Boston Celtics-Los Angeles Lakers Christmas Day

[RBH]

I know it is early. But since this matchup is being billed as the ultimate match between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, I thought I would start the thread. Since this match is so big it deserves its own thread.

It is well known that the Bost Celtics currently have beaten the Lakers 8 times in NBA Finals history while the Lakers have beaten the Celtics just once (correct me if I messed up that stat). It is also well known that these teams are the two best NBA teams playing at the moment.

Lets look at the Lakers. They have Kobe Bryant, the best player in the NBA by far since Michael Jordan. He plays through pain, he puts up numbers consistently and despite his past problems does help the Lakers when they need him to down the stretch. He has helped deliver the Lakers to 3 NBA titles and to 5 NBA finals overall (losses to Detroit in 04 and Boston in 08). Then you have the supporting cast, with pau Gasol being the great outside scoring threat (by outside, I mean outside the key). He puts up numbers consistently and provides a great Power Forward for the Lakers. Then, you have Andrew Bynum, the center who is the key component in my opinion on whether the Lakers will go back to the Finals and have a chance against Boston. These threehelp the Lakers score a lot of points as the Lakers are one of the best scoring teams at the moment. But then lies the problem, while it has not affected them yet (losses to Detroit and Indiana only), they do have a problem with defense. Their defense lacks toughness at the moment and they do not generally put teams away when they should defensively.

Now lets look at the Boston Celtics. The Celtics have the big three. Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. Garnett provides the rebounding and the top tier scoring and the defensive stats. Allen and Pierce defend the backcourt very well and each man is very capable of scoring 30 a night. The Celtics do not have many weaknesses as they like to keep the games low scoring. Their one fault would be the same as the Lakers, their depth in the bench. Tony Allen, Leon Powe and Glen davis are all good backups but they must mature to replace the loss of James Posey to give the Celtics the same great sixt man power that they had last year.

The matchup is interesting. The Celtics have dominated recently. If the Lakers can buckle down and play defense, they will win. If the Celtics can contain the Lakers scorers and take an early lead, the they will win.

What are your opinions on this very intriuging match? This is not an Xfearbefore baiting thread though I do want his analysis.

 

[Khalifa]

I love the Lakers they are my favourite team. but a loss today. I mean to the kings gee's. anyways onto the topic. this will be a great game. gasol on garnett, kobe on pierce, allen on rodmotavich ( how ever you spell it). yes i no pierce is small forward but in the finals kobe did play mostly on him. I say boston come out on top by 8. you want to no why. it's because of rondo. he has great speed and can pass the ball real well. If he can improve his shot he will be the next isiah thomas.

The celtics have a poor bench. Lakers have the best IMO. lets see. Odom . a person with a shiny head and can play like scottie pippen. nuff said. ariza. omg he should be starting. he is the msot exciting play to watch with his d and amazing dunks. vujacic and farmer. both great point guards ( for the bench anyways). The only problem with lakers now is defense as stated above.

And who ever says Kobe Bryant is holo. will recieve a tongue lashing!!!

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

The Lakers are deeper but they're not as physical as the Celtics or play the type of D Boston plays which is why I dont think they are as good. I watched my Pistons soundly beat the Lakers earlier this year and were not nearly as good as Boston but we beat them because we were physical with them and played great D something that Boston does better than anybody. Gasol is soft as hell, I watched Sheed, Jason Maxiell and even Kwame Brown push him around when we played them like he was a bitch so he has no chance against Garnett, Perkins or Davis. And nobody on LA can keep Rondo out of the paint. Boston is on a roll right now and are clearly the best team in the league, if they met again in the NBA finals the result would be similar to what it was last year. LA can rack up the wins right now against inferior competition but like I said originally their kryptonite is physical teams like Detroit, Cleveland and Boston which is why all of them have dominated them lately. They beat up on soft Western Conference teams(SA being the lone exception they are actually tough) but they cant handle tough, defensive basketball that Boston provides.

 

[RBH]

The Lakers are not as soft as they were last year. What they need to get better in is NOT IMPOSSIBLE. The fact of the matter is that they have to be better in the backcourt and defend the quick scorers much more accurately. Garnett will tear them to pieces if they do not guard him properly. This is where Bynum comes into play. He had a great Christmas last year and there is hope among Laker fans that he will repeat that performance. But until then, it is just speculation and the Celtics clearly have the advantage unfortunately.

