It certainly wasn’t the most artistic basketball game ever played, but the NBA championship was decided last night in Los Angeles as the Lakers combined rugged defense, usually a trait of their oppnents from Boston, and clutch free throws to win their second consecutive title. After falling behind 3-2 in games in Boston, the Lakers defended their title by matching the Celtics on the defensive end and dominating the boards on their home floor in the last 2 games. NBA referees seem to follow the same mantra as NHL game officials – “let the players play” – and fouls that would be called in regular season games are overlooked, handcuffing star players and turning the games into glorified wrestling matches. It was surprising to see the Lakers prevail in that atmosphere but they clearly have “toughened up” since losing to the Celts in the Finals in 2008. Pau Gasol was a different player in these finals, complementing star teammate Kobe Bryant and coming up huge at critical times throughout the series. The addition of Ron Artest also helped the Lakers improve defensively, and his 20 point output in game seven may have been the difference. Gasol, however, was outstanding in all phases of the game – scoring, defense and rebounding – throughout the series. The Celtics put up a proud effort and when they led by 13 in the second half, it looked like they were going to end the Lakers’ title dreams for the 10th time, but they ran out of gas in the 4th quarter, and throughout the game seemed to miss the physical presence of injured center Kendrick Perkins. That was really not an excuse though, since the Lakers’ Andrew Bynum was hobbled throughout the series. Congratulations to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers for winning and building on their long-standing successful tradition.
NBA – Lakers Repeat
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