The 2001–02 New Jersey Nets season was the Nets' 35th season in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

, and 26th season in

East Rutherford, New Jersey East Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 10,022, reflecting an increase of 1,109 (+12.4%) from the 8,913 counted in the 2010 census.

. This season is notable for the Nets acquiring All-Star point guard

Jason Kidd Jason Frederick Kidd (born March 23, 1973) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Regarded as one of the greatest point guards a ...

from the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

during the off-season. The Nets selected

Eddie Griffin Edward Rubin Griffin (born July 15, 1968) is an American comedian and actor. He is best known for portraying Eddie Sherman in the sitcom '' Malcolm & Eddie'', the title character in the 2002 comedy film '' Undercover Brother'', and Tiberius Jef ...

out of

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the ...

with the seventh pick in the

2001 NBA draft The 2001 NBA draft took place on June 27, 2001 in New York City, New York. Kwame Brown became the first high school player to be drafted with the first overall pick in the history of the NBA. The selection of Kwame Brown by the Washington Wizards, ...

, but soon traded him to the Houston Rockets in exchange for top draft pick

Richard Jefferson Richard Allen Jefferson Jr. (born June 21, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on ESPN. He played college basketball with the Arizona Wildcats. Jefferson was drafted in the first round of the 20 ...

and rookie center

Jason Collins Jason Paul Collins (born December 2, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player who was a center for 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Stanford Cardinal, where he was ...

, and signed free agent

Todd MacCulloch Todd Carlyle MacCulloch (born January 27, 1976) is a Canadian former professional basketball player who played four seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers as the 47th overall pick in the 19 ...

. The Nets won nine of their first twelve games, held a 26–11 record as of January 16, and held a 32–15 record at the All-Star break. The team finished first place in the Eastern Conference with 52 wins and 30 losses, their best record since joining the NBA after the

ABA–NBA merger The ABA-NBA merger was a major pro sports business maneuver in 1976 when the American Basketball Association (ABA) combined with the National Basketball Association (NBA), after multiple attempts over several years. The NBA and ABA had entered ...

in 1976. As of 2022, this was the only season where the Nets won 50 or more games. Kidd was credited for most of the turn-around, as the Nets had finished 26–56 the previous year. Kidd averaged 14.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 9.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game, as he finished second to the Spurs'

Tim Duncan Timothy Theodore Duncan (born April 25, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Big Fundamental", he is widely regarded as the greatest power forward of all time and one of the greatest players in NBA histor ...

MVP In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

voting, and was named to the All-NBA First Team, NBA All-Defensive First Team, and selected for the

2002 NBA All-Star Game The 2002 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game which was played on February 10, 2002, at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, home of the Philadelphia 76ers. This game was the 51st edition of the North American NBA All-Star Game ...

, with head coach

Byron Scott Byron Antom Scott (born March 28, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player and head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a player, Scott won three NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers during their ...

coaching the Eastern Conference. In addition, second-year star Kenyon Martin averaged 14.9 points and 1.7 blocks per game, although his rebounding had decreased to just 5.3 per game, while

Keith Van Horn Keith Adam Van Horn (born October 23, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. Van Horn played for the New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball ...

provided the team with 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and Kerry Kittles, who returned after missing the previous season due to knee injuries, contributed 13.4 points per game. Jefferson averaged 9.4 points per game off the bench, and was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team, while MacCulloch provided with 9.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, and

Lucious Harris Lucious H. Harris (born December 18, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Dallas Mavericks in the second round (28th pick overall) of the 1993 NBA draft. Harris has played for the Mavericks, Philadelph ...

contributed 9.1 points per game off the bench. Jefferson also finished in second place in Rookie of the Year voting. Under the guidance of Kidd and Martin, the young Nets team prospered through the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eit ...

, and ended up advancing all the way to the Eastern Conference title and the franchise's first-ever appearance in the NBA Finals. In the Eastern Conference First Round, they defeated the Indiana Pacers in five games, then defeated the Charlotte Hornets four games to one in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals. Then after trailing 2–1 to the 3rd-seeded Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Nets would win the series four games to two. However, New Jersey's season would end without an improbable NBA crown, as the Nets were swept in four games by the Los Angeles Lakers. Following the season, Van Horn and MacCulloch were both traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, whom MacCulloch had previously played for.

