Steve Gann
Sandra 1NBA Finals breakdown
June 5th 2008 23:15
The NBA Finals start tonight and we will be seeing the most classic finals match-up there is to be seen in the NBA. It’s been a long time since the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics have met in the finals. This will be my breakdown and prediction of the series.
Backcourt: The Lakers have the obvious advantage in the backcourt with Derek Fisher and Kobe Bryant over Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen. Allen’s resurgence does make this a closer debate but the Lakers still have the advantage with Fisher and Bryant. The experience is overwhelmingly in favor of the Lakers with both players having been apart of three championship teams. Rondo only being a second year player also gives the Lakers a big experience factor advantage. Having the MVP of the league, Kobe Bryant, is another huge advantage in the backcourt. The Celtics do have a MVP candidate of their own just not in the backcourt. Bryant is arguably the best player in this series, he can do it all from scoring, setting up his teammates for scoring opportunities, rebounding and defend when he wants to.
Frontcourt: I have to give the frontcourt edge to the Celtics. Kevin Garnett is one of the hardest workers and plays with more passion than anyone else on the court. Paul Pierce is a perennial all-star and has shined in these playoffs. Kendrick Perkins has made a name for himself in these playoffs by putting up huge rebounding totals vs. the Pistons. Pau Gasol and Lamar Odem can’t go unnoticed though. They have been vital to the Lakers winning the western conference this year. I think Odem is much happier being the third option rather than the pressure of being the second option. He’s allowed to stay within himself during the game rather than being forced to be the go-to guy when Bryant is on the bench. But with all that said the Celtics have the advantage here, Garnett and Pierce alone are just too good for the Lakers frontcourt.
Offense: This one has to go to the Lakers with them being in the top 5 in scoring this year. Having Bryant is another thing that puts the Lakers on top in this category. If the offense is sputtering he can put them on his back like he has a few times already this post season most notably against the San Antonio Spurs. After Bryant they have a terrific post presence in Gasol if Bryant is struggling they can look to Gasol for some offensive punch although that might be more difficult in this series than it has in past series with Garnett the Defensive Player of the Year (DPY) guarding him. The Lakers also have a number of players off the bench who can come into the game and put the ball in the hole by shooting.
Defense: You know what they say “defense wins championships,” and this category goes to the Celtics. They have the DPY in Kevin Garnett and Pierce surprised everyone with his defense on Lebron James. They also have James Posey coming off the bench who is a defensive specialist with his long arms. They only allowed 90 points per a game by their opponents while the Lakers gave up over 100 per game to their opponents. The Lakers have to hope that Garnett doesn’t lock down Gasol and the Celtics have to hope that Pierce can try to do the same thing to Bryant as he did to King James.
Bench: This one could go either way; the Lakers have the energy or youth off the bench while the Celtics have the experience. This will be one of the main factors in which team wins this series. If I had to take one bench over the other I would have to go with the Celtics bench. Posey has won a championship before and the Celtics players a far more established in the league than the Lakers bench. But the Lakers bench could very well win this battle when all is said and done.
Result: My pick to win the NBA Finals is… the Celtics in 7 games. They are too good at home and for the Lakers to have any chance they will have to send a message by taking a game in Boston early like game 1 or 2. The Celtics defense is also just too good, they can shut teams down at will and Garnett’s hunger for a championship just might be too great for the Lakers who have already won some. The interview with John Thompson in 2005 just shows how much passion for the game Garnett has, he bleeds basketball and winning. Look for Garnett to have a huge series and be named MVP when the series is over. He will finally be able to do what he tried to do all by himself in Minnesota. Win a championship.
Backcourt: The Lakers have the obvious advantage in the backcourt with Derek Fisher and Kobe Bryant over Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen. Allen’s resurgence does make this a closer debate but the Lakers still have the advantage with Fisher and Bryant. The experience is overwhelmingly in favor of the Lakers with both players having been apart of three championship teams. Rondo only being a second year player also gives the Lakers a big experience factor advantage. Having the MVP of the league, Kobe Bryant, is another huge advantage in the backcourt. The Celtics do have a MVP candidate of their own just not in the backcourt. Bryant is arguably the best player in this series, he can do it all from scoring, setting up his teammates for scoring opportunities, rebounding and defend when he wants to.
Defense: You know what they say “defense wins championships,” and this category goes to the Celtics. They have the DPY in Kevin Garnett and Pierce surprised everyone with his defense on Lebron James. They also have James Posey coming off the bench who is a defensive specialist with his long arms. They only allowed 90 points per a game by their opponents while the Lakers gave up over 100 per game to their opponents. The Lakers have to hope that Garnett doesn’t lock down Gasol and the Celtics have to hope that Pierce can try to do the same thing to Bryant as he did to King James.
Bench: This one could go either way; the Lakers have the energy or youth off the bench while the Celtics have the experience. This will be one of the main factors in which team wins this series. If I had to take one bench over the other I would have to go with the Celtics bench. Posey has won a championship before and the Celtics players a far more established in the league than the Lakers bench. But the Lakers bench could very well win this battle when all is said and done.
Result: My pick to win the NBA Finals is… the Celtics in 7 games. They are too good at home and for the Lakers to have any chance they will have to send a message by taking a game in Boston early like game 1 or 2. The Celtics defense is also just too good, they can shut teams down at will and Garnett’s hunger for a championship just might be too great for the Lakers who have already won some. The interview with John Thompson in 2005 just shows how much passion for the game Garnett has, he bleeds basketball and winning. Look for Garnett to have a huge series and be named MVP when the series is over. He will finally be able to do what he tried to do all by himself in Minnesota. Win a championship.
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