Monday, June 16, 2008

See You Tuesday Night

Let's wrap this thing up on Tuesday OK? The tragedy is that they wasted a brillaint Paul Pierce effort and probably could have and should have won the game. Why? Here's why:

1) The NBA did absolutely nothing to quell the shouts that they go out of their way to prolong marquis series. Pretty much every single call went LA's way including the play of the game, Kobe's "steal" (a blatant reach in foul where he slapped Pierce's side causing the TO). Furthermore, there were plenty of times where Paul Pierce got mauled around the basket early in the game that went uncalled. This isn't sour grapes either, the officiating was woefully one-sided here.

2) KG. Sometimes I feel bad picking on the guy, but when he clangs two free throws that would have tied the game late after splitting a crucial pair earlier in the fourth, AND missing an easy tip-in that would have made it a two point game with about :26 left, well that aint cutting it. For a guy who pretty much bases everything he does on the "warrior mentality" he certainly seems to find consistent and new ways to come up small when it matters most. Honestly, I thought that somebody as championship obsessed as him would be able to taste it by now and be trying to do everything he possibly could to get the Celtics #17. He has not shown it to me yet, but I'm really hoping for a revelation game from him on Tuesday. I think he can do it and I believe he really might pull out a career defining performance there to get his first title, but you just never know with that guy unfortunately.

3) I am not subtle about my love for Paul Pierce. He's been my guy since he came aboard in 1999. I think I even did a dance when he fell to them at 10. To think that he could have won his first championship on the road in LA - his home town, have you heard? - but did not despite a 38/6/8 game where he hit every single clutch free throw that he took in the fourth quarter really hurts me. I truly thought that they were going to pull out Game 5 and I just wish that could have been Pierce's 2008 finale. Of course he can still do something spectacular back in Boston to make up for it, but that would have been a really, really awesome high note for him to go out on.

And with that, I'll see you on Tuesday. God's honest truth, I think the Celtics blow the doors off the Lakers and win by double-digits maybe even 20. KG has a monster first half to set the tone and in the second half they pull off the coup de grace with some timely threes by Ray Allen and some big shots and drives by Pierce. I see KG with 28, Allen with 18, and Pierce with 30 that game and the Finals MVP. You heard it hear first. Now seriously, see you Tuesday.

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