Draft picks

Roster

;Roster notes * Center

Jamie Feick Jamie Feick (born July 3, 1974) is an American former professional basketball player. He was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2nd round (48th overall) of the 1996 NBA draft. A center from Michigan State University, Feick played in the ...

missed the entire season due to a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Regular season

Standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

, - style="background:#cfc;" , 1 , October 30 ,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

W 103–97
,

(26) ,

(10) ,

(9) ,

Continental Airlines Arena Meadowlands Arena (formerly Brendan Byrne Arena, Continental Airlines Arena and Izod Center) is a closed indoor arena facility located in the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. The arena is located on N ...

8,749 , 1–0 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2 , October 31 , @

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

W 95–92
,

(21) ,

(12) ,

(10) , FleetCenter
14,158 , 2–0 , - style="background:#fcc;" , 3 , November 2 , @

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

L 88–102
,

(17) ,

Kidd Kidd may refer to: Places * Kidd (railway point), British Columbia, a former Canadian settlement * Kidd's Beach, a coastal town in the Eastern Cape, South Africa * Kidd Islands, Antarctic island grouping * Mount Kidd, a peak in the Canadian R ...

& Williams (6) ,

(5) , Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076 , 2–1 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 4 , November 3 ,

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

W 95–85
,

(28) ,

(9) ,

(8) ,

6,532 , 3–1 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 5 , November 8 ,

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

W 106–94
,

(29) ,

(12) ,

(13) ,

5,277 , 4–1 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 6 , November 10 ,

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

W 87–84
, Kenyon Martin (18) , MacCulloch & Van Horn (10) , ''Three players'' (4) ,

5,631 , 5–1 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 7 , November 13 , @

W 91–82
,

(20) ,

(13) ,

(10) ,

Conseco Fieldhouse CNO Financial Group, Inc. (formerly Conseco, Inc. (from Consolidated National Security Corporation)) is a financial services holding company based in Carmel, Indiana. Its insurance subsidiaries provide life insurance, annuity and supplemental ...

15,188 , 6–1 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 8 , November 16 , New York
W 109–83
, Kenyon Martin (21) , Kenyon Martin (8) ,

(15) ,

15,638 , 7–1 , - style="background:#fcc;" , 9 , November 17 ,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

L 82–94
, Kenyon Martin (16) ,

& MacCulloch (9) ,

(12) ,

17,318 , 7–2 , - style="background:#fcc;" , 10 , November 19 , @

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

L 96–99 (OT)
, Kenyon Martin (28) ,

(8) ,

(13) ,

11,319 , 7–3 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 11 , November 21 , @

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

W 90–89 (OT)
,

(18) ,

(11) ,

(6) ,

Delta Center Vivint Arena (stylized as vivint arena), formerly known as Delta Center, EnergySolutions Arena and Vivint Smart Home Arena, is an indoor arena located in Salt Lake City, Utah. The arena serves as the home venue for the National Basketball Ass ...

17,413 , 8–3 , - align="center" , colspan="9" bgcolor="#bbcaff", All-Star Break , - style="background:#fcc;" , 80 , April 14 , @

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

L 82–101
,

Collins Collins may refer to: People Surname Given name * Collins O. Bright (1917–?), Sierra Leonean diplomat * Collins Chabane (1960–2015), South African Minister of Public Service and Administration * Collins Cheboi (born 1987), Kenyan middle- ...

& Scalabrine (16) ,

Brian Scalabrine Brian David Scalabrine (born March 18, 1978), nicknamed the "White Mamba", is an American former professional basketball player who is currently a television analyst for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is als ...

(9) , Anthony Johnson (5) ,

Air Canada Centre Scotiabank Arena ( French: ''Aréna Scotiabank)'', formerly known as Air Canada Centre (ACC), is a multi-purposed arena located on Bay Street in the South Core district of Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the home of the Toronto Ra ...

