I admire the specificity of your predictions, Quagmire! Got a tip on the score at 5:42 left in the first quarter? :)

Personally, I've got no idea who will win. I only wish I was at home to watch it instead of at work!

Any ideas on where to watch it online?

YES... cannot wait, im also at work, but im glad i listen to the game on ESPN radio, absolutely kills watching play by play on box scores.

as for watching online, download sopcast, or that andro site, do a search on these threads.

Hereschenes....15-12 Celtics. Perkins in foul trouble.

"Big 3 of Celtics will be great as always"

Not so sure that they have been great this playoffs. Pierce has been pretty consistent. Garnett has been awesome a couple of games but not dominated in others when he needed to. Allen has been MIA for much of the playoffs.

I think it will come down to three things for Boston:
1. Can Ray Allen be a 20+ point player for the series?
2. Can Rondo play at least 4 great games (Celtics rarely lose when he fires)
3. Can someone at least come close to matching Kobe down the stretch in the close games (either Pierce or Garnett repeating his Western Conference heroics from a few seasons back)

The Lakers haven't missed a beat this playoffs and I wouldn't think they would here either (too good a coach and the best crunch time player in the league). I think the Celtics best basketball is good enough to beat LA (especially at home) but I'm not sure they will be able to produce their best when it counts (too poor a coach and those three things happening above would be unlikely).

I can honestly say I have absolutely no preference as to who wins. I a m just glad it isn't Detroit vs Spurs (as much as I respect how good both those teams actually are)

Brilliant finals series.

This finals series could become the best for the decade. 2000-2010.

I'm excited mate. Heart is pounding, stomach butterflies floating around. Its really kicking in.

Who decided Perkins and Rondo are going to determine how the Celtics play and why? that sounds very stupid to me

I think if Garnett is aggressive offensively and looks for his shots, Ray Allen remembers how good he is and Pierce comes up big its not going to matter to much how Perkins and Rondo go

Let me explain it Jules, in the play-offs a lot of time is spent determining the best way to defend an opponent.

With players like KG, Pierce and Ray, single coverage is not always enough, so you gotta cheat a little and double them.

Thats where rondo and Perk come in. If they can finish open looks that these doubles create, then LA will be forced to play the Celts big 3 straight up, man on man. Thats a big win for the Celts.

Conversely if they fail to make LA pay for leaving them open and doubling the stars, the Celts will find it very tough going all series.

This is where LA has a huge advantage. If you double Kobe or Gasol they have a team in which ALL players can shoot the open look. Celts have Rondo who is shaky at best, and Perk who has yet to prove he has the strong hands and ball control to handle offense in the paint.

Yeh I get that, just thought on a scale of importance, its gonna be how the big 3 perform in their first finals series, and that they dont shit themselves like they have this playoffs. Rondo and Perkins playing well wont win them the game, Pierce, Allen and KG will, that will just help.

Hmmm... well it was 10-10 at 5:42, no fouls for KP. A good try. :)

How's the game looking for those that are watching? Have they got the jitters or is it free-flowing? Kobe very low on stats I notice, although that can always change quickly. And it usually does!

Should of realised scores would be low...do'h!

Killing me being at work right now.

Sam Cassell. You gotta laugh. Whats the point? He scores, the guy playing on him then scores. You get no-where.

Kobe and Gasol working the pick and roll well...
3 Celtics in foul trouble...Pierce with 3, Allen 2, Posey 2 with 2:55 in 2nd.
Cassell shooting well, and KG doing well.

PS: Cassell drew an offensive foul from Kobe!!!!

It really is a gift i've got. I bag em, they stab me in the back!

Lakers by 5 at the half...playing as a team on offence. Kobe just 3 x FG's. Fisher has stepped up to hit some big shots. Odom dong his job with 8 pts.

13 for Derek Fisher, 10 for Rondo... looks like an interesting battle of the X-factors!

Get the feeling that LA will be happy to leave single coverage on KF with Gasol, similar to Duncan, and work on stopping Pierce, Ray et all... Sounds great coz it puts even more pressure on KG in the fourth, plus he'll be even more fatigued... Phil Jax rocks.

