The 2002 NBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2001–02 season. This would be the final postseason that held best-of-5 first-round series; next year's postseason would see those series expanded to a best-of-7 format. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers winning their third consecutive championship by sweeping the Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets four games to none.

This tournament marked the return of playoff success for the Boston Celtics, who had last made the playoffs in 1995, and had made their last Eastern Conference finals appearance in 1987. The total number of playoff games for the NBA was 70 games including the NBA Finals.

Bracket

Playoff qualifying

Western Conference

Best record in NBA

The Sacramento Kings clinched the best record in the NBA, and earned home court advantage throughout the entire playoffs. However, when Sacramento lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers gained home court advantage for the NBA Finals.

Clinched a playoff berth

The following teams clinched a playoff berth in the West:

1. Sacramento Kings (clinched Pacific division)
2. San Antonio Spurs (clinched Midwest division)
3. Los Angeles Lakers
4. Dallas Mavericks
5. Minnesota Timberwolves
6. Portland Trail Blazers
7. Seattle SuperSonics
8. Utah Jazz

Eastern Conference

Best record in conference

The New Jersey Nets clinched the best record in the Eastern Conference, and had home court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Clinched a playoff berth

The following teams clinched a playoff berth in the East:

1. New Jersey Nets (clinched Atlantic division)
2. Detroit Pistons (clinched Central division)
3. Boston Celtics
4. Charlotte Hornets
5. Orlando Magic
6. Philadelphia 76ers
7. Toronto Raptors
8. Indiana Pacers

Western Conference

Champion: Los Angeles Lakers

First Round

(1) Sacramento Kings vs. (8) Utah Jazz

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (SAC-UTA)	Venue	TV Time	TV Commentators
1	April 20	Utah	86	Sacramento	89	1-0	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	NBC 3:00et/12:00pt	Tom Hammond, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
2	April 23	Utah	93	Sacramento	86	1-1	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	TBS 10:30et/7:30pt	Mike Breen & P.J. Carlesimo
3	April 27	Sacramento	90	Utah	87	2-1	Delta Center, Utah	NBC 3:00et/1:00mt	Marv Albert, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
4	April 27	Sacramento	91	Utah	86	3-1	Delta Center, Utah	TNT 10:30et/8:30mt	Kevin Harlan, John Thompson & Danny Ainge
Sacramento wins series 3–1

(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (7) Seattle SuperSonics

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (SAS-SEA)	Venue	TV Time	TV Commentators
1	April 20	Seattle	89	San Antonio	110	1-0	Alamodome, San Antonio	NBC 5:30et/4:30ct	Mike Breen & P.J. Carlesimo
2	April 22	Seattle	98	San Antonio	90	1-1	Alamodome, San Antonio	TNT 9:30et/8:30ct	Kevin Harlan, John Thompson & Danny Ainge
3	April 27	San Antonio	102	Seattle	75	2-1	KeyArena, Seattle	NBC 5:30et/2:30pt	Tom Hammond & Matt Guokas
4	May 1	San Antonio	79	Seattle	91	2-2	KeyArena, Seattle	TNT 10:30et/7:30pt
5	May 3	Seattle	78	San Antonio	101	3-2	Alamodome, San Antonio	TNT 9:30et/8:30ct
San Antonio wins series 3–2

(3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Portland Trail Blazers

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (LAL-POR)	Venue	TV Time	TV Commentators
1	April 21	Portland	87	Los Angeles	95	1-0	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 5:30et/2:30pt	Tom Hammond, Bill Walton and Steve Jones
2	April 25	Portland	96	Los Angeles	103	2-0	Staples Center, Los Angeles	TNT 10:30et/7:30pt	Mike Breen and P.J. Carlesimo
3	April 28	Los Angeles	92	Portland	91	3-0	Rose Garden Arena, Portland	NBC 5:30et/2:30pt	Tom Hammond, Bill Walton and Steve Jones
Los Angeles wins series 3–0