 

[Khalifa]

na The Lakers need vujacic and farmer to be them selves again. i mean vujacic today had 0 points! i mean when he is not on top of his game they loose. farmer is the first guard of the bench and he hasn't been playing as good as he can. They also need to try and use the triangle offense through out the whole game. not when they are winning.

 

[klunderbunker]

This isn't really appealing to me. While it's possible the Celtics will be on a 17-18 game winning streak, thsi does little for me. It's a single season NBA game, meaning there's no point to it. All that matters is that one of these teams will be a step closer to trying to match the Bulls' single season wins record, and taht the national coverage of the NBA has begun. Other than that, regular season basketball means nothing. When teams that are under 500 can make the postseason, it's proof that basketball doesn't matter until the last month of the season.

 

[RBH]

Xhfearbefore WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU? This is an epic match thats gonna take place in 3 days! The Lakers the best team in the west that has sputtered recently against the Celtics, the best team in the east, who have won 20 in a row! I really do believe it can go either way as the Lakers seem to play opponents to their level (whether good or bad). But I do think the Celts have the advantage because they have been playing more dominant and consistent basketball. They have been winning the games that they should win and excelling when they need to. But the Lakers have done well on Christmas Day (granted they have played Miami and Phoenix the majority of the time).

We need your honest thoughts!!!

 

[Khalifa]

No way in hell Lakers will win now. i saw there game to heat. and they cant play defense for shit any more. lol even now they are loosing by 3 points in the third quarter to MEMPHIS. i mean come on. loosing to heat was there down fall. but a part of me thinks that they will win. Only because Boston will be over confident and Lakers would need to prove something. But still Lakers are liek a 3% chance of winning now.

 

[Gutter Phenomenon]

The Celtics definitely aren't over confident. Kevin Garnett won't let them get over confident. He made Glen Davis cry on the bench because he was pushing him mentally(gives his "Big Baby" nickname a new meaning). Rajon Rondo is having an all star season to this point, and Tony Allen is doing a decent job filling James Poseys shoes. Right now, the only team that can legitimately compete with the Celtics are the Cavs.

 

[RBH]

No way in hell Lakers will win now. i saw there game to heat. and they cant play defense for shit any more. lol even now they are loosing by 3 points in the third quarter to MEMPHIS. i mean come on. loosing to heat was there down fall. but a part of me thinks that they will win. Only because Boston will be over confident and Lakers would need to prove something. But still Lakers are liek a 3% chance of winning now.

Dude they haven't even played yet.... Hear me out! The Lakers are a team that seems to play to their opponent's level. They play mediocre and bad teams close and they play really well against good teams. (Dont ask me why). They have beaten a good New Orleans Hornets team twice decisively on the road this year. Their losses are as followed (home vs Pistons, away vs Kings, away vs Magic, away vs Heat and away vs Pacers on a last second shot) Aside from the Pistons loss, all those losses were games the Lakers could have won. They have trouble finishing off games which explains why the games are so damn close. Thats why Kobe Bryant has to always be in there in the 4th quarter. Lakers have some weaknesses but this is December, we got 4 long months until the playoffs and as long as they get their shit together by then, they will be more prepared to deal with heavyweights like Boston and Detroit. I believe that they will go to the Palace of Auburn Hills and win their next game against the Pistons because they will be more prepared to the game plan and style of game the Pistons play. As for the Celtics, like I said before, execute, execute, execute. They have to be consistent and NOT fall behind or else they will be screwed!

 

[Gutter Phenomenon]

They have to be consistent and NOT fall behind or else they will be screwed!

There in lies the problem. Who do the Lakers plan on containing? Every member of the Celtics contribute. Do you know how many shots the leading shot taker for the C's took last night? Just 13. Yet, they still managed to post 110 points, and won by 19. Six players scored in the double figures. There's no defense that can stop a team that can share the ball that consistently.

