With a move to Los Angeles in 2018, LeBron James brought the hope of another championship to the southern California city who had not won one since winning with Kobe in 2010. Despite much anticipation and hope that they would win a championship in the first year that James was on the team, the Lakers did not make it to the playoffs in 2019. Due to the fact that LeBron was out for part of the season due to an injury, they did not even have a winning record. Despite all that did not happen last year, this year was much different.
Even though many changes had to happen for the NBA season to happen as a result of the new COVID-19 precautions, the Lakers were able to rise above the rest of the Western Conference and make their first appearance in the Finals since their last win. To add to the excitement of the finals, their opponent was one of James’s former teams – the Miami Heat.
In Game 1 of the finals, the world witnessed a dominant Lakers performance with a 116-98 win over the Heat. Anthony Davis had 34 points and LeBron James had 25 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists in the opening game of the best of seven series. In Game 2, the Lakers also easily beat the Heat – this time by a score of 124-114. Davis made 14 of his first fifteen shots and eventually scored 32 points in the game. James scored 33 points, had nine rebounds and had nine assists as the Lakers were halfway to winning the 2020 NBA Finals.
While the Lakers only needed two more wins to win the series, the Miami Heat showed that the Lakers would not get the sweep with a 115-104 Game 3 win. Jimmy Butler led the way for the Heat with 40 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists – achieving an impressive triple double. However, the Lakers came back with a narrow 102-96 Game 4 win, then only needing one more win for the championship. James scored 28 points in the game and Anthony Davis nailed a three with 39.5 seconds left to secure the Lakers victory.
Despite the Lakers only being one game away from clinching the Championship, the Heat bounced back again in Game 5 with a 106-93 win. Once again, it was Jimmy Butler with another explosive triple double – 35 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists – who led the Heat to the win. In Game 6, however, the Lakers showed why they deserved to be the 2019-2020 NBA Champions when they won 106-93 led by a triple double from LeBron James – 28 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists.
After the game was over, LeBron James remarked, “This was very challenging, and very difficult. It played with your mind, and it played with your body. You’re away from some of the things you’re so accustomed to [that] make you the professional you are.”
The MVP of the series was LeBron James who celebrated his fourth Finals victory and became the first player in NBA history to be named Finals MVP with three different franchises. Celebrating his fourth Finals MVP award, he is now only two behind Michael Jordan for the most Finals MVP awards of all time.
