Shaquille O’Neal was probably probably the most dominant power that now we have ever seen on an NBA court docket, and he was on the top of his energy within the early 2000s. He was so dominant, the truth is, that the Portland Path Blazers despatched him to the free throw line 25 instances in a single quarter of a playoff sport in Could 2000.
The Lakers have been on the hunt for his or her first championship in 12 years in 2000, they usually had defeated the Kings and Suns within the first two rounds of the playoffs with a view to qualify for the Western Convention Finals. However of their method stood a Path Blazers group stuffed with veteran gamers who had misplaced simply two video games over the primary two sequence of the postseason.
On This Day: Blazers Attempt The Hack-A-Shaq
HACK-A-SHAQ
23 years in the past right now, SHAQ tried a playoff file 25 FTS in a single quarter throughout a win vs the Blazers!FINAL STATS
Shaq: 41 PTS, 11 REB, 7 AST, 5 BLK
Sabonis: 0 PTS, 1 REB, 2 AST, 0 BLK pic.twitter.com/0gMtOQTZHW— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) May 20, 2023
The sequence wound up being a 7-game epic, during which the Lakers wound up being victorious due to a 13-point comeback within the 4th quarter of the ultimate sport.
Nevertheless it was throughout Sport 1 that an NBA file was set, one that can seemingly by no means be damaged.
Shaq was dominating within the first sport between the 2 sides. The Lakers heart had 29 factors by the primary 42 minutes of the sport, and was placing Blazers defenders right into a blender on seemingly each possession. Head coach Mike Dunleavy determined to attempt a brand new strategy, having his gamers foul O’Neal each time he received the ball as an alternative.
Portland was down by 13 with below 6 minutes left in Sport 1 when the experiment began. The Lakers have been by no means in a position to get into any offensive circulation, as Blazers facilities fouled O’Neal earlier than any play might develop. They thought that his poor free throw capturing would finally lead to fewer factors for Los Angeles with much less time eaten off of the clock.
Kobe Bryant to Shaq
📸 2000 NBA Finals pic.twitter.com/vzSVotaZAF
— Kobe Highlights & Motivation (@kobehighlight) January 10, 2023
The tactic would show to be helpful in spots sooner or later, however Shaq hit too a lot of his free throws that day to permit a comeback from Portland. O’Neal shot 25 free throws within the closing quarter, 24 of which got here after the 6-minute mark. He made 13 of the 25, which was sufficient to permit the Lakers to carry on for a 109-94 victory because the Blazers struggled offensively within the body.
It was a final gasp try and comprise the dominance of Shaquille O’Neal, one thing that groups across the NBA tried to do within the following handful of years. However the Lakers would go on to win the primary of three straight titles that 12 months, and Shaq was nonetheless one of the beneficial gamers within the league regardless of his struggles from the road.
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