The 2010 NBA Finals were one of the most intense series in league history as anytime the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics meet, tension raises to unheard levels and coming down to a Game 7 meant everything was on the line.
Of course, the Lakers would come out on top thanks in large part to a huge clutch three-pointer from Metta World Peace.
World Peace had joined the Lakers during the 2018-19 NBA season in hopes of competing for a championship and in the biggest moment of the game, he came through with the biggest shot of his career. He enhanced that shot by blowing a kiss to the Staples Center crowd as he ran back down on defense, a moment that will live on in Lakers history forever.
Now World Peace has been retired since 2016-17 season, but that shot and moment is still something that he thinks about. He even revealed in an interview with Arash Markazi of Los Angeles Times that he still watches it at times on YouTube:
“I love that moment,” he said. “I look at it sometimes on YouTube. It’s the biggest shot of my career. What are you going to do? I’m grateful for that moment and the fact that Kobe shared that moment with me. That was supposed to be his moment and he shared it with me.”
It makes complete sense that World Peace would still look back on that moment. Every player plays the game in hopes of winning a championship and that was when he accomplished that goal.
Even in the ensuing years when World Peace wasn’t the same player he was in prior years, he remained a fan favorite and the 39-year-old is extremely grateful for his time with the Lakers:
“I’m grateful that I came here when I did and ended my career here,” he said. “The fans have treated me so good. I know it’s partly because I won, but I’m so grateful to be a Laker and for the Lakers fans and for L.A. They helped me when my life was spiraling out of control. This will always be my home.”
The Lakers will always be a franchise built on star players, but the role players have always played huge roles in the success of the franchise as well.
Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Jerry West get the accolades, but the likes of World Peace, Derek Fisher, and Robert Horry among many others have made all the championships possible.
