The 2009 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2008–09 season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. A best-of-seven playoff series starting on June 4 and concluding on June 14, 2009, it was contested between the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers, and the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic. The Lakers were heavily favored to win the championship over the Magic.
The Lakers defeated the Magic in five games to win the franchise's 15th NBA championship. Kobe Bryant was named the Finals MVP. The Orlando Magic's Game 3 victory was the first win in an NBA Finals game in franchise history; they were previously swept in 1995 by the Houston Rockets.
As of , this is the most recent time that the Lakers have clinched an NBA championship on the road.
Background The anticipation heading into the 2009 NBA playoffs was that the Finals would be a potential matchup between Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, who were regarded as the top players in the NBA at this point. However, the underdog Orlando Magic would end up shocking James' Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The two team captains (the Lakers' Kobe Bryant and the Magic's Dwight Howard) were teammates and starters on the United States men's national team the previous summer, winning a gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Each player defeated another fellow Olympic starter in his respective conference final series: Bryant defeated Carmelo Anthony's Denver Nuggets and Howard advanced past LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers.
This series was nicknamed the "Disney Series" for its connections to The Walt Disney Company. Disney owns ESPN, Finals broadcaster ABC and their television station in the Lakers home market KABC; Walt Disney World is located from Orlando in nearby Lake Buena Vista, and Disneyland is located from Los Angeles in nearby Anaheim.
2009 NBA playoffs
Los Angeles Lakers (Western Conference champion) Orlando Magic (Eastern Conference champion)1st seed in the West, 2nd best league recordRegular season3rd seed in the East, 4th best league recordDefeated the (8) Utah Jazz, 4–1First roundDefeated the (6) Philadelphia 76ers, 4–2Defeated the (5) Houston Rockets, 4–3Conference semifinalsDefeated the (2) Boston Celtics, 4–3Defeated the (2) Denver Nuggets, 4–2Conference finalsDefeated the (1) Cleveland Cavaliers, 4–2
Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers were the favorite to emerge from the Western Conference, but their road to the Finals was a tough one. They played three physical series against the Utah Jazz, Houston Rockets, and Denver Nuggets, winning in 5, 7, and 6 games, respectively. Going into the Finals, the Lakers finished off the Nuggets in the Western Conference finals with two good performances in Games 5 and 6, making analysts pick them as the favorites in the Finals. It was their sixth Finals appearance of the decade and a record-extending 30th Finals appearance overall, the most for any NBA team.
Orlando Magic
The Magic were overlooked by many to even reach the Eastern Conference finals, as they played in the shadows of the #1-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, led by regular-season MVP LeBron James, and defending champion #2-seed Boston Celtics, though without star forward Kevin Garnett since February 19 due to an ACL injury. However, after dispatching the Philadelphia 76ers in six games, the Magic stunned the Celtics by winning Game 7 in Boston. The Celtics were previously 32–0 when leading a series 3–2, and 17–3 previously in Game 7s at home. Orlando assistant coach Patrick Ewing had publicly "guaranteed" that Orlando would win Game 7.
In the next round, Orlando was given little chance by many to defeat the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, but a combination of three-point shooting and the inside presence of Dwight Howard created a matchup nightmare for Cleveland on defense, and Orlando ultimately won in six games. In Game 6, Howard's stellar performance with 40 points and 14 rebounds helped the franchise earn its second all-time Finals appearance and its first Finals appearance since 1995, where a Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway-led Magic were swept by the Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler-led Houston Rockets.
Series preview Although the Magic won both regular-season matchups with the Lakers, Los Angeles was able to take four out of five games in this series. Both regular-season games and three of the NBA Finals games were close contests, decided by six points or fewer or in overtime. The Lakers won Game 2 on June 7, 101–96 in overtime. Then they won Game 4 on June 11 in overtime as well.
Tyronn Lue, a backup point guard with Orlando, appeared with the Lakers during their initial championship run in the early 2000s and faced his former team in the finals. Lue and another backup point guard, Anthony Johnson were the only players on Orlando's roster with NBA Finals experience. However, neither saw playing time during the series, as Lue was inactive with an injury and Johnson lost his minutes to teammate Jameer Nelson, who returned from a shoulder injury in time for the Finals, where he led the Magic to sweep the Lakers in regular season. Trevor Ariza, the Lakers starting small forward, faced the team that traded him to the Lakers in 2007.
Regular-season series The Orlando Magic won both games in the regular-season series:
Series summary Starting this Finals, Sunday games are now moved up to 8:00 PM (ET) from the previous 9:00 PM (ET) timeslot. Game Date Road team Result Home team Game 1 June 4 Orlando Magic 75–100 (1–0) Los Angeles Lakers Game 2 June 7 Orlando Magic 96–101 (2–0) Los Angeles Lakers Game 3 June 9 Los Angeles Lakers 104–108 (2–1) Orlando Magic Game 4 June 11 Los Angeles Lakers 99–91 (3–1) Orlando Magic Game 5 June 14 Los Angeles Lakers 99–86 (4–1) Orlando Magic
Game summaries All times are in Eastern Daylight Time (UTC−4). If the venue is located in a different time zone, the local time is also given.
