Matchups and Breakdowns

[jfs1000d]

All night been thinking about this:

PG: Derek Fisher vs. Rajon Rondo

Analysis: Rondo gets a break this series. Fisher is a spot up shooter and Farmer isn't anyone to worry about off the bench. What does that mean? Improved play from Rondo. I don't expect him to suffer the ball pressure that he did against detroit. That will allow the Celtics offense to run much more smoothly.

Fisher is a big shot maker, but he isn't going to obliterate Rondo like Parker, Chris Paul, Deron Williams or a healthy Billups would have. Rondo has to stay on the shooter, but I think Rondo is going to be able to wreck havoc offensively. Parker scored at will, and that is the kind of game Rondo plays when he plays well.



Edge: Even. Experience and poise with Fisher, athleticism with Rondo. What wins? We will see.

SG: Kobe vs. Allen/Pierce

Analysis: Marquee matchup. Wow! Pierce made LBJ work, can he do it against Kobe? Pierce is going to have to sacrifice some offense. Make Kobe earn a hard 30. Ray Allen can't play Kobe. The key is just making Kobe work. It has to be a hard 30. Offensively Pierce will pick his spots. i don't think Kobe is going to matchup with Pierce 1-on-1. When I look at all these matchups anyway, I don't see how the Lakers can cover the celtics anyway.

Edge: Lakers. Kobe is the best.

SF: Vlad Rad vs. Pierce/Allen

Analysis: This is a big mismatch in the celts favor. I know the entire NBA loves Kobe and offense, but how is Vlad going to deal with Allen or Pierce? The lakers are an offensive basketball team, so Vlad is a tough matchup for Ray Allen, but the same will be on the other side. Vlad is bigger, but he isn't a defensive wiz. Ray is going to get some open looks and can get the ball off the dribble. Celts have to exploit vlad offensively.

Edge: Celtics

PF: Lamar Odom vs Kevin garnett

Analysis: Absolute mismatch. Lakers can't cover KG. Gasol, Vlad, and Lamar don't have the combiation fo strength and speed to do it. This is where the Celtics can win the series. Punish the lakers here. KG has to go for 20-10 a night every night, preferably more. He will control the boards and the lane. Defensively? KG can shut Odom down on the blocks and negate a lot of what makes Odom so effective on the perimeter. Odom is a good offensive player and a tough matchup. But, KG is just so physical I think he can take Odom away.

Edge: KG


Center: Gasol vs Perk

Analysis: Gasol is an all-star, but he isn't a low post back to the basket finisher. Perk just has to keep him off the boards and limit him. He and garnett will get a chance to guard Gasol. I like the front court matchups for the celtics. Celts have to control the boards. If Perk and KG can handle the paint that is going to make things awful difficult for L.A.

Edge: Lakers. Frontcourt edge is Celtics.

Final thoughts:

Mike Gorman said a lot about this alst night, and I was thinking it too. Everyone is hopping on the lakers bandwagon because Kobe is the best player and they beat San Antonio rather easily (though in two home games were down 17 and 20 points but rallied back).

I think the Celts are better equipped defensively to handle L.A. than an older San Antonio team, and more importantly, for all the talk about Kobe, how are the Lakers supposed to guard Boston?

Defense is what this comes down to. San Antonio slowed the Lakers down, they just didn't have enough firepower to get over the top.

If you can believe it, people are overlooking the Celtics' offensive ability. The Lakers aren't as athletic as Atlanta (no one is), as big and physical as Cleveland or as tough nosed as detroit.

Lakers are going to have a major problem defensively handling the Big 3 and Rondo's quickness.

Does Kobe guard Pierce? Do they put Kobe on Rondo to save him? That allows Paul Piece to against Fisher. That is a mismatch.

Lakers are a superior offensive team, but the Celts are a great defensive team. Unlike San Antonio, I think Boston has enough firepower to score 95 plus a night and the defensive commitment to limit the supporting cast.

The lakers are going to have to double team every post-up, and that will lead to good things.

[seccom]

What about coaching and bench?

Will the Lakers and Celtics only play 5 players?

[UGA Hayes]

I worry about alittle bit about Fisher on Rondo. Fisher is a world class flopper and JVG mentioned toward the end of the game yesterday Rondo doesn't recieve respect from the officials. I could see a series wher Rondo finds himself in foul trouble. I suspect both House and Caseell will be a big factor. I think Farmer is better than you are giving him credit for.


