It wasn't long ago that Kobe Bryant reportedly wanted out of Los Angeles. He's not going anywhere now.

Fresh off winning the championship, the Lakers guard decided not to exercise an early termination option on the last two years of his contract and will return for the 2009-10 season, a league source told ESPN.com's Chad Ford.

Bryant is scheduled to make $23 million next season by not opting out. He also has a player option to opt out of his contract in the 2010-11 season. The Lakers will work with Bryant over the summer and fall to hammer out a new, long-term extension, according to the source.

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The Los Angeles Lakers laid claim to their 15th title in impressive fashion on Sunday night as they defeated the Orlando Magic 99-86 to win Game 5 and win the best-of-seven series with a 4-1 advantage.

Kobe Bryant scored 30 points and Pau Gasol added 14 and 15 rebounds to pace the Lakers' attack.

Bryant, who averaged 32.4 points and was named finals MVP. It marked his fourth title and first without Shaquile O'Neal.

Meanwhile, head coach Phil Jackson earned his 10th championship, passing legendary Boston coach Red Auerbach (9 titles) as the winningest coach in finals history.

Not that they didn't already have a great place in the history of the game, but clearly Bryant and Jackson have taken even another step to seperate themselves from the pack.

Overall, the NBA Playoffs this year were exciting and fun to watch. A strong case could be made about the length of the playoffs, but you can not deny the fact that the level of competition gets no better.

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The Orlando Magic have come so close to beinig up three games to one in the series, but two overtime losses have them on the opposite side of the ledger and now down 3-1 in the best-of-seven series.

Derek Fisher sank a pair of clutch three-pointers, one to force overtime and another in the extra session that gave Los Angeles the lead for good, as the Lakers overcame a 12-point halftime deficit to take a commanding lead in the NBA Finals with a 99-91 triumph against Orlando.

Kobe Bryant led the way with 32 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as LA captured a hard-fought victory.

Dwight Howard was magnificent everywhere but at the free-throw line. Orlando's superman of a center had 16 points, 21 rebounds and a finals-record nine blocks. But he made just 6 of 14 foul shots, and it was his two crucial misses with 11.1 seconds to go in regulation that doomed the Magic.

Orlando missed 15 free throws.

The series resumes Sunday night with game five from Orlando.

FAST FACTS (from ESPN.com)
--The Lakers grabbed a 3-1 series lead and snapped a 7-game road losing streak in the NBA Finals.

--Derek Fisher missed his first five 3-pointers of the game, but made his final two to provide a huge boost for the Lakers. The first forced overtime with under five seconds remaining, and the second broke a tie with just over 30 seconds left in that extra period.

--The Magic fell to 0-2 this series when leading after the first quarter.

--Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 32 points and eight assists, his 63rd career 30-point playoff game (most among active players). He has recorded eight or more assists in six straight playoff games, becoming the second Laker (Magic Johnson) to accomplish the feat.

--It was the first time since 1984, when Magic Johnson's Lakers and Larry Bird's Celtics hooked up, that two games in a finals have gone to overtime.

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Game 3 of the NBA Finals was a must-win contest for the Orlando Magic, who entered the night down 2-0 in the best-of-seven series. They responded by pulling out a 108-104 victory at home.

Dwight Howard stepped up in a big way, delivering his best performance of the series. He recorded 21 points and 14 boards to pace the Magic.

Orlando, who has struggled offensively, shot 62.5% from the field in the victory, including a record 75% in the first half.

Rafer Alston scored 13 of his 20 points in the first half, Rashard Lewis chipped in with 21 points and Hedo Turkoglu finished with 18 points with seven assists and six rebounds.

Kobe Bryant didn't have his best game as he missed several shots and commit a key turnover down the stretch.  He started off hot, scoring 17 points in the final five-plus minutes of the first quarter, finishing with 31 points and eight assists.

The series resumes with Game 4 on Thursday night at 9:00 p.m. from Orlando.

FAST FACTS (ESPN.com)
--The Magic picked up their first NBA Finals win in franchise history, improving to 1-6 all-time.

--Orlando's 0-6 start in the Finals was the second longest in league history, surpassed only by the Baltimore Bullets, who dropped their first nine

--The Lakers tied an NBA record by losing their seventh straight Finals game on the road. The Fort Wayne Pistons lost seven straight from 1955-56.

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The Magic seemed to have woke up in time for game two, after their zombie-like performane in game one, but it still wasn't enough as Kobe and the Lakers won 101-96 in overtime in game two of the NBA finals.

