Pierce, KG, Allen power the home team, game two is Sunday

SCOTT JACOBS

Paul Pierce had waited 10 years for his shot to play in the Finals.

So when he went down midway through the third with what appeared to be a gruesome knee injury, it was hard not to think the worst. The Celtics simply cannot keep up with the Lakers if Pierce is out of this game.

When Pierce’s fellow teammates helped carry him off the court, and he was put in a wheelchair, it had the appearance of a devastating blow that Boston was not going to recover from. But just about 3 minutes later, Pierce gently walked through the tunnel in the middle of the game to a standing ovation that sent the Celtic fans into oblivion.

And just a minute later he was back. In the game!

Pierce scored 15 huge third quarter points, Ray Allen and KG had very good games, and the Boston Celtics just overpowered the Lakers (46-33 rebounding disparity) to win a hotly contested game one, inside the gawwwwwwwden.

The Lakers played sloppy in the second half, failed to find a rhythm, and had a lackadaisical look where they looked a little lost late in the game. Trailing by eight late in the game and forced to foul to keep their fading hopes alive, they instead let the Celts eat up the 24 second clock, and by then time had just about run out on LA’s nearly 1 1/2 month of not trailing in a post-season series.

“I thought that was it,” said Pierce. “I couldn’t move it at first.”

Celtic fans probably thought that was it too for a dream season that looked like a nightmarish finish.

But Pierce came back, the Celtics confidence never seemed to waver, and the leprechauns were able to hold Kobe and the Lakers outside the paint.

“We’ll see,” said Pierce, when asked whether he was going to play in game two.

At least for Boston’s sake they have that cushion. Well sort of. With the 2-3-3 format, games 3-5 shift to LA after game 2 on Sunday, and the Celts can’t be too comfortable that getting one at home is enough. They need two, to put the young and energetic Lakers in a must win position for game three.

But we’ll touch on that after game 2.

As for game one, how about P.J. Brown? Did you see him dive to the ground to grab a loose ball, and find the open man. And there was KG somehow avoiding midcourt and a over and back violation, as Sam Cassel calmy knocked down a big jump shot. Garnett had a pretty sweet slammer jammer to seal the deal as he rose above Pau Gasol.

And that was it.

Kobe’s numbers look pretty good from a distance, but he looked frustrated all game. Unable to really penetrate Boston’s renowned team defense, number 24 struggled to consistently get off quality shots. Gasol was okay. No one on LA really played a great game, and that’s encouraging for game two.

After a relatively eh game one, LA still had a late chance to steal game one.

They didn’t, but they also didn’t have their A game either. Barely a B- if you ask me.

Tonight the Celts were the better team. Their big three all had 20 plus. They had a rhythm going all night.

Will they have that on Sunday? Good question.

“We got a little stagnant. But we played well enough to almost steal a game,” said Bryant.

Almost won’t win a championship.

Perfect will. That was Pierce in the second half. He didn’t miss a shot.

The Celtics didn’t miss a beat.

They lead this series one to none.

SCOTT JACOBS

There are two days until the Celts and Lakers tip off from the TD BankNorth Garden to commence the 2008 NBA Finals.

With the dead time in between I figured I’d get something off my chest that has been bothering me for some time.

This match up.  This dream flash back to the past, glory days of the league matchup, that TV analysts and writers have been pulling for is not what everyone wanted.

I know I didn’t.

I hate the Lakers.

I’m a Suns fan.  Hearing analysts and sports fans exclaim that the Lakers now have the best and most dynamic offense in the league kills a small piece of me inside everytime I hear it.  The Suns may not have won a title, but over their exciting four year run, no one ever questioned the potency of their offense.

The Lakers have the best offense? I’m not really disagreeing at this point.  Right now they seemingly do.  But for people to tell me which team I want to see, I think is brutally ridiculous. Suns fans hate the Lakers.  Beating them down in the first round two years in a row was an enjoyable ride.  The Suns never even made the Finals those years. The Lakers hit the jackpot with a still hard to believe trade that went through for Gasol, and Bam!, they’re in the Finals, not to mention the favorites even though they’re starting out on the road!

And I think this season has taught us a lesson that never fails to repeat itself and shows the fickle notion of most sports writers and analysts: winning changes everything.  Kobe is still the same guy, only now he has an MVP, passes the ball a little, and the assumption is that everyone now loves the guy.

If everyone loves him, why haven’t you seen him reappear on TV commercials.  And no that 50 million pounds challenge commercial doesn’t count.

