to a comeback, cutting the Lakers lead to 2. Reggie Miller also hit his first field goal in the 3rd quarter, though it would be his last. The Lakers handled the Pacers in the final quarter, with a 13–2 run winning by 17 points. Shaquille O'Neal scored 43 points and grabbed 19 rebounds.

Game 2

June 9 9:30 pm ET	Recap	Indiana Pacers 104, Los Angeles Lakers 111				Staples Center, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 18,997 Referees: No. 17 Joe Crawford No. 15 Bennett Salvatore No. 32 Ed F. Rush	NBC
		Scoring by quarter: 28–28, 21–24, 20–21, 35–38
		Pts: Jalen Rose 30 Rebs: Dale Davis 10 Asts: Mark Jackson 8		Pts: Shaquille O'Neal 40 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 24 Asts: Brian Shaw 7
		Los Angeles leads the series, 2–0

Los Angeles and Indiana were evenly matched for the first quarter, both scoring 28. However, Los Angeles suffered a major setback when Kobe Bryant left the game in the 1st quarter due to a sprained ankle and did not return. Jalen Rose later admitted that he intentionally stuck out his foot when Kobe shot a jumpshot in order to trip him when he landed. Ron Harper went in for Bryant and scored 21 points for the game. Desperate to try to gain the lead, Larry Bird resorted to the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy. Shaq shot 39 free throws, making only 18, an NBA record for most free throws attempted. Despite this low percentage, Shaq made 9 of 16 in the 4th quarter to keep a Lakers lead. The Pacers cut the lead to 99–96 and were looking to foul Shaq, but when Shaq got the ball he passed to Robert Horry who converted not only the layup, but the foul shot as well giving them a 102–96 lead en route to a 111–104 Lakers victory.

Game 3

June 11 7:30 pm ET	Recap	Los Angeles Lakers 91, Indiana Pacers 100				Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana Attendance: 18,345 Referees: No. 10 Ron Garretson No. 7 Bernie Fryer No. 25 Hugh Evans	NBC
		Scoring by quarter: 15–23, 27–30, 24–26, 25–21
		Pts: Shaquille O'Neal 33 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 13 Asts: Derek Fisher 10		Pts: Reggie Miller 33 Rebs: Dale Davis 12 Asts: Mark Jackson 6
		Los Angeles leads the series, 2–1

Taking advantage of Kobe Bryant's ankle injury, Indiana restored a semblance of parity to the proceedings. Kobe's absence was felt as the Pacers had an 11–2 run in the first quarter to take an 8-point lead. Austin Croshere once again had another huge 2nd quarter, scoring 8 points as the Pacers shot 61% from the field. The Lakers tried to make a run to get back into the game, but upon doings so, Indiana answered with 12 straight points and led by 17. The Lakers were desperate and attempted another run to get within 3 points, but Reggie Miller nailed all his free throws at the end of the game to give Indiana a 9-point win.

Game 4

June 14 9:30 pm ET	Recap	Los Angeles Lakers 120, Indiana Pacers 118			OT	Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana Attendance: 18,345 Referees: No. 27 Dick Bavetta No. 29 Steve Javie No. 34 Ronnie Nunn	NBC
		Scoring by quarter: 23–33, 28–21, 29–23, 24–27, OT: 16–14
		Pts: Shaquille O'Neal 36 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 21 Asts: Kobe Bryant 5		Pts: Reggie Miller 35 Rebs: Dale Davis 8 Asts: Mark Jackson 8
		Los Angeles leads the series, 3–1

The Pacers took a quick 9–2 lead due to Rik Smits hitting his first four shots. Kobe Bryant attempted to play with his sore ankle but only managed to score 6 points in the first half. Even though Bryant and O'Neal were in foul trouble in the first half (each picking up his third with 5 minutes remaining in the second quarter), Indiana could not take advantage and did not extend their lead. This would be a problem as Kobe Bryant scored 10 points and the Lakers took a 62–60 lead due to a Glen Rice three-pointer. The game remained close going into the fourth quarter, when O'Neal and Reggie Miller scored 14 and 13 points respectively, sending the game into overtime. Midway through overtime, O'Neal committed his sixth foul but 21-year-old Bryant delivered three clutch shots, as the Lakers were able to overcome back-up center John Salley's inability to effectively defend Smits. Smits and Miller scored all 14 of Indiana's OT points, but it was not enough to overcome as Miller missed a last-second three-pointer, and L.A. was able to pull one out in Indianapolis. Shaquille O'Neal was the first final NBA MVP player to foul out in the NBA Finals until Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors fouled out in Game 6 of the 2016 NBA Finals.

