Things are back to normal now in the NBA.
As the saying goes, old things become new again. NBA royalty has ascended back to the top of their thrones. For the 11th time in league history, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers will square off for the NBA title.
Every league is defined by their classic rivalries and they are often formed by the battles that occur in championship play. The NFL has Packers/Bears, the NHL has Canadiens/Maple Leafs, MLB has Yankees/Red Sox, and the NBA has a rivalry in Celtics/Lakers that has provided perfect drama made for classic must-see TV.
Once again, it is Boston and L.A. For the old-timers, the series that gave them the dominant Celtics teams of the '60s that spawned Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, Sam Jones, and Bill Russell, pitted against the Lakers, who boasted Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, and Wilt Chamberlain, this can't help but bring back times when the NBA. The league was still a relatively young one back then and was boosted in popularity by the birth of this sports rivalry that defined an era of basketball fans.
For those in my generation, however, you can't help but think about the Celtics with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish up against Magic Johnson, James Worthy, and an aging, but still effective Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the battles of the '80s. After a 21-year hiatus, the premier matchup that the NBA and its followers have always fancied has returned to the primetime.
Perhaps it's the allure that Wilt Chamberlain, probably the most dominant center to ever play the game in the post, could never put his team over the top because of the nuisance that the defensively brilliant Bill Russell provided. Maybe it's the fact that a Havlicek/Baylor matchup sticks in your mind with two of the truly special players that have come across the hardwood floors in league history. Maybe because after a dormant decade in the '70s, where the league seemed to lose its luster, did it resurface with Magic and Larry leading the Celtics and Lakers back on primetime television in May and June.
The Boston/L.A. rivalry has always been a series that is defined by the matchups and more importantly, the "ying" to the "yang." Think about it. Boston. Los Angeles. Gritty, working class Boston; glitzy Hollywood Los Angeles. Fundamentals and shooting from the Celtics; "Showtime" flash with the Lakers. The offensively dominant Chamberlain against the defensive genius of Russell. The wizardry of Cousy against the marksmen West. The confident, smooth shooter from French Lick against the jovial, round ball magician from Lansing. For every hero, a villain, for every ying, a yang, every thesis, an antithesis. Celtics/Lakers know no other way. Thursday night when Game 1 tips off in Boston, it's the series that most loyal fans of the game have longed for. The two most historic franchises in the sport that have combined for 30 NBA championships bring us a classic with a dash of nostalgia. How wide is David Stern smiling right now?
As we talk about opposites, it's only right that these two teams, who were in two entirely different situations, rebounded nicely with a great year to make it back to the Finals. The Celtics finished with the second worst record in the NBA last season at 24–58. The team was in disarray, and then the Celtics and their fans were dealt a crushing blow when they drew the fifth overall pick of the 2007 NBA draft instead of the first overall as they had hoped for. The Lakers, meanwhile, bowed out of the Western Conference playoffs in the first round for the second consecutive year, falling to the Phoenix Suns. Kobe Bryant came out publicly with his desire to be traded, a soap opera that would linger well into the summer and the opening of the next season.
For both franchises, things soon turned around. Boston traded Jeff Green, who they selected with the fifth overall pick in the '07 draft for Ray Allen to play alongside Paul Pierce. Then the blockbuster happened with Kevin Garnett coming to Beantown in a three-way trade. Instantly, Boston became a contender before a game of the 2007-08 regular season was played. Kobe eventually warmed back up to playing in L.A. as he put on his hard hat to build back some bridges with the Laker faithful and management. Add the fact that the waste of human flesh that is Kwame Brown was traded to Memphis for the talented Pau Gasol and the Lakers were the best team in basketball after the All-Star Break.
Boston was as good as advertised, winning 66 games and secured home court advantage throughout the playoffs, something that proved valuable in their 2008 playoff campaign losing only one game in the new Garden in Game 2 to the Pistons in the Eastern finals. The Lakers have simply been on a mission, losing only three games on the way to the Boston. Kobe Bryant, despite all of his wishes to not be compared to Number 23, is showing Jordan-esque dominance in these playoffs. Add the front-line tandem of Lamar Odom and Gasol, with role players such as Sasha Vujacic and savvy vet Derek Fisher, and the Lakers may be the popular pick to win the title.
But again, this is Celtics.Lakers in the Finals. Boston's trio of Pierce, Garnett, and Allen are all seeking their first championship in their illustrious careers. All three have stepped up in the clutch in various times during the postseason. This was not more evident than Paul Pierce with a monstrous Game 7 against Cleveland and a phenomenal fourth quarter in Game 6 against Detroit. The "Big Three" will need to have players like Rajon Rondo, James Posey, and the improving Kendrick Perkins to step up and make this a classic Finals ending a la Celtic Pride.
With players like Havlicek, Magic, Kareem, Cooper, Cousy, Bird, and Russell all watching intently with their stamps on this classic rivalry laying the foundation, it will be up to Bryant, Garnett, Pierce, Gasol, Odom, Allen, and Rondo to write the next chapter. After years of changes, trends, and dynasties, it'll be up to Celtics vs. Lakers for the Larry O'Brien Trophy to make us all feel good again about NBA basketball when it matters most.
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