NBA · Draftable squad
Los Angeles Lakers 2000-01: Shaq and Kobe at Full Power
No team has ever flipped the switch like the 2000-01 Los Angeles Lakers. A bumpy 56-26 regular season gave little warning of what followed: Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant tore through the Western Conference without losing a single game, then dropped just one in the Finals.
That 15-1 postseason is yours to draft in Go Unbeaten. Spin the NBA wheel until it lands on the Lakers, build the 2000-01 starting five around Shaq and Kobe, and run a full simulated season. The real team saved its perfection for the playoffs — see if yours can sustain it for 82 games.
Spin for this squadThe legends
Marquee names from this squad's player pool in Go Unbeaten, with their in-game overall ratings.
- CShaquille O'Neal98
- SGKobe Bryant94
- PGDerek Fisher78
- PFRobert Horry80
- SFRick Fox78
- PFHorace Grant76
- PGRon Harper74
- PGBrian Shaw72
- PGTyronn Lue70
- SFDevean George70
- PFMark Madsen66
- CGreg Foster64
The story
The 2000-01 Lakers spent much of the regular season feuding and coasting, finishing 56-26 — only second in the West. Then the playoffs began and the most dominant big man of his era and a 22-year-old Kobe Bryant simply stopped losing. Portland went down 3-0 in the best-of-five first round, Sacramento and San Antonio were both swept 4-0, and Los Angeles arrived in the Finals a perfect 11-0.
The only blemish came in Game 1 of the Finals, when Allen Iverson scored 48 points to drag the Philadelphia 76ers to an overtime win. The Lakers responded by winning the next four straight. Shaq was named Finals MVP for the second year running, with Derek Fisher, Rick Fox and Horace Grant doing the unglamorous work around the two superstars.
At 15-1 it was the best postseason record in NBA history at the time, and the middle leg of the franchise’s 2000-02 three-peat. As a pure month-and-a-half of basketball, it may never be matched.
- Went 15-1 in the 2001 playoffs, the best postseason record in NBA history at the time.
- Swept the Trail Blazers, Kings and Spurs to reach the Finals at 11-0.
- Their only playoff defeat was a Game 1 overtime loss to Allen Iverson’s 76ers, in which Iverson scored 48.
- Shaquille O’Neal won Finals MVP for the second consecutive year.
- The title was the second of three straight Lakers championships from 2000 to 2002.
Frequently asked
Did the 2000-01 Lakers lose any playoff games?
Just one. They went 15-1, with the only defeat coming in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, when Allen Iverson scored 48 points in an overtime win for the Philadelphia 76ers. The Lakers won the next four games to take the title.
Who started for the 2000-01 Lakers?
In the 2001 playoff run the starting five was Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant, Rick Fox, Horace Grant and Shaquille O’Neal, with Shaq winning his second straight Finals MVP.
Can I draft this Lakers squad in Go Unbeaten?
Yes. Every spin of the NBA wheel locks in a team for one pick — land on the Los Angeles Lakers and you draft from the 2000-01 squad, where Shaq is rated 98 and Kobe 95. Build your Starting 5, then simulate an 82-game season and try to outdo the real team’s 15-1 run.