NBA Finals - Celtics vs. Lakers

[OCBucksFan]

I am beginning to seriously question whether Pao and Lamar can step up in this series. So far both have been pretty non-existent. I am also wondering if Phil might consider starting Sasha over Vladrad, I just don't think Vladrad has the speed to keep up, and both can shoot the ball well. Hell, if Sasha heats up, he can be a nightmare for any team.

 

[CCI]

it is what it is..boston needs to play gme four like it is game 7...

Leaving LA after the adjustments Phil Jackson is making and they way Kobe is driving the ball, which Odom and Pau need to be more involved in the offense.

Boston might be down 3-2, just saying.

 

[OCBucksFan]

Leaving LA after the adjustments Phil Jackson is making and they way Kobe is driving the ball, which Odom and Pau need to be more involved in the offense.

Well, Thursday will be a huge challenge if Kobe is going to continue to dominate the series while it's in LA. He has 1 day to rest, as opposed to Sunday, where he will get 2. So, Odom and Gasol NEED to come to play on Thursday and the team needs to keep up the defensive intensity, this is one game, but it's a start.

Boston might be down 3-2, just saying.

Take it one game at a time brotha, this is the finals, beating a team like Boston 3 times in a row is a tall order.

 

[buckeyeinfla]

Leaving LA after the adjustments Phil Jackson is making and they way Kobe is driving the ball, which Odom and Pau need to be more involved in the offense.

Boston might be down 3-2, just saying.

they might...but boston played as bad as i have seen them play in game 3 and had a chance..i certainly think pierce plays a lot better in game 4...if boston leaves LA down 3-2..i still feel good because they are going home for game six....but they need to get game 4 or 5 in LA

 

[CCI]

Well, Thursday will be a huge challenge if Kobe is going to continue to dominate the series while it's in LA. He has 1 day to rest, as opposed to Sunday, where he will get 2. So, Odom and Gasol NEED to come to play on Thursday and the team needs to keep up the defensive intensity, this is one game, but it's a start.



Take it one game at a time brotha, this is the finals, beating a team like Boston 3 times in a row is a tall order.

oh I agree, but home court seems to be the forte in the finals.

they might...but boston played as bad as i have seen them play in game 3 and had a chance..i certainly think pierce plays a lot better in game 4...if boston leaves LA down 3-2..i still feel good because they are going home for game six....but they need to get game 4 or 5 in LA

this seriers will go 7 games and the one who makes the adjustments wins.

 

[BB73]

I am beginning to seriously question whether Pao and Lamar can step up in this series. So far both have been pretty non-existent. I am also wondering if Phil might consider starting Sasha over Vladrad, I just don't think Vladrad has the speed to keep up, and both can shoot the ball well. Hell, if Sasha heats up, he can be a nightmare for any team.

There are times when Gasol and Odom have great chances inside and go up too soft. Last night Gasol got the ball about a foot and a half from the rim, and went straight up, but with one hand, and KG knocked it away. In a situation like that, he's got to go up with both hands and have KG counting his fingers if he tries to block that at the rim. He and Odom have been just flipping up way too many inside shots the entire series. Game one changed on back-to-back Celtics blocks (by Brown and KG) at the rim after LA had a two-point lead with about 2 minutes left in the third. Both blocks led to transition 3's by Pierce, and that momemtum swing decided Game 1. After that, it's amazing to still see those guys frequently not going up strong.

It will be interesting to see what Rondo does in Game 4 when Kobe strays from him, now that Boston knows that's going to happen often.

 

[OCBucksFan]

oh I agree, but home court seems to be the forte in the finals.

Hard to say after 3 games, and honestly, any of these games could have gone either way. If Pierce doesn't get fouled at the end of game 2 the Lakers had a good chance of taking the game to OT, and if the Lakers don't collapse in game 1, who knows. On the other side of the coin, if Pierce doesn't get into foul trouble, that game could have easily swung Bostons direction.

this seriers will go 7 games and the one who makes the adjustments wins.

I appreciate your optimism but I am not quite ready to go out that far yet. I think tomorrows game is HUGE, Kobe played a lot of minutes last night, and the rest of the team hasn't been contributing as much as I would like. Sasha got hot last night, and in the fourth quarter that made the Celtics respect his shooting a little more, hence some of the under the basket play, but he's streaky, so who knows what will happen.

