Unfortunately for the purple and gold of the Lakers jerseys, they fell short against the Boston Celtics of the NBA Eastern Conference.
The playoffs began with the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference as the Lakers finished with a 57-25 record. His first playoff game came in the form of Allen Iverson, Carmello Anthony and the Denver Nuggets. The Lakers had their way with the Nuggets, winning four straight, the first two in Los Angeles, the next two in Denver. The first game was 128-114 for the Lakers, as Pau Gasol scored 36 points for the Lakers and Kobe Bryant added 32. Games two and three were even more crushing as the Lakers won the second game in Los Angeles, 122- 107 and third game in Denver 102-84. Game four the Nuggets had a hot run but fell short 107-101 in a game in which Kobe added 31 more and Gasol 21. The Lakers were poised to move on to the second round.
The second round started well when the Lakers faced the Utah Jazz. In the first two games in Los Angeles, the Lakers easily won 109-98 and 120-110. Kobe scored 38 and 34, helped by Gasol’s 18 and 20. The Jazz were led in scoring by rising star DeRon Williams, who did his best scoring 25 and 14 but also added 10 and 9 assists in the first two games. . The series would switch to Utah. In Utah, the series quickly became very competitive. In game three, the Lakers lost their first playoff game of the year, ending a 6-game playoff win streak. Game 3 went to Utah 104-99, when Carlos Boozer scored 27 points and grabbed 20 rebounds. Boozer, Okur and Williams couldn’t deny each other on this night. Game four ended with another victory for the Jazz, this time in overtime, with a 123-115 win. Bryant scored 33 points on 33 shots. Lamar Odom helped the Lakers with 26 points and 13 rebounds, but that wasn’t enough as the Jazz had six players in double figures to lead them to a 2-2 win and tie in the series. The series then returned to Staples Center, where the Lakers held on, thanks to a 30-24 fourth quarter to take the game 111-104 and take a 3-2 series lead. This time it was the Lakers with five guys in double figures, led by Kobe’s 26 and Odom’s 22, the Lakers were now one win away from moving on. In Game 6, the Lakers would have to return to Salt Lake City, where the Jazz were 4-1 in the postseason. Tonight he belonged to the Lakers. After a 33-20 first quarter and a 62-43 halftime lead, the Lakers held on, despite a 35-22 fourth-quarter run by the Jazz to win 108-105 and advance to the Finals. the Western Conference.
In the Conference Finals, the Lakers once again had home court advantage, this time against the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs. This series wasn’t really that close as the Lakers managed to get the Spurs to win in five games. The first game started well for the Spurs as they led by 8 points at halftime, but they couldn’t hang on as the Lakers outscored them 24-13 in the fourth quarter to come out with an 89-85 victory. Kobe Bryant matched the Spurs’ Tim Duncan point-for-point and the Lakers’ defense did a great job of limiting sharpshooter Mano Ginobli to just ten points. Game two, the Spurs were out of luck. By winning all four quarters, the Lakers crushed the Spurs 101-71. With five guys in double figures, the Lakers once again used their depth to take a 2-0 series lead and remain undefeated at home throughout the postseason. In a must-win game three in San Antonio, the Spurs were able to defeat the Lakers, this time winning 103-84. Kobe’s 30 weren’t enough, as Ginobli also scored 30, Tim Duncan added 22 and Tony Parker added 20. The Spurs seemed to stay in the series. In game four, the Lakers earned two points, and in game five, the Lakers used a 36-29 fourth-quarter lead to win the game and the series. Kobe Bryant was once again the star of the fifth game scoring 39 points, while Pau Gasol added 19 rebounds. The Lakers were once again back in the NBA Finals!