Lakers or Celtics?Who will win in the 2010 NBA Finals?

?

celtics.
1. bc i truly think they are good enough to beat the lakers right now
2. eastern conference pride

celtics.
1. good enough to beat the lakers right now

2. eastern conference/team that beat my team pride

My fav team and Pre season pick. The Lakers!!. woooooooooooo

Boycott the Finals neither totally boring overdone series

Lakers... and I think easily.

The lakers starting line-up against the Celtics 2 years ago in the finals was Fisher, Kobe, Radmanovic, Odom, Gasol. That starting line-up was going against the same starting line-up the Celtics have right now. The main guys off the bench for the Lakers were Vujacic, Walton, Farmar, and turiaf.

Why the Lakers win:

The Lakers didn't have Bynum 2 years ago [injury] and even though his knee is injured now, he's still playing pretty good and should help the Lakers against the Celtics.

2 years ago, Ariza didn't make an impact at all because he didnt have much playing time. This year, they have Ron artest to stop Paul Pierce.

The Lakers didn't have a lot of size when they played the Celtics 2 years ago [because of Bynums injury] and this year with Odom on the bench, it gives the lakers a bit more size.

They're starting at home this time, and the celtics aren't a very solid home team. Boston is also second in the leauge at losing games after leading by at least 20 points.

Why Celtics lose:

Same starting line-up, but older

This years KG is no where near the same KG that faced the Lakers 2 years ago

Lost 2 main bench players [Posey and House] that helped the celtics win 2 years ago.

They looked very tired at the end of all of the ORL/BOS games... if the games are tight between LA/BOS, I expect LA to pull away with a win.

If the Celtics were able to give up 2 games to the lakers team 2 years ago, I don't see how they can win this year.

Why the Lakers might lose

Bench. If they don't play well, they won't win.

Bynums injury. If his knee doesn't hold up, the Celtics have enough size to take over downlow.


Why the Celtics might win:

Rajon Rondo and Glen davis are better players this year than they were 2 years ago.


Lakers in 5-6

Gotta go with the Celtics.
Ill write only few things why Celtics can win this.

No player from Lakers can stop Rondo, and if Kobe guards him he will have to either play solid D and limite his offensive game or the opposite.

Artest will not stop Pierce in every game, he will prolly slow down him in 1-2 games but thats all, and even if he completely shuts him down Celtics lived up w/o Pierce vs Cavs if you remember and that says someting.

Bynum himself said he will play not so much minutes, so that means Odom will get more minutes, Gasol will NOT play his natural position for a couple of minutes and that will make mismatches, thats a big disadvantage.

Who will chase down Ray Allen all game long.
--
Some Problems:

Bad fatique.

Kobe.

Gasols offensive game.

For the history, Celtics in 6 and PP,KG,Ray or Rondo MVP, 2 many 2 choose

I picked the Lakers (of course), but honestly, this should be a very, very close series. There isn't really one decisive match-up advantage either team enjoys.

Bynum versus Perkins? If Bynum was healthy, I'd pick him for sure. And he looked solid after the trainer let him take the bulky part of the brace off. But Perkins played well against Howard, and much as I'd like to believe it, Bynum isn't exactly the physical force Howard is. So as it is, I'd like to see Perkins pick up another T.

Gasol versus KG? KG certainly isn't the same one from '08, but which of the two is in contention for greatest PF of all time? That's what I thought. Another fairly even match-up (though I'll be a bit biased and give Pau the slight edge).

Artest versus Pierce? Pierce has the better offense, Artest the better defense. But even shutting Pierce down might not be enough, as we saw when the Celtics took on the Cavs. I know Artest will play superb defense on the biggest stage of his life; but he also has to be a force on offense if the Lakers want to win.

Kobe versus Allen? Kobe enjoys a clear advantage here, but he'll have to help out with Rondo too, which diminishes it. And Allen has had a hot hand until now.

Fisher versus Rondo? Rondo enjoys the clear advantage, but Fisher has taken on Russell Westbrook, Deron Williams and Steve Nash to get here, so it's not like a disadvantage at point guard is anything new to the Lakers, and I think we've done a decent job thus far. And while he's not exactly a great PG like Rondo, we know Robinson can get hot in a hurry (see: second quarter of Game 6 against the Magic). So, advantage to the Celtics here, but it's about even with the advantage Kobe has over Ray.

