SCOTT JACOBS

Kobe Bryant is a stone cold killer on a basketball court.  That much we know.  But like his Pre-Pau Gasol days, we also know that he can’t single handedly win games against the NBA’s elite without at least a little bit of help.  Last night Kobe played assassin at the TD Garden, but it wasn’t enough, as his supporting cast failed to show up in a pivotal series swinging loss to the suddenly surging Celtics.

Black Mamba did more than his fair share, lighting up Boston for 38 points– including an otherwordly 19 in the 3rd, but it barely put a dent in Boston’s lead, because the rest of his team was completely and utterly useless on this night.

The Lakers shot under 40%, a terrible time to have an off-shooting night, and missed 9 foul shots, an awful time to brick free points and it cost them dearly in the end, because their defense simply could not stop the ever-confident leprechauns from Beantown.

Boston shot nearly 57%, but it  was their overall team effort that shut the door on L.A.’s late attempt at a come from behind victory.  Four Celtics scored in double figures, paced by Paul Pierce who led the way with 27 as Boston inched closer to banner number 18.

But sealing the deal and winning another title in what seems like an endless series of parades for Boston, won’t be easy.  They’ll have to do it in L.A. where the Lakers have two home games left in their season– if they’re lucky that is.

To even get to a series deciding game 7 the Lakers will need to shore up their defense.  Boston simply outclassed them to every loose ball in the fourth quarter, including a series of big time rebounds– one which included Pierce ripping the ball from Bryant as Kobe steamrolled into the lane off of a missed Ron Artest foul shot.  Simply put, Boston wanted this one just a little more than L.A.  And that’s why the Celtics head back to L.A. as the first team in this exciting finals series to reel off two consecutive wins.

There were a few dynamite plays, but the one that truly epitomized this game came in the closing moments with the Celtics clinging to a 87-82 lead.

Garnet chucked the ball to a streaking Pierce who caught it in stride, but found himself running out of room on the sidelines.  With a split second decision to make and the game still in question, Pierce lobbed the ball to an open Rondo, who beautifully put it in the whole, cementing the victory.

The common theme to the game, and that play?  Teamwork.  Boston used it all night to their advantage.  L.A. was a one man show.

It’s no mistake that the Lakers are on the verge of elimination.

Simply put, they no longer look like the better team.

Photo: Getty

SCOTT JACOBS

Boston, party like its 1986!

The Celtics, led by absolutely startling defense, beautiful teamwork and ball work, didn’t want a game seven.

Then they came out and proved it, mutilating the Lakers like they were a bunch of lost teenagers running through the woods in a horror movie.

Paul Pierce, take your ring.

KG had everything money could buy, and now he’s a champion.

Ray Allen, your inconsistencies drove Boston fans batty, but you too are getting that once piece of jewelry all athletes crave.

A championship ring.

P.J. Brown, enjoy the party, as you ride out into the sunset.

James Posey, how’s it feel to be the newest Robert Horry? That’s two championships in three years.

Validation for a season that was so good it didn’t look real at times, as the Celts coasted to 66 wins.

But playoff struggles against the Hawks and Cavs kept the skeptics in full force, and the jury wouldn’t be out on this Beantown Trifecta until they got to the Finals.

Well, the ruling is in.

Champagne tastes o so sweet.

Boston is the best team in basketball.

Overwhelming the Lakers to the point of beyond recognition, Boston not only closed out the Purple and Gold. They disposed of them.

I didn’t see why so many guys were so high on the Fighting Shamrocks going into this classic tussle between two teams decorated with history. But, now I have to ask myself: How could I get the Lakers so wrong?

Outhustled, out-played, out-rebounded, out-shot. Every out, put in front of a meaningful statistical category the Lakers got creamed in. Half the game they looked lost. Half the game they looked stunned. The whole game the Lakers got outclassed.

With about six minutes left in the second the Lakers were within six, and then they just collapsed.

You know what, scratch that.

Boston showed up, and put a giant exclamation mark on this series.

Boston will get another championship to go with the Patriots decade of dominance and the Red Sox un-jinxing the curse. But this has to go down as one of the sweetest. From second worst to the absolute best.

No ifs ands or buts about it.

No Kobe’s or MVP’s or road woes left in their way.

Like the Celtics fans chanted as Boston barreled its way towards a ring, “Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, hey, hey, hey, goodbye.”

And here’s a new tune for Celtics fans.

Queen’s “We are the Champions.”

Boston’s Big Three (Yes, you can call them that now, they’ve officially earned it), checked out with four minutes to go to a rousing ovation that sent a chill down my spine. Together.

The same way Boston has turned this thing around. From NBA doormat to NBA Champion.

Kobe Bryant had a miserable game, and if the comparisons to Michael Jordan were fading as the series progressed, consider them dead now. Jordan never watched his team fail like this in the Finals. Kobe saw what it’s like to get clobbered with Shaq (Detroit 2004), and now he knows what it’s like when the shoulders that carry your team, collapse on top of yourself.

Boston’s physical, relentless pursuit of the ball flustered the usually calm Kobe, who not only laid an egg in this series, but his teammates did too. Pau Gasol was awful at times, so bad at one point that my dad exclaimed, “somewhere in Memphis they’re not so upset right now.”

