Game one of the second Eastern Conference Finals was a brutal a game as one will ever witness, as the Celtics outslopped the Cavaliers 76-72 to win, er, survive, the game. LeBron James, who I lavished praise on after his triple-double in the closeout of Washington, almost had a quadruple-double, but not one to be praised for; 12 points on a horrific 2-18 shooting (0-5 threes), 9 boards, 9 assists, and 10 turnovers! You know things are going bad when John Starks watches at home going "When will this guy stop shooting!". And yet the Cavs only lost by four! Did either team want to win this game?

My thoughts on this game are simple; (1) Kevin Garnett showed he wanted the ball in the clutch, a good thing when you consider that Paul Pierce and Ray Allen matched LeBron with a combined 2-18 'performance' (and Allen getting a donut in a game for the first time since Feburary 1997), (2) Sam Cassell showed his importance with two big threes in the 4th, and (3) the C's defense has given up an average of 72 PPG at home in the playoffs, which would be the best of the shot-clock era. Other than that, throw this trash away!

The other big story was Kobe winning the MVP (even though we knew this well in advance). Kobe edged Chris Paul by about 300 points (the order was Kobe, Paul, Garnett, LeBron and Dwight Howard). But the thing that struck me the most was the comments made by Phil Jackson, when he said that nobody deserved the MVP more (shocker!) and that nobody ever worked harder than he to earn it. Without clarification, that would indicate that even Michael Jordan didn't work as hard as Kobe. That's quite a claim to make.

Let me be clear; Kobe has one of the best (if not the best) work ethics in the NBA (or any league) today. I'd have to say few can match his competitive drive. But Jordan's drive was legendary, too. He'd fight with teammates (like Steve Kerr) in practice, but the Bulls of the 1990s would have been nothing without Jordan's drive to win (and some help from Scottie Pippen). And who was his coach? Phil Jackson! How could Phil forget so soon?

And doesn't this praise of Kobe seem to affirm Phil as the ultimate frontrunner? He lived off the rep he fostered with MJ in Chicago, built a similar relationship with Shaq (and kept his distance from Kobe) before Bryant had his rape trial, and Jackson further distanced himself from Kobe, leading to hsi dismissal as coach, and then to a tell-all where he ripped Kobe! Now, he loves Kobe. Can we see some consistency, Phil!

So, to conclude; the Celtics were lucky that the Cavs (and LeBron in particular) played worse than they did, and both teams need to come out with crisper play in game 2. As for Phil, one must wonder what he'll think if the Lakers win the title. "Nobody derserves it more than me, er, Kobe!". 

More than a few times in this blog, I've critized Kobe Bryant as the maker of his own doing. After all, it was Kobe who threatened Lakers management (current GM Mitch Kupchak and owner Jerry Buss) that he'd leave the team in the 2004 offseason if Shaquille O'Neal and Phil Jackson around. Buss and Kupchak couldn't bear to lose him, so Shaq is dealt to Miami and Jackson goes on a one year sabbatical. The Lakers then give Bryant a huge extension to return. He promptly gets hurt, and the Lakers miss the playoffs. In year two, with Jackson back, Kobe goes bonkers on the league, and the Lakers return to the playoffs and give Phoenix a hard fight before falling. Then this year, the Lakers muddle through the year before getting pasted by Phoenix again. Now Kobe is threatening them again by saying "Hire Jerry West back, or trade my (bleep)!" (a little self-editing). Where does he get off saying that ####? Admittedly, Kupchak has made some bad moves (acquiring Kwame Brown, not trading for Jason Kidd at the deadline because he thinks Andrew Bynum will be a star, etc.), but didn't Kobe want it this way? He really wanted to be numero uno in LA, now he wants more help?! Hiring West back would be a start, but the Lakers have no room to wiggle around with, meaning free agency is out of the question. And trade possibilities are limited to Kobe and maybe Lamar Odom. So how will they improve? Kobe simply doesn't realize how good he had it when Shaq made it easier to be a gunner and not worry aboutt carrying a team. Look at Dwayne Wade in Miami; he embraced Shaq's massive ego, and won a title for doing so (with a little help from the refs). Kobe is little different from Penny Hardaway in that he, like Hardaway, thought they could be the alpha dogs without Shaq (so too did their gullible owners). Once Shaq left, the team sunk to mediocrity and never (in Orlando's case) recover. Back to trade possibilities, forget Garnett; GM Kevin McHale won't trade him for anything, even though Minnesota has no chance next year. Today, I saw ESPN mention that one possibility (hypothetically speaking) would be Kobe and Bynum to Chicago for Ben Wallace, Ben Gordon, and Luol Deng. Buzzzz! Not happening! Chicago wouldn't trade half its nucleus for a stud and a dud (sorry Kupchak, Bynum will be lucky to be serviceble). So here's the bottom line; Kobe's not going anywhere, the Lakers will hire West to appease him yet again, and the Lakers will be in the same position next year: mediocre. Worse yet, the Lakers could miss the playoffs if the Clippers get more chemistry, the Blazers' expected pick of Greg Oden pays off, and New Orleans improves. So look out, Mr. Hippocrite! Your wishes won't come true!