Boston Celtics vs Los Angeles Lakers: 2008 NBA Finals / Predictions

[BringToughnessBack]

I say PP and the Celts win in 6th in LA..if we are in that position to win it in Game 6, I need to find a way to infiltrate the enemy arena...How on Earth am I going to get tickets!! Time to start calling in some favors for that game and hopefully a game in Boston.

Beat LA!

[nickagneta]

That collective scream we heard in the background at the end of the game was the executives at ABC having an orgasm!

I can only imagine what they are going to get for a 30 second advertising slot.

Oh yeah, Celtics in a classic! 7 games! It's time to make history once again.

As an aside I hope all here at Celticsblog realizes this will not be easy. Let's not try to crucify our players or our coaches for every minor problem. We will definitelt be losing at least 2 games in this series.

Realize that. Let it sink in. Because this will be a war and in war there are always losses.

But we will overcome and the Garden will rock like never before after a game 7 classic!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CELTICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What the hell are we going to do for 6 days Nick?  6 DAYS!! 

Holy dissections coming Batman

I'll tell you what I'm doing. I'm going to go and buy a VCR.

Then I'm going into the back of the attic and open that box of videos of my kids when they were younger and the 1986 NBA Finals that I recorded back in the day.

And each night starting tomorrow I'm watching at least one full game.

I should be a quite a lather by the time the introductions start at 9:15 PM or so on Thursday.

What my two sons just did is grab their sleeping bags and iPods and some other stuff and had their mother drop them off at Wellington Station. 3 stops later their camping out for tickets.

That is probably going to be time well spent.

I hope anyway, I don't know if they are going to sell anymore tickets or not but on the outside chance they are, they left.

[threzd]

I say PP and the Celts win in 6th in LA..if we are in that position to win it in Game 6, I need to find a way to infiltrate the enemy arena...How on Earth am I going to get tickets!! Time to start calling in some favors for that game and hopefully a game in Boston.

Beat LA!

Games 1, 2, 6, 7 are in Boston,
games 3, 4, 5 in LA

[jblaze]

Celts in 6...

we sweep the first two games, win one out of three in LA then take Game 6 and raise #17

[Cman]

Celts in 6...

we sweep the first two games, win one out of three in LA then take Game 6 and raise #17

Yup, we raise #17 on June 17th.  It will be perfect. 

[footey]

With the national media predicting the Lakers almost unanimously, I thought it would be good to start a thread on our prediction and its basis.

I like the Celtics in 5. I know I may seem like a homer, but I really feel strongly that we will control this series, for several reasons.

1. We will have plenty of rest going into the series. As an older team, that is an advantage.
2. We clearly can take care of business on the road. What happened in ATL and CLE is now irrelevant.  Beating Detroit in 6 is more impressive than beating SA in 5, in my book. Especially winning there twice.
3. We are a much better defensive team.
4. We match up very well personnel-wise.
5. We are hungrier.
6. We have home court advantage.
7. PP historically is a beast vs. the Lakers. He is also showing that in big moments, he is a star and a leader.
8. The pressure is on LA, with everyone taking them.  The media has practically annointed them champs, the new dynasty. Yeah right.
9. I'll take our big 3 over their big 3 any day.

[PRIDE]

I think Paul Pierce is the key to this series. I think he realizes that this is what you play for. You play your whole life to get to this point and now theres nothing to do but win. You can say the same for all of the Big 3 but I think Pierce will make of break the series.

[Hoops]

I think Paul Pierce is the key to this series. I think he realizes that this is what you play for. You play your whole life to get to this point and now theres nothing to do but win. You can say the same for all of the Big 3 but I think Pierce will make of break the series.

Pierce may be the key, but I think Allen will have a great series. Unless Kobe guards Allen, I think LA will have a more difficult time with him than Detroit or Cleveland.

[celticsmaniac]

With the national media predicting the Lakers almost unanimously, I thought it would be good to start a thread on our prediction and its basis.

I like the Celtics in 5. I know I may seem like a homer, but I really feel strongly that we will control this series, for several reasons.

I would love to believe your prediction but I feel it is much more likely the Lakers will beat us in 5. Let's take a look at your reasoning:


1. We will have plenty of rest going into the series. As an older team, that is an advantage
-true, but the Lakers are still the younger, more athletic team.

2. We clearly can take care of business on the road. What happened in ATL and CLE is now irrelevant.  Beating Detroit in 6 is more impressive than beating SA in 5, in my book. Especially winning there twice.
- debatable. Just coz we won two in Detroit doesn't mean the losses at ATL and CLE didn't happen.

3. We are a much better defensive team.
- I think so too.

4. We match up very well personnel-wise.
-I disagree but don't have time to break it down matchup by matchup right now.

5. We are hungrier.
- how could you claim to know that even if it were true? You think the Lakers could have knocked off the Spurs in 5 without being famished?

6. We have home court advantage.
- thank god for that, but homecourt advantage is kind of warped in the finals thanks to the ridiculous 2-3-2 format. If u win the first two at home and then drop three on the road, that's an incredible amount of pressure to win those last two at home. If you drop one of the first two at home, you're very likely not to get back there for a game 6.

7. PP historically is a beast vs. the Lakers. He is also showing that in big moments, he is a star and a leader.
- he sure is, but Kobe is a beast vs. everyone

8. The pressure is on LA, with everyone taking them.  The media has practically annointed them champs, the new dynasty. Yeah right.
- I want to believe this but I think the pressure of being a favorite is kind of imaginary. What do the Lakers care if people are picking them?