 

[RBH]

The Celtics are a great team. They would not be defending champs if they weren't. But remember my friend, it's a long season. Anything can happen between now and May. The fact of the matter is that no NBA team has repeated since well look at that, the Lakers in 00-01-02. The Celtics look like the best chance to do it. They have a great quality team with great stars and role players. I did adress the Lakers weaknesses, which at the moment seems to be their bench. But any bench can be improved upon with different rotations and different playcalling. Thats why I said it is way too early to judge a team like the Lakers. They did beat a very good western conference team twice on that teams home floor. If they play the way they played last night against New Orleans, they not only have a shot against Boston, they can very well win the damn game. And remember man, the Celtics won last years series 4-2, not 4-0. Winning 2 games at least says that the Lakers knew how to beat Boston. Where they go from there is anyone's guess.

 

[Gutter Phenomenon]

Don't forget that those two wins last year happened in Los Angeles. And the season is nearly half way through. Teams are starting to show their true colors. The Lakers just happen to be purple, gold, and unstable...

I look forward to talking to you tomorrow after the Celtics notch number 20 in their belt.

 

[RBH]

Like I said we'll see and the game tomorrow is in Los Angeles. The Lakers and playing at home on Christmas Day equals greatness. Like I have said, if the Lakers play defense, get everyone involved, then they will have a great shot at beating the Celtics. If they fail to do those things, it will be a looong game for them.

 

[Khalifa]

Yep Rob i have to agree . i liked your comment on the first page. they play at their opponents level. like last nigth against new orleans they played new orlean style. playing great d and then they played some great o with Kobe passing it more even no he got 4 assists. he probably passed it more times he has had all season. If lakers give Vujacic the time he should get with farmer out they will put up a great fight. i mean sasha 7 points 1 assist and 2 rebounds in eleven minutes. that is pretty good for a guard. Kobe as a point to prove that lakers will put up a great fight. even no i love the lakers and hope they win , celtics by 5-8!

well i may as well edit it. why? because Lakers horrorsmashed the celtics ( well not garnett but paul pierce is debateable) Lakers had a great game today. with gasol having 20 points 3 blocks, kobe bryant havign 27 points 9 rebounds 5 assists, and lamar and sasha both combinded with 20 points and 9 rebounds. the celtics had a shocker, with garnett only being the hope with 22 points and 9 rebounds. pierce had a pretty good with 20 points 10 rebounds and 3 assists. lakers defently deserved it. they played better defence, shot better and also had andrew bynum playing much better today . 9 points 7 rebounds and 2 block shots. and that is with out any confidence.

 

[RBH]

Final Score...Lakers 92, Celtics 83! The Lakers did everything I said that they needed to do to win the game. Granetd they did not make all the shots that they should have made (Gasol) but still came away with the win. Lets review, the Lakers needed to get an early lead and for the most part, they did that. Check one. They needed to keep it a low scoring game and they did that! They needed to win the bench war and look at that, they did that! Gasol got physical and actualy played tough eliminating the theory about him being "soft". He finished with 20 points, 3 blocked shots, 5 asissts and 3 rebounds. His great 4th quarter helped the Lakers eventually overcome the Celtics for the win to help Kobe Bryant who had 27 points. Sasha Vujacic and Lamar Odom led the Lakers bench with 10 points each and Andrew Bynum contributed with a few rebounds and 9 points. Kevin garnett led Boston scorers with 20 points but the bench was unable to compensate and the Lakers shut them down in the 4th quarter. I am proud to be a Laker fan today because we finally overcame a tough Celtics team. I know its only Christmas but I hope all of you realize after today's game that the Lakers CAN compete with the Celtics. CANNOT WAIT FOR THE GAME AT BOSTON.

 

[Gutter Phenomenon]

I really can't say a whole lot. It was an entertaining game regardless of the outcome. Congrats to the Lakers for doing what no other team had been able to. Even though I'm a die hard Celtics fan, I like that a team can compete. It makes for a more exciting atmosphere. I'll actually root for the Lakers to make it back to the finals. Only if the C's are there too though. I love a good rivalry.

Congrats to you as well Rob, I hope you enjoyed the win...

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

Nice win for the Lakers but I still think Boston is the better team. Im not a Celtics fan at all so Im not trying to make excuses for them but they did not play well at all last night yet they were right there at the end and actually had a lead in the 4th quarter. Not to mention as an unbiased viewer there were many questionable calls against them to say the least but Im not gonna blame it on the refs because I dont like doing that for my team so Im not gonna do it for another team. Good win and I think it was a win that they really needed, I think they needed to prove that they could be the Celtics.