The Boston Celtics organization virtually did what outstanding teams do. They carried the tag of favorites with ease and delivered in the most devastating manner on the pivotal night winning 131 to 92! A whopping 39 point separated the winner and the runners-up Los Angeles Lakers.

It was a night when their top three players came to work focused and delivered in a most effective way possible as a team. Ray Allen was doubtful before the game and was poked in the eye in the first quarter but still managed to score 26 points, including an NBA record-tying seven 3-pointers; Kevin Garnett had 26 points with 14 rebounds and Finals MVP Paul Pierce scored 17 with 10 assists on Tuesday night. Surely even for the Los Angeles Lakers fans, the Tuesday performance by the Celtics was one to be acknowledged with respect.

The Lakers fell to a much better team. For the Lakers their top three were led by regular season MVP, Kobe Bryant with 22 and Lamar Odom 14 and Pau Gasol 11. It is apparent that for the Los Angeles Lakers, shooting deserted them and even worse their defense and ball passing were below par. I am sure they will kick themselves hard for having surrendered a 24 point lead in the 4th game series to lose to the Celtics at home. That devastating loss eroded most of their confidence and never rebounded to compete effectively in the series.

Boston Celtics deserve all the kudos for rebounding from one of the worst seasons in 2007 to emerge with 66 wins in the regular season and to go past Atlanta hawks in 7, Cleveland Cavaliars in 7, Detroit Pistons in six and Los Angeles Lakers in six. The players and the Coach have earned themselves a place in the history of NBA and their Vice President, Danny Ainge must be one of the proudest men around today. In a year when player trading went into over drive and some with disastrous consequences such as the Dallas Mavericks, bringing on board Ray Allen and Kevin Garnet was a master stroke.

It appears therefore that the Celtics out gunned the Lakers in all areas thereby leaving no doubt as which was the best team in the NBA in the 2007/08 season. It was an excellent run and an outstanding finish to the NBA season. The series may not have produced many spectacular plays but I am reminded of the heroics by the post season MVP, Paul Pierce in the second game in Boston when he got injured went off to the locker room for bandaging and came back and delivered three pointers that won the game. To me Paul Pierce, as a Captain, played with the heart of a lion and throughout the series led his team into battle like a man possessed. He deserved the MVP award.

So on a night dated 17th of June 2007, Boston Celtics appropriately won their 17th title of their franchise history. Congratulations!

Last season, the Celtics were one of the laughing stocks of the NBA, finishing the season with a 24-58 record. The Lakers, though not nearly as bad as their counterparts, were knocked out of the playoffs in the first round. So it is not surprising that literally no one predicated the two teams to meet up in this season's final. When the smoke cleared and LA and Boston had battled their way through, it was a dream come true for the NBA's publicists. The sad reality is much of the history between the two teams is lost on today's generation of fans. That is not a slight against the fans but simply the fact that the average viewer just isn't old enough to have been exposed to the drama and excitement of the past. And for the ones that are, many have become disenchanted with the game.

The softer style of play and greater emphasis on individual talent instead of team strength has caused many viewers to tune out. The recent allegations by disgraced referee Tim Donaghy, that the NBA has fixed games in the past, are certainly not helping anyone either. As wonderful as it seems to have the Lakers and Celtics facing each other again in the finals, the route that has been taken to promote it is not the right one. The real story is how two mediocre teams were able to pull themselves out of the gutter and have miraculous turn around seasons. By focusing on this aspect of the finals, instead of the stories of the past, would not only be more interesting to the average fan, but also encouraging to those who support the teams that struggled this past season. To know that a lowly franchise, such as the Celtics, can pull a 180 and make it to the finals is inspiring to any fan.

Neither team would have made it to this far without their respective star players. The Celtics have the "Big 3" to thank and the Lakers have Kobe and the Memphis Grizzlies to thank. It becomes insulting to these players to have their accomplishments minimalized in an attempt to resurrect the past. Today's viewers are not going to retell stories to their children of how the Lakers and Celtics of 2008 were like the Lakers and Celtics of the 1980's. They are going to talk about the dominance of Kobe Bryant and the togetherness of the Allen, Pierce, and Garnett. These are the stories that should be focused on and these are the reasons the teams are still playing this far into the season. The NBA needs to embrace the new generation and stop trying to compare today's stars with the stars of the past. To let the Celtics and Lakers make their own history is to let a new rivalry be born.

Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers will battle off Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics at the Garden for game one of their NBA Finals.

Boston was known for its best 16 championship wins due to Red Auerbach and Larry Bird era while Lakers has Magic Johnson and the legend Wilt Chamberlain who scored 100 points in just a single game.

Kobe who was the MVP of 2008 NBA Season has an average of 31.9ppg lead the Lakers to Finals since 2004. The Big C's of Boston, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, first time trip to Finals.

Will the young and gun Lakers win the Championship or the experienced Boston lineup does it take to have a victory? Nobody knows, this is the best Finals yet has to come.

Boston has a size advantage, but Detroit has a distinct a psychological advantage. The Celtics, who had the best regular season record in the NBA struggled for the second round in a row, needing another 7 games to defeat LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Pistons, on the other hand, dismissed the mighty Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic in 5 games.

KEY MATCHUPS

Shooting Guard: Ray Allen vs. Richard Hamilton: Hamilton scored 31 points in the Pistons' Game 5 91-86 victory while Allen was 1-6, scoring 7 points in the Celtics' game 7 victory over Cleveland. Also, Hamilton (6-7, 193) is taller, younger, leaner and quicker than Allen (6-5, 205). Advantage: Pistons

Point Guard: Rajon Rondo vs. Chauncey Billups: Rondo only scored 8 points on 4-11 shooting in the Celtics' last game against the Cavaliers while Billups was inactive against the Magic because of a hamstring injury. Advantage: This is a tossup because Billups scores more (17 vs. 11) and dishes out more assists (7 vs. 5), but although Billups has more experience than Rondo (Billups has been in the NBA for 10 years while Rondo has only been in the NBA for 2 years, but Billups is coming off a hamstring injury).

Center: Kendrick Perkins vs. Theo Ratliff: Perkins is averaging 6 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist & 2 blocks so far in the playoffs (i.e. Perkins' main contribution is on defense, but he's an adequate scorer) while Ratliff is averaging a mere 2 points, 3 rebounds & 1 block. Perkins is also younger (Perkins has only been in the league for 4 years while Ratliff has already been in the league 12 years). Finally, Perkins (6-10, 264) is bigger than Ratliff (6-10, 235), implying that he can take more pounding in the paint. Advantage: Celtics

Power Forward: Kevin Garnett vs. Rasheed Wallace: Wallace (6-11, 230) had 14 points on 7-20 shooting & 7 rebounds in the Pistons' Game 5 win over Orlando while Garnett (6-11, 220) had 13 points & 13 rebounds in the Celtics' Game 7 win. Advantage: Even

Small forward: Tayshaun Prince vs. James Posey: Prince (6-9, 215) had 10 points on 4-13 shooting and 8 rebounds in the Pistons' game 5 victory over the Magic while Posey (6-8, 217) only scored 5 points and collected 6 rebounds in 26 minutes in the Celtics Game 7 win. Advantage: Pistons

Ultimate Edge: This series will come down to who can create and make more high percentage shots. Although the Celtics don't have many 3-point shooters, they have a distinct size advantage in the paint, but the Pistons can play an up tempo type of game that could wear the Celtics out. Also, the Celtics' inability to win on the road in hostile environments could be a huge liability. Ultimate Prediction: The Pistons win this series 4-3

Game 1 Recap: The Celtics beat the Pistons 88-79 behind power forward Kevin Garnett,, 9 rebounds), shooting guard Paul Pierce (22 points on 9-18 shooting, 6 rebounds, 6 assists) and point guard Rajon Rondo (11 points on 5-9 shooting, 7 assists). The Celtics shot 56% (36-69) from the field, but only 67% (14-21) from the free throw line. Also, shooting guard Ray Allen, who is now the only shooting guard to have appeared in a game this season after fellow point guard Sam Cassell was benched, only had 9 points on 3-10 shooting in 38 minutes. On the other hand, the Pistons were led by small forward Tayshaun Prince (16 points on 7-16 shooting in 42 minutes, 4 rebounds), shooting guard Richard Hamilton (15 points on 5-13 shooting in 35 minutes, 6 rebounds), power forward Antonio McDyess (14 points on 5-10 shooting in 37 minutes, 11 rebounds) and power forward Rasheed Wallace (11 points on only 3-12 shooting in 38 minutes, 5 rebounds, 4 assists). However, the Pistons only shot 42% from the field (28-66), despite shooting better than the Celtics at the free throw line (70%; 19-27). Detroit also had fewer assists (15-27) despite tying the Celtics in rebounds with 37. who almost had a double-double (26 points on 11-17 shooting in 38 minutes

Game 2 Recap: The Pistons beat the Celtics 103-97 to win a critical game on the road to tie up their series 1-1 behind shooting guard Richard Hamilton (25 points on 7-16 shooting in 41 minutes, 4 assists), point guard Chauncey Billups (19 points on 5-10 shooting in 32 minutes, 7 assists), power forward Antonio McDyess (15 points on 7-12 shooting in 39 minutes, 8 rebounds), small forward Tayshaun Prince (14 points on 5-15 shooting in 44 minutes, 8 rebounds), power forward Rasheed Wallace (13 points on 4-7 shooting in 36 minutes, 10 rebounds) and backup shooting guard Rodney Stuckey (13 points on 5-8 shooting in only 17 minutes). The Pistons shot 49% from the field (35-71) and 88% from the free throw line (28-32). Crossing over to the Celtics, they were led by shooting guard Paul Pierce (26 points on 9-16 shooting in 47 minutes, 4 rebounds, 5 assists), shooting guard Ray Allen (25 points on 9-16 shooting in 30 minutes) and power forward Kevin Garnett (24 points on 11-19 shooting in 41 minutes, 13 rebounds). The problem for the Celtics, however, was that, just like in game 1, another one of their key contributors struggled. In game 1, it was shooting guard Ray Allen who only shot 3-10 from the field abd scored 9 points. In this game, it was point guard Rajon Rondo's turn to struggle (10 points on 2-9 shooting which means that he only made two 2-point shots for 4 points and needed 6 free throws to reach 10 points after scoring 11 points on 5-9 shooting in 40 minutes and dishing out 7 assists in 40 minutes of efficient play in game 1. The Celtics have struggled on the road throughout the playoffs this season. Now, it seems as if they have the potential to struggle at home too and if that happens, they could be plastered with the label “overrated”.

SAN ANTONION SPURS VS. LOS ANGELES LAKERS

The Spurs needed 7 games to dispatch the New Orleans Hornets while the Lakers dumped the Jazz in 6 games.

Point Guard: Tony Parker (6-2, 180) vs. Derek Fisher (6-1, 210): Parker had 17 points on 7-17 shooting & 5 assists in the Spurs 91-82 game 7 victory over the New Orleans Hornets while Fisher contributed 16 points on 4-5 shooting. Advantage: Even (Parker had more points & assists, but Fisher shot a better percentage).

Shooting Guard: Manu Ginobili (6-6, 205) vs. Kobe Bryant (6-6; 205): Ginobili had 26 points despite shooting only 6-19 from the field, 5 rebounds & 5 assists in leading the Spurs to their 91-82 victory over the New Orleans Hornets while Bryant had 34 points despite shooting only 9-19 from the field, 8 rebounds & 6 assists in leading the Lakers to their 108-105 victory over the Utah Jazz. Advantage: Lakers

Center: Pau Gasol (7-0, 250) vs. Fabricio Oberto (6-10; 245): Gasol had 17 points on 7-17 shooting & 13 rebounds in the Lakers' 108-105 Game 6 victory over the Utah Jazz while Oberto only attempted two field goals, making them both and scored 4 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in the Spurs' 91-82 victory over the Hornets. Advantage: Lakers (as there isn't enough data to evaluate Oberto's performance).

Power Forward: Lamar Odom (6-10; 230) vs. Tim Duncan (6-11; 260): Duncan had 16 points on 5-17 shooting & 15 rebounds in 39 minutes in the Spurs' game 7 victory over the Hornets while Odom had 13 points on 4-8 shooting and 9 rebounds in 42 minutes in the Lakers' game 6 victory over the Jazz. Advantage: Spurs (based on Duncan's 19-point regular season average compared to a 14-point regular season average for Odom as their stats for each of their respective first-round playoff games are pretty similar).

Small Forward: Bruce Bowen (6-7; 200) vs. Vladimir Radmanovic (6-10; 235): Bowen is a defensive specialist who only scored 6 points on 2-6 shooting along with 3 rebounds in 28 minutes in the Spurs' game 7 victory over the Hornets (Bowen only averaged 6 points per game in the regular season & the playoffs) while Radmanovic scored 12 points on 5-7 shooting in 22 minutes in the Lakers' game 6 victory over the Jazz (Radmanovic averaged 8 points in the regular season and the playoffs). Advantage: Lakers (based on Radmanovic's 3-inch height advantage & 2-point advantage in scoring ability, on average; Bowen is mainly a “ball hawk” and so, he may get the main defensive assignment on Bryant because Radmanovic nowhere as big of a scoring threat).

