Ranking Kobe Bryant's 5 NBA Championships

#3 2002: Against the New Jersey Nets (now known as the Brooklyn Nets) in 4 games

Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal celebrating their third straight NBA Championship in 2002.

This would probably have been the lowest ranked amongst the 5 NBA Championships since the finals were an absolute breeze for the Lakers but in 2002, the Lakers made it 3 championships in 3 consecutive seasons (known as a three-peat), only the second time in the history of the franchise (the Minneapolis Lakers were the first to do it in 1952-54).

It is such an incredible feat that this Lakers side has been the last one to achieve this feat. The Golden State Warriors will bid to do the same in the upcoming 2018-19 season.

The three-peat is special. After the Lakers did it for the first time 1954, the Boston Celtics won an unbelievable 8 straight NBA Champions from 1959-1966! It took 27 years for it to be repeated once again, thanks to none other than the great Michael Jordan, with the Chicago Bulls as he went on to lead his team to 3 consecutive titles twice in his career (1991-1993 and 1996-1998)!

One common factor for the Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers during these three peats was their head coach – Phil Jackson. Jackson is the most successful coach in not only basketball history but also sports history. He was an incredible leader who nurtured two of the best scorers in the game in Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.

So 2002 definitely has to rank 3rd on Kobe’s list of championships, simply because three in a row is truly sweet. The Nets were annihilated by Los Angeles as they were swept. Shaq averaged 36.3 points and 12.3 rebounds whereas Kobe averaged 26.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists, in the finals.