NBA Finals Game 2 Lakers at Celtics 6/8 9:00 ABC

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Los Angeles Lakers (0-1, 12-4) at Boston Celtics (1-0, 13-8)
NBA Finals Game 2
Sunday, June 8
9:00 PM
TV:  ABC
TD Banknorth Garden

ProbableStarters
PG:  Rajon Rondo    PPG 10.7 RPG 4.20 APG 6.6 EFF + 14.86


SG:  Ray Allen    PPG 14.4 RPG 3.60 APG 2.9 EFF + 13.10


SF:  Paul Pierce  PPG 19.1 RPG 5.00 APG 4.0 EFF + 17.52


PF:  Kevin Garnett  PPG 21.2 RPG 10.00 APG 3.4 EFF + 25.95


C:   Kendrick Perkins  PPG 6.9 RPG 6.60 APG 0.5 EFF + 12.00




Off the Bench:
Eddie House,  James Posey, Leon Powe,  Big Baby Davis, Tony Allen,   PJ Brown, Sam Cassell

Injuries
Scott Pollard, ankle, out
Paul Pierce, knee, probable
Kendrick Perkins, ankle, probable 


Inactive
Gabe Pruitt
Brian Scalabrine

Probable Starters
PG: Derek Fisher   PPG 10.3 RPG 2.60 APG 2.4 EFF + 12.81


SG:  Kobe Bryant   PPG 31.4 RPG 5.90 APG 5.8 EFF + 28.75


SF:  Vladimir Radmanovic   PPG 8.1 RPG 3.50 APG 1.6 EFF + 8.88


PF:  Lamar Odom   PPG 14.6 RPG 10.10 APG 2.8 EFF + 20.00


C:  Pau Gasol   PPG 17.6 RPG 8.90 APG 4.2 EFF + 23.94


Off the Bench
Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar,  Luke Walton, Rony Turiaf, DJ Mbenga, Chris Mihm

Injuries
Andrew Bynum, knee, out
Trevor Ariza, foot, day to day
Derek Fisher, partial tear in right foot tendon, will play
Kobe Bryant, torn ligament in finger, will play

Inactive
Coby Karl, Ira Newble 

Key Matchups
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Derek Fisher
In game 1, Rondo got the better of this matchup.  He set the pace and out played Fisher on both ends of the court.  The Celtics will need Rondo to continue to be aggressive on defense and in taking the ball to the hoop and to take the open shot when it is there.  Fisher is a veteran, though, and will come back strong in game 2 and Rondo has to be ready for it. 

  vs 
Ray Allen vs Kobe Bryant
Ray Allen did a good job against Kobe in game 1.  The Celtics held Kobe to 24 points on 9-26 shooting in 42 minutes.  Ray also made Kobe work on the defensive end as he finished with 19 points.  Containing Kobe will be key, but they also must be sure to stop his teammates as well since he will look to find him if his shot isn't there. 

Honorable Mention
Paul Pierce vs Vladimir Radmanovic
I expect Pierce to play in game 2, but we don't know how well Pierce will be able to move with the knee injury.   He should still be able to have his way with Radmanovic.  The Celtics will need Pierce to be aggressive and play well so hopefully he will be healthy. 

to the game
Energy and Intensity The Lakers are going to come at the Celtics with a vengeance from the start in game 2 and the Celtics must be ready and match their intensity.  The Celtics have to go for all the loose balls and they have to run as much as possible.  The Celtics have to come out with intensity to start the game because the Lakers will and if they don't they will end up in a hole very quickly. 

Defense  The Celtics' defense wasn't up to par in the first half of game 1 as they allowed the Lakers to shoot 50%.  But the Celtics clamped down on defense and held the Lakers to just 34% in the second half.  It was defense that won that game and defense will be the key to this game as well. They have to do a better job defending the pick and roll, though. 