(4) Dallas Mavericks vs. (5) Minnesota Timberwolves

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (DAL-MIN)	Venue	TV Time	TV Commentators
1	April 21	Minnesota	94	Dallas	101	1-0	American Airlines Center, Dallas	NBC 3:00et/2:00ct	Mike Breen & P.J. Carlesimo
2	April 24	Minnesota	110	Dallas	122	2-0	American Airlines Center, Dallas	TNT 9:30et/8:30ct	Kevin Harlan, Danny Ainge & John Thompson
3	April 28	Dallas	115	Minnesota	102	3-0	Target Center, Minneapolis	NBC 3:00et/2:00ct	Bob Costas & Mike Dunleavy
Dallas wins series 3–0

Conference Semifinals

(1) Sacramento Kings vs. (4) Dallas Mavericks

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (SAC-DAL)	Venue	TV Time
1	May 4	Dallas	91	Sacramento	108	1-0	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	NBC 6:30et/3:30pt
2	May 6	Dallas	110	Sacramento	102	1-1	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	TNT 9:00et/6:00pt
3	May 9	Sacramento	125	Dallas	119	2-1	American Airlines Center, Dallas	TNT 9:30et/8:30ct
4	May 11	Sacramento	115	Dallas	113	3-1	American Airlines Center, Dallas	NBC 3:30et/2:30ct
5	May 13	Dallas	101	Sacramento	114	4-1	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	TNT 9:00et/6:00pt
Sacramento wins series 4–1

(2) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (LAL-SAS)	Venue	TV Time
1	May 5	San Antonio	80	Los Angeles	86	1-0	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 5:30et/2:30pt
2	May 7	San Antonio	88	Los Angeles	85	1-1	Staples Center, Los Angeles	TBS 10:30et/7:30pt
3	May 10	Los Angeles	99	San Antonio	89	2-1	Alamodome San Antonio	TNT 9:30et/8:30ct
4	May 12	Los Angeles	87	San Antonio	85	3-1	Alamodome San Antonio	NBC 5:30et/4:30ct
5	May 14	San Antonio	87	Los Angeles	93	4-1	Staples Center, Los Angeles	TBS 10:30et/7:30pt
Los Angeles wins series 4–1

Conference Finals

(1) Sacramento Kings vs. (3) Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers and Kings split the first two games in Sacramento. The Kings went to Los Angeles and won game three to take a 2-1 series lead. In game four, the Kings built a 24-point lead in the second quarter, but the Lakers came back to be down by 12 at halftime and by six after three quarters. The two teams continued to fight it out. A missed free throw by Vlade Divac gave the Lakers a chance to win the game, down 99-97. Kobe Bryant drove the ball to the hoop and missed a running jumper. Shaquille O'Neal got the rebound and missed a layup and Divac intended to knock the ball to a teammate, but instead it wound up going to a wide open Robert Horry who drilled a three-pointer as time ran out and gave the Lakers an improbable game four win, which tied the series 2-2. In game five, Sacramento trailed almost the entire fourth quarter and was down 91-90 late in the 4th quarter, but a jump shot by Mike Bibby off a screen with 8.2 seconds left gave the team the lead and was the eventual game winner in a 92-91 win. In Game 6, O'Neal scored 41 points and had 17 rebounds in the Lakers' narrow victory, setting the stage for game seven in Sacramento, with the winner advancing to the NBA Finals. There are allegations that this sixth game was affected by the referees in relationship to the Tim Donaghy scandal. The Lakers had 27 free throws in the fourth quarter.

The seventh game had been close throughout, but two free throws made by Bibby tied the score 100-100 and forced the game into overtime. The Kings could not hold on, and eventually lost the game and the series to the Lakers.

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (SAC-LAL)	Venue	TV Time	TV Commentators
1	May 18	Los Angeles	106	Sacramento	99	0-1	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	NBC 6:30et/3:30pt	Mike Breen, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
2	May 20	Los Angeles	90	Sacramento	96	1-1	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	TNT 9:00et/6:00pt	Kevin Harlan, Danny Ainge, & John Thompson
3	May 24	Sacramento	103	Los Angeles	90	2-1	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 9:00et/6:00pt	Marv Albert, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
4	May 26	Sacramento	99	Los Angeles	100	2-2	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 5:30et/2:30pt	Marv Albert, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
5	May 28	Los Angeles	91	Sacramento	92	3-2	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	NBC 9:00et/6:00pt	Marv Albert, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
6	May 31	Sacramento	102	Los Angeles	106	3-3	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 9:30et/6:30pt	Marv Albert, Bill Walton & Steve Jones
7	June 2	Los Angeles	112	Sacramento	106	3-4	ARCO Arena, Sacramento	NBC 7:30et/4:30pt	Marv Albert, Bill Walton and Steve Jones
Los Angeles wins Western Conference Championship 4–3

