NBA Finals 2010: Celtics vs. Lakers Series Preview and Prediction

Posted by By Sports Session at 3 June, at 06 : 27 AM Print

The NBA Finals tip off tonight, and unless you have been hiding under a rock you should know that the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics are squaring off again to determine the NBA’s best team.  I am not as excited about this matchup as everyone else seems to be, I am sure the series will be good, but some variety in the Finals would be nice.

I believe Boston has the better all-around team because of a how deep their bench is, the Celtics can rely on their bench to be productive more often than the Lakers can.  With Bynum playing on one good leg, the Celtics’ starters most likely have an advantage over the Lakers’ starters except for two factors.

First, Kevin Garnett may not be fully healthy either, as he seemed a bit sluggish at times in the Easter Conference Finals.  We won’t know for sure until the series gets under way.  Second, and perhaps more importantly, Kobe Bryant, if healthy and rested, can single-handedly make up any advantage that an opposing team has.

Outside of Lamar Odom, the remainder of the Lakers’ bench is no match for the Celtics’ bench.  Even at the end of the bench the Celtics can throw a Nate Robinson out there who has the ability to score in bunches; Jordan Farmar for the Lakers has been a disappointment to say the least.

Rasheed Wallace takes over for Kendrick Perkins at center with hardly any drop off defensively.  Plus, Wallace can make shots from beyond the arc.  Wallace has been dealing with back spasms, which can take a while to heal, and remains questionable for Game One.

The bench matchup comes down to Odom and Farmar against Wallace, Davis, and Robinson. That certainly doesn’t bode well for the Lakers.  But that does not guarantee a Celtic win either as long as the Lakers have Kobe Bryant; the Lakers bench will have one job; not let the game get out of control.

The keys for the Lakers will not be Kobe Bryant’s offense, which can usually be counted on, but his defense.  He will probably be guarding Rajon Rondo, which is a smart move because Boston’s offense runs through Rondo.  Depending on which of those two has the greater success – Bryant’s defense or Rondo’s ability to distribute and run the offense could determine the series.

Ron Artest must continue to be an offensive threat as he was in Game Six against the Suns while remaining a defensive stalwart, this time against Paul Pierce.  Gasol and Odom cannot afford to disappear at the offensive end as they did in Game Six against the Suns, and Gasol cannot play soft like he did in 2008.

Lamar Odom needs to keep contributing off the bench, and Jordan Farmar must continue to be effective in relief of Derek Fisher.  But the Lakers cannot expect just two players to hold down the fort against the entire Celtics bench, it would be nice if the Lakers could get some quality minutes from Shannon Brown.

This series is hard to predict, the Lakers are a much tougher team than they were in 2008, and the Celtics are two years older.  The talk coming from the Lakers is they wanted the Celtics to redeem themselves from the embarrassment of the 2008 NBA Finals, and the Celtics want to prove they are still the best team in the NBA despite last season.

Prediction Lakers win the series in 7 games, Kobe Bryant redeems himself, and Ron Artest’s defense proves to be the difference.

Front Page Features NBA boston celtics, Celtics, conference finals, Derek Fisher, easter conference, jordan farmar, kendrick perkins, kevin garnett, kobe bryant, Lakers, lamar odom, los angeles lakers, matchup, NBA, nba finals, nba playoffs, paul pierce, rasheed wallace, Ron Artest, rondo