Wednesday, June 04, 2008

So here we are, the day of game one. I have spent a lot of time thinking about this series and what might happen. The conclusion I have come to is... I am clueless. I so badly want the Celtics to pull this out. It is something I think they can do, but I honestly cannot see them doing it.
The reasons I cannot see the Celtics winning are:

1) Kobe Bryant: The guy scares me. He can win the series by himself. One big game in Boston this weekend and I think this series will be too tough for the Celtics. Kobe is the one closer on the court for either team. He has proven it before. The scariest part is he still feels the need to prove it without Shaq around.

2) 2-3-2: The fact that the Celtics have to go on the road for game 3,4, and 5 makes me nervous. Game five is always a pivotal game in a series. It would be 2-2 or 3-1 going into that game. Although the Celtics proved that they can close a series on the road, they also proved they can drop a game at home. A split in Boston is a possibility, and it would make it tough for the Celtics.

3) Who will cover Lamar Odom?: This could be the biggest key in this series. If Odom, matched up with Ray Allen, (at least that is how I see it) decides to give a damn the Celts will be in trouble. Odom averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds a game this season. He is a wonderful third banana to Kobe and Pau Gasol if he puts in the effort.

4) Coaching: This is a no brainer. We have a guy in Phil Jackson who has won 9 titles as a coach and one title as a player. That means he has on 10 out of 60 titles in NBA history. Pretty impressive. On the other side Doc Rivers has a Docorate in...coaching? and he has also won a total of three playoff series victories... I dont want to write about this anymore, it is making me ill...

However, as I look at the matchup there are some things I can see the Celtics doing to win...

1) Paul Pierce homecoming: Paul Pierce is coming home. He has come full circle. Growing up in Inglewood (home of the famous Forum) as a Laker fan Pierce is now in a position to win a championship for a team he hated while growing up. Pierce has a huge series in him, this would be the perfect time for it to come out. Although he may be chasing Kobe around we cannot forget that Kobe has to chase Pierce (and maybe Ray-Ray) around all series. It affected LeBron, maybe it will take away from Kobe too...

2) The Benches: I actually feel good about our bench matchups in this series. The Lakers have some nice players: Luke Walton, Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar, and Ronny Turiaf. Farmar scares me the most because of his shooting and his quickness. But I like Eddie House over him. I think P.J. Brown, Posey, Powe, House, and (gulp) Cassell offer better options. Here's hoping Doc chooses the right ones...

3) Defense > Offense: As a Patriots fan this smacked me in the face this winter. As a Sox fan I saw how a great defense (read: Josh Beckett) can close a 1-3 series deficit. The Celtics had a suffocating defense all season. We have seen glimpses of that during the playoffs. I think the Celtics need to turn the defense all the way up all series. If they do they will be raising banner #17...

I must say again that these late starts are too bad. Personally I dont mind staying up to watch. The people who are missing out are the young kids. As someone who works with kids, it is a shame seeing them come to school in Celtics gear knowing they will be in bed two hours before the game starts. Even if you are a 15-18 year old functioning the next day is tough on very little sleep. It really is a shame that young fans have to miss these games, and it is a shame kids cannot watch the games with their parents, that is something I know parents will miss...

Anyway, I think the Lakers take this series in 6 games. If it goes seven games though, the Celtics win. Now excuse me while I readjust myself as I sit on this uncomfortable fence...

An all NBA-Finals Links:
Sports Guy on the series...

Great article running through the last 21 years of the C's. Print it out and read it in the bathroom...

Even Tommy Heinsohn defends this move...gotta love the old school Celtics-Lakers. Oh and listen to the chant the L.A. fans start around the :55 mark...

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