The 2001 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 2000-01 National Basketball Association season. The Los Angeles Lakers of the Western Conference took on the Philadelphia 76ers of the Eastern Conference for the title, with the Lakers holding home court advantage in a best-of-seven format.
The Lakers won the series 4 games to 1. Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal was named the Most Valuable Player of the series.
Allen Iverson scored 48 points in his only NBA finals victory, as the Sixers took Game 1 in a stunning upset 107-101 in OT, handing the Lakers their first loss of the postseason. However, the Lakers went on to win the next four games, despite being outshot and outrebounded in the series. L.A. punished the Sixers with their excellent 3-point shooting which was the key to this series. In Game 3 Robert Horry hit a clutch 3-pointer in the last minute, and in the next two games the Lakers used hot 3-point shooting to build big leads and hold off late Sixer comebacks in Games 4 and 5, pulling away for double digit wins to capture the title.
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