Eastern Conference

Champion: New Jersey Nets

First Round

(1) New Jersey Nets vs. (8) Indiana Pacers

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (NJN-IND)	Venue	TV Time
1	April 20	Indiana	89	New Jersey	83	0-1	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	NBC 12:30et
2	April 22	Indiana	79	New Jersey	95	1-1	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	TNT 7:00et
3	April 26	New Jersey	85	Indiana	84	2-1	Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis	TNT 8:30et/7:30ct
4	May 1	New Jersey	74	Indiana	98	2-2	Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis	TNT 7:00et/6:00ct
5	May 2	Indiana	109	New Jersey	120	3-2	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	TNT 7:00et
New Jersey wins series 3–2

(4) Charlotte Hornets vs. (5) Orlando Magic

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (CHA-ORL)	Venue	TV Time
1	April 20	Orlando	79	Charlotte	80	1-0	Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte	TNT 8:30et
2	April 23	Orlando	111	Charlotte	103	1-1	Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte	TBS 8:00et
3	April 27	Charlotte	110	Orlando	100	2-1	TD Waterhouse Centre, Orlando	NBC 12:30et
4	April 30	Charlotte	102	Orlando	85	3-1	TD Waterhouse Centre, Orlando	TBS 8:30et
Charlotte wins series 3–1

(2) Detroit Pistons vs. (7) Toronto Raptors

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (DET-TOR)	Venue	TV Time
1	April 21	Toronto	63	Detroit	85	1-0	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills	TNT 8:30et
2	April 24	Toronto	91	Detroit	96	2-0	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills	TNT 7:00et
3	April 27	Detroit	84	Toronto	94	2-1	Air Canada Centre, Toronto	TNT 8:30et
4	April 29	Detroit	83	Toronto	89	2-2	Air Canada Centre, Toronto	TNT 8:00et
5	May 2	Toronto	82	Detroit	85	3-2	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills	TBS 8:30et
Detroit wins series 3–2

(3) Boston Celtics vs. (6) Philadelphia 76ers

This series marked the return of the Celtics to the playoffs for the first time in seven years, and they faced the reigning Eastern Conference champion in the first round. The first two games were played in Boston, where the Celtics won both games resoundingly. The 76ers fought back, however, and with Allen Iverson scoring 42 points the 76ers won game three and stayed alive. In game four Iverson was slowed down, scoring 26 points on just 9-of-26 shooting, and Antoine Walker stepped up for the Celtics, scoring 25. But Iverson's play at the end making a layup, scoring off an Eric Snow steal, and hitting some free throws after Walker drilled a three sealed the victory for the 76ers. This set the stage for a game 5 in Boston to decide the series. The Celtics had control on this game throughout, but the 76ers kept within striking distance into the 4th quarter. But Boston went on an amazing streak of three-pointers, hitting an NBA playoff record nine of them in the 4th quarter and 19 in the game. Paul Pierce led the way with 46, on 8-10 shooting from downtown, and Boston won in a huge blowout, sending them to the conference semifinals to face second-seed Detroit.

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (BOS-PHI)	Venue	TV Time
1	April 21	Philadelphia	82	Boston	92	1-0	FleetCenter, Boston	NBC 12:30et
2	April 25	Philadelphia	85	Boston	93	2-0	FleetCenter, Boston	TNT 8:00et
3	April 28	Boston	103	Philadelphia	108	2-1	First Union Center, Philadelphia	NBC 12:30et
4	May 1	Boston	81	Philadelphia	83	2-2	First Union Center, Philadelphia	TNT 8:00et
5	May 3	Philadelphia	87	Boston	120	3-2	FleetCenter, Boston	TNT 7:00et
Boston wins series 3–2

