Which team has the best chances of winning it all?

[Barnabas]

It's just hard to believe that the Lakers got Gasol without having to give up anything, other than Kwame.  In any case, they have an awesome team.  Tall, mobile, and very skilled.  Can you imagine a front court of a pair of 6'10s and a 7-footer!  And all very mobile for their size.  By comparison, the Celtics are a short team. 

If we do play them for the Championship, I think Rondo and Pierce would be scared to penetrate to the basket.  All those tall guys from the Lakers will make it difficult to get off a shot inside.  Radmanovic or Odom can take Pierce inside down low and just shoot over him.

[Bankshot]

If the team with the best defense in the league makes it to the finals, they win it all.   CELTICS

Look at Cleveland.. how do you think that terrible team got all the way to the finals?.... great defense.  The Celtics are better defensively and have way more talent.  The Celtics are just as talented as the Lakers, save for Kobe (although PP has a history of sometimes matching Kobe's production head to head in LA).

LA's offense looks great right now, but they won't look that great against the Celtics defense.

[CelticsPrideKG]

We'll see I guess.  But they're not really any taller now than they were the two times the Celtics played them before . . . basically sub Gasol in for Bynum (Bynum being a much better defender in the paint).

Now I know this is the playoffs and everything but I think the Celtics would match up well enough with the Lakers to make it a very interesting series.

[Roy Hobbs]

Vegas says the Lakers.  I say the Celts.

Doc is going to coach circles around Phil Jackson.

(I'll add the obligatory "")

[BigAlTheFuture]

I can't believe I'm saying this but.. the Lakers have the best chance of winning it all. They surprised a lot of people in the playoffs. Everyone was counting them out because Bynum wasn't playing. They've been playing terrific basketball as of late. I still like our chances and strongly believe that we can beat Detroit and beat whoever makes it out the west. I bet you if Phil Jackson was our coach, we would probably be 11-0 in the playoffs right now. 

[Eja117]

The Lakers must have tremendous confidence right now, and are going to be better rested. If the Celts play the rest of the series the way they played game 3 then maybe the Celts. Otherwise I'd think Lakers

[JAM]

The Pistons & Spurs are both injured, e.g. Manu & Chauncy.  Those injuries make it very unlikely for either team to win.

I think the Celtics have a slightly better chance than LA in a head to head match up.  The reason is that the Celtics play better defense, whereas the Lakers only play D for a few spurts a game. 

The Lakers are also a terrible rebounding team, even with the "height" that they have. 

The Celtics would have to overcome Game 5 being in Los Angeles, but I think they can.

Being in Los Angeles I've seen the Lakers play a lot more than Boston this year, and when both teams are playing their best Boston is much better.  The Celtics approached their best in Game 3 in Detroit, and hopefully they'll just build on it for the rest of the Championship run.

To sum up: I can't pick two teams with two of their best players injured, and I can't pick a team that doesn't rebound or play consistent D (even, if they have Kobe).  The Celtics have been the best team all season, and now since they are learning how to play in the playoffs, they will continue to be.  # 17 is the Celtics for the taking.

[WedmanIsMyHero]

While I would be rooting for the Celtics, you have to think the Lakers would be favorites.

1. The Lakers have the best player: Like against Cleveland, the Celtics will not have the best player on the court.  Kobe has turned his game up another notch in the playoffs.  While maybe in one game, like in Game 7 versus the Cavs, Pierce could step up, in any given game the Celtics would face a disadvantage in a close game in the fourth quarter.

2. The Lakers have the best coach: This isn't even close.  This matters for things like end-of-quarter situations, end-of-game situations, dealing with when the other team goes on a run, etc.

3. The Lakers are the most efficient offensive team in the playoffs while the Celtics are the most efficient defensive team, according to John Hollinger (http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/hollinger/teamstats?sort=offeff&seasonType=3&league=nba).

However, the Lakers defense is slightly better, in a relative sense, than the Celtics offense.  And while the Celtics have a better rebounding rate, the Lakers have a better turnover rate. 

On the Lakers defense, see the following article: http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/8172066

4. Game 5 in LA.  I think the home team, when home court/field advantage is determined on the field by the teams involved (not like MLB with the all-star game), should never face an elimination game when they are trailing.  I think if the home team "holds court" they should always be at least even.  That's the benefit of having home court advantage.  So the NBA finals presents a serious disadvantage for a team like the Celtics which is much better at home than on the road.  Being down 3-2 would be a serious challenge.

So while I very much want the Celtics to win, there is a pretty good reason the Lakers would be favored. . .

The Pistons & Spurs are both injured, e.g. Manu & Chauncy.  Those injuries make it very unlikely for either team to win.

I think the Celtics have a slightly better chance than LA in a head to head match up.  The reason is that the Celtics play better defense, whereas the Lakers only play D for a few spurts a game. 

The Lakers are also a terrible rebounding team, even with the "height" that they have. 

The Celtics would have to overcome Game 5 being in Los Angeles, but I think they can.

