LA Lakers-Boston Celtics Game Five: Lakers Bail, Celtics Sail, Up 3-1

Nearly 19,000 Laker fans at Staples Centers were ecstatic at the end of the first quarter. At the end of the fourth, they were in a state of shock.

The question for tonight, class—was this game the greatest choke of all time in the NBA Finals or was it the greatest comeback?

One thing is for sure—it’s an NBA record.

The Celtics are the team to come back from the greatest first quarter deficit (24 points), and the greatest halftime deficit (18 points) to win an NBA Finals game during the shot clock era.

But, the collary is—can the Lakers match that record by becoming the only team to come back to win the Finals from a 3-1 deficit, with the last two games on the road?

Are you dreaming?

Wake up, LA, and smell the double latte. Not against this Celtics team, with three potential Hall of Famers, and some very commendable veteran role players.

Speaking of dreams, David Stern’s dream NBA Finals match up has turned into the Nightmare on Underwhelm Street as far as competiveness is concerned.

Spot the Lakers twenty-four points in the first quarter?  No problem.  Spot them eighteen at the half?  No sweat.  We can cover.

And they did.  Much to the Lakers embarrassment.

What Stern and his media hucksters have tried to pass off as the Rivalry of the Decade is more like the Runaway of the Decade. There was more rivalry and intensity in the Boston vs. Cleveland and the Boston vs. Atlanta series. Even the Boston vs. Detroit Eastern Conference Finals had more appeal when it comes to one-on-one matchups and overall team competition.

Of course, none of those series had Jack Nicholson sitting in front row center. Maybe Phil Jackson should have gone to Jack in the last three minutes. Nicholson certainly couldn’t have done any worse. Who knows? He might have gotten lucky.

In any case, this Celtics and Lakers series seems to this reporter’s eyes a mismatch all the way.  Three Hall of Famers to just one, who has failed to show up in three of the four games.  A superior bench to a very green, confused one.

But, back to the question at hand—choke or comeback?  I’d say the answer lies somewhere in the middle.

For Kobe Bryant, the MVP of the NBA, this game has epitomized his series. He has pretty much choked in three out of four games. This one was his worst of all, having shot 6-for-19, with no field goals in the first half.

Of course, the Celtics defense has to take some credit for Bryant’s woes, turning him into mostly a jump shooter. Nevertheless, it isn’t like the league’s MVP to miss so many jumpers even with open looks.

And Sasha Vujacic, the hero of Game Three, is the goat of Game Four. Bah-bah! One-for-nine. And, his "Bench Mob" mates didn’t fare much better. Only 15 points overall, while their Celtics counterparts outscored them by 20 points.

James Posey outscored the Lakers bench all by himself with 18 points. Eddie House added another 11 points.

This time no one can blame Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol, both of whom had double-doubles. Odom went for 19 and 10, while Gasol was right behind him with 17 and 10. Derek Fisher had 13 points. Vlad Radmanovic had 10 points and 5 rebounds.

So, who can the Lakers blame?

Well, Phil Jackson has to take some of the heat. Doc Rivers again out-coached the man with nine rings. Maybe it’s time for Jackson to take another sabbatical, as he calls it. The last guy that Rivers out-coached is pounding the sidewalks of the NBA looking for work.

Rivers kept his players poised and had confidence in his rotation. He certainly made some adjustments at halftime and got the matchups he wanted. But most of all, he never let his players quit, even when they were down by 24.

It was a different story at the other end, where Jackson saw all the momentum the Lakers had gathered in the first half slowly slip away, along with that tenth ring. All he could do, it seemed, was hope that his superstar, the game’s greatest closer, would rise to the occasion.

Rivers sensed that and made sure his defense kept a collar on the league's MVP.

Although Bryant had 10 assists to go with his 17 points, his team was looking for more, and he just couldn’t give it to them. Tonight the superstar MVP looked like any ordinary NBA star. Good, but not great.

What should have been a memorable season for Bryant is likely to have a heartbreak ending on Sunday.  His only memory will be a disappointing one as David Stern hands the Finals MVP trophy to Los Angeles native, Paul Pierce.

Even a gold medal this summer in China will not sweep away the bitterness of that moment.  Once again, Kobe Bryant will have to live yet another year under the legacy of Shaquille O'Neal.

But in Boston, after a 21-year drought, this will be a memorable season. Their comeback in Game Four, leading to their 97-91 victory, will go down as the most memorable in Celtics history as well as in the annals of the NBA Finals.

For this Lakers team, despite their surprising season, what they will be remembered for is tonight’s game—the greatest choke in Lakers history. The night the Lakers bailed—on each other, and on their fans.