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Paul Pierce would score 15 points in the third quarter to give Boston the lead for good, and [[Kevin Garnett]] paced the Celtic attack with 24 points and 13 rebounds including a powerful two handed putback slam dunk late in the game. [[Kobe Bryant]] struggled with his shot, finishing 9-26 from the field with 24 points.
Paul Pierce would score 15 points in the third quarter to give Boston the lead for good, and [[Kevin Garnett]] paced the Celtic attack with 24 points and 13 rebounds including a powerful two handed putback slam dunk late in the game. [[Kobe Bryant]] struggled with his shot, finishing 9-26 from the field with 24 points.


Also notable was Pierce's knee injury after [[Kendrick Perkins]] bumped him in the third quarter; Pierce eventually returned 2 minutes later.
Also notable was Pierce's knee injury after [[Kendrick Perkins]] bumped him in the third quarter; Pierce eventually returned 2 minutes later. Although many analysts consider Pierce's antics as dramatics.<ref>http://guide.real.com/dir/news/sports/21121148_pierce_deserves_an_oscar.html</ref><ref>http://thebiglead.com/?p=6141</ref><ref>http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/24997060/</ref>


===Game 2===
===Game 2===

Revision as of 08:49, 17 June 2008

2008 Finals
TeamCoachWins
Boston Celtics Doc Rivers 3
Los Angeles Lakers Phil Jackson 2
DatesJune 5 - TBD
MVPTBD
Hall of FamersCoaches:
Phil Jackson (2007)
Eastern finalsBoston defeats Detroit, 4–2
Western finalsLos Angeles defeats San Antonio, 4–1
{{{league}}} finals

The 2008 NBA Finals is the championship series of the 2007-08 National Basketball Association season, and is the conclusion of this year's postseason. It pits the West's top seeded Los Angeles Lakers, the winner of the Western Conference Finals, against the East's top seeded Boston Celtics, the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals, marking the first time since 2000 that both top seeds from each Conference met in the Finals. The Lakers appear in the Finals for the first time since 2004 and a record 29th time overall. The Celtics appear in the Finals for the first time since 1987 and second best 20th time overall.

Overall, the Celtics have won the most championships all-time with 16, and the Lakers are second with 14. Both clubs, the two most successful teams in NBA history, look to renew a long-standing rivalry 21 years after their last NBA Finals meeting in 1987. They narrowly missed out in meeting each other in 2002. This is the 11th time the teams will meet in the championship round (1959, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1984, 1985, 1987, 2008). The Celtics own an 8-2 record all-time against the Lakers in the NBA Finals.

The Celtics have home court advantage due to Boston's (66–16) better record than Los Angeles (57–25). This is the first time that an Eastern Conference team will have the home court advantage since 1997, when the Chicago Bulls beat the Utah Jazz for the championship.

The Celtics defeated the Lakers in both regular season contests.

This was the first Finals since 1998 not to feature either Tim Duncan or Shaquille O'Neal.

Road to the finals

Main article: 2008 NBA Playoffs
Los Angeles Lakers Boston Celtics
57-25 (.695)
1st Pacific, 1st West, 3rd overall 		Regular season 66-16 (.805)
1st Atlantic, 1st East, 1st overall
Defeated the (8) Denver Nuggets, 4-0 First Round Defeated the (8) Atlanta Hawks, 4-3
Defeated the (4) Utah Jazz, 4-2 Conference Semifinals Defeated the (4) Cleveland Cavaliers, 4-3
Defeated the (3) San Antonio Spurs, 4-1 Conference Finals Defeated the (2) Detroit Pistons, 4-2

Regular season series

The Boston Celtics won both games in the regular season series:

Series scoring summary

Team Games Wins
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Los Angeles Lakers 88 102 87 91 103   If necessary 2
Boston Celtics 98 108 81 97 98   If necessary 3

Key: Boldface - win, italics - home court, * - number of overtimes.

Game summaries

All times listed below are Eastern Daylight Time. Games marked with an asterisk (*) are if necessary.[1]

Game 1

June 5
9:00 pm
Los Angeles Lakers 88, Boston Celtics 98
Scoring by quarter: 21–23, 30–23, 22–31, 15–21
Pts: Bryant 24
Rebs: Gasol 8
Asts: Bryant, Fisher 6 each
TOs: Bryant 4		 Pts: Garnett 24, Pierce 22
Rebs: Garnett 13
Asts: Rondo 7
Stls: Posey 2
TD Banknorth Garden, Boston
Attendance: 18,624
Referees:

Paul Pierce would score 15 points in the third quarter to give Boston the lead for good, and Kevin Garnett paced the Celtic attack with 24 points and 13 rebounds including a powerful two handed putback slam dunk late in the game. Kobe Bryant struggled with his shot, finishing 9-26 from the field with 24 points.

