Real Deal

Right, but if you consider Vegas as being a reason why he would jet to that particular team, you have to consider Los Angeles, and also New York (and that you did). I'm really not sure about the Kings headed elsewhere, though...but of course, that's for another discussion.

I don't want any baiting. If the Lakers win, the fans need to celebrate without attacking anyone else on the site, and non-fans are welcome to join in. Anyone opposing the Lakers should stay out of the game topic if you know you won't maintain your composure. Lakers fans don't need to say, "Suck it, haters," or anything along those lines. If the Celtics win, flip it and follow the same guidelines. I will hand out suspensions and permanent bans for anyone who gets out of control, no matter who it is...and that's not a wise decision on your part, because the draft is a week away, and this offseason may be the biggest yet. Enjoy the game and the environment it brings. Change your rep for one night, state who you're pulling for, all of that good stuff...but keep it under control, for the sake of the site and all other posters you've become familiar with over the years. Otherwise, there will be problems that I will deal with accordingly, and in the heat of the moment, especially after typing this announcement, it may not be a good thing for those starting the trouble.

Apparently, Rondo is going to be more aggressive tonight. Massive mistake, in my opinion. That is exactly what we want.

You mean AFTER next season, right? I believe Dalembert is signed for the 2010-11 season.

Out of the seven that voted Boston in as your winner...none of you think Pierce will get the Finals MVP? :o

If Sacramento is an option, so are the Clippers...and in that case, you'd have to add the Lakers in a sign-and-trade deal, because I think Cleveland would pull the trigger immediately on that. Possibilities are endless, really, if Cleveland and James are interested in a S&T. I would rule out Milwaukee, Minnesota, and other low-market teams that also have no shot at contending with him...but there are at least 10 teams that could shoot for contention by offering pieces that would attract the Cavaliers, and that includes Bynum. Clips have money, so a sign-and-trade doesn't have to be worked...and that throws LeBron in Los Angeles, alongside Gordon and Griffin, which would be a major issue in the Western Conference. Lots of different scenarios, really. I call Chicago, but that may change during or after the draft. Welcome to the site, by the way.

Odom is actually one of the better rebounders in the league. He does an amazing job boxing out guys, for the most part...but it's hard to pull boards down when you have so many other solid rebounders in there as well. Lamar defers to Gasol and Bynum, especially when they spend the most time in the post.

Haha, I guess if Boston wins tonight, I get to say the game was rigged?

Don't worry about the re-post, it can go into both team forums. Nice deal for Philly. Sacramento gets Dalembert, which really seems to be the downgrade, but they do dump Nocioni's contract (four years, TO on the fourth).

Haha, Boston fans are talking about how lucky we are on another site. I guess we're lucky because we didn't have Bynum, at all, for the 2008 Finals. Not even a single minute logged for him. And Ariza logged no more than 10 minutes every game because he was injured. Not to mention the fact that Drew can barely play right now, in these Finals. They can throw out all the excuses they want. They are lucky they had him for six games. If Drew was 100% for this series, it would've been over in five.

Yeah, it may extend to January (healing up). He's a big guy, so I'm really not sure...but looking back at other ACL and MCL tears, it's not good at all.

No question about it, he will. Fisher would get lit up, and Ron is really too aggressive to defend Rajon and is better suited for Pierce.

Wow, bad news. Reminds me of Bynum's injury in 2008...just didn't think it would've been that big of a deal for us, though.

Stats for Rajon Rondo, six games of the NBA Finals... Taken from a topic on TLN: http://thelakersnation.com/forums/index.php?/topic/39341-the-kobe-bryant-effect-on-rondo 1) The Celtics are 8-1 when Rajon Rondo throws 10+ assists in the playoffs this season. 2) Boston is 4-0 when Rondo grabs 7+ rebounds. 3) Kobe is holding Rondo to 7.2 APG in the Finals (his lowest among the four series he has played) and 13.5 PPG (also his lowest). 4) Aside from Game 5 (where Kobe was helping on Garnett and Pierce more), Rondo is shooting 40.3% from the floor...and that's including the 44% he shot in Game 2, when Kobe was in foul trouble. 5) Rondo has shot 33% in two of those six games against Bryant (both 5-15), and shot 6-14 (43%) in another. Removing that Game 2 where our backups and Fisher were defending Rondo, you can clearly see that Rajon's numbers took a hit. Game 5, Bryant was playing more help defense than usual, and it led to Rondo's 18 points, a lot of easy buckets and 16-foot jumpers. When Kobe is locked in on Rajon, he forces him to shoot 20-footers or give up the ball. When Rondo does decide to drive against Bryant, Kobe leads him into Gasol or Bynum, which alters his layup attempts. We saw this same thing with Russell Westbrook, when Kobe decided to defend him in Game 5...and it may have saved us the series. Hard to say that Bryant isn't one of the best defensive players in the league. His defensive IQ is way up there.