I expect us to in the beginning to try to play Kobe like we played LeBron though I'm not sure that is wise. I almost hope we have a let Kobe get his philosophy. Which stretegy we use will be pretty interesting.

Vlad rad vs Ray- I suspect could just as easily br "the machine vujacic" against ray. Either way I supect 3 pointers or stopping the other team from making 3-pointers is going to become a big part of this series


KG/Odom- At first glace this seems like an obvious advantage for KG but I could see Odom causing some problems if the smart version of Odom shows up and perhaps uses KG aggressiveness against him.I think this would be a good series to give Powe/davis some time as the Lakers Frontline is really pretty soft.

Perkins/Gasol- My vote goes to this as being the matchup of the series. Gasol is almost a combination of McDyess and Rasheed, the first who we defended poorly and the second we defended well.

[ShowtimeFan]

LOL, pretty much what I would expect from a Celtic Fan and someone who has not seen many Laker games this year. Now while I have not seen too many Celtic games this year, I have seen many of your players for many years and I offer this help:

PG: Derek Fisher vs. Rajon Rondo

Analysis: Fisher: Mature, steady, good defensively, yet slow, strong, great flopper, great BB IQ, 3 Rings and having his best year (stat-wise) ever.

Rondo: Young, fast, flashy, decent on offense and defense, yet how will he handle the pressure of the Finals?

Edge: Slight Edge to Lakers, but only on paper

SG: Kobe vs. Allen

Analysis: Allen has actually played Kobe very very well over the years, Kobe cannot be stopped this year and Allen has been in a minor play-off slump

Edge: Lakers

SF: Vlad Rad vs. Pierce

Analysis: Pierce will kill him so much so that Walton or Kobe will be get their try on him.

Edge: Celtics

PF: Odom vs Garnett

Analysis: Absolute mismatch? LOLOLOLOL Have you seen Odom-2008 play? Have you looked at his numbers? Have you seen his long arms? His foot speed? Did you know KG has NEVER been this far in the Play offs? Did you see KG clank those two Free throws near the end of the Pistons game? This match-up is much, much closer, than the original poster thinks and while KG will def. out-score Odom, I expect Odom will out-rebound KG, just watch...

Edge: Slight edge Celtics

Center: Gasol vs Perk

Analysis: Perk is is big strong young tall guy, Gasol is faster and 3 times better on Offense and twice the rebounder that Perkins is, If Gasol can stand his ground and get Perkins in foul trouble, look out!

Edge: Lakers.

Coaching: Phil vs Doc

Analysis: None Required

Edge: Lakers

Bench: Lakers: Sasha, Walton, Ariza, Rony, Farmar, etc

Bench: Celtics: Cassel, PJ Brown, Posey, etc

Analysis: Lakers young and fast vs Boston mature and experienced

Edge: Lakers

Conclusion: You can call me a homer all you want, but there is a reason the 8 ESPN guys all picked the Lakers to win, so chances are they are seeing something closer to what I have stated then what the original poster stated...

Let's just hope for some exciting well played games...

[I love heinsohn]

I think the whole series comes down to aggression on offense from the Celtics and particularly the two guys that have been the most passive in the starting five:
Fisher is a good defender, but does not have young legs. Gasol and Odom have zero chance of matching up with KG one one one. So those two guys need to be aggressive. If that happens, then Ray can gets open looks and Pierce earns a bit more space to work with. Additionally, Rondo and KG scoring 35 ppg on over 50% shooting should put the Lakers back on their heals and get their bigs in foul trouble by having to rotate and cover. Rondo also plays better defense when he has confidence on the other side of things...


Yes, Kobe is the best player on the two teams, but the Celtics arguably have a better range of guys to throw at him than SA -- Pierce, Posey, TA (if healthy), and Ray in case of emergency or to try and get Kobe to punch him and get suspended -- let Kobe get his 30, but limit everybody else and the Celtics take this one!

[Joselo16]

PF: Odom vs Garnett

Analysis: Absolute mismatch? LOLOLOLOL Have you seen Odom-2008 play? Have you looked at his numbers? Have you seen his long arms? His foot speed? Did you know KG has NEVER been this far in the Play offs? Did you see KG clank those two Free throws near the end of the Pistons game? This match-up is much, much closer, than the original poster thinks and while KG will def. out-score Odom, I expect Odom will out-rebound KG, just watch...

Let's just hope for some exciting well played games...

In your analysis you asked a couple of questions and I will ask you the same exact ones.

Have you looked at his (KG's) numbers?

