Phoenix: Land Of The Rising Suns
Everyone, including myself, expected an LA Lakers series ending by today. In other words, it was supposed to be a sweep, given the vast talent advantage and experience the purple-and-gold squad had over the Suns.
But the Suns were scrappy, their defense, particularly the zone, providing more problems for the Lakers than they ever thought. Now, after improving their playoff home record to 6-1 following their Game 4, series-tying 115-106 win against the Lakers, the Suns are heading back to Los Angeles at Staples Center with one thing in mind–take the series lead.
Ask Kobe Bryant about it, and surely, he’d give you a stern “no way” for a response.
And thus far, the Lakers own a 7-0 home record going into Game 5, where a win is a must for Los Angeles.
Since the Suns played the zone defense in Game 3, the Lakers were never the same again offensively.
The Suns completely outrebounded the Lakers, 51-36 as LA forward Pau Gasol was held to just five boards. Andrew Bynum contributed 12 points and eight rebounds in 24 minutes, but it’s clear he doesn’t move at his normal pace because of his ailing knee.
With a tied series, the Lakers obviously can’t think ahead of a possible Finals confrontation against their arch-nemesis Boston Celtics, who hold a commanding 3-1 lead against the Orlando Magic.
All LA needs to think of is regain the series momentum with a resounding Game 5 victory. Once momentum is gained, the Lakers can get their bearings and go for the kill in Game 6, which will be played in Phoenix’s home floor.
But that’s easier said than done.
Photo Source: http://theassociation.blogs.com
Gold Or Green In NBA 2010 Championship?
I know that a Boston Celtics-Los Angeles Lakers Finals clash in the NBA is quite thinking ahead. But unless the Phoenix Suns does something spectacular defensively against LA in Game 3, then the Celtics and the Lakers’ legendary Finals date would be a sealed deal already.
Boston holds a commanding 3-0 bulge against the listless Orlando five, which the Celtics completely outplayed and outhustled as evidenced in their 94-71 win before a wildly-cheering home crowd at the TD Banknorth in Boston.
If there’s anything, the Magic will only try to win at least one game to prevent an embarrassing sweep at the hands of the Celtics, who are looking for their 18th league championship in a possible 21st Finals appearance.
But with the way Boston is playing in the Playoffs, it’s pretty obvious the Celtics will try to finish off the Magic, whose playoff luster completely vanished in the face of the resurgent defense of the green-and-white squad mentored by Doc Rivers.
In Game 3, the Magic were held to a woeful 39 percent shooting from the field. Dwight Howard, who scored 30 points in a Game 2 losing effort, was held down to just seven points and seven rebounds.
As the Celtics march into their second Finals appearance in three years, the Lakers (should they finally advance by beating the Suns in the West Finals) will face either one of the possibilities–get back at Boston, which humiliated them in six games, including the Game 6 clincher via a 131-92 victory, or allow the Celtics to bully them again in the Finals and let the season end in a green and white celebration.
Of course, if you ask Kobe Bryant and the rest of the Lakers, the 2008 Finals defeat would be their motivating factor as they try to make it back-to-back in their quest for NBA domination.
But with the rate the Celtics are playing, the NBA Finals will be one battle for the ages.
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Celtics and Lakers, Possible Renewal Of Rivalry
From the looks of it, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers are on a collision course for the 2010 NBA Finals.
First, Lebron James and his souped-up Cleveland Cavaliers weren’t able to stop the rejuvenated Celtics five.
Second, after two exciting games in the Eastern Conference Finals, it appears that Orlando and its top center Dwight Howard just couldn’t find any answer against the rampaging Celtics.
With a commanding 2-0 lead in the series, Boston can finish off Orlando and make Howard’s team disappear via a sweep at the TD Banknorth in Boston where the green-and-white fans are expected to come in droves to cheer on their heroes for Games 3 and 4.
Over in the West, the Phoenix Suns are just another bunch of scorers incapable of playing tough defense. Just look over the Game 2 result, Lakers prevail again–124-112.
With Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and an injured Andrew Bynum doing much of the damage inside the paint, the Suns are just two games away from seeing their Finals hopes set.
The Lakers can sink the Suns’ dimming “lights” in Phoenix, Arizona when the series moves there for Games 3 and 4.
Boston is looking for its 18th league championship and a chance to re-establish its dominance in the NBA following its unceremonious loss to Orlando during last year’s playoffs match up.
