0106110084
DETROIT FREE PRESS
010611
Monday, June 11, 2001
METRO FINAL CHASER
1D
MITCH ALBOM
Copyright (c) 2001, Detroit Free Press
LAKERS' DEPTH RISES ABOVE GAME'S HOOPLA
PHILADELPHIA -- The floor at the First Union Center was so stuffed with people that, from
above, it appeared that someone had dumped a massive jar of human jelly beans
all over the court. Where would they put all these bodies? Fans with signs.
Celebrities from Jesse Jackson to Chris Rock. Photographers, dancers, women in
halter tops, men in silk suits. Then the lights dropped and drummers emerged
and fireworks exploded and an inspirational film clip announced the 76ers to
their first home championship crowd in 18 years. By the time they bellowed,
"ALLEN ...THE ANSWER ...IVERSON!" the roar was so loud it could puncture
flesh.
Enthusiasm? Attitude? If enthusiasm and attitude could win a championship,
then the Philly faithful -- "BEAT L.A!" -- would surely -- "L.A. S----!" --
have this thing -- "KOBE S----"! -- wrapped up.
Unfortunately, only 10 men are allowed to play at one time, and five of them
have to be from L.A.
And, as it turns out, even if the guy Philly most wants out of the game is
gone, the Lakers can still find a way to win.
Here was Shaquille O'Neal, fouling out of Game 3 with more than two minutes to
go. Shaq was sucked into four offensive fouls -- four? -- trying too hard to
jam home his point. Dikembe Mutombo, Philly's multilingual center, did a fine
job of flopping just about every time Shaq touched him. Someone should sign
Mutombo up for the NHL. He could be worth his weight in power plays.
But O'Neal brought it on himself. He doesn't need to show how tough he is.
Just score and jog down the court. He can pretty much do it at will.
Instead, late in the fourth, he elbowed Mutombo in the jaw, and Dikembe played
it for all it was worth. The whistle blew -- again! -- the crowd erupted, and
that was it for O'Neal, the biggest threat out there. His sixth foul. You are
the weakest link. Good-bye.
"That's a shame," O'Neal would lament afterward. "On our team, we play
defense, we don't have any floppers."
Mutombo "flops, he cries. I wish he'd stand up and play me like a man.... You
can quote me on that, and underline it three times.
"Me getting four offensive fouls? That's an embarrassment."
Not that anyone in the Philly crowd minded. When Shaq left, the fans were all
but delirious, visions of a 2-1 lead dancing in their heads.
But as big as O'Neal is, he's not the only guy in purple.
Give a hand to ...Robert Horry?
On this night, the defending champs turned to Robert Horry, a non-starter, a
guy who has been in L.A. so long, he's probably written a screenplay. With
O'Neal gone, Horry hit a huge three-pointer from the corner with just under a
minute left.
Then he went down and grabbed a key rebound, made several free throws. He
finished with 15 points, four rebounds, and walked off a winner.
"Robert Horry played a great game," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said.
"That's what teammates are for," Kobe Bryant said.
Wait a minute. Kobe? Isn't he the guy who's supposed to step up when Shaq goes
down? Well, yes, but what we're finding in this three-headed monster of an NBA
Finals -- Bryant, O'Neal, Iverson -- is that, as good as they all are, none of
them runs for 48 minutes.
Kobe was hot and cold all night. At one point he hit eight in a row. Then
again, he didn't score a basket all fourth quarter until two minutes left.
Then again, when Shaq went down, it was Kobe who made the big hoop. Then
again, it was Horry who had to ice it.
You get the point?
Iverson: 'We didn't give anything away'
Iverson, meanwhile, had another one of his gutsy one-man efforts that just
wasn't enough. He shot 12-of-30, finished with 35 points, but couldn't score
on a final drive. The way he was introduced Sunday night, and this being the
first NBA Finals game in Philly in 18 years, you might have expected some
60-point effort and a glorious finish.
But if the loss took steam out of the fans, it didn't seem to affect Iverson's
confidence.
"We didn't give anything away," he said afterward. "We battled to the end.
Remember, to most people this series was played before it was even started.
We're showing a lot of character to come out and compete with all that's going
on out there."
"Do you think L.A. has shown you respect?" he was asked.
"Oh, they respect us. They respect us. They've got to. We ain't gotten blown
out yet. Every fourth quarter we're in the game."
That is true. But behind Iverson's swagger you could almost sense the missed
opportunity. He's very smart. He knows. You're not going to get Shaq on the
bench too often in the final minutes.
"We're not dead yet," Iverson said again before leaving. And that's true. But
the Lakers lead the series, 2-1. In the end, for all the noise and fireworks,
that's the thing that speaks the loudest.
Contact MITCH ALBOM at 313-223-4581 or albom@freepress.com. Catch "Albom in
the Afternoon" 3-6 p.m. weekdays on WJR-AM (760) and simulcast on MSNBC 3-5
p.m.
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