It was as much Pau Gasol down the stretch as it was Bryant leading the Lakers. The L.A. center was 3-for-3 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter and overtime. Gasol finished the game with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Maybe more importantly however, has been the way that Gasol has held his own inside against "Superman" Dwight Howard. Howard was held to just 17 points, and was double or tripled team nearly every time he touched the ball. 

Bryant didn't disappoint either though, as he finished the game with 29 points and eight assists.  

There has been a huge deal made about Bryant's quest to win a ring on his own... or at least without Shaq. While the latter part of that may be true, Bryant is certainly not winning these games alone. He is very clearly one of the most clutch performer's in the league, but what has been more impressive to me as the playoffs has gone on is the way he's learning to trust and use his teammates. Bryant is not winning this title on his own, nor should he be trying. He tried the solo route for a while after Shaq went to the Heat, and it netted him two first-round exits from the playoffs and a year where they didn't even qualify for the playoffs. 

Bryant is now learning what the best knew... Using your teammates and making them better doesn't take away from your legacy.

The series now heads to Orlando on Tuesday, and the Magic will be pulling out all the stops to try and come back to Los Angeles with the series tied at two games a piece. 

Fast Facts (from ESPN.com)

• The Lakers grabbed a 2-0 series lead and their fourth straight playoff win overall.

• In NBA history, when the home team wins the first two games of a best-of-seven series, they've gone on to win that series 94.2 percent of the time. Only three times in NBA Finals history has a team come back to win the series after losing the first two games (most recently the 2006 Heat).

• Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 29 points. Pau Gasol added 24 points and 10 rebounds for his 10th double-double in his last 11 games.

• Rashard Lewis led the Magic with a playoff career-high 34 points (including 18 of the Magic's 20 second quarter points) to go with 10 rebounds and a playoff career-high seven assists. His point total marked the most ever by a Magic player in an NBA Finals game.

• Dwight Howard became just the second player in NBA playoff history to amass at least 15 points, 15 rebounds, four assists, four steals and three blocks in a playoff game. The other was Hakeem (Akeem at the time) Olajuwon in 1986.

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The NBA Finals kicked off on Thursday night and while the Lakers were heavy favorties not just to take Game 1, but to win yet another title, I didn't expect the dominating manner in which they would do it.

Orlando has been written off by most throughout the playoffs, but after knocking out the Cleveland LeBrons in the Eastern Confernece Finals to get to this series, a buzz had started to mount around the young team.

The Lakers set out to silence that buzz and set the tone for the series. Message delivered, message received.

Kobe Bryant turned out one of his best playoff performances of his career - 40 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists 

Phil Jackson's plan of attack on Dwight Howard worked. L.A. doubled and some cases tripled teamed him every time the dynamic big man touched the ball. The result an unimpressive 12 points for Howard and just one field goal (1 of 6) from the field.

The Magic couldn't take advantage with the outside open either as they went just 8-of-23 on 3s and shot only 30 percent overall.

Game 2 is set for Sunday night at the Staples Center. If the Lakers come out and have a repeat performance on Game 1, this series could be over before it started.

FAST FACTS (from ESPN.com)
--The Lakers snapped a two-game losing streak in opening games of the NBA Finals (lost Game 1 to the Celtics in 2008 and the Pistons in '04).

--The 25-point margin of victory is the sixth-largest in Game 1 Finals history and largest since the Bulls' 33-point win over the Trail Blazers in 1992.

--The Lakers have won 16 straight best-of-seven series when winning the opening game (second-longest such streak in NBA history).

--Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 40 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, marking his 10th career 40-point playoff game and first in the Finals.

--The Magic fell to 0-5 all-time in NBA Finals games and became the third franchise in NBA history to lose its first five Finals games.

--Dwight Howard was 1-for-6, his fewest field goals made in a playoff game in his career.

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Kobe is no LeBron? Turns out, that's right, because Kobe has never blown off an opponent handshake after losing a series, then blown off the media while forcing his teammates to clean up his mess.

Turns out, James was only a media puppet, while Kobe Bryant is the real thing, right now, his stage, his time, two weeks during which he could win the one award and one distinction that has eluded him.

Three rings, yet no Finals MVPs

Three rings, yet none without Shaq.

If you don't think his legacy depends on this, then you don't know the foreboding Los Angeles sports landscape, a place where you are either among the stars or the forgotten.

