24. No, not Kobe Bryant's jersey number.
It is the deficit the Boston Celtics came back from, after one of the worst first halves I have ever seen in the NBA Finals.
It was one of the greatest comebacks ever. That is a given. What should not have been a given is the Celtics' remarkable comeback to win the game the last four minutes of the FOURTH QUARTER.
The Lakers are now down three games to one against the team with the best regular-season record. I guess many, including yours truly, underestimated the Boston Celtics' resilience. I cannot count how many times I wrote them off.
I didn't think they would overcome the Cavaliers in the second round after being humiliated by Raza Mamba Gaga Gonzaga Pachulia and the eight-seeded Atlanta Hawks in the first round. They proved me and the rest of doubters wrong, surviving a Game Seven and a monster forty-plus performance by Lebron James.
Then there was the Eastern Conference, Finals against the veteran team of the Detroit Pistons—who, unlike the Cavs, had championship experience. Not only did the C's beat the Pistons, but they did so convincingly in six, not seven, games!
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Of course, myself and others who doubted the Boston Three Party and Co. were not going to give them a great chance against the best team of this postseason.
That team was the Los Angeles Lakers—though as of Game Four, they are not making that case for themselves.
Giving up the first two road games to Boston was bad enough, but Game Four gave folks a sign of things to come. It was a sign to doubters like me that Boston will not go away—instead, they keep fighting, clawing, and scoring back.
And how they proved doubters such as your friendly neighborhood F-Bomb wrong one more time last night, coming back from a twenty-four point deficit to win the crucial Game Four and take a commanding 3-1 series lead. No team has ever come back from down 3-1 in the NBA Finals—although Boston's Kevin Garnett alluded at last night's press conference that their work is certainly not done yet.
As for the Lakers, why not just give the Celtics the trophy now? I thought Kobe, Lamar, Pau, and Zen-Master Flex would be able to hold on to somewhat of a lead and tie the series two games a piece. After all, they only have the best player in basketball and the greatest basketball coach of all time.
Then again, perhaps I am wrong. Maybe the Boston Celtics were better than everybody truly expected them to be on the biggest stage. Perhaps the Lakers played their best ball, and still could not halt the Celtics' resilient onslaught. Nothing is set in stone as of now, but we all know one thing.
You can forget about the Kobe-Jordan comparisons—for now. But you also cannot count the Lakers out until the final buzzer, even though their chances are extremely slim.
Myself, along with any other doubters of the Celticsm have learned the hard way that the Celtics are for real.
Too bad the other guys that underestimated the Boston Celtics play for the Los Angeles Lakers.
-Fred "The F-Bomb" Richani
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