It’s come down to a coin flip for the NBA Finals. When the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics tip off Game Seven on Thursday night, it’ll be just the third time since 1994 that the NBA Finals have required a deciding game.
And for the NBA and its fans, they wouldn’t have it any other way.
After a second consecutive failed attempt at a LeBron/Kobe Finals match-up, the league was delighted to settle for an old school brawl between Boston and Los Angeles. The Lakers and Celtics remain as the two best teams in the NBA, headed for a one-game elimination to settle the score for the championship title.
Perfect!
Despite both clubs dealing with key injuries to their starting center positions, plenty of star power remains for Thursday’s game, in what could turn into a record breaker for television ratings.
“You know it's Lakers-Celtics, the biggest rivalry in NBA basketball, seven games. It is what it is," Boston point guard Rajon Rondo told Boston.com when asked about Thursday’s title clincher.
Multiple sources have reported that Celtics center Kendrick Perkins will miss game seven after spraining his knee on Tuesday. The Lakers will probably have to endure another injury-riddled effort from starting big Andrew Bynum. Bynum has gutted it out so far through the Finals with a knee injury, but left the second half of game Six after complaining of stiffness in his leg. With a championship on the line, Bynum is fully expected to give it one more go.
Boston, too, will be expected to give it one more go after a poor performance in Tuesday’s 89-67 loss. The Celtics were out-rebounded 52-39 and scored just the second-lowest point total in NBA Finals history. But game six for the Celtics is exactly that at this point, history. With their eyes focused on game seven, Boston will be expected to lay it all out on the line for the last time ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