COMPLETE ARTICLE (LA Times)

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HEADLINES

Bulls pick Derrick Rose with first pick in NBA draft
Chicago Tribune - "Derrick Rose likes to attract attention as much as he likes committing turnovers, so a seersucker suit and bow tie definitely weren't part of his equation Thursday night. Nevertheless, Rose is all dressed up with somewhere to go after the Bulls used the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft on the speedy, sturdy point guard who grew up in the Englewood neighborhood on the city's Southwest Side. " 

15-67 good for one thing: Beasley
Miami Herald - "The worst team in the NBA stopped being that in a jubilant instant Thursday night. Younger, better, more fun, more exciting and an immediate playoff contender is what the Miami Heat became with one draft pick and two fairly magical words: Michael Beasley. An enormous, rollicking, standing ovation rose in the Heat's downtown arena from some 4,000 fans at the team's draft party when commissioner David Stern called Beasley's name in New York as the league's No. 2 overall selection." 

Grizzlies trade Love, Miller to Minnesota for Mayo
Memphis Commercial Appeal - "The Grizzlies fell short of moving up to No. 2 and grabbing Michael Beasley in the NBA draft so they did the next best thing. Memphis grabbed the consensus third-best player in the draft, USC's O.J Mayo. The Grizzlies, who selected UCLA's Kevin Love with the fifth pick, were completing a deal late Thursday night that will bring them Mayo (taken third by Minnesota), Antoine Walker, Marko Jaric and Greg Buckner for Love, Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal and Jason Collins. The deal still needed NBA approval, according to two league sources." 

Clippers glad to have Eric Gordon
L.A. Times - "They pushed. And Eric Gordon pushed back. There was only one other player on the court when the baby-faced Gordon took center stage in workouts for the Clippers. That was Nevada's Marcelus Kemp, not as elite a prospect as Gordon, but one that stretched a couple of inches taller. Battling those types of players was one of the few lingering questions the Clippers had concerning Gordon and when he answered those, the Clippers couldn't pass on him with the seventh overall pick in Thursday's NBA draft."

Knicks Go Danilo
New York Post - "When Mike D'Antoni walked into the interview room last night at the Knicks' Westchester practice facility, the coach blurted, "Are we doing this in Italian or English?" So begins the Knicks' Italian Stallion Era, and possibly the end of David Lee. Donnie Walsh and the Italian-speaking D'Antoni made the Italian League phenom Danilo Gallinari a Knick last night. They chose the defensively challenged Gallinari with the sixth pick amid mostly boos from the Garden's theatre crowd. "I'll be more worried if they're booing him next year," D'Antoni said. " 

Ainge again busy late
Boston Herald - "As usual, Danny Ainge finished with more than he started last night. In addition to taking New Mexico guard J.R. Giddens with the 30th pick of the NBA draft, the Celtics director of basketball operations secured Bill Walker for cash from Washington, which had taken the Kansas State forward with the 47th pick. Ainge then finished his night with the 60th and last pick of the draft by taking Semih Erden - a 6-foot-11 Turkish center who became the first international draft pick of Ainge’s tenure as the Celtics’ personnel chief."

Crawford heading to Lakers; Magic take Lee 22nd overall
Lexington Herald-Leader - "Kentucky's Joe Crawford was chosen around midnight, 58th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers, three picks away from the end of the draft. Crawford joined Western Kentucky product Courtney Lee as the only Kentucky collegians chosen in the draft. Lee was taken in the first round, selected 22nd overall by the Orlando Magic."

DRAFT BOARD
1. Chicago Bulls - Derrick Rose, Guard, Memphis
2. Miami Heat - Michael Beasley, Forward, Kansas State
3. Minnesota Timberwolves - O.J. Mayo, Guard, USC (To Memphis)
4. Seattle Supersonics - Russell Westbrook, Guard, UCLA
5. Memphis Grizzlies - Kevin Love, Forward, UCLA (To Minnesota)
6. New York Knicks - Danilo Gallinari, Forward, Italy
7. Los Angeles Clippers - Eric Gordon, Guard, Indiana
8. Milwaukee Bucks - Joe Alexander, Forward, West Virginia
9. Charlotte Bobcats - D.J. Augustin, Guard, Texas
10. New Jersey Nets - Brook Lopez, Center, Stanford
11. Indiana Pacers - Jerryd Bayless, Guard, Arizona
12. Sacramento Kings - Jason Thompson, Forward, Rider

COMPLETE RECAP 

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Of the ten ESPN prognosticators, nine of them picked the Lakers to defeat the Celtics in the NBA Finals.  I picked the Celtics at the start of the playoffs, and then changed my mind at the beginning of the finals.  Countless pundits went for L.A. over Boston.  Well, to paraphrase comedian Ron White, "we were wrooooooong!!"