But Los Angeles isn’t about to give up its crown that easy. Kobe Bryant, even with all his injuries in his finger and knees, remains a deadly scorer, facilitator and defender for the Lakers.
He issued his playoff-best 13 assists against the Suns in Game 2, allowing Gasol to dominate the paint and lead the Lakers in scoring as their dual efforts proved too much to overcome for Phoenix.
With two more wins to go before reaching the NBA Finals, Kobe and Co. sure have two birds to hit in one stone–defend their title successfully and avenge their 2008 Finals defeat against the Celtics–in case they meet again in the Finals.
A Celtics-Lakers Finals tussle isn’t a far-fetch idea by now. Just look at the eyes of Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant.
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Celtics’ Surprise But Lakers All Business
Boston caught Orlando off guard during the Celtics’ methodical 92-88 win to steal the homecourt advantage away from the favored Magic yesterday at the Amway Arena in Orlando, FL.
On the other hand, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers were just unforgiving in their continued quest to extend their stranglehold of the NBA championship following their clinical 128-107 demolition of the smaller Phoenix Suns at the Staples Center in LA.
Two contrasting victories between two legendary opponents, who has had NBA epic battles dating back to the 1960s during the Bill Russel-Jerry West era.
I’m sure NBA fans who are hoping for a Lakers-Celtics Finals face-off are happy to see the results after Game One.
Well, I’m quite surprised with the kind of energy Boston showed in Game One against Orlando and its youthful center Dwight Howard, who finished the game with a “quiet” 13 points and 12 rebounds, compounded by his game-high seven turnovers.
Considering that Boston had to turn back the time in its Eastern Conference semifinal showdown against Lebron James the Cleveland Cavaliers, I was expecting the Celtics to slow down a bit and try to pace themselves against the younger, more athletic Magic squad.
But Doc Rivers sure knows they can’t play relaxed basketball against an Orlando team that moves the ball well both inside and out of the perimeter.
Now, holding a 1-0 lead, Boston’s confidence is high, putting the Celtics within just three more wins that could bring them back to the NBA Finals and a chance to regain the title they lost last season.
Meantime, Kobe Bryant was all business from the very start. Though slowed down by various injuries throughout the season, Kobe was devastating in every way against the Suns’ best defensive effort against him.
His 40-point Game One explosion was his 11th in career-playoff games, while his virtuoso performance was perhaps, some kind of a proof that the Lakers are making a strong statement that the Suns’ dominant ways in the West are really over.
The Suns have eliminated the Lakers during the 2006 and 2007 playoffs when Kobe still had no strong supporting cast to lean on.
With that crushing 21-point Western Conference Finals series-opening defeat, the Suns will have to go back to the drawing board and see what major adjustment they can make in order to prevent Kobe from doing more damage in the succeeding games.
So, Boston and Los Angeles in the Finals?
Still early to say. I expect the Magic to come out strong Game Two onwards, while the Suns, I’m sure will find a way to make the series in the West “exciting”.
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Will The Suns From Phoenix Rise In Los Angeles?
The up and running Phoenix Suns as I sensed last week, will be facing the reigning NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers starting Monday next week.
The Suns completely outplayed the fast aging San Antonio Spurs in their Western Conference semifinals series to score a resounding 4-0 sweep and put away whatever past playoffs frustrations they have with Tim Duncan and Co.
Now, the big challenge ahead of the Suns is how they could match up size-wise against the Lakers, whose frontline combo of Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum posed terrible problems against an undersized and injury-depleted Utah Jazz.
Gasol, the 7-foot Spanish center, finished off the Jazz in Game with 33 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks on the Lakers’ series-clinching 111-96 victory over Utah.
The Lakers obviously will have to contend with Suns playmaker Steve Nash, who at 36, continues to play like a young, energetic college point guard.
His plays with pick-and-roll partner Amare Stoudemire gave the biggest headache on San Antonio coach Greg Popovich whose speed and athleticism (by the Phoenix’s 6′10″ power forward) proved too much to handle.
Defense will be the Lakers’ ticket once more if they hope to make it back to the NBA’s Finals’.
Head-to-head, the Lakers took the regular season series, 3-1 with Los Angeles winning by more than 20 points in those two encounters held at the Staples Center.
Dallas, Denver and San Antonio, three squads tipped to seriously challenge Los Angeles in the West are now out of playoffs contention. Now, it’s up to Nash, Stoudemire and the Suns to prove they deserve to be in the Western Conference Finals. And if they get past the Lakers, make it to the Finals.
Whose your bet? Suns or Lakers?
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