Also notable was Pierce's knee injury after Kendrick Perkins bumped him in the third quarter; Pierce eventually returned 2 minutes later. Although many analysts consider Pierce's antics as dramatics.[2][3][4]

Game 2

June 8
9:00 pm
Los Angeles Lakers 102, Boston Celtics 108
Scoring by quarter: 22–20, 20–34, 19–29, 41–25
Pts: Bryant 30
Rebs: Radmanović, Gasol 10 each
Asts: Bryant 8
TOs: Bryant 4		 Pts: Pierce 28, Powe 21
Rebs: Garnett 14
Asts: Rondo 16
3P-FG: Pierce 4/4
TD Banknorth Garden, Boston
Attendance: 18,624
Referees:
The opening tipoff of Game 2

The Lakers jumped out to an early 15–8 first quarter lead, but the Celtics answered with a 10–0 run at the start of the second quarter and ended the first half with a 54–42 lead.

The Celtics held a 24-point with less than eight minutes to go in the 4th quarter before the Lakers cut the lead to two points with 38.4 seconds to go. Paul Pierce and James Posey then closed out the game with two free throws each. The Lakers had a chance to take the lead with 14 seconds left, but the ball failed to get into the hands of Kobe Bryant, resulting in a shot by Sasha Vujačić that was blocked by Pierce. Bryant finished the game with 30 points and 8 assists.

Leon Powe, a second year bench player, scored 21 points on 6–7 shooting in 15 minutes of play, including back-to-back dunks in the last minute of the 3rd quarter.

Despite injuries suffered by Pierce (sprained knee) and Kendrick Perkins (high ankle sprain), both players started in Game 2 and appeared to be unhampered by the injuries, especially Pierce who finished with 28 points.

Boston finished the game 27-for-38 from the line, while the Lakers were 10-for-10. Some analysts viewed this as favorable treatment toward the Celtics[5][6], while others noted that a difference in playing styles may have lead to the discrepancy, and that the actual foul discrepancy was only 28-21 in favor of Boston[7].

Game 3

June 10
9:00 pm
Boston Celtics 81, Los Angeles Lakers 87
Scoring by quarter: 20–20, 17–23, 25–17, 19–27
Pts: Allen 25
Rebs: Garnett 12
Asts: Garnett 5
FG: Pierce 2/14		 Pts: Bryant 36, Vujačić 20
Rebs: Gasol 12
Asts: Farmar 5
3P-FG: Vujačić 3/5
Staples Center, Los Angeles
Attendance: 18,997
Referees:

In Game 3, the Lakers beat the Celtics 87-81. Paul Pierce had a poor shooting game, making only 2 of his 14 field goal attempts. Garnett also had trouble shooting having only 12 points. Ray Allen was the only member of Boston's big 3 that did well with 25 points. Sasha Vujacic scored 20 points in 28 minutes, similar to Boston's Powe's performance in game 2. Kobe Bryant scored a series high 36 points leading the Lakers to their first series win and adding another win to their undefeated streak at home in the 2008 post season.

Game 4

June 12
9:00 pm
Boston Celtics 97, Los Angeles Lakers 91
Scoring by quarter: 14–35, 26–23, 31–15, 26–18
Pts: Pierce 20, Allen 19
Rebs: Garnett 11
Asts: Pierce 7
Stls: Allen 3		 Pts: Odom 19
Rebs: Gasol, Odom 10 each
Asts: Bryant 10
FG: Bryant 6/19
Staples Center, Los Angeles
Attendance: 18,997
Referees:
  • #14 DeRosa
  • #29 Javie
  • #49 Washington

The Lakers jumped out to a 35–14 lead after the 1st quarter. The Lakers held their ground for most of the third quarter, leading by as many as 24 points. The Celtics went on a 21–3 run to end the third quarter, closing the deficit to two (73–71). With 4:07 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Celtics took the lead for good when Eddie House made an 18-foot jumper. The Celtics' victory in Game 4 was the largest comeback in the NBA Finals since 1971[8]. Kobe Bryant had 17 points (6 of 19 from the field), 14 of those coming in the 2nd half. The Celtics bench outscored the Lakers bench 35–15. Kevin Garnett finished with 16 points.

No NBA team has ever come back to win the Finals when trailing 3–1.