Boston just shoved it down the Lakers throats, culminating with their 131-92 annhilation last night to win the NBA title in six games.  So the question that everyone should be asking is, what the heck did we miss here?  As best as I can, I'll try and go through everything I overlooked - your mileage may vary.

• Boston's defense was absolutely stifling, moreso than any team's I'd seen in a very long time.  We didn't appreciate just how much their defense could take the Lakers out of their game.  No one plays better ball-man defense, no one rotates better, no one plays better help-side defense, no one's better than Boston.  Celtics assistant Tom Thibodeau put together a masterful plan to shut down L.A.'s two through five players, and dared Kobe Bryant to beat them.  Which leads to...
• 
  
• The Lakers' offense wasn't nearly as structured as we believed.  Every team they played they could beat on talent alone; Denver was hopeless, Utah was probably the 2nd best team in the West but their defense was way overrated, and San Antonio was just broken down.  So they got away with freelancing outside the triangle offense.  Once they actually had to run some plays against a talented squad who could cover the second and third option, everything broke down.  Which leads to...
  
  
• Kobe is not in MJ's league.  Never, ever, ever, EVER, make this argument again!  A 29 year-old Jordan doesn't let his team lose by 39, doesn't go 7-22, 8-21, 6-19, doesn't let his team surrender a 24-point lead, doesn't show up his teammates on court.  None of that happens to Jordan.  Funny what happens when you go up against someone your size that's physical and keeps you from getting to the hoop.  So let's let that one go right now.


• No one even considered the possiibility that Doc Rivers could outcoach Phil Jackson.  It happened.  Badly.  How could the Zen master not figure out a way to get his guys to double-team Garnett, trap Pierce, and keep a body on Allen?  And somehow, Doc found the right combination of players, finally realized that Sam Cassell needed to stay on the bench, and picked the right spots to put James Posey and Eddie House in.  He just schooled Jackson, there's no other way to say it.  (quick tangent: twice in the past five years, Phil Jackson has coached the team that was the prohibitive favorite in the finals, and both times they were soundly beaten.  I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'...)
  
  
• The emergence of Paul Pierce was almost impossible to predict.  Not only did he put together an absolutely career-defining game offensively in game 5 (one that they lost), he took over the 2nd half of the previous game, to the point that he essentially played point guard during the last five minutes.  And his defense on Bryant...no one knew he had that in him, but he took it upon himself to shut down #24, and he succeeded brilliantly.
  
  
• And finally, L.A.'s bench was horrific.  Jordan Farmar was mediocre at best, and got run around silly by Rajon Rondo.  Sasha Vujacic was out of sorts offensively, and couldn't play a lick of defense.  The rest of the crew (Luke Walton, Ronny Turiaf, Trevor Ariza) were mere afterthoughts.  The C's bench of Posey, House, P.J. Brown, and Leon Powe wiped the floor with them.

Just goes to show you, sometimes you have to go with your first instinct.  And now, I'm looking forward to a good night's sleep, as these games are ending way too late.  I can manage though.

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The Boston Celtics cruised over the Los Angeles Lakers to win Game 6 of the NBA Finals, 131-92.

The Celtics, winning this series, four games to two, are now 9-2 in Finals history against their bitter rivals, the Lakers. They finished these playoffs with a 13-1 record at home and played an NBA-record 26 postseason games.

"Oh, it's a great feeling, man," said Finals MVP Paul Pierce, "just knowing that these guys, what they accomplished and those things that hang over our head every day, and for us to go out there and make history in front of those guys. It means so much more because these are the guys, the Havliceks, the Bill Russells, the Cousys. These guys started what's going on today with those banners.

"They don't hang up any other banners but championship ones, and now I'm a part of it. And just all the years talking to Bill and John, Cousy, finally I feel like we've come out of that shadow now and created our own, and now we can stand up and look them eye to eye and say, 'Hey, we accomplished it, too.' "

The All-Star trio of Pierce (17 points), Kevin Garnett (26 points, 14 rebounds), and Ray Allen (26 points) won a championship in their first season together.

Kobe Bryant finished with 22 points, but shot only 7-of-22 from the field and was quiet after a sizzling start for the second straight game.

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