Time rewinds to the 1987-1988 season, the Los Angeles Lakers won that year's championship under the joint leadership of "Magic" Johnson, "Sky Hook" Abdul-Jabbar, "Cobra" James Worthy and Byron Stert, 1996, a full decade has passed, during which the NBA has gone through the Pistons' bad boy army, Jordan's two Bulls dynasty and a Rockets defense, but there is no Lakers in it, and the Lakers' leadership banner has passed from Abdul-Jabbar to Johnson, After giving to James Worthy and finally, to Nick Van Exelel and Cedric Ceballos.

1995-1996 season, Ceballos averaged 21.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game, while Van Ecel averaged 15 points and 6.9 assists per game, Johnson played 32 games in a short comeback, averaging only 14.6 points and 6.9 assists per game, and the brightest performance of the whole team was the center Vlad Divac from Serbia, who was the No. 26 rookie in 1989, and after several years of tempering, has shown the template of the league's top center, and in recent years, the average data per game has stabilized at 15 points, 10 rebounds and 3.5 assists, shooting more than 50%！

But such a squad was far from a championship, so the team began to look for a change, sending out a large number of scouts and scouts to find the players they liked.

After the end of the 1995-1996 season, the Orlando Magic team seemed to be calm on the surface, but in fact, there was an undercurrent, the cornerstone of the team, Shaquille O'Neal's rookie contract expired, and he became an unrestricted free agent, O'Neal was the top pick in 1992, and O'Neal's average points and rebounds per game in the first four years were 23.4+13.9, 29.3+13.2, 29.3+11.4 and 26.6+11.0, obviously, Now O'Neal is already one of the few centers in the league, before O'Neal, there has never been a center who can destroy the opponent's penalty area with such a size, there is no doubt that a player like O'Neal The Magic team should do everything possible to keep him, on the surface, O'Neal who is smiling all day long will never leave here, he has a good relationship with everyone on the Magic team, general manager, head coach, scout, teammate, assistant coach, etc., and this also includes his good friend Anfernee Hardaway.

The relationship between Hardaway and Hardaway is very good, a casual search can find photos of Hardaway riding on O'Neal's head and playing around, that year, Hardaway and O'Neill were only 21 years old, just children, the relationship between the two of them has been established more than ordinary teammates, but their friendship quietly changed a little bit in the summer of 1995.

O'Neal's stay is in O'Neal's hands, in fact, it is also in the hands of the Magic team management, compared to O'Neal, the Magic team is more inclined to keep Hardaway, in the 1995-1996 season, Hardaway played 82 games in full attendance, averaging 21.7 points, 7.1 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game, shooting as high as 51.3%, its performance is not much inferior to O'Neal, the key factor is that players who are wide and fat will suffer more injuries than players of normal size, Careers don't usually last long, O'Neal was hit by injuries last season, and only 52 games seem to be the best proof of this, and interior players are not as good as outside players in terms of commercial value and market appeal, the NBA is a league that needs to make money after all, and the management of the Magic team must take this into account.

Time passed quickly, and the Magic team had to come to a decisive moment, and it was already a sure thing that they were going to give Hardaway a contract with a maximum salary of more than 10 million, so they offered O'Neal a 7-year contract worth $69 million, do you know how big a contract Juwan Howard signed at that time? One hundred and five million dollars! What about Alonzo Mourning? 110 million dollars! Of course, O'Neal was not satisfied with this offer, but he didn't want to leave Orlando, so he negotiated with the management of the Magic team several times, but in the end, the Magic team refused to let go until 4 years and 80 million US dollars, in fact, the annual salary of 20 million US dollars at that time was basically the maximum salary contract, "basic" means less than 2 million US dollars, but it is this mere 2 million US dollars, Magic has always refused to add it, O'Neal was puzzled, and then was told, Hardaway will definitely sign a max contract with the team next year, Hardaway has always wanted to be the highest-paid guy on the team, and the Magic team doesn't want to upset Hardaway.

