"Where's my ring?" - 5x All-Star reveals spamming Kobe Bryant after 2002 playoff series loss
Ex-Sacramento Kings star forward Chris Webber continually came up short against LA Lakers legends Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal in the NBA playoffs. According to Webber, Sacramento's 2002 Western Conference finals loss was particularly tough to accept, and he often used to quip with Bryant about the series.
Webber's Kings fell to the Bryant and O'Neal-led Lakers each year of the latter's early 2000's three-peat (2000 to 2002). In 2000, Sacramento lost a hard-fought first-round series 3-2 as an eighth seed. The following year, LA swept the third-seeded franchise in the West semifinals.
However, in 2002, the Kings finished with a league-best 61-21 regular-season record and appeared primed to get over the hump. Instead, they blew a 3-2 West finals lead, falling in seven games, with their 112-106 Game 7 overtime defeat occurring on their home court.
That marked the first time since 1982 that a home team lost a Game 7 in a conference finals showdown. It also designated the closest Webber came to winning a title, as he never made an NBA Finals appearance over his 15-year career.
On Thursday's episode of the "Best of Both Worlds with Flau'jae" podcast, Webber was asked about the "one moment in his career he still thinks about." He recounted how close Sacramento came to preventing LA's three-peat.
"Going up against Kobe, Shaq ... and (Robert) Horry, that series is something that I'll always remember because that series stopped me from getting a championship," Webber said.
"You gotta respect the grind, you gotta respect your opponents and your teammates, and I respect that part of it because to be part of a rivalry, to be able to embrace the best of sports. I think about that series once in a while," he continued.
The five-time All-Star added that his squad put up such a respectable fight that he used to joke with Kobe Bryant about deserving a championship ring.
"I used to text Kobe, 'Where's my ring?' and we used to laugh about that a lot," Webber said.
Also Read: "Don't you ever ask me am I ok?" - Rudy Gay shares Kobe Bryant's ice-cold response after leaving him bloodied
Chris Webber says Kings were "robbed" by referees during 2002 West finals against Kobe Bryant's Lakers
Earlier this month, Chris Webber spoke about how Sacramento got "robbed" by questionable officiating during the 2002 West finals against Kobe Bryant's Lakers. However, he noted that his team still could have emerged victorious had it not shot 16-for-30 (53.3%) at the free-throw line in Game 7.
"We were robbed. We were cheated, but we should have won Game 7," Webber said on the "Come Talk 2 Me" podcast. "(In) Game 7, we missed free throws."
Nevertheless, the Hall of Famer has seemingly taken solace in the fact that his Kings lost to one of the "greatest" teams of all time.
"If you lose, you gotta lose to the greatest that ever did it, with Kobe and Shaq. ... and with Phil (Jackson) on the side," Webber said. "They deserved it."
Also Read: Mark Cuban shares how close Kobe Bryant came to signing with the Mavericks in 2007 - "Thought it was done"