The benches: The Lakers bench is the definition of inconsistency. You never know which one will show up. If they play well (Odom in particular) it's nearly impossible for them to lose. I can't really speak for the Celtics, but I do know that Allen, Robinson, 'Sheed, and Davis have all had their moments in the playoffs.

So, the key factors for me are:
1. Artest's offensive performance
2. The benches
3. Fatigue. Neither team is coming into the playoffs hale and hearty. Whose legs will give out first?
4. Motivation for revenge. You know Kobe and Gasoft (excuse me, Gasol...bet you haven't forgotten that nickname, eh, Pau?) are going to play pissed. But will it lead Kobe to pull off the miracle shots he hit against the Suns last night, or will his determination cause him to shoot the Lakers out of a close game?

In the end, the Lakers are my team. So I say they come out on top in four of the six games that will be played.

This is the same Celtics team who beat them 08 But better. Rajon is one of the best PG in the NBA now,wasn't top 10 in 08.whose gonna guard him? Kevin is healthy (wasn't at the beginning of the year but he's returned to 08 form)08 and 10 team have the same core but Along with that they get rid of there 08 dead-weight (moore,giddens,obryant,walker,) And Added Some real ballers ( Daniels,improved version of tony allen,better version of glen Davis,Scoring punch Nate Robinson,Rasheed,Finley) They lost my man posey but id tak the players i just named over him any day. So now there a lot deeper. And there deeper and by adding sheed there even tougher. Lakers have the same issues, No bynum ( He's not healthy,he's playing like shit=no Bynum basically) No toughness ( Pau is still scared of garnett.Artest isn't tough,he's crazy..theres a big difference) STILL no bench. And on top of that Kobe Bryant isnt the same guy he was in 08. With that said,There is no way the lakers win this series.C's up l's down in 6.

Its gonna be really close and part of me says LA, another part says Celts

Ima go with Celts here :/........

They have beat 2 elite teams in Cleveland and Orlando and not to take anything away from LA but LA is kinda on the same level as those other teams.

Also I think the fact that LA hasnt exactly faced a great defensive team might hurt them. Garnett has locked down both Tawn and Lewis so he could do the same to Odom and trouble Gasol. Bynum is injured but with Perkins and Sheed defending him it wouldnt matter anyway. Artest wont be much of a factor in this series offensively unless the Celts double Kobe was much as PHX did, but for the most part the celts have capable defenders in Ray, Tony and Pierce and they have great "team defense" as in they do a great job helping and covering eachother. There is the kobe factor too....but the celts play him fairly well.


Still for me right now its too close to call until I see game 1

TonyEM: I Inspire wrote:

Boycott the Finals neither totally boring overdone series

Amen brotha.

Preach homie, preach! lol.

Lakers in 6 or 7. Celtics could win, but I think their downfall will be inconsistent offense.

Boston isnt better than in 2008, kevin garnett can barely slide his feet anymore. He used to be able to keep up with point guards on switches and stay in front of them. Plus they just don't have that same swagger without posey, p.j brown, and house.

Lakers in 6

^^^ You didn't watch the last series CLEARLY. I believe garnett is the same as 08...especially on defense. Earlier in the year i thought he was done but Doc said he was still injured Now kevin says he feels 100%.

Intersting thoughts

NBA.com says Celtics in 7..Interesting, even though im not so sure that they can win in game 7 maybe in 6 but who knows.

Lakers in six.

Nuff' said.

Lakers in 5.

No sweep Abdi?

Lol. Not really. Not the Celtics.

Too hard to tell...the Celtics have been on fire this postseason, but Kobe + a monstrous frontcourt (Gasol+Bynum+Odom) is just hard as hell to beat

I think this Finals will be won by the Celtics barring injuries. Kobe is clearly injured, Bynum is also close to being done too, and wouldn't be playing if this were the regular season.

This series should be in six.

