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NBA Playoffs
- Thread starter ChiliPepper
- Start date
i've said it before, and i'll say it again: enjoy your beer Maki! LAKERS!
Wooooooot!!!!!!!!
Thanks for the kind words, not sure that this is a great one - the reffing in the first two games was atrocious and the sloppiness of the rest of the games make it less than a classic. Injuries to Bynum and Perkins had too big an impact for it to be a classic series. The big stars of both teams are not particularly lovable so that doesn't help - Kobe, Gasol, Pierce and Garnett will not be mistaken for Magic, Kareem, Bird and McHale anytime soon. I go back to the Celtic-Laker series in the 80's - so my standards are high. Laker fans will remember it fondly, I doubt anyone else will.
i've said it before, and i'll say it again: enjoy your beer Maki! LAKERS!
Fair enough. My Teddy bear is called 'woooooooooooooooot'.
this makes me so happy
blame the refs if you will, this was the c's game to lose and that's exactly what they did.
I wasnt alive during the Larry Magic time so i was wondering if people loved them THEN. And if people will 20 years from now treat kobe like magic
Dan, I will partially agree with you. The Lakers did earn it and I'm certainly not blaming the refs. I know the Celts are old and they got tired, but I still felt they blew it to some degree. Allen is such a good pure shooter and was due for at least a decent game. 3 for 14 is just abysmal, no matter who's defending. True, he did limit Kobe to 25% from the field, but he couldn't stop him from getting inside in the 4th and going to the line again and again. I should've also mentioned that I share the frustrations of some that Boston leans too often on those iso plays (or as Bill Simmons calls it, the Clogged Toilet offenseThe Lakers earned the victory, they defended better than they have all series and regardless of what Kobe or Jackson will admit, a victory over the Celtics especially in a Game 7 means more than beating the Magic.
That said - the Lakers have a grand total of 3 victories over the Celtics in the Finals which, if my math is correct is, 6 less than the 9 Celtic victories over the Lakers. But who's counting?
Greg - the Celtics did not choke, as a Red Sox and Celtic fan, I have seen a lot of choking both by my teams and others - Ray had a bad night shooting but Kobe shot 25% from the field with Ray guarding him - did Kobe choke or did Ray play good D? The Celts ran out of gas and still nearly stole it. Time to rebuild.
In general, the refs let them play, which helped the Celts. They were not the story - thank God.
Artest and Wallace came up big for their teams - go figure.
I'll take a little comfort in the savings in police overtime tonight and tomorrow. Stay safe LA TBers until we meet again.
).Oh well. I'm hoping my Magic can do better next year somehow. I hope everyone in LA comes out of tonight unhurt or at least alive.
this makes me so happy
blame the refs if you will, this was the c's game to lose and that's exactly what they did.
Celts got jobbed by the refs. Period.
Yes - Bird and Magic were loved by their fans and respected by their rivals. I imagine casual fans probably liked them both. EDIT - I didn't hate Magic in the day, I wished he was on my team because he could do anything on a basketball court.
Kobe is the most talented basketball player today. But Magic and Bird saved the NBA. Kobe has nowhere near the personality of Magic; he is much closer to Bird in general ornaryness. If Kobe is doing NBA Finals commentary and/or McDonalds commercials in 25 years, I will be shocked.
If Kobe can behave himself for 20 years, his ceiling is Wilt Chamberlin or Kareem.
Greg, I hate the Clogged Toilet offense as much as anyone. But the strategy of stopping Kobe and taking your chances with the others was what gave the Celts their best chance and it almost worked. The problem is that by committing so many guys to the perimeter, you lose out on rebounding.
In 20/20 hindsight, I guess Ray should have taken fewer shots, but the shots he got were in the normal offense (and nowhere near as bad as the doo-doo that Kobe what throwing up in the first half), but it is hard to stop giving the ball to best your best pure shooter. The difference was that Gasol was able to rebound all those Kobe bricks.
In 20/20 hindsight, I guess Ray should have taken fewer shots, but the shots he got were in the normal offense (and nowhere near as bad as the doo-doo that Kobe what throwing up in the first half), but it is hard to stop giving the ball to best your best pure shooter. The difference was that Gasol was able to rebound all those Kobe bricks.
Haha thats true, Kobes very professional and i respect that about him. I can see Fisher or maybe Odom in that boat in a couple years more likely fisher though.
i'm with you on most of this. magic/bird SAVED the nba in the 80's, and michael jordan WAS the nba in the 90's. kobe is the man today but i think even he would admit that he'll never supplant the players before him that put the game on the map.
with that said he's competitive as they come and has a basketball IQ to match, so i wouldn't be surprised to see him coaching one day. time will tell, for now i'm sure he's fine chasing rings.
welcome to 2008.
you'll get over it.
buh-bye celtics, see you in another 20 years...
?
Competitive - yes.
Best player of his time - yes
Bird, Magic, Jordan impact on the game - no (how may AirKobe sneakers have been sold?)
That isn't a knock - just a reality check. Enjoy the title but hold off on the canonization of Kobe. Kobe is basketball's version of ARod. Great player, Hall of Fame, woundn't want to have a beer with the guy, wouldn't want him dating my daughter.
I don't see Kobe coaching, either. Too narcissistic. IMO YMMV etc.
