NBA Finals Preview: 1 LA Lakers vs 4 Boston Celtics - 5 Things You Need To Know

        The NBA Finals begin tomorrow night.  It could be a series the NBA faithful look back on for a long time to come, but as I said in a recent post(maybe I spoke too soon), it could be another one-sided win in favor of the Lakers or Boston. Kobe's drawing comparisons to MJ, while Paul Pierce is proving doubters wrong in leading the Celtics to another Finals appearance.
        Bryant's poured in 30 or more points in nine of the last ten games.  Lamar Odom's thoughts on Bryant's dominance - "Kobe is so good, he makes the incredible normal for us."  Pierce helped to close out the Magic in a Game Five win.  The Celtics have been damn good, too.  The Lakers downed a resilient Phoenix Suns squad, four to two, while Boston took a 3-0 lead, before coming dangerously close to handing the series to Orlando.  The media is hyping the rematch, and they should, due to the two most prolific franchises going head-to-head with a championship on the line.  There's not much more an NBA fan could ask for. (Besides a Lebron-Kobe finale)

Alright, here we go:

5 Things You Need To Know

1. Will the Lakers front-court be tough enough to match Boston's rough three down low (Kendrick Perkins, Glen Davis, and Rasheed Wallace)

The fluid drained from Andrew Bynum's knee has returned.  That will be bad news for the Lakers and Bynum as the possible x-factor will not be at full strength for the Finals.  As we've seen versus the Suns, Bynum does not give the same impact when hobbled by the knee.  We saw the damage Boston's front-court can do in Game One of the Conference Finals, where 'Sheed, Davis, and Perkins shut down a frustrated Dwight Howard, and the Lakers don't have much to contend with without Bynum down low.  Bynum's ailing knee and Pau Gasol's play will be the x-factors here.  Edge - Boston.

2. Kobe Bryant vs. Ray Allen

The way Bryant's playing, it doesn't look like there's much Boston can do.  Kobe fought through triple teams, hands in his face, and arms swatting at the ball, and he still led the Lakers to a win.  Ray Allen will be stuck with the difficult task of guarding Bryant, with Pierce offering some help when he needs a breather.  It's not likely Allen will do much to get in the way of another outstanding performance by Bryant.  Edge - Kobe

3. Will Derek Fisher Continue To Get By In Guarding Another Premier PG In Rondo?

This one could change.  Phil Jackson may choose to put Bryant on Fisher and attempt to halt Rondo's penetration.  If Rondo is not able to get anything going it would go a long way towards a Lakers win.  On the other hand, if he does get going, Jackson could be ridiculed for assigning the wrong player to Rondo.  Rondo will likely break through a slower Fisher.  My money's on Rondo.  Edge - Rondo

4. Can Doc Rivers out-do 10 time NBA champion, Phil Jackson, again?

Some believe that the Celtics are lucky to be here, but Boston's success may be attributed to masterful coaching by Rivers.  Defeating a legend like Jackson is not going to be easy, and this time around the Lakers are coming off a title run, and are playing better than they were in 2008.  Rivers' will need his team to execute in order to win this time around.  Edge - Jackson

5. Ron Artest vs. Paul Pierce

Artest is a lock-down defender, while Paul Pierce is clutch for the Celtics.  If Rondo is shut down by Fisher(not likely) then Pierce will become the key to Boston's offense.  We have seen that when Pierce isn't forced to exert energy on the defensive end, defending a scorer like Kobe, his offensive performance jumps considerably.  See Pierce's numbers when defending Lebron, and then compare it to his performance versus the Magic.  Pierce's offensive game is tough to slow down when he gets on a roll, but Artest has shut down premier scorers before.  This one could go either way, but without the pressure to defend Kobe, Pierce should play well.  Edge - Pierce

Follow Chase on Twitter @ yutz18

Photo Credit - http://www.inewscatcher.com/timages/a5c35b315d72709646cfd031122ad548.jpg

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