<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">DETROIT ? Lakers Coach Phil Jackson allowed himself to go back in time, something he rarely does. The master of live-in-the-moment mantras, Jackson briefly re-visited the 2004 NBA Finals and the Lakers' troubles against the Detroit Pistons. A 1-1 series became a 4-1 Lakers loss after Detroit took all three games at The Palace, the site of tonight's Pistons-Lakers game. It ended the Lakers' mini-dynasty, hastened the departure of Jackson and Shaquille O'Neal, and ended the failed one-season experiment that made Gary Payton and Karl Malone teammates in search of a championship ring. "The thing I suppose we were most happy about as a coaching staff is that we never lost in the Finals," leading up to the 2004 series, Jackson said. "But we just got taken right out of it. [Derek] Fisher's injury in the last game of the Minnesota series and Karl Malone's injury were things that really changed the context of how that whole thing came about. It was unfortunate Karl never got a championship opportunity and that's the thing I probably rue the most, is that he never got that ring," Jackson said.</div> More in link... http://www.latimes.com/sports/basketball/n...orts-nba-lakers
The past is the past. What's done is done, but you can't help but to think what if. What if Karl Malone was healthy? If Malone was healthy, I actually think we would have won the championships that year. Remember how well Malone played against the Wolves and the Spurs? His defense and scoring was widely missed. Without Malone, I guess we still had a chance, but the Pistons had depth everywhere you can imagine, while we basically had none. All had we were Shaq, Kobe, and Payton. Shaq didn't play too well in the Finals, and Kobe, well Kobe was pretty much horrible (except Game2). Gary Payton struggled in the triangle offense throughout the season........
While I do believe Malone would've made a difference, Detroit just looked like they were clearly the better team....the lakers seemed a step to slow in that series.....my hatred for Karl Malone is only equal to my hatred for John Stockton, so I have sweet dreams everytime I think about that series (I know I'm a bitter hate filled rockets fan, lol)
Had Karl been completely healthly L.A may of got one more game If at all. Pistons were simply a better team and one of the best defensive teams EVER that season. I know the rules have changed but that year the Pistons only allowed teams to score 84 points per game on sub 42% shooting. That team was so complete in so many ways. L.A were simply overmatched and looked old.
That series proved the point that team chemistry is KEY to winning. Gary Payton and Devean George were just 2 guys that looked completely unsure of what their role was. Plus I don't think Shaq was the happiest playing with all of those guys.
