The Ifs and Buts Sports Barbershop

By Mjlover23

June 16, 2010

By now most of you have heard all of the stats, hype, history, legacy talk, etc. Since I picked Boston in 7, Kendrick Perkins has went down with a season ending knee injury. By all accounts, when you pick your winners you always pick on the assumption they will be healthy. With Perkins out, my pick gets a lot weaker. The main reason for that is with Perkins you knew what you were going to get out of him in every game. Toughness, strong interior defense, and if he scored it was definitely a bonus. This only increases the chance of the Lakers repeating. Along with this ridiculously massive stat:
Lakers Celtics History

- Phil Jackson series record is 47-0 when winning game 1s!
- The home team is 3-0 in Game 7 of Finals in 2-3-2 format.
- The home team has won 13 of the 16 game 7s!

On the flipside, here are some Celtic Finals stats that could bring hope:
Boston Celtics

- 7-0 in gm 7 of Finals
- 4-0 vs Lakers in Game 7 of Finals
- 11-0 in Finals when Leading 3-2
- 7-0 Series Record with KG in the Lineup

Here are some key hopes for Boston fans who are feeling less confident than they were 4 days ago.
PACE OF THE GAME
The Cs must push the pace when they force a stop. The Celtics are really good at getting back, and that is helped by a lack of a truly aggressive Laker PG. Fisher is aggressive, but not like Rondo routinely is. Unlike Phoenix, it is hard fastbreak when your taking the ball through the basket. Rondo is the key. It wouldn’t hurt for him to pull off a triple double right about now. If not that, he must hit at least half of his jumpers. The Lakers would be smart to foul him every time he entered the paint area. We all know Kobe is going to come out firing in the 1st and 3rd qtrs. The question is can Paul Pierce bounce back to play his best game ever, and can Ray Allen find those same spots he found in game 2.
Free Throws
The Cs must get more free throws than LA. The king of drawing contact is Paul Pierce. Everybody gets upset when Fisher “flails” his arms and legs violently when an opponent is near him. Well…Pierce does the same thing, just with a bigger body. Ray Allen must get to the line! Even though that is wishful thinking, he is a career 89% FT shooter and he will rarely miss. Matter a fact, I would push Artest off the 3 point line, and foul him when he entered the key. He is just under 55% from the line in the playoffs. Lamar Odom is next at 60%.

Rebounding
This is an uphill battle for the Cs! Even if Bynum doesn’t play much, LA still has Gasol, Odom, and the now “motivated to grab rebounds in traffic” Kobe Bryant. Garnett, Wallace, and Glen Davis are formidable but I think old legs and a lack of height will plague them again this game. Gasol is relentless on the offensive boards because he knows if Boston gets a rebound, he can beat his man back to the other end. Boston will need everybody to crash on the defensive end, including Ray Allen!

Bench Production
What a difference Home Court makes! The Cs bench had outscored the LA bench in all 5 games before game 6. Shannon Brown who didn’t even see the floor in game 5 because of his “just filling up space” performance in game 4, breaks out his rocket boosters in game 6 on the Staples hardwood. Farmar dunking on KG, and giving him the stare afterwards! Didn’t see any of that in the previous 5 games, but…that is what Home Court can give you. Glen/Wallace (depending on who starts), Nate “The Great”, and Tony Allen must play the games of their young lives. In what will be the loudest, most anxiety filled atmosphere they have ever played in. OH BOY!

 

 

BOTTOM LINE
Even though the odds are against the Cs, never say never. PRESSURE MAKES DIAMONDS AND IT BUTS PIPES!!!! There is always a chance that one or more people on the Lakers will have a “John Starks 2-18 in game 7 of the 94’ finals”. We all knew that Starks was streaky, but not that streaky. All the Lakers favorite “Love to Hate” players are candidates. Artest, Odom, Sasha and Farmar are the favorite whipping boys for Lakers fans. Even though if it wasn’t for them in key games and specific situations (i.e. Game 5 vs Phx), they may not even be where they are right now! I see why they are where they are, and it’s not all because of Kobe and Gasol. Which actually makes them more dangerous tonight, because they can and have contributed when the Lakers have truly needed it.
Boston in 7…..Tentatively.

P.S. I apologize for the "orange link" text (which looks blue in my edit page). It is a long link to a photo. Was too lazy to re-type it.

Twitter @Mjlover23