The Magic's approach made O'Neal feel that he was being slighted, he gave an ultimatum, $100 million in 5 years, in the face of some angry O'Neal, the Magic team did not sign, nor did they not sign, they did a ** survey, the question is, is O'Neal worth $100 million, 90% of fans chose not to be worth it, this move deeply hurt the young O'Neal.

The general manager of the Lakers at the time was Jerry West, who decided that O'Neal was a once-in-a-century talent, so he flew to Orlando in the summer of 1995 to meet O'Neal in person, and came to Orlando together, as well as a seven-year, $127 million super contract in West's hands, West talked a lot with O'Neal, and West said to O'Neal, "Bigbaby, (big baby) you're the one we need, you're going to be with another 17-year-old, Inaugurating a great era. ”

Because of the big contract and the excitement of O'Neal signing the contract, he didn't notice that West also mentioned a child named Kobe Bryant.

In 1996, there were a number of young players who announced their participation in the NBA draft, including the NCAA near-invincible Allen Iverson, the NCAA Honorable Grand Slam Marcus Camby, the invincible king of the street court, Stephen Marbury, and Ray Allen, Anthony Walker, Rasim, Jermaine O'Neal, Eric Dampier, Peja Stojakovic, Steve - that's and so on, Kobe? Almost all general managers have never heard of this name, Kobe Bryant was not yet 18 years old when the draft began, and in the NBA before 1996, there had never been a high school student who played guard to be selected in the NBA draft, although from several rookie training, Kobe's performance was not bad, and finally ranked Kobe Bryant at the end of the first round on the final official player draft template.

Jerry West called in some players for special training at Inglewood High School, and during the break, Bryant played a few one-on-one heads-up with Michael Cooper. The NBA's top defensive guru who was named to the league's All-Defensive Team eight times in his 12-year career, including five first-team and three second-team selections, or the 1986-1987 Defensive Player of the Season, such a player went head-to-head with an average high school student who was only 17 years old?

Bryant's performance greatly surprised Jerry West, he didn't fall behind in the confrontation with Cooper, and most importantly, the maddening stubbornness of Kobe Bryant made West's heart beat - this place on the court was blocked by Cooper, and then I would shoot in this place the next round until I made this shot!

At that time, West predicted that the kid in front of him would one day become one of the greatest players in the league.

It was from this special training that West decided to win Kobe Bryant in the 1996 draft, but at that time, the Lakers only had one No. 24 pick, and it was obviously not safe to sign Kobe, so West used a trick to "counter-plot".

West let out the wind, saying that the Boston Celtics in the rebuilding period want to develop young players, will make a trade with the Suns or the Kings, and sign the youngest Kobe, the Suns were holding the No. 15 pick at the time, and the Kings were the No. 14 pick, this kind of rumor will be there every offseason, all the Suns and Kings will not take it to heart, but the Charlotte Hornets, who hold the No. 13 pick, are in their hearts, because the general manager of the Hornets at that time was called Dane Cowens, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1990, He spent ten seasons with the Celtics and won numerous honors, but at the end of his career, because the team traded several of his friends in a row and had a falling out with the team's head coach Auerbach and finally turned his face, this intensified conflict made the team not miss the old love and hid Cowens caused Cowens to retire three times, although decades have passed, but Cowens is obviously a very grudgeful person, he will not let the Celtics easily achieve what he wants, so he robbed Kobe Bryant in advance at No. 13 in the first round.

But here's the problem, there is no shortage of scoring guards in the Hornets team, the starting second position is the team's boss Glenn Rice, and the backup guard is now Steve Curry's dad Dale Curry, who can also score 14.4 points per game, they are not short of guards, but lack of centers, this time, the Lakers made a favor, they took the initiative to give the Hornets Divac, who had already shown the potential of a first-class center, in exchange for the Hornets' No. 13 rookie, Kobe Bryant.

In O'Neal's first season in Los Angeles, he averaged 26.2 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, while Bryant, who could only play behind Eddie Jones and Nick Van Exel, averaged 7.6 points and 1.9 rebounds in 15.5 minutes per game. It is worth mentioning that this season is the last season for Byron Scott, he played in 79 games, averaged 6.7 points per game, and he was teammates with Kobe Bryant for a year, and no one could have imagined that twenty years later, Scott would become Kobe's head coach.

In the first year of the "OK" combination, the Lakers made the playoffs against the Portland Trail Blazers led by sophomore Rasheed Wallace, and finally O'Neal brought the Lakers to the second round under the siege of Wallace and Sabonis, O'Neal averaged 33 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game. Wallace and Sabonis combined for 31.8 points, 12.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks, Kobe Bryant averaged less than 10 minutes per game in the first series of his career, but he was able to look at 7.5 points, don't underestimate this 7.5 points, which was the fifth highest score on the team at that time. The Lakers' second-round opponent is the Jazz with Karl Malone Stockton and Hornacek, facing the strong Malone, O'Neal did not take any advantage, averaging 22 points and 11.6 rebounds per game compared to Malone's 28.6 points and 12.6 rebounds can be said to be comprehensively suppressed, and finally the Lakers lost the series 1:4.

If Kobe Bryant was just an important role player in the first season, then Kobe Bryant in the second season was already the team's indispensable sixth man, playing 79 games in the season, averaging 26 minutes per game and scoring 15.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists, O'Neal is still an irreversible existence inside, averaging 28.3 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.4 blocks per game, and the shooting rate is as high as 58.4%! Robert Hawley became the team's starting power forward, averaging 7.4 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, and Derrick Fisher, who was in the same class as Kobe, also began to add to the scene, he played 36 games in 82 games, averaging 5.8 points per game, and they reached the playoffs again, this time with the same script as the last time, only with an additional Seattle SuperSonics in between.

In the first round, the Lakers eliminated the Portland Trail Blazers 3-1 and the Seattle SuperSonics with Gary Payton and Vin Baker 4-2.

In 4 games, O'Neal averaged 31.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game compared to Malone's 30.0 points and 10.3 rebounds, but the performance of the rest of the Lakers dragged O'Neal back, Eddie Jones averaged only 15 points per game, Kobe Bryant shot only 36.7% and averaged only 10 points per game, and Van Exel averaged only 9 points per game.

Kobe Bryant's third season, he has become an indispensable starter for the Lakers, he averaged 37.9 minutes per game and scored 19.9 points, the Lakers traded Van Exel in exchange for Glenn Rice, who averaged 17 points per game, in the first round of the playoffs, the Lakers played against the Rockets, O'Neal handed over an average of 29.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game under the siege of Barkley and Olajuwon, and led the team to a 3-1 victory, the second round against the Spurs, Duncan averaged 29.0 points and 10.8 rebounds per game, while O'Neal averaged 23.8 points and 13.0 rebounds per game, and the gap between the two was obviously not so big that the Lakers were swept 0:4.

In the 1999-2000 season, the Lakers successfully retained Kobe Bryant with a six-year, $70.9 million contract, and then Phil Jackson came to Los Angeles to coach, his unique triangle offense made the Lakers an invincible team, O'Neal averaged 29.7 points and 13.6 rebounds per game, Kobe averaged 22.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game, the two of them became more and more tacit, becoming the strongest duo in the league, that is, at this time, "OK" The name of the group was called.

This season, the Lakers have 67 wins, the highest in recent seasons, but the playoffs have been very hard, and the Lakers played a full five games in the first round against the gorgeous Saramento Kingdom. O'Neal averaged 29.4 points and 17.4 rebounds per game, Kobe Bryant averaged 27.8 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, and Glen Rice also shot 16 points per game, but the Kings' Chris Webb was rounded up with 24.4 points, 9.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.6 steals and 2.0 blocks, and in the fifth game, O'Neal scored 32 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Lakers to advance.

The Lakers' second-round opponent is the Phoenix Suns, and the leader of this team is the transferred Anfernee Hardaway - O'Neal's best partner when he was with the Magic, and now, five full years have passed, and the two are on the opposite side of each other as opponents, O'Neal and Hardaway, although they are still polite off the court, but as long as they stand on the court, no one will take a step back! Of course, O'Neill won't forget how Orlando snubbed himself by currying favor with Hardaway five years ago, and who was the best person at the time? In the first game between the two teams, O'Neal gave the answer with 37 points and 14 rebounds, and Hardaway did not let the data of 25 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists somewhat pale. The Lakers beat the Phoenix Suns 105-77.

The second game between the two teams was extremely close, with the Lakers not securing a second win until the last second, with O'Neal scoring 38 points and 20 rebounds compared to Hardaway's 27 points and eight assists. The Lakers' Brian Shaw was key to the team's victory, scoring a valuable 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting.

In Game 3, Hardaway had the best game of the series, hitting 11 of 15 shots and scoring 31 points, and how did O'Neal respond? He hit 14 of his 21 shots from the field and recorded a double-double of 37 points and 17 rebounds, leading the Lakers to another victory.

In the fourth game between the two sides, O'Neal shot 10-of-15 and only scored 24 points and 9 rebounds in the game, Kobe Bryant only scored 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting, and Hardaway scored 16 points on 7-of-17 shooting, the Suns won the game, and this game made two people, one was Clifford Robinson, who scored 32 points and 9 rebounds, and the other was Jason Kidd, who scored a triple-double, 22 points, 16 assists and 10 rebounds.

The fifth game between the two sides was also the last game of the entire series, the Lakers put up a Finals-level suffocating defense, Hardaway scored only 8 points in the whole game, and only Tod Daye scored more than 10 points in the whole team, in fact, he also scored 10 points, while Lakers Kobe Bryant scored 17 points, O'Neal scored 15 points and 21 rebounds, and the Lakers won 87-65 over the Suns.

In the second round, the Lakers faced the Trail Blazers, the Portlanders led by Rasheed Wallace, the spiritual leader's career has reached the twilight of Scott Pippen, O'Neal is still a completely unguardable inside monster, but the good tiger can't stand the wolf, seven games Portlanders broke out in circles, pressed this and floated that, in the first game, with O'Neal's 41 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists, the Lakers won the game, in the second game, Rasheed Wallace contributed 29 points, Pippen 21 points, Guard Steve Smith contributed 24 points, the three 20+ left the victory in the second game in Portland, the OK combination combined to score 51 points in the third game to help the Lakers win by 2 points, and in the fourth game, although Rasheed Wallace scored 34 points, the Lakers still took away the victory with O'Neal's 25 points, Kobe Bryant's 18 points, Rice's 21 points and Ron Hubble's 18 points, and O'Neal scored 31 points and 21 rebounds in the fifth game. But Portland Wallace and Pippen combined to contribute 44 points, Smith and Sabonis also scored 13 and 12 points respectively, Portland struggled to win a victory, the score was 3:2, and in the sixth game between the two sides, Kobe Bryant scored 33 points and 6 assists, but the Trail Blazers had no choice but to play under Wallace and Smith's stable play, Bonzi Wells broke out, he only played 19 minutes, and scored 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting! Struggled to equalize the big score.

The two sides entered the tiebreaker.

In the seventh game, the Portlanders played fiercely, leading by 7 points at 23:16 in the first quarter, Wallace scored 30 points all over the court, and O'Neal only had 18 points and 9 rebounds in the whole game, Kobe Bryant made a force, he scored 25 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists and 4 blocks of all-round data, at the last moment of the game, Kobe Bryant sent an aerial relay to O'Neal, O'Neal caught the ball in the air and killed the game with both hands, and the excited O'Neal ran and cheered with both fingers after the fall! This scene also became a classic picture of that year.

The Lakers made it to the Finals with a tough run against the Indiana Pacers with Reggie Miller.

At that time, the Pacers had a circle of excellent outside players on the outside. In addition to Miller, who averaged 18.9 points per game, there is Jalen Rose, who averaged 20 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists per game this season, and Mark Jackson, who averaged 8 points and 8 assists per game, and shot more than 40% from three-point range, but they are the biggest weakness only in the center position, the starting interior is Dale Davis, and Rick Schmitz, the former is a coolie center who averaged 8 points and 8 rebounds per game in his career, and the latter is a good offense, but on the defensive end is the team's big colander, as an interior player rebounding average of only 6 per game, the backup center is Sam Perkins, who is already in the last year of his career, and the first game of the finals fully revealed the characteristics of both teams.

Mark Jackson had 18 points and 7 assists, and forward Klohill scored 16 points and 6 rebounds on 6-of-7 shooting, these two are already the two best performers on the team, Miller played the most disgusting game of his career, scoring only 7 points on 1-of-16 shooting, on the other hand, the Lakers, O'Neal turned the river and the sea on the inside, and scored 43 points and 19 rebounds in the whole game, completely blasting the Pacers' weak interior into scum.

In the second game, Jalen Rose, the Pacers' No. 1 breakup, made a force, he scored 30 points Miller shot 21 points, and Klohill contributed 24 points again, but they still didn't take a win, the reason was on the inside, O'Neal won back-to-back double-doubles, 40 points and 24 rebounds, Hubble and Rice both contributed 21 points, Kobe Bryant only played 9 minutes and sprained his ankle, and only scored 2 points in the game, and the Lakers narrowly won 111-104.

In the third game, Kobe Bryant did not play due to injury, O'Neal became a trapped beast again, with 33 points and 13 rebounds in the game, but his teammates did not give him strong support, and the best player was Robert Hawley who scored 10 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists on 5-of-8 shooting, and the Pacers began to exert their strength, Miller shot 33 points, Rose scored 21 points, and finally the Pacers took away this hard-won victory 1010:91.

In the fourth game, Kobe Bryant came back quickly, he barely shot in the first half Kobe Bryant attacked frantically in the second half, and in the end, he scored 22 of his 28 points in the second half, and at a critical moment in the fourth quarter, he shot a key shot, O'Neal 36 points and 21 rebounds, Hawley had a good play, 17 points and 6 rebounds on 6-of-10 shooting, the Pacers scored double-doubles, Miller 35 points, Schmitz 24 points, but they still lost, and the big score was 1:3 behind.

In the fifth game, the Pacers broke out with a strong fighting force, although O'Neal scored 35 points and 11 rebounds again, but Kobe Bryant was extremely inefficient, scoring only 8 points on 4-of-20 shooting, and he became the biggest sinner in the Lakers' loss, Pacers Rose scored 32 points, Miller scored 25 points, and Mark Jackson scored 10 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds.

In the sixth game of the finals, the Pacers fell behind 2:3, they gave it a go, but the effect was very good, they were completely crazy on the court, Rose 29 points, Miller 25 points, Mark Jackson 10 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds, Kloshi 16 points, and even Dale Davis, who averaged only 6 points per game, shot down 20 points and 14 rebounds, but they still lost in the end, losing to O'Neal, who scored 41 points and 12 rebounds in the game, Kobe Bryant 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the Lakers won the championship, O'Neal, who averaged 38 points and 16.7 rebounds per game in the Finals, won the Most Valuable Player of the Finals, and the Lakers' championship this time has been a full decade since the last time! The Lakers have completed a gorgeous transformation from the trough to the top!

With the powerful "OK combination", a new dynasty is rising, but no one has discovered that the discordant factors in the peace of the ten thousand families, next, is a fierce collision between a man who has stood on the top of the world and another man who wants to stand on the top of the world.

Stay tuned for the next chapter, Top of the World! 》