"Congratulations to the Los Angeles Lakers for winning the 2003–2004 NBA championship!!!"
June 12, 2004. Miami. GAME 4. Los Angeles Lakers 145:107 Heat.
Sweep!
4:0!
The Lakers went undefeated through all 16 playoff games, sweeping four straight series and winning the title without a loss, creating another immortal NBA legend.
Shaquille O'Neal stood with his hands on his hips.
His eyes were filled with helplessness.
This series had ended in a sweep after all.
He had played the best series of his career, averaging 40.2 points, 17.6 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 2.4 blocks, 0.7 steals, and 3.5 turnovers.
His field-goal percentage had reached an astonishing 63.7%, while even his free-throw percentage was 61.5%, far above his usual mark.
But...
It meant nothing.
Over the four games, the Lakers averaged 121.6 points. Though that was a slight drop from their outrageous regular-season offense, it was already the highest scoring average by a team in Finals history.
In G2 and G3, both played in Miami, O'Neal had caught glimpses of victory.
Yao Ming had fouled out in both games with six fouls.
The Lakers' perimeter shooting had gone ice-cold.
He himself had been on fire.
Yet Kobe had ultimately crushed their hopes of winning both times.
By G4, the Heat players' hearts had already fallen apart.
Other than O'Neal and Wade, who were still fighting, the rest had accepted the reality.
They had become the backdrop for the greatest team in NBA history.
They had become the backdrop for the greatest player in history, Kobe Bryant.
Since that was the case, they simply gave up and lay down.
The Lakers slaughtered them and took the game with ease.
More than half of Miami's fans had already left before the third quarter even ended.
Now, Miami had practically become the Lakers' home court.
Fans