9. I'll take our big 3 over their big 3 any day.
- I love our top 3 but all-around they aren't as good as LA's. our best (KG) and their best (Kobe) is a wash. Our 2nd best (Pierce) and theirs (Gasol) is a wash. But I'd take Odom over Ray anyday. I love Ray, but he's a spot-up shooter who hasn't been able to hit consistently all postseason. Odom is a solid offensive player, a very good defender and a strong rebounder. If Odom's shot isn't falling, he can still help his team in other ways. You can't say that about Ray.


I feel like there is an if, and, but or "that's just not true" for each of your reasons ecxept maybe the one about us being a better defensive team. Of course, that could be a big one since the better defensive team does seem to win the finals a lot.

[Cman]

Celtics in 6.

Oh, and I take Ray over Odom.

[RedsCeltics34]

I choose Celtics in 6.

They dont matchup well with us.

[bandonox]

6. We have home court advantage.
- thank god for that, but homecourt advantage is kind of warped in the finals thanks to the ridiculous 2-3-2 format. If u win the first two at home and then drop three on the road, that's an incredible amount of pressure to win those last two at home. If you drop one of the first two at home, you're very likely not to get back there for a game 6.

 

I'd like if someone had time to figure out the actual statistic, but since the nba has had the 2-3-2 format, it's VERY rare that the home team wins all 3 middle games... saw it a few years ago during finals coverage.. that said,  the 2-3-2 format is ridiculous...

[BigAlTheFuture]

I say PP and the Celts win in 6th in LA..if we are in that position to win it in Game 6, I need to find a way to infiltrate the enemy arena...How on Earth am I going to get tickets!! Time to start calling in some favors for that game and hopefully a game in Boston.

Beat LA!

Game 6 is in Boston because of the 2-3-2 format.

[angryguy77]

With the national media predicting the Lakers almost unanimously, I thought it would be good to start a thread on our prediction and its basis.

I like the Celtics in 5. I know I may seem like a homer, but I really feel strongly that we will control this series, for several reasons.

I would love to believe your prediction but I feel it is much more likely the Lakers will beat us in 5. Let's take a look at your reasoning:


1. We will have plenty of rest going into the series. As an older team, that is an advantage
-true, but the Lakers are still the younger, more athletic team.

2. We clearly can take care of business on the road. What happened in ATL and CLE is now irrelevant.  Beating Detroit in 6 is more impressive than beating SA in 5, in my book. Especially winning there twice.
- debatable. Just coz we won two in Detroit doesn't mean the losses at ATL and CLE didn't happen.

3. We are a much better defensive team.
- I think so too.

4. We match up very well personnel-wise.
-I disagree but don't have time to break it down matchup by matchup right now.

5. We are hungrier.
- how could you claim to know that even if it were true? You think the Lakers could have knocked off the Spurs in 5 without being famished?

6. We have home court advantage.
- thank god for that, but homecourt advantage is kind of warped in the finals thanks to the ridiculous 2-3-2 format. If u win the first two at home and then drop three on the road, that's an incredible amount of pressure to win those last two at home. If you drop one of the first two at home, you're very likely not to get back there for a game 6.

7. PP historically is a beast vs. the Lakers. He is also showing that in big moments, he is a star and a leader.
- he sure is, but Kobe is a beast vs. everyone

8. The pressure is on LA, with everyone taking them.  The media has practically annointed them champs, the new dynasty. Yeah right.
- I want to believe this but I think the pressure of being a favorite is kind of imaginary. What do the Lakers care if people are picking them?

9. I'll take our big 3 over their big 3 any day.
- I love our top 3 but all-around they aren't as good as LA's. our best (KG) and their best (Kobe) is a wash. Our 2nd best (Pierce) and theirs (Gasol) is a wash. But I'd take Odom over Ray anyday. I love Ray, but he's a spot-up shooter who hasn't been able to hit consistently all postseason. Odom is a solid offensive player, a very good defender and a strong rebounder. If Odom's shot isn't falling, he can still help his team in other ways. You can't say that about Ray.


I feel like there is an if, and, but or "that's just not true" for each of your reasons ecxept maybe the one about us being a better defensive team. Of course, that could be a big one since the better defensive team does seem to win the finals a lot.

Gasol is a wash with PP...huh? Odom over Allen, agian huh?

How can you say that Allen can't help in other ways? I'm pretty sure that even when he was missing his shots that his D was solid, not to mention clutch FT at the end of a few of those games. He was in a slump athat he appears to be out of now. The only player they have that is better is Kobe, thats it. It's not a question of how we stop them, its how are they going to stop us.

[fairweatherfan06]

Celtics in 6.  Frontline:
 Odom and Gasol can score but are soft as tissue paper Perk/KG will bully them up front defensively and offensively.  

SF: Whose guarding Pierce Vujacic?  Please Paul will have him for a light snack and have Walton's son for a main course when he comes off the bench.  

SG: Ok Kobe is the best player in the league. However Ray is a top 5 shooting guard when his shot is falling and still top 10 (and commands that respect from opponents) when its not IMO.  If they put Derek Fisher on him he can shoot over Fisher and/or go to the hoop.  Plus Ray classically duels with Kobe and doesn't do a half bad defensive job on him.  Plus when Kobe is trying to reserve energy he will lay of defensively and that could leave the guy he is covering some room offensively too.

PG: Fisher is an easier matchup for Rondo he should have more comfort this series

Both Benches are an X-factor but ours has more experience and I tend to think that will matter more.

Obviously coaching goes to the Lakers but I think you put the Celtics STAFF (Thibodeaux and them) versus the Lakers and its closer than you think.  One thing about the C's is they have been well prepared (regardless of how they've played) for every series and game.

Celtics in 6 is very doable.