And Lamar Odom may be a matchup nightmare. But he’s also an inconsistent enigma from game to game. And that was one of the many reasons the Lakers lost.

Boston’s BIG THREE, was better, wiser, smarter, faster then LA’s invisible three.

And so, as Paul Pierce smiled his great big smile, and the cameras focused on the rafters, filled with title lore, one thing was clear.

There’s no longer the question of who the best team in basketball is.

That’s the Celtics.

I do have one question though.

When do we start asking the question if they’re going to repeat?

In 29 NBA cities, they’re GREEN with envy.

Fakers 92. Celtics 131

“Anything’s possible,” KG screamed as Michelle Tafoya interviewed him after the game.

No disagreements here.

And I have never seen so many people on a court then after The Celtics cinched their 17^th ring. That was an unbelievable scene.

This was an unbelievable performance.

Boston, does this ever get old?

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

“The buzzer couldn’t come any sooner,” said an elated Paul Pierce. “We finally made it.”

“We’re in the Finals!” he screamed, smiling like a 10 year old.

Go ahead Paul. Scream and holler all you want. What seemed unthinkable just a mere year ago is now reality. The Boston Celtics, Eastern Conference Champions? Last May that would have came across as a cruel joke, on par with Billy Buckner chants, but now, well let’s just say it’s the truth.

Celtics players huddled around the East finals trophy, chanting, “beat LA.”

It must be something in the water in Boston. All Bostonian teams do, make it to championships!

The Celtics are just the latest Beantown staple to join the ridiculous title tea party, schmoozing next to the Patriots and the Red Sox.

Celtics-Lakers and no, it’s not 1987. It’s 2008, and you’re not going to wake up and see San Antonio and Detroit vie for the snoozer championship.

“We don’t want the silver ball, we want the gold ball,” said Celts coach Doc Rivers.

In 2007 the Celtics walked off the court in their final regular season game, with the worst record in the East, and the second worst in the league. They were among the top two… in uh losing accomplishments. Now, they’re going to the Finals.

“It’s going to be a spectacular series,” said Jeff Van Gundy.

The Lakers have been there 29 times, the Celtics 20. The Lakers have won it 14 times, the Celtics 16.

Prepare to add another chapter to the history book, and leave space on the Nielsen ratings for some out of this world TV ratings.

Like em or hate em, you’ll be watching.

And you can’t use the excuse that this series lacks star power. This series is loaded with so much star power, it’s blinding.

It’s an incredible turnaround for both teams. Kobe wanted to be traded last off-season. Paul Pierce thought he would get dealt. Now, a year later, the two superstars will face off for an expensive diamond encrusted ring they can fit on their finger.

How?

Um, like the bumper sticker says, “Garnett happens.”

The NBA where “how the F*** did that happen” happens.

Who would have thunk it?

Nostradamus you there?

SCOTT JACOBS

New colors. New look. New spot in the playoffs for the first time since 1999.

And now? New sense of confidence. New sense of we can do this. And if the Atlanta Hawks want to say no one believed in us, but ourselves, then by all means let them. Because the truth is: no one believed in them, but themselves.

This is not cliche, this is merely incredible. The Atlanta Hawks, perennial NBA door-mats for nearly the past decade, snuck into the playoffs by default. They were supposed to be an appetizer en route to a Celtics-Pistons Eastern Conference super final. But look at that. After Atlanta’s spirited win on Monday, not only are the Hawks tied with the mighty Boston Celtics, but so is Philadelphia with the mighty Detroit Pistons.

O dear, all hell has broken loose. Not only did no one give the Hawks any chance to win this series (except their coach… I remember reading his quote about how the Hawks could shock the world), no one thought they could win a game. Literally.

I certainly didn’t. I knw every media outlet out there on the internet didn’t. Truth be told, I’d be surprised if Hawks fans didn’t.

But this Hawks team has come to play. After getting pounded in Boston, they came back to Atlanta and not only played well, they played great. They played unafraid and determined.

The fear that swept through them in their pair of duds at the Bank North Garden, was replaced in Atlanta with an unseen jolt of excitement, and a belief, that, wow, we can play with these guys.

Joe Johnson and Josh Smith played the games of their lives, and Atlanta went 28-32 from the foul line. A young team, built from the ground up, with the exception of the sensational Johnson, who made every shot you could ask and more, are tied with Boston two games to two. It’s a three game series now, and the Hawks have a chance to do the utmost unthinkable.

You thought Dallas losing to Golden State was epic? If the Hawks, who finished EIGHT games below .500 win this series, this may not only go down as the greatest upset in NBA history, but as the greatest upset in the history of human civilization.

Of course that means Atlanta has to win at least one game in Beantown, something they have yet to show they can do. But at least now they know they can beat Boston. They can hang with the Three Amigos, the Boston Three Party, whatever you want to name Boston’s awesome trifecta.

But on this night, it was a duo, Smith and Johnson who propelled Atlanta to the depths of the unknown.

There’s three games left in this scintillating series. The Hawks actually have a chance.

The Atlanta Hawks ACTUALLY have a chance.