Spoken Thought

I couldn’t let this one go without a post. I am definitely looking forward to this series, and although I’m rooting for the Lakers, as usual, I’m not completely sure that they will win it all this time around. That’s not to say however, that I’m sure the Celtics will win.

The Lakers have the best player in the NBA, the best active coach (in my opinion), and a great offense. They are coming out of the “better” western conference where they mounted a 12 - 3 record in these playoffs, and again, they do have Kobe Bryant who’s soul must be burning for a championship right now.

As much as Kobe wants it, though, I can’t help but think that Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett (moreso than the other two) collectively want it more. He’ll have to keep pace with, or outplay, two all-star caliber scorers in Pierce and Allen, who have both been known to do well against the Lakers throughout their careers. In the two games that these teams played, the Celtics defeated the Lakers, with Bynum, quite convincingly. Although Kwame Brown didn’t have the hands to hang in there with the competition, he did have the body to match up against the Celtics. The Lakers of today, will have to depend on a slim and lengthy style of defense which Kendrick Perkins, if he continues playing the way he did toward the end of the Detroit series, can exploit for all its worth.

I’ve seen some people talking about how well Gasol did against Duncan. I must have missed it, but to be fair, the Lakers are still playing while the Spurs are out, so that discussion really doesn’t matter here. In these finals, however, if they match Gasol with Garnett, assuming that he’s too much for Odom, Gasol will have KG’s athleticism to worry about. Garnett’s post game may not be up to par with Duncan’s, but he definitely makes up for it with that 15 foot fadeaway of his.

Fisher is definitely one of my favorite players (who probably won’t get into the HOF) and I see him doing well in his matchup against Rondo. He gives up some speed, but I don’t think that’ll have much of an effect on his overall game. He’s got the finals experience and I look for him to take advantage of that fact.

Kobe will be Kobe. He’s got to be my personal all-time favorite player (that includes Jordan) and I am hoping that he can pull this one off.  I know they’ll try both Pierce and Allen on him (and Posey), and although he was contained, to an extent, in the regular season, this is the NBA Finals. The playoffs are a notch above the intensity of the regular season, but the Finals are another full step above that. Kobe has been playing to his current potential in these games and I don’t think anyone on any team is matching him there. As far as the Pierce goes, in this shooting guard matchup, Pierce will either do really well or he will fade into the background, period.

Surprisingly, when I think of Ray Allen on the Celtics, I think of Sasha Vujacic on the Lakers. If Phil allows, I think Vujacic can play some series-changing defense on Ray Allen, similar to the way he played Manu Ginobili. As long as they can hold Ray Allen from hoisting up three pointers (and driving when he isn’t shooting well), I think Kobe and Gasol can take care of the rest.

At the power forward position, the advantage definitely goes to the Celtics if they decide to place Garnett in that spot. He’s taller and stronger than Odom and he’s versatile. Odom will have a tough time playing him on both ends. Not only is Garnett tough to defend against, I think some people are forgetting that he’s also the defensive player of the year. If he can shut down Odom’s offense, it truly becomes a game of duos, putting Garnett and Pierce against Kobe and Gasol (Assuming that Allen has been shut down by the Lakers).

At the center position, we have Gasol and Perkins. Offensively, Gasol has proven himself more than Perkins has, by far. But lately, it seems that Perkins is beginning to wake up. He may be starting to realize the physical advantage that he has over many of the other players. If he plays like he did in the last few games in the last series, I better see someone throw Bynum a jersey and some shorts, because the Lakers will need him, injury or not.

The Lakers will have to find a way to get to the offensive glass. I’ll close out by saying that I find the roads taken, by both teams, to be somewhat symbolic. Not just the turn-arounds that these teams had to pull off before the playoffs, but also the teams that they went on to defeat in these playoffs. They both defeated last year’s eastern and western conference finalists on their way here (Jazz and Spurs, Cavs and Pistons) and they both defeated NBA teams that were considered to be the cream of the crop as far as teams go (Pistons and Spurs), starting a new era in NBA basketball.

I look for Kobe to do extraordinarily well in these finals. Not just individually, but also in terms of facilitating the Laker offense.

This will definitely be interesting to watch. Enjoy the NBA finals.

Here’s the NBA Finals schedule :

Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtics Game 1 - Tonight, June 5th 9pm ABC
Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtics Game 2 - June 8th 9pm ABC
Boston Celtics @ Los Angeles Lakers Game 3 - June 10th 9pm ABC
Boston Celtics @ Los Angeles Lakers Game 4 - June 12th 9pm ABC
Boston Celtics @ Los Angeles Lakers Game 5 - June 15th 9pm ABC
Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtics Game 6 - June 17th 9pm ABC
Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtic Game 7 - June 19th 9pm ABC