Rebounding  The Celtics out rebounded the Lakers 46-33 in game 1 and they must continue to crash the boards and limit the Lakers' second chance points.    I expect Gasol and Odom both to work harder for rebounds and the Celtics have to be aggressive in going after them.  Hopefully Perk will be healthy for this game as they will need his rebounding.

Ball Movement  When the Celtics move the ball and find the open man, they are hard to beat.   When they over-dribble and try to do too much one on one, they are out of sync and that is when they struggle.  Doc needs to keep Rondo on the court as much as possible.   Eddie House would probably be a better choice than Sam at backup because he knows the offense better and keeps it moving.   Sam usually shoots every time he gets the ball.  They must also take the ball inside at every opportunity and not settle for jumpers.  This is especially true for KG.  He could easily post up every time and he will need to look to get inside. 

X-Factors
Bench Play.  The Celtics bench out played the Lakers bench in game 1 and they will need solid contributions from them again in game 2.   With Perk's status uncertain, they will need big games from PJ and Leon again.  Posey's defense is also key. 

Coaching  Doc Rivers won round 1 of the coaching matchup.  Phil Jackson has been here before and will make adjustments and so Doc must be ready to counter them.  In the Finals, coaching becomes even more important.  Doc has proved that he is up to the task and hopefully this will continue. 

[Chief]

3-0 with my good luck charm. Daniel-san needs some love:

[Redz]

OK, I humbly submit to the powers of the Karate Kid.

"Wax on.  Wax off. Wax the Lakers.  Wax Phil Jackson's mustache"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PycZtfns_U

[Roy Hobbs]

This one goes out to Paul Pierce:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=DnvXpLOzKeQ

[Hrvoje]

Can anybody please explain this mania with karate kids?

[Redz]

Can anybody please explain these mania with karate kids?

Goofy pregame Game Thread ritual...Started with Rocky, then the Celtics lost so along came the Karate Kid and the Celts are 3-0 since (should we show this stat to LakerLanny?)

[wdleehi]

Here is a good one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4Lpj8mXKj8


Starting 5:50 and 6:57, we get to see what happens to the Lakers if they lose game 2.   

[wdleehi]

Plus, I was watching it last night.

[BudweiserCeltic]

We're 2-0 with the two following clips too, so I'll just throw them out there for good measure:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWVhiIisH30

And here's one for Sam, won both games, and he has played decently with it. So here's for Sam, to 'be good':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHApjDCkt9U

[ma11l]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2008/news/story?id=3432251


Good news on Pierce, hopefully he's closer to 100% than some thought he would be.  We won Game 1 despite Perk, but I still want to see the big guy be able to give it a go tonight.  We're not far removed from the great games he played against the Pistons.  9 hours until tip off, Thursday was great, but its value as a win is diminished if we give up homecourt advantage tonight, we must defend the house tonight baby!

[Edgar]

Lets Go Celtics

I hoope I will make my wireless connection work top be in the chat by game time

Lets go celtics

Make this 2-0

BEAT L.A.

[Redz]

Prediction for tonight:  Pierce has to come out of the game early, and the Celts still spank the shorts off LA.  I felt like they were still going to beat them in game 1 if PP didn't come back. I'm not wishing this, but I really believe they just have "IT" now.  They understand that they can do this.  They have the eye of the fisher!

[RebusRankin]

This summer I really need to rent Karate Kid again.

[Edgar]

Fun one


I am at home with 39.5 of temperature
with the flu , running nose, headache
and I am still waiting for this instead of sleeping
Man
Please team win for the team

[PerkinsERA43]

if the Celts win this one, the series is over. I'm serious. This 2-3-2 format can either be disastrous for the home team (if they split) or incredibly beneficial (if they hold serve). I have a strong feeling that we will take at least one game in LA, and if that comes to pass, then we will only need to win 1 of 2 games at home when we come back. Winning the first two games gives quite a cushion and a big advantage...... not that we need it.