Conference Semifinals

(1) New Jersey Nets vs. (4) Charlotte Hornets

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (NJN-CHA)	Venue	TV Time
1	May 5	Charlotte	93	New Jersey	99	1-0	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	NBC 12:30et
2	May 7	Charlotte	88	New Jersey	102	2-0	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	TBS 8:00et
3	May 9	New Jersey	97	Charlotte	115	2-1	Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte	TNT 7:00et
4	May 12	New Jersey	89	Charlotte	79	3-1	Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte	NBC 12:30et
5	May 15	Charlotte	95	New Jersey	103	4-1	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	TNT 8:00et
New Jersey wins series 4–1

(2) Detroit Pistons vs. (3) Boston Celtics

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (DET-BOS)	Venue	TV Time
1	May 5	Boston	86	Detroit	94	1-0	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills	NBC 3:00et
2	May 8	Boston	85	Detroit	77	1-1	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills	TNT 8:00et
3	May 10	Detroit	64	Boston	66	1-2	FleetCenter, Boston	TNT 7:00et
4	May 12	Detroit	79	Boston	90	1-3	FleetCenter, Boston	NBC 3:00et
5	May 14	Boston	90	Detroit	81	1-4	The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills	TBS 8:00et
Boston wins series 4–1

Conference Finals

(1) New Jersey Nets vs. (3) Boston Celtics

The Nets won game one, but Boston came back to steal game two in New Jersey to send the series back to Boston tied 1-1. In game three, the Celtics were down by 21 coming into the 4th quarter, but the Celtics accomplished the biggest comeback in NBA Playoff history as the Celtics outscored the Nets 41-16 in the fourth quarter. The Celtics almost completed another comeback in game four, but the Nets held on for the victory to tie the series at two games apiece. The Nets won games five and six to advance to the team's first of two consecutive NBA finals.

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (NJN-BOS)	Venue	TV Time	TV Commentators
1	May 19	Boston	97	New Jersey	104	1-0	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	NBC 5:30et	Marv Albert & PJ Carlesimo
2	May 21	Boston	93	New Jersey	86	1-1	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	TNT 8:00et	Dick Stockton & Hubie Brown
3	May 25	New Jersey	90	Boston	94	1-2	FleetCenter, Boston	NBC 5:30et	Mike Breen & PJ Carlesimo
4	May 27	New Jersey	94	Boston	92	2-2	FleetCenter, Boston	NBC 5:30et	Mike Breen & PJ Carlesimo
5	May 29	Boston	92	New Jersey	103	3-2	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	NBC 9:00et	Mike Breen & PJ Carlesimo
6	May 31	New Jersey	96	Boston	88	4-2	FleetCenter, Boston	NBC 7:00et	Mike Breen & PJ Carlesimo
New Jersey wins Eastern Conference Championship series 4–2

NBA Finals

Los Angeles Lakers vs. New Jersey Nets

This was the third consecutive NBA finals appearance for the Lakers, and the first in team history for the Nets. In game one the Nets stayed within striking distance, but Shaquille O'Neal's 36 points and 16 rebounds led the Lakers to victory. In game two the Nets were blown out by 23 points, with O'Neal leading the way again, putting up 40 points and 12 rebounds and coming within 2 assists of a triple double. This brought the series to New Jersey with the Lakers up 2-0. Game three was a close matchup with Jason Kidd, Kenyon Martin, O'Neal, and Kobe Bryant all scoring 26 or more points. Bryant and O'Neal's combined 71 was too much for the Nets to handle though, and the Lakers took a dominating 3-0 series lead. In game four, O'Neal put up 34 points and the Lakers won the game and the championship, accomplishing the NBA's first three-peat since Michael Jordan and the Bulls did so in 1998.

Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Score	Record (LAL-NJ)	Venue	TV Time
1	June 5	New Jersey	94	Los Angeles	99	1-0	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 9:00et/6:00pt
2	June 7	New Jersey	83	Los Angeles	106	2-0	Staples Center, Los Angeles	NBC 9:00et/6:00pt
3	June 9	Los Angeles	106	New Jersey	103	3-0	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	NBC 8:30et
4	June 12	Los Angeles	113	New Jersey	107	4-0	Continental Airlines Arena, New Jersey	NBC 9:00et
Los Angeles wins NBA Championship series 4–0

References

External links

• NBA.com's 2002 Playoffs coverage