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The Kings–Lakers rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers. Historically, the rivalry has been very intense, with constant series in the early days in the NBA and bitterly contested playoff series in the early 2000s.
The Lakers and Kings split the first two games in Sacramento. Los Angeles raced out to a 36-point first quarter in Game 1 behind 67% shooting and never trailed, paced by Kobe Bryant's 30 point effort and 26 points from Shaquille O'Neal. Chris Webber had 28 points and 14 rebounds, but the other Kings combined shot under 40 percent. [21]
The Kings and the Lakers have faced each other in the playoffs nine times between 1949 and 2002, and since the Kings moved to Sacramento in 1985, both have been based in California. The 2002 Western Conference Finals was one of the most bitterly contested in NBA history, with many controversial calls in game 6. [ 318 ]
The series wasn't close, as the Lakers swept the Trail Blazers by double digits in all three games. In the semifinals the Lakers took on the Sacramento Kings, a team who had also given the Lakers a tough series the previous season, but the Lakers took two close games at home and went to Sacramento to finish the Kings off with a 4–0 sweep as ...
The 2002 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2001–02 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs.The best-of-seven playoff was contested between the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers (who were also two-time defending NBA champion), and the Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets.
Nevertheless, they pulled together and were able to edge Sacramento for the division title. Then the team went on a tear, sweeping the first three playoff series. The Lakers-Spurs series in the conference finals was the most lopsided conference finals series in NBA History, with the Lakers winning by an average of 22 points per game.
This was the final postseason appearance for the Kansas City Kings, as the team moved to Sacramento, California two seasons later. Kemper Arena hosted its final NBA playoff game. The Kingdome also hosted its final NBA playoff game, as the Seattle SuperSonics moved back full-time to the Seattle Center Coliseum two years later.
This season was the last time that the Sacramento Kings made the playoffs until 2023. The Kings held the longest playoff drought in NBA playoff history at 16 years. With the MLB's Seattle Mariners qualifying for the playoffs in 2022, the Kings held the title for the longest active playoff drought among the four major North American sports leagues until 2023.