19,800 , 51–29 , - style="background:#fcc;" , 81 , April 16 ,

L 98–103
, Kerry Kittles (30) , Aaron Williams (8) ,

(7) ,

15,084 , 51–30 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 82 , April 17 , @ New York
W 99–94
, ''Four players'' (13) ,

(8) ,

(5) , Madison Square Garden
19,763 , 52–30

Playoffs

, - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , April 20 ,

L 83–89
,

(26) , Kenyon Martin (13) ,

(9) ,

18,555 , 0–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 2 , April 22 ,

W 95–79
,

(20) ,

(10) ,

(9) ,

20,049 , 1–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , April 26 , @

W 85–84
,

(24) ,

(12) ,

(6) ,

18,345 , 2–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , April 30 , @

L 74–97
, Kenyon Martin (13) , Kenyon Martin (6) ,

(6) ,

18,345 , 2–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 5 , May 2 ,

W 120–109 (2OT)
,

(31) ,

Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austr ...

(8) ,

(7) ,

20,049 , 3–2 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , May 5 ,

W 99–93
,

(21) ,

(7) ,

19,071 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 2 , May 7 ,

W 102–88
,

(24) ,

(11) ,

(6) ,

20,049 , 2–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 3 , May 9 , @

L 97–115
,

(16) ,

(7) ,

(6) ,

Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte Coliseum was a multi-purpose sports and entertainment arena located in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was operated by the Charlotte Coliseum Authority, which also oversees the operation of Bojangles' Coliseum (which was called Charlott ...

11,363 , 2–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 4 , May 12 , @

W 89–79
,

(24) ,

, Van Horn (11) ,

(8) ,

13,864 , 3–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 5 , May 15 ,

W 103–95
,

(23) , Kenyon Martin (6) ,

(13) ,

20,049 , 4–1 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , May 19 ,

W 104–97
,

(18) ,

(13) ,

(11) ,

20,049 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , May 21 ,

L 86–93
,

(23) ,

(16) ,

(10) ,

19,850 , 1–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 3 , May 25 , @

L 90–94
, Kerry Kittles (19) ,

(11) ,

(11) , FleetCenter
18,624 , 1–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 4 , May 27 , @

W 94–92
, Kerry Kittles (22) ,

(10) ,

(9) , FleetCenter
18,624 , 2–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 5 , May 29 ,

W 103–92
, Kerry Kittles (21) ,

(12) ,

(7) ,

19,850 , 3–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 6 , May 31 , @

W 96–88
, Kenyon Martin (16) ,

(13) ,

(13) , FleetCenter
18,624 , 4–2 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , June 5 , @

L.A. Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

L 94–99
,

(23) ,

(10) ,

(10) , Staples Center
18,997 , 0–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , June 7 , @

L 83–106
, Kerry Kittles (23) ,

(9) ,

(7) , Staples Center
18,997 , 0–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 3 , June 9 ,

L 103–106
,

(30) ,

, Van Horn (5) ,

(10) ,

19,215 , 0–3 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , June 12 ,

L 107–113
, Kenyon Martin (35) , Kenyon Martin (11) ,

(12) ,

19,296 , 0–4

NBA Finals

Summary

The following scoring summary is written in a line score format, except that the quarter numbers are replaced by game numbers.

Aspects

Amid tensions between co-captains Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, the franchise had another stellar season, finishing 58–24 (.707), good for second in the Pacific Division and earning the third seed in the Western Conference. Bryant and O'Neal were voted starters in the

, where Bryant won the game MVP trophy in his hometown

. The duo appeared on the

All-NBA First Team The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. The team has been sel ...

and Bryant was honored with an

NBA All-Defensive Second Team The NBA All-Defensive Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1968–69 NBA season to the best defensive players during the regular season. The All-Defensive Team is generally composed of ten players in two ...

selection. Entering the 2001–02 season, the New Jersey Nets were enduring a three-year playoff drought and had a 73–141 record over that span. In 1999, the Nets hired

Rod Thorn Rodney King Thorn (born May 23, 1941) is an American basketball executive and a former professional player and coach, Olympic Committee Chairman, with a career spanning over 50 years. In 2018, Thorn was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Baske ...