Here’s another thing that may get people riled up, but I’m okay with that.  Derek Fisher’s return to the Lakers has been huge.  But his addition was a total blow to the Utah Jazz, who kindly allowed him to find a team closer to his family in the offseason.  I know, I know about Fisher’s family.  But nine teams out of ten don’t get that crazy type of break.  Everyone and their mother knows that the Jazz would never have let the vet go unless a health issue created a conflict.

And I’m not attacking him or his family.  Merely the fact that the Lakers have gotten some very fortunate things to fall their way.  Gason, Fisher, just to name a few.

But I will say that the Lakers are an exciting team to watch.  They pass, they play rugged defense, and they really have a knack for hitting that backbreaking three.  Who needs Robert Horry?  He’s at home, the Lakers are in Boston to begin their last conquest to a title.

Boston is, well, what’s the best way I can put this?  O, I know… boring 

For a Celtics fan, KG falling in Boston’s lap for seven players was a godsend. For the rest of us, we had to hear all about how great it was that the Celtics were back all season.  I know Bostonians and New Englanders are loyal fans, but there are 29 other NBA cities with great fans too.  Just because Boston is a big city, doesn’t mean everyone wants to see them win.  Just because they have history some what 21 years ago, doesn’t mean they’re relevent like they once were.

Until Larry Bird, Robert Parrish, and Kevin McHale walk through the door, this Celtics team will just be another good team that did just enough to get to the finals because of a gift wrapped deal that got them over the hump over the mediocre East.

The Big Three?  More like the Three revolving doors.  Seriously, when was the last time you watched a Celtics game and all three of Boston’s so called superstars were all playing great?  Boston is good.  I’m not making a claim they don’t deserve to be where they are.  But I think we all jumped the gun a bit when the Celtics got Ray Allen, KG, and Pierce together on one team.  They’re all good players, but Allen has been unbelievably awful at points this post-season, Garnett seems to disappear in stretches of games and never seems to want to take the clutch shot, and Pierce is either great or just okay.

Whether he’s a Hall of Famer or not, I personally don’t think so.

Finally there’s this.  Most Celtics games are painful… to watch.

Great defense doesn’t always mean exciting.  Games against Cleveland that they had in round number two, such as the epically bad game one, were perfectly good examples that three stars doesn’t mean big scores.

I remember when the Celtics got off to a 20-3 start early in the year and were putting up crazy numbers on a nightly basis.  Then the NBA figured them out, they got old and got vets P.J. Brown and Sam “I am” Cassel, and all of a sudden he playoffs come around and they’re struggling to score against the likes of Atlanta and Cleveland.

Whatever.

This is the hand we got dealt, so I’ll live with it.

But it is hard to watch these big publications and writers claim this is the matchup everybody wanted to see.

Well, I’m not everybody.

I watched my Suns see their glorious run come to a screeching halt. And now I have to put up with this Laker-Celtic crap?

Not exactly my vision of “had to see.”

But I’ll watch.  O I’ll watch.  Because I love sports, and I can put up with the almost unbearable bias that our friends over at ESPN and ABC put on us on a weekly basis.

But if they even mention Joba Chamberlain during the pregame show, I’m done.

I can only take so much big city bias.

That said it’ll be Lakers in six, because they’re the better team.

SCOTT JACOBS

Kobe Bryant strutted over to the bench, calm, cool, and completely stoppable. He was anything but stoppable on the court though in Los Angeles’ game five series clinching win over the now ex-champion San Antonio Spurs. Hand over the Larry O’Brien trophy San Antonio, the Lakers got next.

“Is there a better conditioned player in the NBA?” asked soon-to-be Chicago Bulls head Coach Doug Collins, referring to Bryant’s sheer will to take over games. With the Lakers up seven, and 33.4 seconds left, Marv Albert was emphatic about this being a done deal. “The Lakers are going to the NBA Finals!”

Indeed they are. And if you could have predicted a Boston-LA championship at the beginning of not this past season, but the season before for 2008, boy were you in the minority. The Celtics are one win away from completing an epic fairy tale for the NBA, a ratings bonanza not seen by the league since… well, Jordan?

A year ago the Lakers were shrugging off a disappointing first round exit, their second in a row to the Suns, and Kobe wanted out. Now Kobe is in. Way in. And the Lakers are four wins away from completing a stunning fall from grace back to glory conquest.

What’s next for the Spurs? Well, they are a great franchise. Four titles in nine years is impressive. But the one gap on their resume is never going back to back. And it won’t happen this year either.

