Celtics Vs. Lakers: Two NBA Dynasties Meet Again

Tonight, in Boston Massachusetts, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics are facing off for the first game of the 2008 NBA Finals. The powerhouse of the west Lakers and their eastern counterpart are hopefully going to provide hard core NBA and basketball fans an entertaining game.

For the Lakers, I believe that this is their year. It is particularly true in my opinion because Kobe Bryant, the NBA's Most Valuable Player during the regular season and hopefully in the post season, is on a mission. As I predicted in my last article when Lakers played the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, I stated that this is the year of the Lakers. I predicted that the Lakers would win in game six, but they impressed me even more by winning the conference trophy at five games. They were simply impressive.

Now, I know the Celtics had the most wins in the regular season. They have an incredible line up of talents in Inglewood native son Paul Pierce, Malibu home owner Kevin Garnet, former Clippers Sam Cassell, P.J. Brown, and James Posey. Yes they have a very talented squad. Celtics' history with the Lakers is forever a story for the ages.

But, it is still the year of the Lakers. Kobe and his crew are going to put down the Celtics. It may be a mission that seems impossible for now. But as Kobe Bryant received his first regular season MVP award, one could see the sparks in his eyes as he said "let's get the party started." Kobe is going to accomplish his mission with an NBA finals' title to go with his deserving MVP award.

Of course this is not a one man show, so the key players will need to play even harder than they did against the Spurs to be victorious in game 7. Yes, my prediction is game 7 because the Lakers do not have home court advantage against the Celtics. They lost their two regular season games against the Celtics, but that was sans Pau Gasol. That was when Lakers hadn't really jelled together as a team.

As we wait for the fun to begin, I hope for the best for Kobe and the Lakers. If all the starting players; Fisher, Gasol, Odom, and the rest can do what they did to San Antonio in the second half of game one of the conference finals, they will be in great shape and poised to grab this year's bragging rights in Larry Birds' palace.