Who's ready for a wild (albeit ultimately sad) ride?

The very deep Portland Trail Blazers came extremely close to beating the Kobe-Shaq Lakers in game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference Finals. They were up 15 in the fourth! Buttttt LA went on a 15-0 run and won. Still, the Blazers were poised for a bright future, expected to be a serious western threat, to keep putting up a fight with the Lakers.

Their near finals berth could have been the first stone in the path to a dominant future.

But of course the loss and failure to make it to the finals could be the first stone in a totally different path-- one paved with drug arrests, intra-team violence, and a middling record that belied the promise the team once held.

This ride has a steep drop, not for the faint of heart.

Written and produced by: Clara Morris
Directed and edited by: Jiazhen Zhang
Motion Graphics by: Phil Pasternak

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