*2010 NBA Finals*

[otismalibu]

Lakers cruise tonight, right?

[jonzr]

Wow, I guess home court matters.  That was a fugly game according to the second half that I watched.  Man, the Celtics went cold.  Can't say I was rooting for the Lakers, but any time a NE team loses a championship, an angel gets its wings.

Suck on that, Page 2 Sports Guy.

[Merman1983]

Wow, I guess home court matters. 

Yeah, talk about some subjective officiating. Only watched the 4th but seemed like LA went to the line 5x as much. Don't really care for either team as Kobe is a giant tool and Boston is a bunch of thugs, but glad LA won. 2 epic meltdowns by Boston/NE sports team in a matter of a few weeks is like christmas in June. Plus Artest's post-game interviews are worth the price of admission.

[jonzr]

Plus Artest's post-game interviews are worth the price of admission.

That guy's a nut, no doubt.  He hi-jacked that interview!

"I'd like to thank my shrink ..."

[otismalibu]

I was online and kept checking the ticker. When I saw Artest leading the Lakers in scoring, had to tune in online. I wasn't going to waste TV hours on a game where the winner might not hit 75 points.

I watched about the last 10 minutes. No one really stepped up. Caveman couldn't even hit FTs. Nice up and down on the Gasol bucket too. But, that's another call that no longer is made in the NBA.

Ah well, as long as Simmons is crying, it fine by me.

[aj_law]

That continues the bagel streak for visiting teams in Game 7s on the road (in a 2-3-2 format).  Damn hard to go to another team's homecourt and win a deciding game.  Think the last time it was done was back in the 70s when they had some other weird format.

Overall, I'd say it was a pretty ugly game.  First half, LA had a hard time scoring and Boston couldn't rebound as the Lakers size really played a huge role in keeping them close.  They were doing everything to throw it away early including being Shaq~like from the FT line.  Second half, the LakeShow broke through a bit as guys like Artest and Gasol were able to put the biscuit in the basket.  LA still held serve on the rebounding margin and they really ramped up the defense.  Boston was either turning it over or settling for one and done which usually was a long range jumper.  Somewhat ironic as Boston is a pretty good defensive team and LA basically beat them at their own game; especially down the stretch.  Perkins being sidelined definitely hurt them, but if they're gonna use that excuse then LA should be able to do the same for when they lost to them in '08 without Bynum.

Kobe being Finals MVP was...I'm not sure how to put it.  Overall, he clearly played the best for the series, but last night he actually looked nervous.  He made some poor decisions, bad shots and inexcusable turnovers, but at the same time, when it counted most, he was able to defer (again) to his teammates to get it done.  He struggled all night offensively.  Usually, when he starts cold, he keeps at it and sooner or later, he lights the flame.  Well, that really never happened.  The thing is, he realized it (probably later than sooner) and just worked his ass off on the defensive end forcing turnovers and being a monster on the boards.  At the other end, he acted as more of a diversion in setting up others.  When necessary though, he took it hard to the hole and initiated contact as did most of his teammates.

MVP, though?  I guess.  Pretty much by default as no one else really deserved it.  Gasol had a couple good games, but was invisible for most of the series; same for the rest of the starting five.  If you're basing it on the deciding game, I would've given it to Artest.  He was the X factor last night...as much as it pains me to say it cuz I wanted them to keep Ariza.  Psycho was a decent fill in, I suppose.

Yeah, that Gasol up and down shoulda been called, but there are a million of 'em that are missed.  About halfway through the 4th, LA (Artest?) tips and eventually steals a pass.  He's on the break and it's only Garnett back on D.  He takes it hard to the rim, KG goes for the ball and rakes him across the arms, knocking the ball out of bounds.  Shoulda been Garnett's 6th sending him to the pine, but instead the refs call it OOB on Boston and award it to LA under the basket.  Coulda been a huge mo shift there, but instead he stays on and helps to keep Boston close down the stretch.

Again, kinda ugly game, but the outcome was favorable (obv).

[otismalibu]

He's on the break and it's only Garnett back on D.  He takes it hard to the rim, KG goes for the ball and rakes him across the arms, knocking the ball out of bounds.  Shoulda been Garnett's 6th sending him to the pine, but instead the refs call it OOB on Boston and award it to LA under the basket.  Coulda been a huge mo shift there, but instead he stays on and helps to keep Boston close down the stretch.

I saw that play, but was watching online w/o sound. Didn't even register that they didn't call a foul...I thought they were saying it was before the shot. Certainly was a foul.

Been reading a few threads about how Kobe looked nervous. At least it was close.