NBA Finals game 7 preview: LA Lakers vs Boston Celtics
For the fifth time in their 12 NBA Finals appearances the LA Lakers and the Boston Celtics are going to decide who the NBA champion is in seven games.
After demolishing the Celtics in game six the Lakers, no doubt, have momentum on their side. The 89-67 blowout might be a bad thing for the Lakers, however. Getting humiliated like that must hurt, and if the Celtics’ recent history is a sign of things to come, a game seven win could be on the cards.
In the Eastern Conference semi-finals the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the C’s 124-95. The next game? The Celtics came back to win by an easy 10 points. The Lakers should take note, and every time LA has beaten the Celtics they have gone on to lose the next game.
Lakers' power forward Lamar Odom knows game seven is going to be special and it’s a dream to play in the NBA’s fiercest rivalry.
"It's historic, especially when you talk about these teams and what they stand for, the pride. This is what you envision when you're a kid in your backyard. Counting down, five, four, three, two, one...,” Odom proclaimed.
Though the Celtics have won the next game after losing one in the Finals, they have been rocked by the news the starting center Kendrick Perkins has torn two knee ligaments in his right knee.
After undergoing X-rays it was revealed Perkins tore the medial collateral and posterior cruciate ligaments and will undergo an MRI to assess whether or not surgery is required.
Coach Doc Rivers will now have to decide between starting Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis, but with Davis being the more athletic of the two, and already putting in some good performances off the bench, Davis is likely to get the nod.
Though there is a huge amount of pressure riding on game seven, Celtics captain Paul Pierce is loving the occasion.
"I just love the pressure. I love the fact that I get to play against the Los Angeles Lakers in a Game 7 on the road. I love the fact that if I don't win multiple championships that I probably won't be mentioned amongst the other guys in Celtic history that have done it before. That type of stuff motivates me. That's what the challenge is for me, every time I put on this Celtic uniform,” Pierce said.
Pierce’s statement is in contrast to Kobe Bryant who says he doesn’t look at the historical aspect of the series or even winning, he just stays focused.
"It's got nothing to do with me, [When] I look back, years from now, or even when I was a kid, [if] you'd talk about being in this situation, I'd be really excited. But when I'm in the moment right now, I've got to play. I've got to focus on that. I can't focus on the hype about it,” Bryant expressed.
The Celtics have never lost a game seven to the Lakers, and the Lakers head coach Phil Jackson has never lost a series after winning the first game, and no visiting team has won an NBA Championship in game seven since 1978 when the Washington Bullets did it.
So who’s going to bite the bullet this time?
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