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American Morning

Will Lakers Win Second-Straight Championship, Make Basketball History?

Aired May 28, 2001 - 09:51   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LAURA OKMIN, CNN ANCHOR: Throughout the regular season, the big question in the National Basketball Association was can the Lakers win a second-straight championship? Well, 11 straight play-off wins later, the question has shifted from if they'll win, to how they'll do it, and if they can make history in the process.

CNN/"Sports Illustrated"'s Tom Rinaldi has the story of the steamroller called the Lakers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM RINALDI, CNN/"SPORTS ILLUSTRATED" REPORTER (voice-over): In this series, excellence became inevitable for one team. For the other, excellence was replaced by anger and an embarrassment. The Lakers did not simply sweep; more accurately, they dominated the team, with the NBA's best record, best three-point shooting percentage, best average margin of victory. Strategy, injury, intensity, they were punch lines for the Spurs, a team that lost its season's identity in nine days, in the face of a new juggernaut.

PHIL JACKSON, LAKERS HEAD COACH: We had San Antonio on their heels, and they were reacting to us rather than being aggressive, like they can be. They're a very good basketball club, and for us to win series like this is a remarkable feat.

TIM DUNCAN, SPURS: They were the better team in this series. They did everything. They had guys shooting the ball out of their mind. Kobe and Shaqo were great all series long, although I thought, at points, we did a great job of containing them. They always seemed to have an answer for us.

DAVID ROBINSON, SPURS: The first time they experienced something like that, they were fantastic, they really had an answer every time, for everything. They did a great job as a team. They made a lot of shots they -- wow! What do you say?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To go now 11-0 to the playoffs and to play and consistently to get better, the way we have, is a tribute to a team that's struggled and gathered itself up, and through the help of key players, made a realistic run at another championship.

RINALDI: This Lakers team reaches the NBA finals for the 19th time in franchise history. But they threaten to eclipse all times who have come before them. Isn't hyperbole if it changes history, and that's where the Lakers may be heading. Added incentive or unspoken goal, the Lakers now know a perfect postseason is in reach.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they play like that, there's no way any of the Eastern teams will beat them -- if they play anywhere close to that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We just want to win the championship. No matter how we get there and no matter what it takes, as long as we win the championship in the end, that's fine for us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't start the playoffs and say I think we won't lose any more than one or two, or we're going to go undefeated in the playoffs. You just play the games, and maybe they start thinking about that now because everybody's going to talk about it, but they'll certainly try to keep it out of their heads and just worry about playing the basketball games, and the record takes care of itself.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We just have to continue to take it one game at a time, and we'll be OK. If we're in a position to accomplish that, obviously, we'll want to, and we'll strive to, but right now, we're just staying focused on our job.

RINALDI (on camera): Before this series started, there was a lot of talk about asterisks. The Spurs' title supposedly had one, because it came in a 50-game season. The Lakers' title supposedly had one, because it came without Tim Duncan playing. The way the Lakers are playing in this title run, it seems as though exclamation points are a lot more fitting.

In Los Angeles, I'm Tom Rinaldi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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