Road Warriors

After going winless on the road in first two rounds of the NBA playoffs and nearly causing me multiple heart attacks, the Mighty C's flexed their collective muscles and managed two wins against the Pistons in one the NBA's toughest venues. After nearly allowing a 17-point fourth quarter lead to vanish in Game 5, the Celtics used a strong fourth quarter in Game 6 to eliminate the Pistons, who are in the midst of an Atlanta Braves like run over the past 6 years (6 Conference Finals, 2 Finals, 1 championship). Kevin Garnett will be the story of this finals, as he has that John Elway quality about him, the guy everyone wants to see win a title (I want to be on the record as saying I was not one of these people, for John Elway, not KG). But, for me as a life-long Celtics fan, it is all about Paul Pierce. No Boston star has had to suffer like Pierce (most playoff games in team history without an NBA title), as over the course of his stellar 10-year career this team has been somewhere between terrible and mediocre. Pierce better be ready, as Kobe brings the Lakers back to Boston for the NBA Finals. The last time these teams met in the Finals, the year was 1987 and Magic Johnson hit the infamous "junior, junior sky-hook" in Game 4 that me and all Boston fans would love to forget.
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As for my pick, I will go with my heart, although my head is trying to convince me to go another route. No team is playing better than the Lakers right now, as they dismissed the champs in the short-order in the Western Conference Finals. The key to this series will be the play of each team's number 3 guy-Ray Allen vs. Lamar Odom. As exhibited for a majority of the playoffs, the Celtics struggle when Allen struggles. He certainly found his touch in the second half of the Eastern Conference Finals and needs to continue to play at a high level to give his team a chance. These are both deep teams, thus bench play will be another major factor. The defense of Paul Pierce has been exemplary in playoffs against LeBron James and Tayshaun Prince and he will face his biggest challenge yet against the best player on the planet. Keeping Kobe under 30 points is a big part of the formula for victory. My final projection-Celtics over Lakers in 6.

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This will be the 61st NBA Finals and the 11th time these teams have met, so it is difficult to not get excited for it, even if the rivalry is nothing like it was in the 1980s. In the 80s, the Lakers were the only evil empire I knew anything about, epitomizing all that was wrong in the world. It is this healthy type of hatred bred in the heart of a 7 year old that free agency has killed in sports. Celtics-Lakers used to be the struggle between good and evil. While it might not be the same 20 years later, one phrase still sounds good...Beat L.A.

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For the take of someone who remembers when Kareem went by Lew, go here.