Beat LA!

If you're younger than thirty, you likely have no idea just how big a rivalry the Celtics and the Lakers once had. That rivalry has gone dormant for two decades because both teams have fallen upon hard times, and when the lskers were truly great the Celtics were, well, not. The Celtics and Lakers are the top two brands in the history of the NBA. They have combined to win thirty titles in a league just over six decades old. The magic-Bird years represented the apogee of the rivalry, but prior to the 1980s the Celtics and Lakers had dueled it out in the 1960s, albeit in a lopsided series of competitions that the Celtics dominated.

On Thursday the rivalry commences anew, and if there is any justice in this world I will be at the game. I head to Boston Tuesday morning for a couple of days of shenenigans with friends before I head to a college reunion that I am looking forward to despite the fact that it makes me feel old. The Thunderstick and I have agreed to make a solid push for tickets Thursday despite the fact that we won't be able to sit together.

Kobe and the Lakers have taken on the role of heavy favorites, largely because of the comparable ease with which LA rolled through the Western Conference playoffs. But I am not buying that Kobe is that much more dominant than LeBron James, and the rest of the Lakers' team, while better than Cleveland's does not strike me as measurably better than what Detroit put on the floor. Mine may be a homer's call, but I believe that the combo of Pierce (still my favorite current Celtic), Garnett, and a rejuvenated Ray Allen, plus the tendency of the role players to step up as Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo and so many others have done this postseason, will lead the Celtics to banner number seventeen in six games.

Beat LA! Beat LA! Beat LA!