June 4, 2000
The Staples Center was almost completely silent. The Portland Trailblazers were leading the rival Los Angeles Lakers by the end of the Third Quarter 71-58. It looked like the Blazers would finally finish off the Lakers after being down 3-1 early in the series.
We all know how this ends.
The Blazers blew their lead, morphed into an overpaid and controversial team, spent the next 12 years passing on future stars Al Jefferson, Josh Smith, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Kevin Durant, and Al Horford, traded Jermaine O'Neal and Rasheed Wallace before they became great, and didn't make it past the first round until 2014.
But it didn't have to be that way. The Blazers could've pulled it off. The Blazers had a team with Scottie Pippen, Rasheed Wallace, Jermaine O'Neal, Sabonis Sr., Damon Stoudamire, Detlef Schrempf, and Bonzi Wells. All were before or past their primes, but the team still had real talent.
That blown lead would effect everything in Portland after it. Two years later, the team drafted Zach Randolph, who was a major player in the "Jail Blazers", and the later trades of Jermaine O'Neal and Rasheed Wallace made the Blazers suck enough to pass on all those stars.
But "what if?"
Alternate June 4, 2000
Rasheed Wallace and Scottie Pippen saw each second click down on the clock. The Blazers were winning 95-79. The victory was empathized by a Rasheed Wallace dunk on Shaquille O'Neal with 1:09 left in the game.
The buzzer sounded, and the Blazers celebrated their victory and Rasheed Wallace lifted the Conference Championship trophy over his head. The main question that lingered in the remaining Lakers fans heads was "How". How could they lose? To this team? They understood the loss to Utah in '98, Utah had Karl Malone and John Stockton, and the Spurs in '99, the Spurs had David Robertson and Tim Duncan. But how to a team that showcased a 35 year old Scottie Pippen and a man who had been traded for Rod fucking Strickland 4 years earlier. It boggled the mind.
Then, the media began to question Shaquille O'Neal's ability to win in the playoffs. He had been swept out of the playoffs in '95, '96, '98, and '99, blew a 3-1 lead this year, and lost 4-1 in '97. It seemed he could never get out of a conference playoffs without a star like Penny Hardaway, and even then, he couldn't do much in the finals. People began to question if O'Neal or his partner Kobe Bryant would be traded.
June 7, 2000
The first game of the 2000 NBA finals would be held. Riding on the momentum of their series comeback and the Game 7 blowout, the Blazers destroyed the Pacers 113-86. Rasheed Wallace and Steve Smith lead the team in points with 19 and 17 respectively. Rasheed Wallace declared during an interview after the game that "This is the beginning of something great!"
June 9, 2000
The Portland Trailblazers continued their streak of victories with a close 106-100 victory over the Pacers at home. Portland native Damon Stoudamire electrified the crowd with a 27 point-13 assist performance and two threes to clinch the game with under a minute left. Rasheed Wallace also scored 31 points, and for the Pacers, Reggie Miller scored 25 points.
June 11, 2000
After the Blazers took two games at home, game three was a must-win for the Pacers. The Blazers held a 86-77 lead with 3:12 left, but Reggie Miller scored 12 points in a row, while the Blazers could only respond with a Steve Smith three. After the game tied at 89, Reggie Miller got the ball and shot it from 16 feet over Steve Smith, and sunk it. Miller's game winner gave the Pacers hope going into game four, and some expected the Pacers to come back from their 2-0 deficit. But the Blazers had other plans.
June 14, 2000
The Blazers came back with a vengeance after losing game 3, and destroyed the Pacers 113-97. Rasheed Wallace stood out with a 38 point-15 rebound-and 6 assist performance. Sportswriter Bill Simmons later wrote in Rasheed Wallace's Hall of Fame Pyramid Spot that "Losing game 3 was the best thing that happened for 'Sheed's legacy. After experiencing a win from a comeback in the WCF, 'Sheed turned into a Greek god. His performance was something of legends, and no one will forget it when discussing 'Sheed's place in NBA history."
June 16, 2000
In the final game of the series, the Blazers ended their season with a championship. With the crowd shaking in joy, the Blazers jumbotron played Rasheed Wallace's dunk on Shaq from the Western Conference Finals, and it lead to the Blazers crowd nearly causing an earthquake with their cheering. The Blazers finally finished off the Pacers 101-89. Blazers fans ran onto the court as Scottie Pippen hoisted the trophy into the air. In the end, Rasheed Wallace won finals MVP, and the Blazers' 2000s were looking good so far.
To be continued