as team president and immediately, he hired the recently retired

to coach New Jersey. Thorn then dealt for

Stephon Marbury Stephon Xavier Marbury (born February 20, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player and current head coach in the Chinese Basketball Association. After his freshman year with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, he was selected as th ...

in a three-team trade with the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

and

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

, trading

Sam Cassell Samuel James Cassell Sr. (born November 18, 1969) is an American professional basketball coach and former point guard who serves as an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Drafted 24th overall i ...

away to the Bucks.Nets Trade History
NBA.com/nets Due to the Nets' 31–51 season in 1999–00 season, they had the first overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft, which they used to select

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to centers. When on offense, they typically play with their ba ...

Kenyon Martin out of the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,0 ...

. Despite the reshuffling of the roster and a Rookie of the Year season for Martin, New Jersey struggled, ending the season with a 26–56 (.317) record, and were bestowed the 7th pick in the upcoming Draft. With another lottery pick, Thorn dealt it to the Houston Rockets for draftees

and

Brandon Armstrong Brandon Simone Armstrong (born June 16, 1980) is an American retired professional basketball player. Born in San Francisco, California, he played college basketball for the Pepperdine Waves and was selected by the Houston Rockets with the 23rd ov ...

. The next day, Phoenix Suns owner

Jerry Colangelo Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Ari ...

announced a franchise-shaking trade; Phoenix would swap their point guard

for his New Jersey counterpart Stephon Marbury. With the

Princeton offense The Princeton offense is an offensive basketball strategy which emphasizes constant motion, back-door cuts, picks on and off the ball, and disciplined teamwork. It was used and perfected at Princeton University by Pete Carril, though its roots ma ...

installed from the coaching staff, the Nets rebounded to a 52–30 (.634) mark, a twenty-six-win improvement from the last season, and clinched the number-one seed in the Eastern Conference. Kidd finished the season awarded with first team spots on both the All-NBABryant, McGrady are first-time All-NBA selections
''USA Today'' and All-Defensive TeamsPayton ties mark with ninth All-Defensive slot
''USA Today'' and was selected for his fifth

All-Star game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or d ...

. He also finished runner-up to

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

power forward

in the Most Valuable Player voting.It's official: Duncan captures MVP award
USA Today. Retrieved December 28, 2008 Richard Jefferson was an NBA All-Rookie Second Team selection and Thorn, the architect of the franchise's resurgence, was awarded

NBA Executive of the Year The National Basketball Association's Executive of the Year Award is an annual award given since the 1972–73 NBA season, to the league's best general manager, president of basketball/business operations, or another high-ranking executive. Befor ...

Game One

Los Angeles's Staples Center sold out for the inaugural game of the 2002 NBA Finals, with nearly 19,000 on hand. The Nets trotted out a lineup of Kidd, Kittles, Martin, Van Horn and MacCulloth to hold up against the two-time defending and heavily favored champions. The Lakers brought out Derek Fisher, Rick Fox, Shaquille O'Neal, Robert Horry, and Kobe Bryant, who drew the assignment of guarding Kidd. New Jersey head coach

, a member of the

Showtime Lakers Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

, received a standing ovation. Taking advantage of a late arrival to the arena by New Jersey, L.A. dominated the first 17 minutes of play with a 42–19 score by the 6:41 mark in the second quarter. From that point on, the Nets went on a 17–6 to close the lead to a respectable 12. They had no answer for O'Neal, however, who had bullied MacCulloth into 16 points and 6 rebounds by half-time. The Nets outscored the Lakers in the third but stood steadfast as Bryant scored 11 of his 22 in the third. New Jersey battled back, coming as close as three several times in the final quarter. Desperate to take the lead, they utilized the "

Hack-a-Shaq Hack-a-Shaq is a basketball defensive strategy used in the National Basketball Association (NBA) that involves committing intentional fouls (originally a clock management strategy) for the purpose of lowering opponents' scoring. The strategy was o ...

" strategy midway in the fourth. It backfired, as O'Neal was 5–8 from the free throw line and had 16 points and 9 rebounds in the period alone. New Jersey was doomed by their late start and poor shooting. The Nets, who shot 45% from the field and 74% on free throws were 39% and 57% respectively. Kidd finished with a triple–double, the 26th in Finals history and the first since

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "Chuck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons ...