Their bench is the oldest in basketball, and Manu Ginobili disappeared in this series.

The Lakers, took a few years off after dealing Shaq, and now they’ve reappeared as Western Conference champs.

A series that had all the makings of seven games, ended in just five.

Pau Gasol was great. Lamar Odom was clutch. The Lakers are going to the NBA Finals, and the scariest part: they look like they might be a fixture.

After they made that much disputed Gasol trade early in the year, the Lakers were deemed the favorites to win the West. Nah, I thought, this is not going to happen that fast. Sure enough, I was wrong. Really, really wrong. Like hit me over the head and throw rocks at me wrong. And all this was without center Andrew Bynum.

Boy do the Lakers look special. Their bench is young. Their starting lineup is fantastic from 1-5. And o yeah, they got that guy Kobe.

He’s pretty good. And he may be six or seven games away from adding another MVP to his repertoire. This one is looking like an MVP trophy. Not just any MVP trophy, how about an NBA Finals MVP trophy.

Bryant smiled in the background as the Lakers stood on the champions’ podium. The only time this post-season he hasn’t been the center of attention. He did it without Shaq. Shaq did it without Kobe. Consider that Miami-Los Angeles trade that sent Shaq to Miami and Lamar Odom to Los Angeles a smashing success for both and a closed case. Miami got their title, now it looks like its LA’s turn. Again.

Apparently, great basketball in Hollywood never gets old. It takes its breaks every now and then. The natural cycle has to take its course. But now the Lake Show is back.

“This is a dream come true,” said a beaming Bryant. No controversy about the alpha dog. That was Bryant. His brilliant team-mates were thrilled to oblige. Everyone knew their roles.

The Lakers have a new role: West champs.

“We ain’t done yet,” said Bryant, as his team-mates rubbed the shoulders that helped carry them to this impressive Finals appearance.

Few would disagree. Not with the way these Lakers are playing.

There’s no “I” in team, and now there’s no “I” in Bryant.

Lakers vs. Celtics/Pistons in one week. It’s safe to say the NBA league office isn’t complaining.

SCOTT JACOBS

You feeling lucky punk?

Yeah you Chicago. You just pulled off the heist of the post-season when you stole the number one pick in the NBA’s annual Rip-off-teams-palooza (aka: the NBA Draft lottery). With a minuscule 1.7% chance to land the number one pick, the Bulls, who finished with the ninth worst record in the league, got to Secaucus, NJ hoping that their 2.4% chance to get in the top three, would possibly land them six spots higher. Instead, they hit the jackpot, vaulting over league worst Miami and Dwayne Wade, to snag either Derick Rose or Michael Beasley.

Tough decision. But who ever thought they would have that decision to make?

For that matter, how does the NBA’s Draft lottery allow such blasphemy to happen?

If I had to go with a ridiculous scenario going into the night, I would have picked the Knicks to get a top two pick. (The whole Mike D’Antoni, bring back the swagger back to the Gawwwwwwwwwden type thing, just screamed conspiracy). But New York stayed right where they were. At number six.

D’Antoni opted for the opportunity to ressurect a trainwreck over a Bulls team a year removed from a Conference Semi-Finals appearance. And now the Bulls have the number one pick. The story is so good it just has to be fattening.

Meanwhile, Kevin Durant was unable to bring second worst Seattle a top two pick. Instead, the Sonics who had a 17.07% chance to land the third pick, an 18.78% chance to land the second pick, and a 19.90% chance to land the top pick, fell all the way to number four. The tough luck franchise got bitch slapped by the karma gods who have probably been watching their ugly legal battle ensue. I can vouch that Seattle/On Our way to Oklahoma, heck just name us the Barons and give us black and gold unis, were prime candidates to get screwed. The NBA hates what’s happening with the whole situation, and after Seattle lucked out landing Durant last year, karma was not going to let a bunch of greedy jerks inherit another kinda/sorta sure thing.

So here’s the skinny on the fat.

1. Chicago- Go buy a lottery ticket Bulls fans. Today is your lucky day!
2. Miami- Well, at least we get Beasley or Rose, though not the position to pick. Scraps could be worse though.
3. Minnesota- Boston and KG take on Detroit in the Conference Finals on ABC/ESPN. We jumped up a spot from number four, but we still won’t be relevent for another 230 years.

As for the Lottery itself:

1. Only teams with the top 5 crappy records should get a shot at the number one pick. The Bulls won 33 games. That’s 18 more then the Miami Heat!