Conference Finals
KG(22pts(0.517 FG%) 10rbs 3ast) + great defense
Odom(13pts(0.404 FG%) 10rbs 2ast)

Its not a huge mismatch at all but I wouldn't just say slight advantage either. KG has the advantage!

Did you know Odom has NEVER been this far in the Playoffs?
Farthest he ever got was like the second round with Miami.

[ArmstrongInGreen]

dude you're (Please Use More Appropriate Word) if you don't think KG will continue to own lamar odom. you say you haven't watched may celtics games but did you watch when we played you in LA? your boys wore those really cool short shorts remember???? anyways in the second half odom goes up for a layup only to be blocked by KG as KG yells "GET YO' ****" into the rim microphone for all to hear. a frustrated odom then proceeds to tackle Ray Allen into the Celtic's bench in what should have been a technical foul.....Garnett's been in odom's head all year, expect more of those moments

[tayzer]

U guys got it wrong. Gasol will be guarding KG because of the height. Gasol 7'0'' KG 6'11''. Lamar will be guarding Perkins since they are same height.

Odom>>Perkins
KG>Gasol, but not by much
Kobe>>Ray
Fisher>>ROndo not by much
Pierce 6'6'> Vlade 6'10''

Laks bench = Celts bench

Phil>>Doc

Lakers are longer, better offense, underated defense (they only play when it matters), and faster. The Celts are stronger and have better defense. It can go either way, but I think the Lakers will take it in the end. We'll see.

[Farsi Man]

Why does everyone say Radmonovic is a bad defender? He's actually pretty athletic and he did a good job Carmelo and Manu. I think he's a better defender than Ray Allen but people just assume that since he's a tall euro shooter he can't defend, but he can.

And Gasol plays way more back to the basket that he does face up this year for the Lakers. Just watch the games.

[Gomes3PC]

If Pau Gasol tries to defend KG, Garnett should easily drop 25, 10, and 5 a night. Gasol is a turnstile on D. He is a younger Zydrunas Ilgauskas with better foot speed (thanks to all the ankle injuries to Z). We will defend Gasol like we did with Z. Flash at him when he pick and rolls and throw the kitchen sink of defenders on him (Perk, Baby, and especially PJ).

And the Lakers are NOT a good defensive team. STOP this foolishness. They were in the bottom half of the NBA in defense all year. The Celtics led the NBA. The Lakers are middle of the pack in the playoffs. The Celtics are the best in the NBA. Just stop this nonsense. IF the Lakers beat Boston, it will be because they were able to beat our D, not shut down our offense.

And Gasol vs. Garnett is not 'KG>Gasol, but not by much'. It is by much. KG's PER is 3 points higher this year. And that doesn't even begin to factor in defense, where Gasol is ABYSMAL and KG is the best in the NBA. Whoever guards KG for LA is going to get abused. The Lakers will have to win with their guards (Kobe, Fisher, Radmanovich), not their big men.

[Gomes3PC]

Oh, and how are the Lakers "longer"? Rondo has a ridiculous wingspan, way more than Fisher. Ray Allen is a whopping 1 inch shorter than Kobe. Vlad is longer than Pierce, but at 6-7 Pierce is not exactly undersized. KG and Perk are legit big men and Garnett is a freak of nature with his length.

And any length advantage will be decidedly equalized by the MUCH stronger Celtics team. Nobody can bang on the wing with Pierce. Nobody can match the beef of Perk, Baby, and Powe.

[kmgarnett21]

PF: Odom vs Garnett

Analysis: Absolute mismatch? LOLOLOLOL Have you seen Odom-2008 play? Have you looked at his numbers? Have you seen his long arms? His foot speed? Did you know KG has NEVER been this far in the Play offs? Did you see KG clank those two Free throws near the end of the Pistons game? This match-up is much, much closer, than the original poster thinks and while KG will def. out-score Odom, I expect Odom will out-rebound KG, just watch...