's in the 1993 series.
Recap

Game Two

The second game was more of a statement as the Lakers clobbered the Nets by a score of 106-83 thanks to Shaquille O'Neal's 40 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists.
Recap

Game Three

Game Three would prove to a hard-fought game (much like the first game of the series) as the Lakers and Nets would trade leads throughout the game but thanks to Kobe Bryant's 36 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks the Lakers prevail by a score of 106-103 to take a commanding 3-0 series lead.
Recap

Game Four

Despite this being a hard-fought battle (much like the previous game and as well as the first game of the series) the Lakers still won game four and the championship, giving Phil Jackson his

Red Auerbach Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach (September 20, 1917 – October 28, 2006) was an American professional basketball coach and executive. He served as a head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA), most notably with the Boston Celtics. ...

-tying ninth title and the Lakers their third consecutive title (and fourteenth overall) making them the fifth team to win three consecutive titles and denying the Nets their first ever championship since the franchise moved to

East Rutherford East Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 10,022, reflecting an increase of 1,109 (+12.4%) from the 8,913 counted in the 2010 census.

.
Recap

Player stats

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;" , , 35 , 0 , 5.6 , .318 , .294 , .500 , 0.5 , 0.2 , 0.2 , 0.0 , 1.8 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 77 , 9 , 18.3 , .421 , .500 , .701 , 3.9 , 1.1 , 0.4 , 0.6 , 4.5 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 25 , 0 , 10.0 , .319 , .000 , .722 , 1.8 , 1.2 , 0.3 , 0.2 , 2.9 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 9 , 0 , 5.6 , .200 , .000 , .500 , 0.6 , 0.6 , 0.1 , 0.2 , 0.6 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 74 , 0 , 21.0 , .464 , .373 , .842 , 2.8 , 1.6 , 0.7 , 0.1 , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 79 , 9 , 24.3 , .457 , .232 , .713 , 3.7 , 1.8 , 0.8 , 0.6 , 9.4 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 34 , 0 , 10.8 , .411 , .333 , .640 , 0.9 , 1.4 , 0.9 , 0.0 , 2.8 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 82 , 82 , 37.3 , .391 , .321 , .814 , 7.3 , 9.9 , 2.1 , 0.2 , 14.7 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 82 , 82 , 31.7 , .466 , .405 , .744 , 3.4 , 2.6 , 1.6 , 0.4 , 13.4 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 62 , 61 , 24.2 , .531 , .000 , .671 , 6.1 , 1.3 , 0.4 , 1.4 , 9.7 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 20 , 0 , 5.9 , .276 , .500 , .667 , 1.1 , 0.3 , 0.2 , 0.0 , 1.5 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 73 , 73 , 34.3 , .463 , .224 , .678 , 5.3 , 2.6 , 1.2 , 1.7 , 14.9 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 28 , 0 , 10.4 , .343 , .300 , .733 , 1.8 , 0.8 , 0.3 , 0.1 , 2.1 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 4 , 0 , 2.5 , 1.000 , .000 , 1.000 , 0.5 , 0.0 , 0.0 , 0.0 , 1.3 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 81 , 81 , 30.4 , .433 , .345 , .800 , 7.5 , 2.0 , 0.8 , 0.5 , 14.8 , - , style="text-align:left;" , , 82 , 13 , 18.9 , .526 , .000 , .699 , 4.1 , 0.9 , 0.4 , 0.9 , 7.2

Postseason

, -

Awards and records

NBA All-Defensive First Team The NBA All-Defensive Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1968–69 NBA season to the best defensive players during the regular season. The All-Defensive Team is generally composed of ten players in two ...

, NBA All-Rookie Team Second Team

Transactions

References

New Jersey Nets on Database Basketball

{{DEFAULTSORT:2001-02 New Jersey Nets season New Jersey Nets season New Jersey Nets seasons

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

21st century in East Rutherford, New Jersey Eastern Conference (NBA) championship seasons Meadowlands Sports Complex