I was going to stick Rondo in there over Garnett (in the poll), but typically, the MVP is the player that scores the most in the Finals. Not 100% sure, but I'm positive Garnett is getting more buckets against Gasol, versus Rondo's buckets against Bryant.

Nic, is Rondo your choice for Finals MVP?

TIME: 9:00 PM EST TV: ABC

I just think you're making too big of a deal about it. You're paying way too much attention to everything else. When I watched the Lakers last night, I wasn't even paying attention to anything but what was happening on the court. When you go to a game and you hear that music, it gets you up out of your chair and cheering. You aren't trying to figure out what song it is, you're cheering for your team. I can tell you, right now, that you aren't as big of a basketball fan as me. Definitely not a shot at you, but come on...if you're really complaining about this, you're thinking way too much about it. The only distraction I have during a game? The commercials. When I actually went to see a game, nothing at all. Incredible environment in Oakland, some of the loudest fans I've ever been around when they were playing the Lakers, and a LOT of that had to do with the in-game music they would play when their team was bringing the ball up the court. Fans were pumped, and even when they were losing (and they had kept it close all game), everyone was chanting in sync with what was playing. As far as multiple referees go, you can call a lot more in basketball. I barely watch soccer, but I know there's a handball penalty, and one for going offsides...two major penalties...and then your typical, intentional push, trip or hold...all easy to see. In basketball, you have goaltending, illegal screens, defensive three, offensive three, reaching, holding, charges, blocking fouls, many more out-of-bounds calls, and other things you actually need more than one referee for.

Well, of course, the rebounding will take a hit for Boston...but as far as how much it helps Bynum, and how much Bynum will be able to help us now that Perkins is gone, I don't see the significance. Obviously, that will change if Drew plays 30+ minutes for us, but I doubt he will. Who knows. Well, "they" didn't exactly rule him out yet. Just a rumor, that a source close to him said that he's done. Can't really say for sure if that's even true, honestly. But I wouldn't be surprised if Boston did say he's doubtful, then they suit him up anyway. It's Hollywood (says Pierce).

If they are sending Rondo to the glass every missed shot, the Lakers need to push the tempo and look to score on breaks, especially on those long boards. By the third, everyone in green will be on tired legs besides Rajon, and basic basketball tells you to take advantage of a guy that needs to run 94 feet to catch up to streaking guards jetting down the court on the break. Pushing the tempo, and ultimately setting it in our favor, runs Boston dry. Those contested shots they take turn into bad transitions back down the court, mismatches, and either a bucket or a trip to the line under our belt. By the way, did anyone see Bryant's presser after the game? Dude was intimidating.

Bynum doesn't matter out there. He won't be a factor, either way. His knee will be worse than it was tonight. But Gasol...different story. With Perkins out, Gasol is eager to play in the post...exactly what the doctor ordered for us. He HAS to be aggressive in the post, or the triangle breaks, spacing is lost, and we lose the game.

They had the upper hand to begin with, since it's in Los Angeles. But with Perkins injured/out, most definitely. People do forget, however, that Bynum was injured and didn't even play in 2008 (when Boston beat us)...and right now, he's logging in 12-15 minutes before wrapping his knee in ice and not playing for the rest of the game. No excuses.

I wouldn't give too much credit to the bench, at least offensively. Now that I'm looking back at the stats, they didn't shoot that well. Vujacic: 3-6, 9 PTS Brown: 2-4, 4 PTS Odom: 3-9, 8 PTS Farmar: 2-6, 4 PTS Powell: 0-2, 0 PTS Walton: 0-2, 0 PTS Mbenga: 0-1, 0 PTS TOTAL: 10-30 (33%), 25 PTS I think the biggest factor was Ron Artest and Pau Gasol actually stepping up their play, ten-fold. Gasol finally put on a show, and Artest was fighting for his life out there. Just needed that ONE person to step up and help Kobe...and we got two main contributors. Then, the bench energy did factor in, of course...Vujacic, Farmar and Brown played good defense. I don't think their scoring was that big of a factor, though.