As Lisa H mentioned, "the gauntlet has been thrown down" and her game face is on. I like that.
This right here is of epic proportions. It's bigger than Mt. Rushmore, stronger than HGH. It's massive like Kimbo Slice, more entertaining than Girls Gone Wild.
All of this pre-Finals hype is only getting better. What could be better than Lakers-Celtics? You guessed it. Lakers fans versus Celtics fans.
The NBA FINALS: Where LakersCeltics happens. Let's get it on.
Lakers take Game One.
L.A. lost twice in the regular season to the Celtics, and they remember. The Lakers lost their last three NBA Finals games back in 2004, and they remember that one too. When Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson are on a mission, they respond like no other. The Celtics are in for a rude awakening once they find out how much different the Lakers are with Pau Gasol.
How the Lakers will do it.
Kobe makes his presence felt immediately, whether it's getting his teammates involved or getting to the foul line. We won't see any of this 1-4, 2-point first halves for Kobe like he displayed against San Antonio. This is the NBA Finals. Kobe lives for these games. He will be involved in just about every play and the much-publicized Celtics defense better brace themselves because the Triangle Offense will be operating on all cylinders. The bottom line is the Lakers will be focused from the start because they are meditating and summoning the power of the force as we speak.
Expect these trends to develop from the outset: Long distance threat Vladimir Radmanovic will get his shot off early and make an immediate impact. As a result, the Lakers spread the floor even more for other shooters such as Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, and of course, Bryant. Refs will allow physical play because the game is in Boston. The refs will call fouls against the Lakers, perhaps putting Lamar Odom in foul trouble. And the Celtics will try to body up on the Lakers. However, what Boston will undersestimate is the Lakers' balance. They, too, can b@ng with the best of 'em. And if Boston allows L.A. to get out in transition and put the pressure on their defense, look out. Lastly, the Celtics' offense will be surprised at how quickly Lakers defenders rotate to the ball and how tough Ronny Turiaf is on defense.
The Lakers will throw many different looks defensively in order to confuse and disrupt the Celtics. They will play KG straight up. They will double on occasion. Pierce will also get double teams on occasion. Defensive specialist Trevor Ariza may see significant minutes guarding Pierce as well. Ray Allen will have his hands full with Kobe so I don't see him getting off like he did against the Pistons in games five and six. Some may think that the Celtics' will be able to force L.A. to keep taking outside shots, but we all know that Kobe and Phil are smarter than that. Because of Gasol, Odom will have lanes to penetrate. Kobe can also drive the lane at will, or penetrate and kick. Meanwhile, Gasol is moving without the ball the whole time and can also be a threat in the high post set of the triangle offense. Simply way too many options for the Lakers to attack the Celtics' defense and by the end of the game, Coach Doc Rivers won't know what hit him.
Let these stats marinate in your brain, LISAH!
We all know how dominant the Celtics were in the regular season so I don't even see a need to explain. Their regular season statistics speak for themselves.
But this is the postseason baby. It's a different brand of basketball that's being played here folks. It's a different tempo that's being played and different adjustments being utilized. What I'm saying is, regular season numbers don't even matter one bit. Just ask the 2006 and 2007 Phoenix Suns and the 2007 Dallas Mavericks.
If you want to get an accurate depiction on how each team is doing, one need only look at the last 20-25 games. Games that were played in late April and May. Games in which the great teams supposedly peak. Games that count and mean something. And games in which the two teams in the Finals have their rosters intact. Let's take a look at some critical statistics from the last two months, and while we're at it, why don't we go ahead and throw away all those stats from November to March.
LAKERS: In their last 19 games (4 regular season and 15 playoffs), Los Angeles has averaged 106.8 pts per game while giving up 97.9, an 8.9 point differential, while compiling an impressive record of 16-3 against the likes of Denver (4-0), Utah (4-2), San Antonio (5-1), New Orleans (1-0), Sacramento (1-0), and the Clippers (1-0). During this time, the Lakers peaked and got better as the regular season wound down and the playoffs progressed.
They scored a high of 128 against Denver, showing us that they can run-n-shoot when necessary. They gave up a low of 71 against the defending champs, proving they can clamp down defensively when the stakes are high. They scored over 100 points in 15 of the 19 games, and have given up less than 100 in five of the last six games they played the defending champions, who is no stranger to scoring a ton a points. Just ask Phoenix.
The Lakers' regular season average of 108.6 ppg went down a tad bit to 106.8 so this is not much of a difference. The glaring difference was their defense. While the Lakers gave up 101.3 ppg in the regular season, they improved in their last 19 games, giving up only 97.9, a 3.4 point difference. Nothing but positive trends here for the Lakers. I will prove the negative Celtic trends shortly.
All in all, the Lakers point differential versus their opponents has gone up from the regular season which suggests that they are nothing like the team Boston faced in 2007. And this is all because of Kobe and Pau Gasol.
Celtics fans can think that beating Detroit was such a huge accomplishment since Detroit is so good defensively but the Celtics never beat the champions. The Lakers did. The bottom line is that the Lakers have proven they can play ANY style of ball in order to secure victories. The Celtics, meanwhile, have been one-dimensional all postseason long.
CELTICS: In their last 20 games, Boston has averaged 91.6, down 8.9 points from their regular season average of 100.5 ppg! You be the judge as to what this suggests. All I know that it's a negative trend for the boys in green.
Although Boston has only given up 87.2 ppg in their last 20 games (better than their regular season opponent average of 90.3), their point differential is down over this span. Their point differential over their opponents is only 4.4, way down from their 10-point differential in the regular season!! Another negative trend for the hopeful Celtics fans. While the Lakers' point differential has gone up in the playoffs, the Celtics' have gone down. And isn't playoff competition supposed to be when teams are at their best? You be the judge.
UC IRVINE graduate and proud to be an ANTEATER. My claim to fame is having played against the likes of Tayshaun and Tommie Prince, Jacque Vaughn, and Charles O'Bannon, plus getting dunked on by Schea Cotton in a CIF second round match in the nineties.
WIDELY KNOWN on FOX as one of the most biased LAKER HOMERS in blog history, highly criticized for hating on the PHOENIX SUNS fan base, and has been told on more than one occasion that LAMAR ODOM isn't worth the suit he's wearing.
Believe that "excellence is not an act but a habit."
Believe that the things you do and the things you don't do, they all send a message.
Believe that in order to know the world one must first know thyself.
And believe that it's the journey not the destination.
Finally, as the great Bruce Lee once said, "Man - he is constantly growing and when he is bound by a set pattern of ideas or way of doing things, that's when he stops growing."
This is the Way of the Dragon. Embrace it.
