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Los Angeles Lakers wouldn’t have won more rings with Shaq and Kobe

By Robert Marvi

LOS ANGELES, UNITED STATES: Kobe Bryant (L) of the Los Angeles Lakers holds the Larry O'Brian trophy as teammate Shaquille O'Neal (L) hold the MVP trophy after winning the NBA Championship against Indiana Pacers 19 June, 2000, after game six of the NBA Finals at Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. The Lakers won the game 116-111 to take the NBA title 4-2 in the best-of-seven series. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read AFP/AFP/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, UNITED STATES: Kobe Bryant (L) of the Los Angeles Lakers holds the Larry O'Brian trophy as teammate Shaquille O'Neal (L) hold the MVP trophy after winning the NBA Championship against Indiana Pacers 19 June, 2000, after game six of the NBA Finals at Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. The Lakers won the game 116-111 to take the NBA title 4-2 in the best-of-seven series. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read AFP/AFP/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by HENNY RAY ABRAMS / AFP) – Los Angeles Lakers /

4. The Los Angeles Lakers’ supporting cast had thinned out

One of the biggest reasons why the Los Angeles Lakers had won those three straight championships from 2000-2002 was their cadre of underappreciated role players.

Derek Fisher and Ron Harper were steady floor generals who hit big shots. Robert Horry was a decent low post defender and hit big shots. Rick Fox was a consummate team player who could score when needed, defend well and throw proper post entry passes into O’Neal. Brian Shaw performed ably in spot duty at both guard spots, and Horace Grant helped the team neutralize the army of talented power forwards in the Western Conference.

But as the years went by, the supporting cast around the two superstars got thinner and thinner.

Grant left in free agency in 2001, and Horry followed suit in 2003 after a dismal playoff performance were he went uncharacteristically cold from 3-point range. Fox suffered a foot injury early in the 2003 playoffs that effectively ended his career. Shaw retired in 2003 to become an assistant coach for the Lakers, while Harper retired in 2001 at age 37.

Yes, the Lakers had Karl Malone and Gary Payton in 2003-04, but both were over the hill. Malone proved to be a glue guy, but he suffered a sprained knee in December. He wasn’t quite the same after that, and it’s reasonable to say that he wouldn’t have been any better had he returned for one more season at age 40.

Other than those two future Hall of Famers and Fisher, the Lakers had no dependable role players that season.

If the team had kept both O’Neal and Bryant, how would they have replenished their supporting cast, especially considering they were always over the salary cap?

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