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Sunday, June 2 Updated: June 3, 12:02 PM ET Kings have no one to blame but themselves By Jerry Bembry ESPN The Magazine SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- It was way back in the first quarter -- over a span of 29 seconds when Hedo Turkoglu and Vlade Divac combined to miss four straight free throws -- that the pattern was set. It was back in the third quarter -- over a span of 12 minutes when the Kings made just two of seven free throws -- that the outcome of the game was becoming predictable.
In Game 7 of the Western Conference finals, the Sacramento Kings had no one to blame. No pointing a finger at an official. No helplessly watching a game-winning shot. In the biggest game in the history of the franchise, the Kings failed to advance to the NBA Finals because they beat themselves.
The Kings shot 53.3 percent from the free-throw line. The Kings missed 14 attempts for the game. Let's just say it's amazing that the Kings, shooting free throws like that, were able to extend the game into overtime. But all that did was extend their agony by five minutes as they got beat by the Lakers, 112-106, bringing their season to a crushing close.
It was more than the missed free throws that cost the Kings the game. It was Vlade Divac fouling out in just 27 minutes, leaving no one capable of defending Shaquille O'Neal.
It was Peja Stojakovic at the end of regulation and Doug Christie at the end of overtime being left alone for wide-open looks that could have extended Sacramento's season -- and both failing to draw iron.
It was Divac leaving Robert Horry wide open on a 3-pointer with 1:30 left in regulation that turned a one-point Sacramento lead into a two-point deficit.
It was Chris Webber scoring 14 points in the first half, and then rolling three deuces: two points in the third quarter, two points in the fourth quarter and two points in overtime.
The Kings spoke as if they were ready. The Kings promised they'd be pumped by playing before the home crowd. But in the end the Kings played like a team that has never been in a seventh game of a playoff series with a trip to the NBA Finals at stake.
"We missed a lot of free throws," said Kings coach Rick Adelman. "And it really cost us."
What really cost the Kings is the fact that the supporting players for the Lakers finally showed up collectively to provide a lift for O'Neal and Kobe Bryant.
Every Laker starter scored in double figures -- the first time that happened this series -- and four starters had double figures in rebounds. Each member of the Kobe/Shaq starting support team made big contributions:
"I told (Chris Webber) that his guys might be more talented," Bryant said. "But our guys won't back down from anybody. They're going to be there at the end of the ball game."
Yet the success of this Lakers team, of course, centers around the play of O'Neal and Bryant.
O'Neal had 35 points and 13 boards in 51 high-energy minutes. With Webber defending him in the overtime period, O'Neal got whatever position he wanted and scored six points in the extra session. And who could have imagined that Shaq could give some free-throw shooting tips to the Kings: O'Neal hit 11 of 15 of his free throws on Sunday and was 24 of 32 (75 percent) from the line over the last two games of the series when he averaged 38 points.
Bryant averaged 30.5 points over his last two games of the series, including 30 on Sunday. Sure, he shot the ball poorly (10 of 26 from the field, and just two of seven in the second half) and -- at times when he should have fed the ball to Shaq in the first half -- shot the ball too much. But he did the other things to help his team win, grabbing 10 rebounds and dishing out seven assists -- his high assist game for the series.
"If I'm struggling, I can be a decoy," Bryant said. "We kept plugging away, and eventually momentum shifted in our favor."
Momentum in this series swung from the time Horry made his winning shot in Game 4 -- saving the Lakers from a 3-1 series deficit. The Lakers were able to win the final two games of the series against a team that had finished the regular season with the best record in basketball, and a team that had the best home record in the league during the regular season.
When fans remember this series they'll recall seven games of great drama, seven games that went down to the final minute, seven games where a deep breath was required before the final buzzer.
When the Lakers remember this series they'll recall how they were able to remain calm and confident under pressure, how they were able to come back from a 3-2 deficit -- and record the first Game 7 road win in franchise history -- when many predicted their reign was over.
When the Kings remember this series they'll recall a series they should have won. If they watch the Game 7 tape they will cringe watching their failure on the free-throw line, seeing their season slip away on the few opportunities they had shots that were uncontested.
It's failure that most great teams go through. The Bulls got bullied by the Pistons before they won titles. The Lakers suffered a sweep by the Spurs before they got their first ring in the Phil Jackson era.
One day the Kings might find themselves experiencing the NBA Finals for the first time, and spraying champagne on each other as they celebrate a title. Until that day happens they'll look at this just-completed series -- especially the seventh game -- with great pain.
"It's like they had their hearts ripped out of them," Kings coach Rick Adelman, his eyes red, said after the game. "I guess our time has to come some other year." Jerry Bembry is general editor (NBA) at ESPN The Magazine. He can be reached at Jerry.Bembry@espnpub.com. |
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