2010 NBA Finals: L.A. Lakers, Boston Celtics Take Similar Path To Title Bout

In the waning weeks before the start of the 2010 NBA postseason, both the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics suddenly found themselves struggling to search for any type of stimulus to kickstart their respective playoff paths.

The Lakers culminated March with a road trip on which coach Phil Jackson hoped to finish at least 4-1, but in reality they squeezed out just two wins and averaged only 94 points over the five-game span.

Ultimately, L.A. would slip into the second season losers of six of its last 10 games, at which point people started to wonder if they were watching the Lakers—or the Flakers.

After all, you never knew whether or not they were going to show up from game to game.

The Celtics, meanwhile, were about as disheveled as New Orleans immediately after Hurricane Katrina.

They limped into postseason play with a 3-7 clip in their final 10-game stretch of the regular season—the worst record among all 16 playoff teams—and were set for an opening-round matchup with the Miami Heat, the hottest team (no pun intended) in basketball at that juncture.

To add stale popcorn to a mundane movie, Boston was also being openly questioned by its very own coach—you know, the one person who is supposed to remain confident and composed, even if the Armageddon is impending—who wondered out loud about his uncertainty as to which Celtics team would come to play each game.

After a six-month, 82-game season, media members and fans alike wondered whether or not there was such a thing as flipping the proverbial switch.

More importantly, they wondered if the Lakers and Celtics each were capable of doing so before being ousted by the increased competition in their respective conferences.

Seven weeks and three rounds later, the L.A.-Boston war is being waged again, with the Larry O'Brien Trophy on the line for an unprecedented 12th time.
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers