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Ready to relax Streaking Lakers get another break
Updated: Monday May 14, 2001 11:03 PM
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Shaquille O'Neal isn't convinced, despite two playoff sweeps and a 15-game winning streak. The Los Angeles Lakers should wait before getting sized up for more championship rings. "I think the Spurs are the best team in the NBA. They play great defense," O'Neal said after the Lakers' fourth consecutive win over the Sacramento Kings in the second round of the playoffs. "But if we keep doing what we're doing, I love our chances." The Lakers take their winning streak into the Western Conference finals, which will begin Saturday in San Antonio. The Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks 105-87 Monday night. Seven of the Lakers' victories during the streak have come in the playoffs, making the Lakers the fifth team to sweep the first two rounds since the current playoff format was adopted in 1984. The last team to do so was the Indiana Pacers, who accomplished the feat two years ago before losing to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals. The last time a Western Conference team swept the first two rounds was in 1989, when the Lakers swept their first three for an 11-game winning streak in the playoffs before they were swept by the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Finals. Lakers coach Phil Jackson scoffed when asked about the possibility of an undefeated postseason, something that's never been accomplished in the NBA. In fact, since 15 victories became required to win the title, no team has done it without losing at least twice, with three teams accomplishing that feat -- the 1989 Pistons, Jackson's 1991 Chicago Bulls, and the Spurs two years ago. The 1983 Philadelphia 76ers, who went 12-1, are the only team to go through the playoffs with just one loss. "We don't expect to continue this pace that we've gone through in the first two rounds," Jackson said. "We're very pleased that we've put ourselves in position where we can get some rest, go home and watch the teams play that are still in the other bracket." After completing a sweep of Portland in the first round April 22, the Lakers had a week between games, making this their second lengthy break of the postseason. Consequently, they were given Monday off. The Lakers went 67-15 last season, putting together winning streaks of seven, 11, 16 and 19 games, but they struggled at times in the playoffs en route to their first championship since 1988. They were taken to the maximum five games by Sacramento in the first round and the maximum seven by Portland in the conference finals. Their overall record in the postseason was 15-8, with three of the losses by 19, 29 and 33 points. The Lakers were 56-26 this season, and never won more than five in a row until the current streak, which began April 3 -- two days after they were beaten 79-78 by the Knicks for their fifth loss in eight games. Kobe Bryant, who missed nine games and most of a 10th due to a sprained ankle before returning April 10, has said repeatedly that this team is much stronger mentally than last year's team. Bryant was at his strongest Sunday, getting 48 points and 16 rebounds -- both career playoff highs -- despite an unscheduled trip home after Friday night's game to be with his wife, Vanessa, who had been hospitalized with severe pain in her side. Bryant, who got married last month, returned to Sacramento on Saturday night after her pain subsided. The Lakers wouldn't comment Monday on the status of Bryant's wife. On Sunday, Bryant said it had been "a scary situation." About the game, he said: "It's just a state of, 'We're not going to lose.' Every rebound, every loose ball. ... And I think my teammates understood that. "I was going to fight until exhaustion," added Bryant, who played the entire 48 minutes. "I felt like we needed a game like this, needed a gut check. It really felt like a life-or-death situation for us." Not exactly, since the Lakers would have led 3-1 had they lost. But that kind of mind-set figures to make it extremely difficult for their future opponent or opponents.
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