Game 5

June 16 9:30 pm ET	Recap	Los Angeles Lakers 87, Indiana Pacers 120				Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana Attendance: 18,345 Referees: No. 15 Bennett Salvatore No. 35 Jack Nies No. 43 Dan Crawford
		Scoring by quarter: 28–39, 17–25, 22–22, 20–34
		Pts: Shaquille O'Neal 35 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 11 Asts: Ron Harper 5		Pts: Jalen Rose 32 Rebs: Austin Croshere 9 Asts: Mark Jackson 7
		Los Angeles leads the series, 3–2

Reggie Miller and the Pacers dominated the game from the start in what would be Larry Bird's last game as a coach in the state of Indiana. Reggie Miller came out and made 5 straight shots including a 4-point play. The Pacers hit their first 6 three point shots in the game. The Pacers would have a 20-point lead in the 2nd quarter, and eventually won by 33 – it was the worst Lakers NBA Finals loss since the 148–114 loss to Boston in the 1985 NBA Finals, known as the "Memorial Day Massacre."

With their loss in Game 5, the Lakers record in close-out games dropped to 3–6 in the 2000 NBA Playoffs (the other losses coming in Games 3 and 4 in the first round against Sacramento, Game 4 in the series against Phoenix, and Games 5 and 6 versus Portland). As a result, the series returned to California.

Game 6

June 19 9:30 pm ET	Recap	Indiana Pacers 111, Los Angeles Lakers 116				Staples Center, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 18,997 Referees: No. 25 Hugh Evans No. 10 Ron Garretson No. 17 Joe Crawford	NBC
		Scoring by quarter: 26–24, 30–29, 28–26, 27–37
		Pts: Jalen Rose 29 Rebs: Dale Davis 14 Asts: Mark Jackson 11		Pts: Shaquille O'Neal 41 Rebs: Shaquille O'Neal 12 Asts: Ron Harper 9
		Los Angeles wins the series, 4–2

After the two teams traded blows in the first quarter, Mark Jackson concluded the period with a turn-around half-court shot at the buzzer to give the Pacers a 26–24 advantage. They would not relinquish their lead until the fourth quarter. In the first half, the Pacers would lead by as many as twelve points. However, the Lakers chipped away and entered intermission trailing 56–53. Indiana added two more points to their lead, and entered the final period in a position to force a decisive seventh game.

In the fourth quarter, the momentum shifted. The Lakers got four timely three-pointers from Derek Fisher, Robert Horry, and Rick Fox. The turning point occurred on a play where Brian Shaw stole the ball from Jalen Rose, leading to a fast break where Shaquille O'Neal hit an off-balance shot to give the Lakers the lead. The Pacers never led after that point.

The Lakers would build a seven-point lead, but the Pacers fought back to tie the score at 103. After a timeout, the Lakers scored six unanswered points to regain control. The Pacers made one final valiant effort, but it fell short and the Lakers clinched their first championship in twelve years. Shaquille O'Neal led all scorers with 41 points and also pulled down 12 rebounds. He was awarded the Finals MVP.

Rosters

Los Angeles Lakers

1999–00 Los Angeles Lakers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY-MM-DD) From G/F 8 Bryant, Kobe (C) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1978–08–23 Lower Merion HS (PA) G 11 Celestand, John  6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 1977–03–06 Villanova G 2 Fisher, Derek 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1974–08–09 Little Rock F 17 Fox, Rick 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1969–07–24 North Carolina F 3 George, Devean 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1977–08–29 Augsburg F 45 Green, A.C. 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1963–10–04 Oregon State G 4 Harper, Ron 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1964–01–20 Miami (OH) F 5 Horry, Robert 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1970–08–25 Alabama C 40 Knight, Travis 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1974–09–13 Connecticut G 10 Lue, Tyronn  6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1977–05–03 Nebraska C 34 O'Neal, Shaquille (C) 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 338 lb (153 kg) 1972–03–06 LSU F 41 Rice, Glen 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1967–05–28 Michigan F/C 16 Salley, John 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1964–05–16 Georgia Tech G 20 Shaw, Brian 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1966–03–22 UC Santa Barbara

Head coach Phil Jackson Assistant coach(es) Tex Winter Jim Cleamons Frank Hamblen Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

Indiana Pacers

1999–00 Indiana Pacers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY-MM-DD) From F 24 Bender, Jonathan 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 202 lb (92 kg) 1981–01–30 Picayune Memorial HS (MS) G 4 Best, Travis 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 1972–07–12 Georgia Tech F 44 Croshere, Austin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1975–05–01 Providence F/C 32 Davis, Dale 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1969–03–25 Clemson F/C 10 Foster, Jeff 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 236 lb (107 kg) 1977–01–16 Texas State F 3 Harrington, Al 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1980–02–17 St. Patrick HS (NJ) G 13 Jackson, Mark 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1965–04–01 St. John's F 9 McKey, Derrick 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1966–10–10 Alabama G/F 31 Miller, Reggie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1965–08–24 UCLA G/F 17 Mullin, Chris 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1963–07–30 St. John's F/C 14 Perkins, Sam 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1961–06–14 North Carolina G/F 5 Rose, Jalen 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1973–01–30 Michigan C 45 Smits, Rik 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1966–08–23 Marist C 55 Tabak, Žan 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1970–06–15 Croatia

Head coach Larry Bird Assistant coach(es) Rick Carlisle Dick Harter Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

References

Preceded by 1999

NBA Finals 2000

Succeeded by 2001