TheChez.net

By: Dukemich

In the 2004 NBA Playoffs, the Spurs and the Lakers squared off in the western conference semi-finals. When they played game 5 at San Antonio, the series was tied 2-2. Late in the fourth quarter, Kobe hit a shot with 11.5 seconds remaining in the game to put the Lakers up by one. When the Lakers thought they had the Spurs beat, Tim Duncan answered with a ridiculous jumpshot from the top of the key to put the Spurs up by one with 0.4 seconds remaining in the game.

Duncan’s shot was absolutely impossible. He was fading away from the basket with a 7 foot Shaq in his face. The San Antonio fans celebrated as if the Spurs had just won the series even though the win would only give them a 3-2 lead in the series. But they had no idea what was about to happen. They had no idea that one of the greatest buzzer-beaters of all-time was about to occur.

After a timeout, the Lakers attempted to get a good, quick shot. However, they couldn’t even get the ball in and were forced to call a timeout. The Lakers walked back onto the floor with a lineup of Kobe Bryant, Shaq O’Neal, Gary Payton, Karl Malone, and Derek Fisher. Gary Payton took the ball out with 0.4 seconds still remaining on the clock. The Lakers again ran a play. The first option was an ooop to Shaq for the quick dunk or tip but the Spurs and everybody in the world watching the game knew that would be the first option. The second option was Kobe Bryant who desperately tried to get open at the top of the key. However, the Spurs double-teamed Kobe and he never had a shot of even getting the ball.

Then out of nowhere, the smallest man on the floor sprinted across the lane to receive a pass from Gary Payton. Payton found Fisher on the wing and fed him the ball. Fisher caught the ball with his back turned to the basket. With no time to square his shoulders or feet, with no time to think about any other option than shooting, with no time…period, Fisher threw up a shot that seemed impossible to make yet it was dead on. He was fading away from the basket with Manu Ginobili in his face. It looked good from the moment it left his hand. That perfect shot came from the third option, of a broken play, with barely enough time on the clock to even get a shot off. But he made it hitting nothing but net. As they say in Watchmen, “It was like turning air into gold.”

The best part of the game for me was looking at the facial expression of the Spurs after the game. I reacted by jumping as high as I could in front of the TV. My dad jumped so high that he hit his head on the ceiling fan. However, the San Antonio players couldn’t move. They were stunned. The life was simply sucked out of them. They couldn’t believe what happened. They actually challenged the shot a day later. Who could blame them? They were about to take a 3-2 lead in a best-of-seven series. Their despair was accompanied by my laughter in the living-room of my house. I loved every second of San Antonio’s misery.

The Lakers won the series in 6 games and beat the Timberwolves in the next round to get to the finals. However, they lost to the Pistons in 5 games.

It was fitting that both teams kept hitting clutch shots until the clock stopped them. Both have dominated the league in the past decade. Since 1999, the Lakers or the Spurs have been NBA champions 8 out of the last 11 NBA seasons. Each had four. Lakers( 2000, 01, 02, 09) Spurs(1999, 2003, 05, 07).