Lakers vs. Celtics, Game 2: Boston Welcomes L.A.To Splits-Ville
L.A. was a perfect 9-0 in the playoffs at home prior to Game two. They were rather confident and were looking to take a 2-0 lead back to Boston.
The Los Angeles Lakers big men once again dominated the Celtics offensively and defensively. Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum combined for over 40 points and an NBA Finals record of 14 block shots.
Using those statistics alone makes it seem like the Lakers won going by a large margin. Close your eyes and you could imagine Phil Jackson exalting the effort of his big men. It never happened.
Instead Phil Jackson and his squad spent their post game presser talking about Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo.
Rondo had his fourth triple double in the post season and Ray Allen set an NBA Finals record by making eight three pointers.
Pau Gasol's comment about Kevin Garnett losing a step was the topic of the day. This game was supposed to be KG giving the young whippersnapper Gasol his comeuppance.
Somehow he was supposed to flashback to 2008 and be the low post presence the Celtics needed. KG was a non-factor offensively and finished the game with 6 points and 6 assists.
The beauty of Garnett is he is a superstar that prides himself on team play not individual match-ups.
Los Angeles threw various double teams at KG which resulted in great ball movement that gave the Celtics a 6 point half-time lead.
They now face an uncertain future with Bynums' knee injury and a cross country flight that might inflame the issue.
The Boston Celtics kept the road to splits-ville open with contribution from the bench and their will to win.
Splits-ville is not a place you want to be when you have home-court advantage in the playoffs. It signifies the beginning of a dangerous route to an uncertain journey.
It is unfamiliar territory to the Lakers who have pretty much traveled toll-free on the way to the Finals. The only adversity they've had was in the first round against the Oklahoma Thunder.
That was short-lived because the Lakers had the experience and this was the first round-up for the Thunder.
The Celtics used the same experience and guile to out-maneuver Kobe and his mates by withstanding their runs.
Splits-ville makes Game Three a defining moment for both teams legacy. It can possibly bring Kobe closer to surpassing Michael Jordan's legacy or knotting Magic Johnson with five championship rings. For the Celtics 'The Big Three ' can dry the ink on the pages of their Celtic greatness.
KG, Ray and Paul Pierce can do what the original 'Big Three ' couldn't do. That is possibly beat the Lakers in two championship runs.
Yes NBA fans, this city of narrow streets and unsavory denizens winds its way through the TD Garden. It doesn't have the feel of a sunshiny day for the Lakers.
The newly minted lords and nobles of Splits-ville are merely tolerated as witnesses by their scarcity at the Garden. In fact those who do show up are the sons and daughters of the village masses.
L.A. will have to dig down deep to see if they can raise it up a notch to either sweep Boston or come back with a lead.
Pierce and Garnett were not a factor offensively, but they did do the little things to ensure a Celtic win.
That is not a good sign for the Lakers because unlike L.A. fans, Boston fans will render the noise meter and the Lakers ineffective when playing the Truth and KG in the Jungle.