Being in Los Angeles I've seen the Lakers play a lot more than Boston this year, and when both teams are playing their best Boston is much better.  The Celtics approached their best in Game 3 in Detroit, and hopefully they'll just build on it for the rest of the Championship run.

To sum up: I can't pick two teams with two of their best players injured, and I can't pick a team that doesn't rebound or play consistent D (even, if they have Kobe).  The Celtics have been the best team all season, and now since they are learning how to play in the playoffs, they will continue to be.  # 17 is the Celtics for the taking.

[Reyquila]

The Lakers are a terrible defensive team; They just managed to beat the Spurs by 30 points. Now they will go to San Antonio and will have to show how good they are. We will see. In the meantime, The winner has yet to be determined by the refs and Stern, so it seems. All in all, its up to the Lakers to lose it, in writing.

[Roy Hobbs]

The Lakers are a terrible defensive team

That's the common perception, but I'm not sure why.  The Lakers were fifth in points allowed per possession this year, and sixth in opposition field goal percentage.  The Lakers are also in the top ten in rebounds, rebound differential, blocks, and steals.  They're a very good defensive team. 

[ScoobyDoo]

If Boston gets out of the east, they are easily the favorites in my book.

San antonio would be more difficult for us than the Lakers.

Much like the Pistons, the Lakers will not be able to handle us around the hole and in the paint.

This may sound off but to me the Lakers beat a Dnever team in complete disarray, a utah team that plays very little interior defense and are currently feasting on an again and very tired San Antonio team.

The Celtics would crush the Lakers. One of the main reasons is that when teams actually play defense against their second unit, the players disappear.

I also don't believe Kobe would be the best player by that much in this series. Both KG and Pierce could well give him a run for his money if they are clicking.

San Antonioo would give us more trouble because of their interior size and experience.

Against SA: 4-2 or 4-3 we win
Against LA: 4-1 or 4-2 we win

As great a coach as jackson is, that will not be enough to beat the "team" that Ainge has put together.

[BigAlTheFuture]

If Boston gets out of the east, they are easily the favorites in my book.

San antonio would be more difficult for us than the Lakers.

Much like the Pistons, the Lakers will not be able to handle us around the hole and in the paint.

This may sound off but to me the Lakers beat a Dnever team in complete disarray, a utah team that plays very little interior defense and are currently feasting on an again and very tired San Antonio team.

The Celtics would crush the Lakers. One of the main reasons is that when teams actually play defense against their second unit, the players disappear.

I also don't believe Kobe would be the best player by that much in this series. Both KG and Pierce could well give him a run for his money if they are clicking.

San Antonioo would give us more trouble because of their interior size and experience.

Against SA: 4-2 or 4-3 we win
Against LA: 4-1 or 4-2 we win

As great a coach as jackson is, that will not be enough to beat the "team" that Ainge has put together.

Yeah, I agree with you. Atlanta would've beaten Denver in a playoffs series and Cleveland would've probably beaten the Jazz. A couple of weeks ago I would've rather have the Celtics play the Spurs in the Finals if we made it our of the East, but at this point, I don't care who we play. Keep in mind that Pierce plays very well against his hometown team which is the Lakers. It's probably because he gets motivated playing against Kobe or he is excited to play in front of his hometown. 

[Hollywood]

I would rather face the lakers than the Spurs. If lakers win, jackson will have more titles than red, and that is an absolute impossibility, so I like celtics over lakers baby

[WedmanIsMyHero]

If you really think the Celtics would beat the Lakers in the finals, I will see you on tradesports.com :-) (I am just kidding, I would never against the Celtics -- or bet on sports for that matter).

But seriously -- the Lakers would have the best player on the court, the better coach, a big guy that can score (Gasol) *and* a guy like Odom.  And that is aside from their array of 3 point shooting role players.  And as someone said above, their defense is better than you think.

If Boston gets out of the east, they are easily the favorites in my book.

San antonio would be more difficult for us than the Lakers.

Much like the Pistons, the Lakers will not be able to handle us around the hole and in the paint.

This may sound off but to me the Lakers beat a Dnever team in complete disarray, a utah team that plays very little interior defense and are currently feasting on an again and very tired San Antonio team.

The Celtics would crush the Lakers. One of the main reasons is that when teams actually play defense against their second unit, the players disappear.

I also don't believe Kobe would be the best player by that much in this series. Both KG and Pierce could well give him a run for his money if they are clicking.

San Antonioo would give us more trouble because of their interior size and experience.

Against SA: 4-2 or 4-3 we win
Against LA: 4-1 or 4-2 we win

As great a coach as jackson is, that will not be enough to beat the "team" that Ainge has put together.

Yeah, I agree with you. Atlanta would've beaten Denver in a playoffs series and Cleveland would've probably beaten the Jazz. A couple of weeks ago I would've rather have the Celtics play the Spurs in the Finals if we made it our of the East, but at this point, I don't care who we play. Keep in mind that Pierce plays very well against his hometown team which is the Lakers. It's probably because he gets motivated playing against Kobe or he is excited to play in front of his hometown. 

[Reyquila]

Roy, I was joking about the lakers being a terrible defensive team.