Raza wrote:

Too hard to tell...the Celtics have been on fire this postseason, but Kobe + a monstrous frontcourt (Gasol+Bynum+Odom) is just hard as hell to beat

an injured under-achieving bynum and an inconsistent odom is monstrous? if u say so

(reference from KONJ, a little lol)
2008's Lakers:
-Fisher, Bryant, Radmanovich, Odom, Gasol
--Vujacic, Ariza, Farmar, Mihm, Powell
I don't think it's just me. That line-up doesn't even come close to winning a championship.
2010's Lakers:
-Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Gasol, Bynum
--Odom, Brown, Farmar, Walton, Vujacic
2008's Celtics:
-Rondo, Allen, Pierce, Garnett, Perkins
--Posey, Davis, Brown, Allen, House, Cassell
2010's Celtics:
-RONDO, Allen, Pierce, Garnett, Perkins
--Daniels, Wallace, Davis, Robinson, Allen

Kobe:
imo, if anything, he has improved since 2008. He's finally grown out of his demanding self, and he's a leader now. Finally more disciplined, and plays better d. He's slightly a step slower on offense now, but he can still hit it.

Rondo:
Major improvement. imo, best player on team right now. Defense is on-point, even better. Offense, wow. In '08 all he really was good for was giving assists out to Pierce, Allen, and KG. Now, he can shoot the ball, he can drive, he can pass. He's another one of their threats now.

Lakers Frontcourt:
Adding Artest and Bynum to the line-up now (Artest signed this last offseason, Bynum was injured) gives you 4 quality players you can tweak with at the SF-C positions. Defensively, these guys can really hold a team. Offensively, they have all the right moves. Only thing I see actually low is rebounding.

Celtics Original Big 3:
Allen, is pretty much the same as '08. He seems like he's getting better, really he's just recovering from last year's struggle. Pierce, is still Pierce. Just not the Pierce we saw vs LA for 6 games in 08. Garnett, both defensively and offensively, really is up and down. You can't expect anything from KG anymore.

Los Angeles Bench:
Major improvement. In 08, the best bench players were Vujacic and Farmar? What the hell. They not only have Odom there now, but they've added Shannon Brown into the mix. Also, Vujacic, Farmer, and the rest of the bench have obviously been improving.

Boston Bench:
Slight improvement, I guess. They lose range, and guys who can play any perimeter D at all. But, they have gained Wallace and a better Davis. Wallace, an average rebounder. But, they lost Powe and Brown, who imo were better rebounders than Wallace, both.

Matching up:
Rondo - Fisher
Allen - Bryant
Pierce - Artest
Garnett - Gasol
Perkins - Bynum
--Wallace - Odom

Keys for Boston:
-Let Perkins bully Bynum and Gasol down low. His big body can take them. Howard did the same, but the Magic do not have more premier big men in the roster like Garnett, Wallace, and Davis to worry about.
-Balance the Big 4. Unlike '08, where Pierce did most of the producing, then Allen and Garnett came, and Rondo didn't do very much. This year, they need to attack from all points to beat the Lakers.
-Manage time! The Celtics are not as athletic and do not have as much stamina as they did in past years. They have been getting tired at the end of games. If they cannot manage their time well, the Lakers have a CRAZY edge over them after the 5 minute mark in the 4th quarter.

Keys for Los Angeles:
-Let Kobe do his thing. If they put a single man on him, I honestly think Allen doesn't have a chance with him, Rondo is a bit small, and Pierce has decreased his defensive game. If they decide to use a zone on him, or even double team when he has the ball, the Lakers are much better offensively than in 08.
-Smart defense. Artest is an amazing addition for one reason: Shut down defense. He can slow down Pierce (yes, all 4-7 games). I'm not saying he'll hold down Pierce to 3-12 and only 7 pts every game, but it's possible with Artest. I'll like to see this offense to defense match-up. Gasol needs to keep his cool against KG. Garnett is very focused on offense, he will take his time and shoot high percentage shots. Gasol just needs to stay with him.
-Crash the boards. Let's face it. Bynum, Gasol, Artest, Odom, Bryant, really have no chance on the boards when they go up against a team with Wallace, Davis, Garnett, Perkins (especially Perkins), Pierce, and Allen, if this was just an early regular season game. They have to hustle for every rebound, don't just let up. They need to keep the rebounding game close if they want a chance at the championship.



My prediction: Lakers in 7.

Very long but very bad.