Sports world reacts to the Los Angeles Lakers winning first title in a decade

The Los Angeles Lakers had it going early and often during Game 6 of the 2020 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. LeBron James and Co. were looking to close this one out in Orlando and win their first NBA title since Kobe Bryant was dominating in the purple and gold.

After some initial struggles shooting the ball, this game was not close. Los Angeles opened up a 28-point halftime lead, one of the biggest scoring margins after two quarters of action in NBA Finals history. While Miami actually outscored the Lakers in the second half, Jimmy Butler and Co. just didn’t have the firepower to make this one close.

In typical LeBron fashion, James put up yet another triple-double with 28 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists. The now four-time NBA Finals winner was also plus-18 in 41 minutes. As for a hobbled Anthony Davis, the big man scored 19 points and nabbed 15 rebounds.

A season that started back on Oct. 22 of last year and included the highest of highs as well as the lowest of lows resulted in the Lakers winning their 17th NBA championship in franchise history. It caps off a year that saw franchise legend Kobe Bryant die tragically in a helicopter accident and included the campaign being suspended for over five months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the Lakers were overwhelming favorites to win the NBA Finals heading into this series, the reality of it actually happening with all of that as the backdrop inspired the sports world. Here’s the best reactions as the Lakers earned their first NBA Finals title in a decade with a 106-93 win over Miami Sunday evening.