The Boston Celtics show their POWE-TENTIAL in NBA Finals against the Lakers

For the so called "experts" who said the Laker bench was deeper than the Boston bench, a wake up call to the reality of the depth of the much underrated Celtic bench was revealed in Game Two of the NBA Finals.

One would think by listening to the TV analysts on ESPN and the NBA channel that the Boston Celtics barely got into the playoffs, and were fortunate to be in the Finals. But it was not even eight months ago when the Celtics got "Sugar" Ray Allen and Kevin "the BIG Ticket" Garnett that most "experts" picked the Celtics to win the East and most likely win the championship.

In fact, Boston would go on to clinch the best record in the NBA (including going 25-5 against the West). Still, there would be questions from the beginning of the season about the support players on the Celtics.

Despite the role players stepping up and performing timely feats throughout the season and playoffs, the Celtics bench was heavily underrated against a Lakers bench that has yet to prove anything at all.

Now anyone who knows anything about basketball understands that there is a game inside the game (and even more mini games in those battles). The bench players do not have to have fantasy numbers, after all they are simply role players asked to provide assistance from time-to-time in roles from rebounding, defense, and occasionally scoring as needed.

Enter Game One of the NBA finals and PJ Brown. Now Brown has stepped up his role and his game throughout the playoffs but his defense and rebounding most definitely impacted the game and the series. 

Now we go to Game Two of the Finals, where little-known player to everyone but Boston fans (as well as fans of the University of California and the Pac-10), Leon Powe made his impact felt.

Yes, he scored 21 points, but just as im-POWE-tant was his rebounding and defense that led to most of his points. However the impact really made was throughout of the rest of the series, despite not scoring much.

Every time he entered the court, the Lakers were so focused on him that they overlooked the "Big Three" and other impact players, to get rebounds and to score. So his impact is im-POWE-tant because he demanded attention thus making him a unknown and unheralded hero in the ply offs and finals.

Now comes the big question that keeps running through my mind, How great will this team become in the next 3-5 years? The "Big Three" undoubtedly will be around for few more years, but with the young players developing and already making impacts they are most certainly going to grow, improve, and continue to win.

After all we have not even seen Glen "Big Baby" Davis yet. Gabe Pruitt is an up-and-coming guard, not to mention Tony Allen and Kendrick Perkins are still very young themselves. So as long as Danny Ainge is not around to trade these young men, one has to believe Boston is going to be around long after the "Big Three" are gone.

So for the so called "experts" who underestimated the Celtics and over looked their depth and talent all one has to say is, thank goodness that the games have to be played or Boston would have been ripped off a chance to get what is really a Boston Celtic birthright........the NBA championship, with more still to come, as we sit back and watch the Celtics championship POWE-formance!