Game 1
After an evenly battled first quarter, the Magic took the lead thanks to field goals and assists from point guard Jameer Nelson, who was playing his first game since injuring his shoulder during the regular season in February. Down 33–28 with 8:38 left in the 2nd quarter, the Lakers went on a 10–0 run and never looked back. The Lakers ended the 3rd quarter on a 25–10 run, led by the fierce play from Kobe Bryant, who finished with 40 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists, joining the likes of Shaquille O'Neal, Michael Jordan, and Jerry West to put up those numbers in a single NBA Finals game. The 25-point margin of victory was the 6th-largest in NBA Finals Game 1 history.
Due to stellar defense by the Lakers, Dwight Howard was a dismal 1–6 from the field, his fewest made field goals in his playoff career, and finished with 12 points, 10 of which came from free throws. The Magic shot only 29.9% (23–77) from the field, the second lowest percentage in the NBA Finals.
Game 2
Both teams got off to a slow start and were tied at 15 after the first quarter, setting a record-low for combined score (30) in the first quarter of an NBA Finals game. The Lakers picked up the pace in the 2nd quarter, but Rashard Lewis kept the Magic in the game, scoring 18 of the team's 20 points in the quarter, including the final 16, on his way to a playoff career-high and Finals franchise-high 34 points for the game. The Magic outscored the Lakers in the 3rd quarter to take a 2-point lead in the 4th.
With the game tied at 84, Rashard Lewis hit a jumper with 1:32 remaining to give the Magic a 2-point lead. Kobe Bryant responded with a jumper of his own to tie the game. With 47 seconds left, Hedo Türkoğlu hit a jumper that was originally called a three-pointer. However, replay showed that his foot was on the line, giving the Magic a two-point lead. With 33 seconds remaining, Dwight Howard was able to deflect, but not steal, a Derek Fisher pass, and Pau Gasol was able to again tie the game at 88 with a layup.
On the ensuing Magic possession, the Lakers played great defense and forced Courtney Lee to miss an awkward layup shot with 10.5 seconds left. With a chance to take a 2–0 series lead, Kobe Bryant was blocked on a jumper by Türkoğlu, who gained control of the ball and called time-out with 0.6 seconds left. After another timeout, Türkoğlu threw a half-court lob to Courtney Lee, who had come free after a screen on his defender. However, Lee was traveling too fast and launched his layup from almost behind the backboard, causing it to miss.
With the Lakers up 1 in overtime with 1:55 left, Derek Fisher stole a JJ Redick pass and was fouled on the ensuing fast break, making both free throws. After the Magic were unable to convert, Kobe Bryant made a pivotal assist to Pau Gasol for a layup-and-one, giving the Lakers a 6-point lead and the eventual victory.
Game 3
The Magic came out in Game 3 with fire. The Magic shot a field goal percentage of 63% for the game, a Finals record. This also included a 75% first quarter, also a Finals record. However, despite the incredible shooting percentage, the Lakers managed to stay close for much of the game. The game was only sealed for the Magic on a Mickaël Piétrus steal from Kobe Bryant in the waning minute of the 4th quarter.
This win marked the first Finals win in Magic franchise history, losing their first 6 Finals games (being swept in their first appearance and losing Games 1 and 2)
Game 4
Coming off their franchise's first NBA Finals game victory, the Magic quickly took the lead in the first quarter. However, Kobe Bryant kept the Lakers in the game, scoring 13 of the team's 20 first-quarter points. Dwight Howard played a great first quarter, with 11 rebounds and 4 blocks in the opening frame. In addition, he drew many fouls, putting Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol, and Lamar Odom in foul trouble and forcing Lakers coach Phil Jackson to use Josh Powell and D. J. Mbenga early in the game. The Magic were able to increase the lead to 12 at halftime.
The Lakers came out of the locker room aggressive and outscored the Magic 30–14 in the 3rd quarter, led by Trevor Ariza, who scored 13 points in the quarter, including two three-pointers. Down by six in the opening minutes of the 4th quarter, the Magic took a 76–75 lead halfway through the quarter, but were unable to increase the lead due to poor free-throw shooting, specifically from Hedo Türkoğlu and Dwight Howard.
With 3 minutes left in the 4th quarter and the game tied at 79, Howard converted a three-point play to give the Magic an 82–79 lead. On the next Laker possession, the Magic played good defense, but Trevor Ariza was able to hit a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired to tie the game at 82. After Hedo Türkoğlu hit a stepback 3-point shot, Howard blocked Gasol's jumper, giving him a single-game NBA Finals record with 9 blocked shots. On the bench to witness it was a previous record holder, his assistant coach Patrick Ewing, who had 8 in Game 5 of the 1994 NBA Finals while with the New York Knicks. Türkoğlu made another jumper with 1:34 remaining to give the Magic a five-point lead.
Down 87–82 with 31 seconds left, Kobe Bryant spun through the lane and passed to Gasol for a dunk to cut the lead to three. On the next Magic possession, Howard was fouled by Bryant with 11 seconds remaining. Needing just one free-throw to make the game a 2-possession affair, Howard missed both shots.
Out of the timeout, the Lakers elected to take the ball out at three-quarters court instead of half-court in order to space out the floor. The Magic double-teamed Bryant in the backcourt, allowing him to pass the ball up to Ariza, who in turned passed it to Derek Fisher on the right wing. Having missed his first five three-point shots of the game, Fisher spotted up and hit a pivotal three-pointer over Jameer Nelson to tie the game at 87 with 4.6 seconds left. On the final possession of regulation, Mickaël Piétrus missed a 20-footer.