As Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers were in the midst of completing a three-peat, a fierce rivalry developed with the Sacramento Kings. The Lakers faced the Kings in the NBA Playoffs in each of those three years, making for plenty of dramatic matchups.
Bad blood between the two teams has subsided in the time since, as the Lakers’ last two championships were devoid of the same playoff history. As both teams went into a rebuild, there’s now a younger crop of players looking to put their stamp on the rivalry.
Among them is De’Aaron Fox, who also has a bit of a personal competition with Lonzo Ball because they are part of the same draft class.