ESPN Finals Expert Picks

[GreenFaith1819]

Couldn't see this posted anywhere, and the 'expert' picks usually stir a bit of chatter.

http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2010/matchup/_/teams/celtics-lakers

Abbott - Lakers in 6
Adande - Celtics in 6
Broussard - Celtics in 7
Ford - Lakers in 7
Hollinger - Lakers in 7
Legler - Celtics in 6
Rose - Lakers in 7
Sheridan - Celtics in 7
Stein - Lakers in 6
Thorpe - Lakers in 6

There's much more balance in the predictions for this series and rightly so. No one has picked a winner under six games. This is definitely shaping up to be the most memorable finals series in a long while. BEAT LA.   

Nice Post - this is what I'm talking about! I love watching ESPN, but my major complaint over the playoffs was just the blatant writing us off.

In retrospect, though - can we blame them, based on The Celtic's erratic play this season?

For me, I always had hope and belief that we'd get to this point, and beyond . But if I was a Paid ESPN Analyst, I would be under tremendous pressure to show my fandom and be the only person to pick the Celtics.

At least it's more balanced, now..moreso than 07-08.

[footey]

Sheridan has been pretty critical of celts when we slid this year, but is taking us vs. Lakers.  Legler has the most credibility. 

My prediction: Celtics in 5. We split in LA and sweep in Boston.

[celticinorlando]

boston wins one of 2 in LA
LA wins one in Boston

boston heads back to LA up 3-2 and wins it in 6

[vinnie]

I might be the only one here, but I never care what the so-called experts predict. Just watch the games and hope for the best.

[vinnie]

I might be the only one here, but I never care what the so-called experts predict. Just watch the games and hope for the best.

FYI -- last night on ESPN, Bruce Bowen picked the Celtics in 7.

[celticinorlando]

boston is certainly the more tested team. key is controling gasol and making kobe work

[wdleehi]

Darn it.



I like it better when everyone picks against the Celtics.

[soap07]

Abbott and Barkley are two bald goons. Both picked us over Miami, but only in 7, and from then they picked the other team in 5, just once in 6. What expertise are we talking about?

Abbott picked the C's to get swept by the Cavs.

[PosImpos]

We're better when we're the underdogs.

That said, I'm still a little bit surprised the experts are still siding so heavily with the Lakers.

You'd thinking defeating the two best regular season teams in consecutive series, while also defeating a player from the All-NBA 1st team in each series, would be enough to convince the doubters.

The Lakers look very good, but the only team they've defeated so far that was any good defensively was the Thunder and that team is a bunch of wide-eyed youngsters with no playoff experience at all - and it still almost went 7 games.

[zerophase]

We're better when we're the underdogs.

That said, I'm still a little bit surprised the experts are still siding so heavily with the Lakers.

You'd thinking defeating the two best regular season teams in consecutive series, while also defeating a player from the All-NBA 1st team in each series, would be enough to convince the doubters.

The Lakers look very good, but the only team they've defeated so far that was any good defensively was the Thunder and that team is a bunch of wide-eyed youngsters with no playoff experience at all - and it still almost went 7 games.

If we defeat the lakers we will have literally gone through the best teams in the nba: cavs, magic, lakers. No one will be able to doubt us then.

[misha]

SI gave us some love:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/basketball/nba/05/31/finals.predictions/index.html

[Edgar]

Tim Legler loves him some green.

yup legler is a winniest

[Rondo_is_better]

boston wins one of 2 in LA
LA wins one in Boston

boston heads back to LA up 3-2 and wins it in 6

TP

[Zerosaku]

this image sums it up for me..

all of them in nba first team.

[misha]

If somebody is bored, here's Simmons and Adande talking about the finals for about 50 minutes:

http://espn.go.com/espnradio/player?rd=1#/podcenter/?id=5240892&autoplay=1&callsign=ESPNRADIO