Ex-Laker calls team’s 2020 bubble title 'one of the hardest championships to win'

There may be no team in NBA history that's overcome the type of off-court adversity that the 2020 Los Angeles Lakers did. However, their championship in the NBA's infamous bubble during the COVID-19 pandemic is one that some people want to put an asterisk next to.

In the eyes of one core member of that team, though, the title should be viewed oppositely. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who spent four years with the Lakers, recently joined " The Draymond Green Show " and called the team's bubble championship "one of the hardest championships to win."

Caldwell-Pope explained just how hard it was mentally, as HoopsHype detailed.

"They just hating, man. It’s one of the hardest championships to win. You’re playing a season, then the season’s shut down. You don’t know if you’re even going to come back and play basketball. We saw how, in the regular season, we was playing and then we was like, ‘What the [expletive].’ Season is over with, like d—," Caldwell-Pope said.

"What if we can’t come back because we already had in our mind like, this is our championship regardless of if COVID stopped it or not. But then the season stops, boom, the season starts back up, and we have to go to the bubble…"

Caldwell-Pope said the news of the season starting back up had the Lakers "ready to go get our championship." He also praised his teammates for their mindset and focus on pushing to win a title.

"These things had people’s minds messed up like, ‘I’m ready to go home. Forget basketball.’ I’m so grateful and I appreciate all my teammates at the time. Their mindset was on that championship. They were ready to go. They came here for a reason, and we wanted it."

Looking back at Lakers' 2020 bubble championship

While the NBA season was nearly canceled amid COVID, the Lakers managed to overcome one of the strangest scenarios in sports history to capture the title in the NBA bubble, which was held at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World.

As unique and tough as the situation was for the teams still in pursuit of a title, the Lakers put together an impressive run, especially in the playoffs. They lost only one game in each of the first three postseason series against the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets before defeating the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, 4-2.

They were led by the newly formed superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, as both were superb during bubble play.

James averaged 27.6 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.8 assists while shooting 56 percent from the field. Davis was just as dominant, posting a stat line of 27.7 points and 9.7 rebounds on 57.1 percent shooting during the Lakers' 21 postseason games.