Sorry- typo, i meant KG, not KF????

how huge was it when pierce stepped back on court after he went down with what looked like a nasty knee injury!

Tell us frogger... how huge was it? Is he back to normal? What happened?

*stares at internet "live scoreboard"* :(

Ray playing like he should be in the "Big 3" and not the "Big 2 featuring Ray Allen" as a Bill Simmons reader suggested.

rarrrr!! huge put back dunk by KG!

hereschenes, the truth seems ok now, he was chaired off initially and looked to be in a good deal of pain, but returned after a few minutes from the rooms looking good and icing back to back threes - the crowd went wild when he came back after being deadly silent when he went down

Thats all she wrote. Kobe was cold and the Lakers couldn't get it done on the boards. Odom must improve his play. Pierce looming as a huge player, KG doing his thing. Phil Jax will have a bit to do in the next few days. Must win one of the first two and with this game gone, all the pressure on the next one. If Boston win both at home, they go to LA with a mission to win just one and then finish in Boston.

Next game sunday or monday? Either way i ain't missing it coz you bet Kobe will be pissed by this result!

Well done Celts, KG was great with the put-back but Paul Pierce was the one.

I remember back when Kobe and Shaq were fueding in the media, Shaq dubbed Pierce "The Truth" in a veiled swipe at Kobe.... i bet Kobe remembers too...he he he

Celtics win...huge effort from pierce in the 3rd...4 point play followed later by back to back treys on the break. HUGE!
Lakers couldn't buy a basket in the 4th. Good defence from the green machine.

Thanks for that frogger... good to hear. Would be a shame for the series if a big player went down.

Next game is Monday morning our time, Quagmire.

Sweet. Cheers hereschenes.

How smashed is Bill Simmons getting at this moment?!

KG's tip dunk was ridiculous. Couldn't have come at a bigger time either.

That aside, his big game fear still seems there. settled for long jump shot after long jump shot in the fourth when all the Celts needed were long 24 second offences run through KG in the block.

Pierce was huge in the 3rd with 15 points. Hit two threes after returning from being carried off the court and wheelchaired to the locker room. Memories of Larry with a broken cheekbone.....

crowd seemed at its loudest after those threes..
from what i have seen from Pierce dude is OWNING

What a fantastic result, can't wait to watch the replay :-)

Hey Quagmire,
Looks like I missed the party on Hoops SA today!

Nice assessment of Kobe:
"...his ego is greater than any stadium on earth."

Bad prediction though:
"Look for Boston to get an early leed, playing inspired defence but ultimately get taken over and lose game one to a patient and executing Lakers team."

Celtics did a good job on Kobe today and had decent contributions from everyone bar Perkins, who is surely cursed with a clutz charm.

Coming down on Pierce's foot like that when he was on fire in the 3rd quarter could cost the Celtics the series.

Although Pierce came back to contribute, I saw his post game press conference and he seemed very down.

He said that the injury had been diagnosed as a bruised meniscus or something, but he also said he heard a pop and couldn't move his knee at first!

So I'm feeling a little worried right now. Pierce seems like the one Celtic who is able to consistently make shots when they are really needed.

All I can say is thank the hoop gods for the 3 days before game 2!

If Pierce stays fit, this absolutely has the makings of a classic 7 game cliff hanger. Hope it turns out that way...

Why do they lakers always blame themselves and not the oppositions play for their loss. Are they that arrogant

Isn't it better to question the things you can control, not the things you can't?

ELG......why sack the coach when ur team cant play Defence??

Dont talk shit mate

Fantastic game and i think the rest of the series will be in a similar vein...

Seeing Garnett playing and winning in the NBA Finals brought a tear to my eye (given i was a TWolves fan since the LUUUUUUC!/Felton Spencer/Stacey King era), I'm stoked for him - but makes you wonder about McHale/Taylor's decision-making (The Joe Smith deal and penalty torpedoed the team in reality, and of course when the draft picks came back they chose Ndudi Ebi) and the whims of fate (Malik Sealy, Cassel's injury in the WC finals)...


Oh and...

"BEAT LA, BEAT LA, BEAT LA..." Loved to hear that again - in the finals no less...