 

[buckeyeinfla]

like i said..laker fans have to be concerned that kobe is carrying them...and as a boston fan i am concerned that garnett has had an awful series so far on offense..game four is big for momentum....boston needs more out of pierce, garnett and one more wild card in game 4....lakers need odom and gasol to play...i dont know if sasha will rip off 20 points again...

 

[OCBucksFan]

like i said..laker fans have to be concerned that kobe is carrying them...and as a boston fan i am concerned that garnett has had an awful series so far on offense..game four is big for momentum....boston needs more out of pierce, garnett and one more wild card in game 4....lakers need odom and gasol to play...i dont know if sasha will rip off 20 points again...

Well, I think everyone who's watched the Lakers knew Kobe was going to be aggressive last night. They needed that win and he was determined to make sure that happened, Sasha was huge last night and I don't think anyone, Boston or LA, expected it. This may help the Lakers out as Boston is going to need to keep a person on him.

Odom and Gasol, I agree, those two NEED to show up, I understand they haven't been here before, but still, if they want to sit on a parade float through Los Angeles, then they need to contribute.

As far as KG, his offense may not be there, but he still had a good game, 12 Rebounds, 5 Assists, and 3 Blocks are pretty huge.

 

[buckeyesin07]

they might...but boston played as bad as i have seen them play in game 3 and had a chance.

...and LA played horribly in Games 1 and 2, yet they still had a chance in each game. It goes both ways, and frankly, it doesn't matter.

 

[buckeyeinfla]

...and LA played horribly in Games 1 and 2, yet they still had a chance in each game. It goes both ways, and frankly, it doesn't matter.

i tend to disagree with you....kobe hasn't scored only 6 points in any game...boston can't win with pierce doing that

 

[GoBucks89]

I watched the last few minutes last night, and the thing that stood out to me was how much better the Lakers' perimeter defense was. No uncontested three-pointers for Pierce or Allen. I also thought that L.A. used "the Jordan rules" on Pierce when he drove the lane. Finally, KG seemed to disappear from the offense in the closing minutes, something for which he has been frequently criticized. In fairness, it could have been exactly how Doc Rivers drew it up and KG was just doing his part. In any case, I think OC makes a good point about having only 2 days rest with Kobe playing so many minutes and considering how intense their defense was. Will they be able to muster that same sort of energy again on Thursday? Time will tell.

 

[buckeyesin07]

i tend to disagree with you....kobe hasn't scored only 6 points in any game...boston can't win with pierce doing that

Are you trying to say that you think Pierce is as critical to Boston's success as Kobe is to LA's? That's laughable.

Besides, you're missing the point. Just because Kobe has scored more than 6 points in Games 1 and 2 does not mean that the Lakers didn't play poorly in both of those games.

 

[buckeyeinfla]

Are you trying to say that you think Pierce is as critical to Boston's success as Kobe is to LA's? That's laughable.

Besides, you're missing the point. Just because Kobe has scored more than 6 points in Games 1 and 2 does not mean that the Lakers didn't play poorly in both of those games.

i didn't say pierce was better than kobe but he is critical to boston winning games...if you can't see that then i am not going to waste time explaining that to you

 

[buckeyesin07]

i didn't say pierce was better than kobe but he is critical to boston winning games...if you can't see that then i am not going to waste time explaining that to you

Sure he's critical to Boston winning games. But your original post said that

"but boston played as bad as i have seen them play in game 3 and had a chance"

I merely noted that LA played horribly in Games 1 and 2 and still had a chance. You then changed the subject by replying as follows:

"i tend to disagree with you....kobe hasn't scored only 6 points in any game...boston can't win with pierce doing that"

You're essentially saying that LA can only be considered to have played poorly if Kobe scores only 6 points in a game. That's not true. They played poorly (as Kobe, Phil, or any commentator) in Games 1 and 2, and Kobe scored much more than 6 points.

Regardless of your failure to understand the logic of the above argument, I stand by my original point: even though it doesn't really matter at the end of the day whether a team hung close even by playing poorly, the same statement can be made about the Lakers in Games 1 and 2 that you're trying to make yourself feel better now by stating with respect to the Celtics in Game 3.