Hail to the Champs!

I’m a die hard Miami Heat fan but by virtue of a previous engagement with a dear friend after Miami was eliminated by the Celtics in the first round, I am a temporary Lakers fan and I’m loving it!


The Lakers and the Celtics have met 12 times already in The Finals and today’s game is the fifth time where both teams are pushed to the point of no return, winner-take-all Game 7. All previous four meetings were won by the heavily favored Celtics but today is an exemption. Throw away the last six games stats and don’t mind the bruises, today, the Lakers showed the Celtics they are the defending world champions and they are ready to prove it again.


The Celtics looked going home with the crown in the first quarter with their blinding defense and incredible shot selections but the Lakers outscored them in the last 3 quarters to claim the price. No, the Lakers did not win Game 7 by field goals; they won by grabbing 13 more rebounds than the Celtics. It’s basic, the more rebounds that a team collects, the more chances of scoring a basket there is. And they did just that.


Judged as the Finals MVP, Kobe Bryant outplayed himself today too not in scoring but in the rebounding department. He averaged 5.6 rebounds in the playoffs but tonight he was monstrous above the boards and collected game high 15 rebounds on top of his usual 20+ points on a measly 25% shooting from the field.


Ron Artest deserves to be mentioned too tonight. He was hired for his defensive mindset but when Kobe can’t connect from the field, Ron took the cudgels from the Black Mamba and punished the Celtics on the floor. Averaging only 10.8 points in the playoffs, Ron Artest’s 20 point explosion in Game 7 was a dagger for Kevin Garnett and his team.


I always believed Lakers will take home the crown when the Miami Heat was eliminated. More than the classic game that Celtics and Lakers showed tonight, the game also proves that the mighty Phil Jackson has memorized the road to The Finals and knows 101 ways to take it home. Pat Riley should be thinking in his office of either pirating Phil Jackson from the Lakers to lead his Miami or take the coaching tool to himself and prove the world that his 5 NBA championships are parallel to the ranks of Phil Jackson’s 11 Championship rings.