Edge: Slight edge Celtics...

wow. yes, you ARE a huge homer. SLIGHT edge to KG over odom? wow.

talkin bout how KG's never been this far, lets look at odom. how far has he been??? exactly. KG def has more experience than odom, so that point u tried making was nonexistent. IF kg gets it in his head to go down low, we will win & kg=finals mvp, but if he floats outside & passes up shots, LA will win. i think its that simple.


now, kobe/fisher have lots of playoff/finals experience. the only players on the c's to have finals experience is posey/cassell. add in phil jackson's 9 titles & this being doc's first playoff run, the coaching is overwhelmingly in LA's favor. prolly the most lopsided coaching finals matchup ever.

i expect kobe to have a big series. kobe is not lebron. PP was so effective on lebron b/c he dared him to shoot the outside J, we cant do that w/kobe b/c kobe is a pure shooter & would kill us if we give him the same cushion we gave LBJ.

i also believe kobe will guard rondo & fisher will guard allen. Ray MUST come up big.



i think if Ray allen is on like he has been the last two games, if rondo/perk dont screw up too much & IF KG demands the ball downlow throughout the series & doesnt pass the ball, Boston will win, but those three things MUST happen or it wont be a fun series for us celtic fans.

[meatball sub]

God these Laker fans are on crack thinking Odom is on par with KG. They're in for a rude awakening this series.

[Knicksfan20]

God these Laker fans are on crack thinking Odom is on par with KG. They're in for a rude awakening this series.

He is not on Par with Odom..but its not a BIG of a differnce as some of you guys make it out to be...KG is by far the superier player...but by some of the posts i see here....its like Odom is Kwame Brown or somthing

[hermes]

[quote="Joselo16"][/quote]
you know odom is the 3rd option on the lakers so he won't score as many as KG, because KG is 1-1a with pierce

[Joselo16]

I will admit he has stepped his game up but you have to look at who was guarding him and how he got his points. The C's will most likely dare him to shoot and not allow him to drive and dish. It's almost like playing against Josh Smith again (but without the defense), an athletic lefty who can run a one man break, rebound, but can't shoot.

It's going to be a great series but Odom will not be the deciding factor. I worry more about Gasol getting the star treatment against Perk (wouldn't surprise me)! For soem reason I feel like we will be in foul trouble a lot!

[Joselo16]

-= original quote snipped =-


you know odom is the 3rd option on the lakers so he won't score as many as KG, because KG is 1-1a with pierce

Your fellow Laker boy was the one that brought up numbers as if Odom was dominant, I just wanted to compare!

[meatball sub]

The NBA is a superstar-driven league and the Celtics have three superstars, the Lakers have one. You do the math. If I were a Laker fan I'd hate the fact that everybody thinks they're going to win just because they have the MVP on their team. People are forgetting that the Celtics have three HOFers that are staring destiny right between the eyes and the only thing they need to solidify their places in history is four wins away.

1st options: Kobe vs. Pierce. Yes Kobe is better, no doubt, and will prolly average 30 PPG this series. Pierce has always played his very best against the Lakers and everybody seems to be overlooking that fact. Kobe will have a great series but so will Paul Pierce...

2nd options: Gasol vs. KG. No explanation needed, the Celtics not only have KG as their 2nd scoring option but also as their anchor on defense. Pau Gasol anchors nothing but blown assignments inside.

3rd options: Odom vs. Ray Allen. Odom might be your third option, which is no doubt a huge advantage over other teams and that's all well and good but...our 3rd option has been a bonafide #1 scoring option his entire career and just broke out of the worst slump of his career. After playing against two of the best defensive teams in the league the past 2 series, you're damn skippy he's going off against the Lakers.

Coaches: Yeah, Phil Jackson is way better than Doc. But using this argument is flawed for two reasons:

1. The coaches don't **** play the game.

2. Red Auerbach will be damned if his championship record is broken by Phil Jackson AGAINST the Celtics. While Phil is still a great coach, he has been blessed to coach quite possibly the two greatest players to ever play the game of basketball.

When the Lakers lose this series I hope Laker fans collectively cry into a gigantic bucket so we can all drink your tears.

[Joselo16]

I agreed with everything except maybe drinking their (Laker fanboys) tears. I just don't do that(lol)!

Phil and Doc are actually similar coaches in terms of the philosophy of letting their players play, for example if the opposing team is on a run neither will call a timeout but instead will let their players play through it (unless is out of hand). As for championship experience that crap is overrated specially with Phil. If your team is better than the opponent, on most nights the best team will win regardless of how bad the coach is. What does championship experience mean? That you have been there before so what each series is its own entity? Detroit has been to The Conference Finals the last six years with players that have played many playoff games together, how did that help them!?! I just don't see how coaching changes just because you're in the finals. You do what got you there and make minor tweaks if necessary.

[cdubbz]

I think everyone is underestimating the lakers role players...fisher/farmar sasha/vlad and turiaf are all solid role players who can all play solid defense and are all capable of scoring. if kobe and gasol are getting points and any one of these guys are....its over.