Game 5

June 15
9:00 pm
Boston Celtics 98, Los Angeles Lakers 103
Scoring by quarter: 22–39, 30–16, 18–24, 28–24
Pts: Pierce 38
Rebs: Garnett 14
Asts: Pierce 8
TOs: Pierce 5		 Pts: Bryant 25
Rebs: Gasol 13
Asts: Gasol 6
Blks: Odom 4
Boston leads series, 3–2
Staples Center, Los Angeles
Attendance: 18,997
Referees:

Like Game 4, the Lakers jumped out to an early lead, leading 43-24 with 11 minutes to play in the 2nd quarter. Also, like game 4, the Celtics came back and made the game competetive, and took a 62-60 lead behind the strong play of Paul Pierce. The Lakers would regain their composure, and built a 14 point lead in the 4th quarter. The Celtics would again comeback with a 16-2 run to tie the game at 90 all. With less than 1 minute left in the game, the Celtics had the ball with the Lakers leading 97-95. Pierce had apparently beat Bryant off the drive, but Bryant knocked the ball out of Pierce's hands from behind. Lamar Odom picked up the loose ball and passed down court to Bryant for a break away dunk, giving the Lakers a 99-95 lead. The play arguably saved the Lakers season, at least for one more game, and the Lakers would go on to win 103-98, pushing the series to 6 games.

Kobe Bryant scored immensely well in the 1st quarter with 15 points. But, he would only come to score 10 more for the rest of the game. However, Kobe Bryant made up for his lack of offense with good defense, which includes 5 steals - 2 of them in the fourth quarter. Gasol played well, with 19 points, 6 assists, and 13 rebounds. Though, it doesn't show in the stat sheet, his rebounds were very big plays, keeping Laker possessions alive.[9]

Another note is that the Lakers finally controlled the 3rd quarter, outscoring Boston 24 to 18. In previous games, the Lakers have been outscored by Boston in the 3rd quarter (22-31 in Game 1, 19-29 in Game 2, 17-25 in Game 3, and 15-31 in Game 4), with the complete total of 73-116, or +43 points in favor of Boston.

Another unusual note is the fact that Chris Mihm played for several minutes. Mihm has been out for more than half of the season (having only played 4 games since December 23rd, totaling only 25 minutes with 4 points). Phil Jackson promised the media that he would not be experimenting with that in Game 6.

As for the odds stacked against the Lakers to comeback from a 3-1 deficit, Jackson claims "we are young and stupid enough to do it."

Game 6

Game 7

Rosters

2008 Los Angeles Lakers Finals roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. From
SF 3 United States Ariza, Trevor 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) UCLA
SG 24 United States Bryant, Kobe (C) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Lower Merion HS (PA)
C 17 United States Bynum, Andrew Injured 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 285 lb (129 kg) St. Joseph HS (NJ)
PG 5 United States Farmar, Jordan 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) UCLA
PG 2 United States Fisher, Derek 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Little Rock
F/C 16 Spain Gasol, Pau 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Spain
G 11 United States Karl, Coby 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Boise State
C 28 Democratic Republic of the Congo Ilunga Mbenga, Didier 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 215 lb (98 kg) DR Congo
C 31 United States Mihm, Chris 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Texas
SF 14 United States Newble, Ira 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Miami (OH)
F 7 United States Odom, Lamar 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Rhode Island
F 10 Serbia Radmanović, Vladimir 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Serbia
PF 21 France Turiaf, Ronny 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Gonzaga
G 18 Slovenia Vujačić, Sasha 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Slovenia
SF 4 United States Walton, Luke 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Arizona
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster
Last transaction: 2008-03-21


2008 Boston Celtics Finals roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. From
SG 20 United States Allen, Ray 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Connecticut
SG 42 United States Allen, Tony 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 213 lb (97 kg) Oklahoma State
C 93 United States Brown, P.J. 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 239 lb (108 kg) Louisiana Tech
PG 28 United States Cassell, Sam 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Florida State
PF 11 United States Davis, Glen 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 289 lb (131 kg) LSU
PF 5 United States Garnett, Kevin 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Farragut
PG 50 United States House, Eddie 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Arizona State
C 43 United States Perkins, Kendrick Injured 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 264 lb (120 kg) CJOHS
SF 34 United States Pierce, Paul (C) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Kansas
C 66 United States Pollard, Scot Injured 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 278 lb (126 kg) Kansas
SF 41 United States Posey, James 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 217 lb (98 kg) Xavier
PF 0 United States Powe, Leon 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) California
PG 13 United States Pruitt, Gabe 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 170 lb (77 kg) USC
PG 9 United States Rondo, Rajon 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 171 lb (78 kg) Kentucky
PF 44 United States Scalabrine, Brian 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) USC
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster
Last transaction: 2008-03-04

Broadcasting rights

Aside from ABC (U.S.) and TSN (Canada), other broadcasters across the world will cover the Finals:[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ "2008 NBA Finals Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-05-31.
  2. ^ http://guide.real.com/dir/news/sports/21121148_pierce_deserves_an_oscar.html
  3. ^ http://thebiglead.com/?p=6141
  4. ^ http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/24997060/
  5. ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2008/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=jacksonlakers-080609
  6. ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/080609
  7. ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dime-080610
  8. ^ http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/25129400/
  9. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/lakers/2008-06-16-gasol-game-5_N.htm?csp=34
  10. ^ Global NBA Programming, NBA.com
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