2. Cut the crud ESPN. The lottery actually happened hours ago, with the build up started at 7:30, and didn’t end until about 8:17 Eastern time when the envelopes were finally opened. 47 minutes of “just announce the damn lottery already” is enough to cause even the most casual of fans a hint of aggravation.

3. Stop the celebrity interviews. Ask me if I care that Jay Z is a minority owner of the Nets. Go ahead, ask me! No. I couldn’t care less. And if I wanted to see celebrities boring the crap out of me, I’d watch MTV. Moronic Television.

As for the playoffs…

1. Nothing’s a sure thing. New Orleans should be back next year, but who knows. A year ago the Bulls were chic picks to go to the East finals, and they failed to make the playoffs in the EAST. A slipup in the west with Portland on the rise and at least seven other quality teams means that the Hornets should not take anything for granted.

2. Chris Paul is a fabulous player, but he needs to develop akiller instinct. He needs the ball in his hands late in games, not Pargo. Not Stojakovich. Paul needs that D-Wade rage, where he just goes off, and scores 13 unanswered himself. Once Paul does that, the Hornets (who will reportedly be styling new unis next year) will be golden.

3. Give me LA. If I had to venture odds on teams left in the post-season and who has the best shot to win it all based from worst odds to least, this would be my list:

4. Boston- Win a road game and then we’ll talk
3. Detroit- I’ve got a funny feeling they’re going to the Finals
2. San Antonio- That game seven win in N’Orleans was impressive
1. Los Angeles- It kills me to admit this, but it’s their championship to win this year.

One final thought:

With 2:35 to go in the first it was Boston 12 Detroit 11. That was with Detroit on an 8-0 run. I just hope this isn’t a sign of offensive mediocrity to come. We shall see.

SCOTT JACOBS

It was interesting before.  A fascinating case study at the beginning about why that home court edge just would not fail.  But now, it’s tiresome.  Aggravating.  Sort of boring in a tireless repetitive way.  Would somebody please win a road game?!?

No, not you Detroit.  You were the most unlikely candidate of any to be the one to break through on the road.  In a raucous Amway Arena in Orlando, with an injured Chauncey Billups sitting out, the Pistons not only came back from a 15 point deficit in the first half, bu withstood a furious Magic rally, to win a game they really shouldn’t have, 90-89. It was a fabulous game, one of my favorites this post-season.

But the saying there’s a first time for everything, is starting to feel like: there’s only a first time for somethings when they happen in the second round of the NBA Playoffs.

This is no longer just some funky coincidence.  It’s official: road teams have forgotten how to play basketball in gyms that don’t have their names etched into the sidelines. I could see why high schoolers, middle schoolers, or even travel teams might be up in nerves in front of a big loud biased crowd.  But since when does the NBA not know how to play on the road?

Boston is striving to become the first team to win an NBA title without winning on the road.  They’ve got a shot, they’re 3-0 in this round, 4-0 against the Hawks, and they’ve got home court throughout.  But, if they win a title without a road win, that would mean they’d have to go the maximum 28 games through the marathon that is the playoffs.  Not only has that never been done.  It probably never will be done, unless this whacky unexpected trend continues to the fullest degree.

But it’s no just Boston.

Take a look at the home teams in these playoffs and their regular season home records.  Maybe something is wearing off here.

The Celtics had 6 losses at home.  The Jazz had a league low four losses at Energy Solutions Arena.  The Spurs have a very good home record this year.  As does New Orleans.  And the list goes on and on.

So the question becomes: has the mot over-rated aspect in pro sports become more important then ever before?

The only team with three road wins this post-season is Detroit as far as my count goes.  And they’re the only team in the league sitting comfortably at home waiting for the excruciatingly long second round to end.  So is there a trend?  Is there writing between the lines, that makes Detroit the favorites… to win it all?

I wouldn’t go that far just yet, but I was very impressed that Detroit was able to win a road game without their floor leader.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though.

New Orleans still has a chance to end the defending champs hopes in San Antonio.  Boston can dethrone the defending champs in Cleveland.  The Lakers can beat the team that just doesn’t lose very often at home in the the heart of Mormon Nation.

But the way these playoffs are going, I think it’s more likely that Delonte West scores 30 on the Celtics than Boston breaking through on the road.  I think Tim Duncan will have 11 assists before the Hornets close out the Spurs in Texas.  As for the Jazz, are they really going to lose a home game to a hobbled Kobe?

