A Boston Celtics/ LA Lakers finals is probably the most storied rivalry in NBA history. Obviously, anyone who knows basketball knows Magic vs Bird, which went as far back as their college days, but there have been many more great moments in this rivalry. Starting with greats such as Bill Russell and Bob Cousy for Boston and Elgin Baylor and Jerry West for Los Angeles who competed not once, not twice, not even three times, but 6 times in 8 years for NBA’s prized trophy (all won by Boston). The rivalry renewed with Magic Johnson and Larry Bird in the 80’s, meeting 3 times in the finals with the Lakers taking 2 of them. After these great series, the rivalry took quite a long hiatus, until now. They are set to compete again for the 2nd time in 3 years with Boston winning it in 6 games in 2008.
Now that we have looked back on history lets look to the present:
Lakers:
The Lakers have a strong starting 5 with some question marks though. Led by the leagues best scorer (and arguably best player some believe,) in Kobe Bryant. Bryant has had the injury bug towards his fingers the last few years, but that clearly has not affected his game. The starters have great height in All-Star Pau Gasol at 4 and Andrew Bynum at 5. Bynum has some serious knee problems that have clearly shown throughout the playoffs. He recently had his knee drained this week in an effort to finish the season and then have the required surgery. We’ll see how that goes. Veteran Derek Fisher leads the charge at point and his experience is vital if the Lakers want to win. Then there’s Ron Artest. I have not been impressed with Artest at all this season, especially the playoffs. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know he made the winning shot in game 5 against the suns, but has made poor decisions all together and his defense has not been what we have come to expect. Even with these issues, the starters are strong. Don’t be fooled.
The Lakers bench, in my opinion, could be there downfall. The most important player is Lamar Odom. Odom is big and can stretch the floor for a 3 guard. When on the court with Fisher, Bryant, Gasol, and Bynum, the Lakers are HUGE. Rebounding is tough against this group. After Odom, there’s not much to be said. Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown get minutes at guard, but besides an occasional outburst have been unimpressive. Others to see action will be forward Didier Mbenga and guard Sasha Vujacic.
Offensively the Lakers can score points, easily. They did struggle tremendously against the zone in the previous series against the suns, but still managed to score over 100 points in every game. Defensively will be the make it or break it point in this series for the Lakers. The allowed over 100 points in every game against the suns and must be a lot better since I doubt they can keep up that scoring pace.
X-Factor: Sure it’d be easy to say Kobe Bryant since the Lakers succeed or fail on his shoulders, but I’ll go with coach Phil Jackson. He is the most accomplished coach in NBA history and surely his adjustments throughout the series will be crucial if the Lakers want to win.
Celtics:
The starting 5 for the Celtics has 4 All-Stars in Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce. The odd man out is Kendrick Perkins. The big 3 (Garnett, Allen, and Pierce) all will contribute similar numbers in mid-teen points, 6-7 rebounds, and a few assists. This has been consistent over the years and usually if one scores 20, another will score under 10. So all-in-all they’ll even out to their usual numbers. Rondo has been huge this season, especially in the playoffs. He is a double-double machine (points and assists) and has done a tremendous job keeping the pace at where the Celtics want it. Perkins is almost irrelevant with these guys on the court, but provides an occasional burst.
The Celtic bench has many key contributors. Rasheed Wallace provides invaluable experience, but has underperformed to what people expect from him. That being said, he still provides a great deal off the bench by stretching the floor. Tony Allen has been a huge defensive lift and provides some highlight reel moments. Glen Davis is another key contributor and provides solid minutes for them, as well as mid-season signee Michael Finley. The x-factor in this group though is Nate Robinson. Robinson is a guy who can shoot miserably or score 40 points, even off the bench. We shall see how he performs in the series.
Offensively, the Celtics can struggle at times. There are long scoreless droughts at times and this must be limited if the want to win. Defensively, the Celtics have been amazing this postseason. They do have a daunting task in defending the Lakers, but if they play like they have, the Lakers will have trouble reaching 90 points.
X-Factor: For this team, there are 3 and all are important if you ask me. First, Rondo will be the most important player on the floor. He is 1st team all –defense and is pivotal running the offense. It’s amazing how they struggle when he’s not in. Second, the Celtics are old and injury prone. Coach Doc Rivers took a gamble and rested players the last month of the season instead of fighting for a higher seed. He knew they must be healthy if they wanted to make a run, and that risk has paved huge dividends. That being said, the big 3 are ticking time bombs and role players have had injuries throughout the playoffs. Finally, their attitudes can lead to problems. Now this has been good to get into the other team’s head, but I have seen it cost them greatly too. Perkins is 1 technical foul from suspension and Garnett takes stupid fouls for no reason (i.e. elbowing Dwight Howard for no reason last series) that make him come out of the game. These 3 are important to their success and I’ll be watching closely.
Prediction: Will the Celtics win number 18 or the Lakers 17th.
This one was tough but I think the Celtics in 6. I expect their defense to continue in this series and be the ultimate reason for their win. That being said, don’t expect Kobe Bryant to go down that easily.
No comments:
Post a Comment