i saw that series back then... sacramento was STRONG!!! i still can't believe the lakers beat them... i'm not saying it was fixed in any way necessarily... i'm just saying i was surprised they beat them... nik.
The Lakers were one of the top teams in the NBA that season; though I thought Sacramento was the best team.
In the 2000 Western Conference Finals, when the Lakers came back to defeat Portland, the latter choked.
But in the 2002 series between Sacramento and the Lakers, I thought there were some bad calls and/or calls that weren't made by the officials, toward the end of the series. I didn't think the Lakers outplayed them to win that series and I didn't think Sacramento choked at the end of it.