And here is the problem with the rose colored glasses of fandom. You tend to only see the things that didnt go right for your team, and completely discount when things dont go well for the opposition.
Heres what I took away from that game.
The lakers visibly let up at about the 6 minute mark and stopped looking to take the best shot, and started looking to run clock. This led to the lakers winding down the clock and taking any old shot at the end of the clock, those are the "stops" that allowed the celtics to make the 20 point blowout a 9 (real)point loss.
Kobe was inefficient, forced the ball,and took some questionable shots, yet still logged 27 (real points).
Lamar odom was essentially a non-factor, and the laker bench's contribution in general other than against finely was pretty weak, they contributed a total of 14 points. Lamar went off for 19 against the suns and has consistently been in the teens.
Point being this isnt the best out of either team.
Things likely to change in game 2? Ray allen on the floor, thats is about it. Ray allen will increase the offensive output of the celts for sure, but he is a liablity on defense. What is that offset going to mean going forward?
I think personally its a blessing and a curse, in that the game will have a higher score, but I dont think higher scoring games favor the celts.
Additionally, I think too much is being made of Allen's absence, when he plays well hes usually in the 20 point range, he had 12, 8 more points is still a loss, by one point which resembles the game these two teams played when at full strength earlier in the year.
Heres my X factor, nate mother f'n robinson. If all things revert to the norm he is the only thing that can get the celts over the hump.