Barangay Ginebra Kings made a return trip to the PBA championship for the first time since 1997, marking their first appearance in the post-Sonny Jaworski era.
They faced off against their sister team, the San Miguel Beermen, in the 2001 All-Filipino Cup finals.
The Kings reached the finals by narrowly defeating the Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs in the quarterfinal, winning both games by a one-point margin.
In the semifinals, they won their best-of-five series against the Shell Turbo Chargers, three games to two.
However, the Barangay Ginebra Kings lost to the San Miguel Beermen in six games.