Game 1 Recap: The Lakers rallied to beat the Spurs 89-85 led as usual by shooting guard Kobe Bryant (27 points on 11-21 shooting in 44 minutes, 5 rebounds, 9 assists), center Pau Gasol (19 points on 9-16 shooting in 39 minutes, 7 rebounds), small forward Vladimir Radmanovic (10 points on 5-5 shooting in 24 minutes, 5 rebounds) and backup shooting guard Sasha Vujacic (10 points on 3-8 shooting in 22 minutes, 5 rebounds). The Lakers shot 43% (33-81) from the field and 83% (15-18) from the free throw line. Crossing over to the Spurs, they were led by Tim Duncan as usual (30 points on 12-25 shooting in 41 minutes, 18 rebounds), point guard Tony Parker (18 points on 7-17 shooting in 41 minutes, a surprising 10 rebounds for a guy who is only 6-2/180, 6 assists), small forward Bruce Bowen (12 points on 5-8 shooting) and the usually defensive-minded Bruce Bowen (12 points on 5-8 shooting in 35 minutes). The Spurs shot 41% (34-84) from the field which is only several percentage points off the Lakers' 43% field goal percentage, but they only shot 71% (12-17) from the free throw line, 12 percentage points worse than the Lakers,. Adding to these woes a number of key Spurs were off their game, including Sixth Man of the Year Manu Ginobili (10 points on just 3-13 shooting in 38 minutes, nearly 10 points off his regular season scoring average of nearly 20 points,. with Duncan only making 60% (6-10) of his free throws and so we may wonder if we will see a “Hack-a-Tim” strategy emerge in game 2 as Duncan is only a 68% free throw shooter for his career (4136-6047) implying that he will struggle sometimes in his new role as a starter) and Michael Finley who was way off (0-5 in 22 minutes; surprising considering the fact that he averaged between 15 and 23 points early in his career)

Ideal NBA Finals Matchup: Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers (The Big 3 vs. Kobe Bryant)

Second Choice: San Antonio Spurs vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (two of the NBA's best power forwards, Tim Duncan & LeBron James battle it out)

Third Choice: Detroit Pistons vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (Detroit is a better team overall and will battle Cleveland's lone superstar, LeBron James)

Last Choice: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Los Angeles Lakers (there's no way for these two teams to match up as the Lakers have dozens of NBA titles with key players with Finals experience while the Cavaliers have 0)

The Lakers have a pretty good offense. They are led by the best player in the NBA, Kobe Bryant. Kobe averaged over 30 points per game last year and should do the same this year. No one in the NBA can stop Kobe from scoring. The second option on offense is Lamar Odom. Odom has great size and has very good ball skills. Odom should average close to a double-double and help Kobe out.

At the small forward position Luke Walton had a great year last year. Luke has great vision and can score from anywhere on the court. The point guard position was the main concern for the Lakers. They signed Derek Fisher and drafted Javarris Crittenton to help out the position. The Lakers also have Jordan Farmar at the point guard position. The big question is at center. Can Andrew Bynum become a dominant player and live up to the hype? No one knows, but if he does watch out.

Defense

The Lakers are a decent defensive team. Kobe plays great defense and guards the best player on every team. Lamar Odom is a tough match up for anyone who is going against him. His long arms and speed make it very hard to get by him. Luke Walton doesn't play defense all that well and neither does Bynum. Derek Fisher is a great defender and will contain most good point guards. If Kobe, Lamar, and Derek can play well then the Lakers could stop most teams.

Bench

The Lakers bench is a little weak. They have two good back-up point guards in Javarris Crittenton and Jordan Farmar. Kobe and Luke Walton's back-up Maurice Evan plays good defense and can make a jumper or two. The back-up big men are Kwame Brown, Ronny Turiaf, and Chris Mihm. They all have their talents, but none of them are complete players. Turiaf brings tons of energy, Kwame bring good defense, and Mihm brings scoring. Someone is going to have to step-up and be the sixth man and contribute to the team.

Prediction: 44-38 7th West.