But that’s the thing.  You keep thinking that these road teams are going to break through. Yesterday the Cavs were up by 14 against Boston in the first half when they forgot how to play.  The Jazz had ample opportunities to take down the Lake Show yesterday, but could never get the lead.  And the Hornets were rolling along in game three when they just disappeared late in the third quarter.

So the road record and home disparity hits an incredible number.

Boston: 3-0 home, 0-2 road
Cleveland: 2-0 home, 0-3 road
Detroit: 3-0 home, 1-1 road
Orlando: 1-1 home, 0-3 road
Los Angeles: 3-0 home, 0-2 road
Utah: 2-0 home, 0-3 road
New Orleans: 3-0 home, 0-2 road
San Antonio: 2-0 home, 0-3 road

It totals up to a tidy little number.  One growing like the plague.

The road team is 1-19  in 20 games in this second round.  At school you could never pass a test with numbers like that.  But in the NBA, you’ve got a chance to win a ring if you’ve got the home court and do nothing on the road.

For the record, that’s a 5% road winning percentage.

I don’t say this often: but thanks Detroit.  For setting the bar!

SCOTT JACOBS

Kobe Bryant went up, gently put threw the ball up against the glass and the ball bounced out. Johnny on the Spot (Lamar Odom) was there to put it back and tie the game at 108-108. Utah’s 12 point lead late in the fourth quarter had evaporated and the Lakers appeared ready to seize control of the series. Derek Fisher blocked Deron Williams’ game winner, and the Jazz faithful looked shocked as their team prepared to play for an unexpected overtime.

The Lakers, even with an injured Kobe Bryant, had climbed the mountain.

But the Utah Jazz had one last run in them, and fed off the Energy Solutions Arena fever pitch to pull themselves together and take the Lakers apart. Shooting a clutch 8-8 at the line in OT, the Jazz not only helped tie their second round series with the Lakers, they revived hope that they can win this series.

Of course, be careful to put too much stock into a post-season where the home team rarely loses. With Utah’s tough overtime win, the Jazz added another win to a startling 13-1 home record for teams in round two. The key is if the Jazz can win a game at Staples Center. But by protecting their homecourt, the Jazz who looked sluggish and too slow to keep up with the Lake Show in games one and two, found out they can beat Kobe, Gasol, and co.

So now it’s 2-2, and we’re down to a best of three series.

The big question is obviously Kobe’s health. Kobe was really shaken up in this one, and he clearly couldn’t play his usual role of clutch super-hero, as the MVP struggled in the fourth quarter and overtime. He squealed in pain constantly, and lacked his extra step that has helped turn him into an elite player.

So now we go back to LA nodded at two.

Don’t blame the Lakers big three, even with Kobe’s injury: Kobe, Gasol, and Odom combined for a mere 82 points.

Blame the Utah Jazz, who are now 37-5 at home in the playoffs and regular season combined.

No one doubts if the Jazz can win at home. If they can win game five they will probably win this series.

Of course the way this second round is going, that’s not likely to happen.

SCOTT JACOBS

Kobe Bryant was in foul trouble and had four points at the half. A year ago the Lakers would have been doomed to a blowout loss, because they had no one to pick up the slack. But o how things have changed in Tinseltown. Behind a revved up Pau Gasol (36 points, 16 rebounds) and healthy Lamar Odom (17 points, 14 boards) the Lake Show ran roughshod over the offense-oriented, what’s defense? 8th seeded Nuggs 128-114.

Don’t insult me by telling me Denver is the old Phoenix Suns (all offense, no D). Denver’s questionable shot selection, and disappearing act in the third quarter ultimately ended any hopes they had of winning game one, as the Lakers outscored Denver by 17 (seventeen!) in the third. And LA pretty much coasted from there.

The scariest thing about the game? LA has incredible depth now. When Kobe’s not on his game, LA has Odom, Gasol, Luke Walton, Derek Fisher, Vujacic, Jordan Farmar, and a slew of other weapons to put on the court. Denver had two players score 30 (Guess who?) in Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony, but once again, Denver’s no show show on defense cost them any prayer.

And I feel very much comfortable with my five games and done pick. I still think Denver will win a game on their home court, but I don’t forsee much more then that. The Lakers are too loaded, too hot, and too overwhelming for the Nuggets to deal with.

If I’m Denver I pray. Because they don’t have the discipline to afford to not play any defense. At least when the Suns played, they made good decisions and rarely turned the ball over. The Nuggets are a freight train from hell. Dis-organized chaos if you will.

But hey, it could be worse. They could be Atlanta, who isn’t getting any love, nor any games, from anyone.

That series starts tonight. The perfect time to start studying!