Former NBA Champion Recounts the Horror of Facing Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal During Lakers’ Three-Peat: “We Want to Change Every Possession”

Published 05/19/2023, 8:50 AM EDT

Winning any championship three times in a row is considered to be one of the biggest achievements in sports and that applies to the NBA as well. Even though the legendary Bill Russell’s Boston Celtics won eight titles in a row, a three-peat is still no walk in the park. Notably, even some of the most iconic teams in history have failed to achieve this feat, like the ‘Showtime Lakers’ and the 73-9 Warriors. However, in the early 2000s, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant led the Los Angeles Lakers to three straight rings, the first three-peat since the 90s Bulls. A former star who faced the duo in the playoffs recently talked about their dominance.

The Lakers led by a prime Shaq and a tenacious young Kobe dismantled teams in their way. They were almost unstoppable, but one team came very close to upsetting them.

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Jason Williams on the dominance of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant

After a few years of disappointment, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, and the Los Angeles Lakers won three straight titles from 2000 to 2003. In all three playoff runs, they defeated the Sacramento Kings. Even though Shaq and Kobe dominated all their opponents, the team struggled against the Kings. However, it was understandably not easy for the Kings to face two of the best players ever.

Former Kings star Jason Williams was a crucial part of that iconic team and the way they played. He recently joined NBA veterans Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson for the ‘All The Smoke’ podcast. During the sitdown, Jackson asked him about facing Bryant in the playoffs. The White Chocolate then talked about the nightmarish experience.

Williams said, “Bruh, killer! I mean one of the best to ever do it. The game plan for him is like we want to change every possession because he’s going to figure it out. He’s gonna get it done.” He then talked about the duo’s dominance.

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The 2006 NBA champion added, “And teams weren’t getting through Shaq and Kobe back when they wanted to play. They had great role players, they had a great coach, and them two.”

However, it has to be noted that the Kings were the only team that posed a major threat to the Purple & Gold’s ambitions.

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The rivalry between the Kings and the Lakers

The Kings vs. the Lakers was a huge rivalry during the late 90s and early 2000s. In the 1999-00 series, the Lakers won 4-1 and then won the title. The next year, the Lakers historically swept every team including the Kings on their way to the Finals where they shockingly lost game-1 against the Philadelphia 76ers but then won four straight to claim the ring. In the 2001-02 season, the two teams again matched up. This time, in the Western Conference Finals.

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The Beam Team had revenge on their mind and were ready to spoil their opponents’ plans to win three straight titles. The series was one of the closest ever as both teams went toe to toe and did not give an inch to their opponents. After 5 games, the Kings led the series 3-2. However, the Lakers came back strong and won the next two games with game-7 going overtime. They then went on to clinch the three-peat. But a lot of fans were not impressed by the officiating in the WCF and many believed the Kings should have won that series.

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Written by:

Bagavathi Eswaran is a senior NBA writer at EssentiallySports, with a strong passion for the sport that started at the young age of ten. As a former college player, Bagavathi has been following the NBA for more than a decade and has found his calling in writing about the sport. His expertise in covering the NBA, as well as other arenas of the sport, is evident in his writing.

Edited by:

Satagni Sikder

Former NBA Champion Recounts the Horror of Facing Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal During Lakers’ Three-Peat: “We Want to Change Every Possession”

Jason Williams on the dominance of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant

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The rivalry between the Kings and the Lakers