The Lakers Choke; Celtics Take 3-1 Series Lead

Ray Allen and Paul Pierce
Celebrate an Improbable Victory

How did the Los Angeles Lakers end up losing after having a lead by as many as 26 points in the 2nd quarter? After what may be the biggest collapse in NBA finals history, the Boston Celtics take a 3-1 series lead and are now only 1 game away from a NBA title.

When the Lakers opened up a 21 point lead against the Boston Celtics in game 4 in the 1st quarter, I thought that the Lakers had already evened the series at 2-2. The Celtics even made a bit of a run in the 2nd quarter and cut it to 12. But to close out the half, Jordan Farmar hit a 3 to put the lead back up to 18. Lamar Odom, who had been non-existent in the playoffs, had made all 7 of his shots. Things were looking good for the Lakers.

Larry David observes what looks
like a convincing win for the Lakers

But all went downhill from there for them. Here are some one word explanation on how LA lost this game:

Choked. Gagged. Impeded. Suffocated. Collapsed.
Breakdown. Stifled. Quashed. Imploded.

Of course, the Celtics played well and got a bit lucky to pull off such a comeback. It all started when Celtics' center Kendrick Perkins hurt his shoulder in the 3rd quarter, and the Celtics still trailed by 20. Coach Doc Rivers inserted four shooters into the lineup capable of knocking down 3 pointers (House, Posey, Allen, Pierce) with Kevin Garnett protecting the paint. They were able to spread the floor and expose the Lakers' defense.

Paul Pierce asked his to for the duty of guarding Kobe in the 2nd half. Because he was bigger and stronger than Ray Allen, he forced Bryant to take more difficult shots and was unable to post him up. Bryant was held scoreless in the 3rd quarter and never got into a good rhythm in the 2nd half. The rest of the Celtics defense also stepped up collectively and slowed down the Laker's role players. Byrant was held scoreless in the 3rd quarter as the Celtics outscored the Lakers 31-15 in the 3rd quarter.

38 year old P.J. Brown throws down
a facial on Kobe Byrant

Phil Jackson appeared drunk in the interview between the 3rd and 4th quarter.

Question: What is the explanation for the Celtics comeback
Phil Jackson: "I dun-no, you tell me"

Question: The Celtics appear to have the momentum.
Phil Jackson: "Momentum is a strange girl...."

After several opportunities, thee Celtics fought hard and eventually took the lead late in the 4th quarter with an Eddie House jumper. Not only did Pierce slow down the MVP, he also scored 18 of his 20 points in the 2nd half. KG stretched the lead by finally hitting a shot down in the post.

Ray Allen was also spectacular down the stretch who played all 48 minutes in the game. On one play, he skyed for his 9th rebound and then converted a reverse layup over the much taller Pau Gasol. Allen, , clinched the game for the Celtics by crossing up Vujacic for a much easier layup.

Ray Allen, aka Jesus Shuttlesworth
with the pretty reverse layup.

Afterwards, Vujacic threw a tantrum. Kobe Byrant was visibly upset. Pau Gasol, in the words of Stephen A. Smith, was softer than tissue paper. The Lakers lost. The Celtics are only one game from clinching a championship.

Kobe Bryant's press conference brought this historic game in unique perspective. Bryant said he would get some wine, beer, and 20 shots to wash down the loss and come back to work the next day. He described the Lakers collapse in the 3rd quarter a kid who peed in his bed and was caught by his parents. The mess was so bad he could not hide it, even with a large towel.

Kobe also said that for the Lakers to comeback, they have to take it one game at a time. However, his demeanor told a different story. Their hope for a championship looks bleak.

The NBA is Rigged?? Shocking!

I was telling people a few weeks ago that the NBA was rigged. How come road wins for teams in the playoffs were few and far between? How could LeBron James not be called for traveling during the Wizards/Cavs series but get called for it twice in the 1st game of 2nd round against the Celtics?

Most people just laughed it off saying the idea was far fetched. Only a few people agreed with me. They agreed that out of all the major sports, the one that is most likely to be rigged is the NBA.

Well, this week Tim Donaghy just admitted this week that the fix was in for several games. Donaghy, who has pleaded guilty for betting on several games which he officiated, has just confessed that several games were influenced by league officials. The fix includes the Kings/Lakers series in 2002. In game 6, the Lakers got to the free throw line 27 times in the 4th quarter. The Lakers ultimately went on to win the NBA finals in 2002. Donaghy also hints that game 7 of that series was also rigged to the Lakers as well.

Rick Adelman expressed his frustration about the officials after game 6 of the Western Conference finals:

"Our big guys get 20 fouls tonight and Shaq gets four? You tell me how the game went," Adelman said. "It's just the way it is. Obviously, they got the game called the way they wanted to get it called."

Your 2001-02 Champions
the Sacramento Kings?!

Another series that Donaghy accuses the league of rigging was the 2005 1st round match up between the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks, where Yao Ming mysteriously started to pick up fouls for setting screens. Perhaps the league wanted to see a matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and the Phoenix Suns, where the MVP of the league Steve Nash would play his former team. Here is a clip of the game below indicating how one sided the officiating became:

The Houston Rockets vs. the Dallas Mavericks
Game 5

Stern denies the allegations, but why should we believe him? If Donaghy is wrong, there is a good chance that he could face a jail sentence longer than 34 months. If Dongaghy is thinking in his own self interest, he will tell the complete truth to minimize his time in jail.

Given Donaghy's recent allegation of the league, it also does not seem far fetched that the Celtics/Lakers finals was more than just coincidental. Just look at the ending of game 4 of the Spurs/Lakers series where a foul should have been called on the Lakers. Of course the explanation was that "he did not sell the foul".

TNT debates whether of not Brent Barry was fouled.