Lakers Vs. Celtics: A NBA Finals Prediction

The NBA Finals are upon us again and this year's race to the finish promises to be a good one. Two elite teams with an in-depth history facing each other are meeting again. What more can an NBA fan hope for?

The Celtics swept the season series with the Lakers, but this was before Los Angeles acquired Pau Gasol. So the season series means nothing now. Let's compare each team so an accurate prediction can be made.

At the point guard position the primary match up will be Derek Fisher against Rajon Rondo.

At the beginning of the season, this matchup would be largely in favor of the Lakers. But to the surprise of many, Rondo has improved his game tremendously and has shown he is no push over.  As we all saw how well he played against another elite point guard in Chauncey Billups.

Ultimately the Lakers do still hold a slight edge at the PG spot simply because of the experience that Derek Fisher has in the post-season, more specifically in the Finals. He holds three NBA championships under his belt and has been in the NBA for over ten years.  This kind of experience cannot be bought.

The shooting guard matchup will be Kobe Bryant (MVP) vs. Ray Allen.  An explanation is not really needed here but for those who desperately want one here it is, MVP vs. Ray Allen.  Kobe takes this matchup by a mile, done.

Playing the small forward position will be Paul Pierce and Lamar Odom. Another fairly clear winner here, but it is not by a landslide. Paul Pierce will score , that's a given. But it will be up to Lamar Odom to slow him as best he can.

When Odom is dedicated he can be a pretty good defender, so it will interesting to see how this matchup will pan out. But none the less Paul Pierce takes the small forward matchup.

The power forward matchup is between "The Big Ticket" KG and Vladimir Radmonovic. Both on offense and defense this matchup is clearly a big strength for the Celtics. Garnett is likely to have his way on offense and destroy Radmonovic on defense, so it will be interesting how Phil Jackson will adapt to this weak spot.

The Big Men, the centers are Pau Gasol matched up against Kendrick Perkins. Although Perkins is a beast on defense because of his all out hustle, he is likely to be dominated by Gasol. But a key factor on the other end is how the Lakers will handle Perkins.

After watching many Celtics' games this post-season, one can clearly observe that most teams sag off Perkins. This gives him an opportunity for many easy buckets, which can put a team behind quickly. So as long as Gasol doesn't allow that, the Lakers have the center matchup locked up.

Another key factor in any matchup is the bench. The Lakers have a young, energetic bench full of players with all sorts of strengths. They have Walton and Vujacic who can spread the floor with their long range. Also they have Ariza, an oversized SG/SF with long wingspan which is surely going to cause alot of problems for the Celtics offensively.

The Celtics' bench is the complete opposite, it is filled with veterans in P.J. Brown, Sam Cassell, and Eddie House. These three can be key role players in any game, and their experience is likely to be an added bonus. So, from the looks of it, the benches in this series are evenly matched.

Finally, the coaches of this series are worth a mention, Phil Jackson and Doc Rivers. This is a no contest, Phil Jackson has been here many times before and knows whats he's doing. Doc Rivers is a rookie as a head coach in the Finals, and is likely to be more harm than good, as usual.

After taking a look at each position, the benches, and the coaches, I feel that I can safely predict that the Lakers will take the series. I imagine it to be a close series, with the Lakers closing it out in six games in L.A..

So to confirm, I predict that the Lakers will take the series in six games.