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Game Preview: Celtics at Lakers, Game 5
 |
vs. |  |
|---|---|---|
| 15-9 | Postseason Record | 13-6 |
| 92.3 | PPG | 102.9 |
| 88.0 | PPGA | 98.7 |
| 44.6 | FG% | 47.0 |
| 42.5 | Opp. FG% | 43.3 |
| 39.8 | Rebounds | 40.1 |
| 21.1 | Assists | 21.1 |
| 12.8 | Turnovers | 12.8 |
| 7.2 | Steals | 7.2 |
| 4.4 | Blocks | 5.5 |
| 3-1 | Playoff Series | 1-3 |
Now Playing:
- Celtics Documentary
- Dancers at Foxwoods
- Shamrock Shootout
- Media Day
Eastern Conference Semifinals - Celtics Win Series 4-3
| Game | Date | Time | Location | Game Details | Series/TV | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | May 12 | 8:00 p.m. | Boston | 92-91, W | Keys | 1-0 BOS | ||
| Game 2 | May 14 | 7:00 p.m. | Boston | 82-81, L | Keys | TIED 1-1 | ||
| Game 3 | May 16 | 7:00 p.m. | Philadelphia | 107-91, W | Keys | 2-1 BOS | ||
| Game 4 | May 18 | 8:00 p.m. | Philadelphia | 92-83, L | Keys | TIED 2-2 | ||
| Game 5 | May 21 | 7:00 p.m. | Boston | 101-85, W | Keys | 3-2 BOS | ||
| Game 6 | May 23 | 8:00 p.m. | Philadelphia | 82-75, L | Keys | Tied 3-3 | ||
| Game 7 | May 26 | 8:00 p.m. | Boston | 85-75, W | Keys | 4-3 BOS | ||
Conference Finals Tickets on sale Sunday 5/27 at 11 a.m.!
| Point Guard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Rajon Rondo |
Derek Fisher | ||
| Shooting Guard | |||
Ray Allen |
Kobe Bryant | ||
| Small Forward | |||
Paul Pierce |
Vladimir Radmonovic | ||
| Power Forward | |||
Kevin Garnett |
Lamar Odom | ||
| Center | |||
Kendrick Perkins |
Pau Gasol | ||
| Sixth Man | |||
James Posey |
Luke Walton | ||
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Staples Center, 9:00 PM
TV: ABC
RADIO: WEEI 850 AM
Two days removed from the superlatives that were draped over the Celtics' 22-point second half comeback in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, a little perspective has been gained. Nothing will, or can, diminish that historic win, but the true turnaround has yet to be completed, having started before training camp with a simple, everyday Duck Tour.
In the late days of summer, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett gathered at Doc Rivers' home at 8 a.m. for a very literal manifestation of their goals.
"Doc said, 'You know, this is what they're going to do if we win a championship.'" Pierce remembered." And I said, 'Next time I get on this Duck Tour, it's going to be when we win the championship.' And I promised that."
After all, a little over a year ago Pierce and Rivers had their hopes resting on a handful of fluttering ping pong balls. Today, owning a 3-1 series advantage in the NBA Finals, they are now just a single victory away from taking a second amphibious vehicle. Fate, as it were, is far removed from arbitrary lottery machines, but for the time being, the Celtics must still share it with the Los Angeles Lakers.
"The reality is that we're still in the NBA Finals and we still have a great deal of control over what happens next," Derek Fisher said. "As far as I'm concerned, I like those odds. I would rather have the ability to have a say-so in what my future is as opposed to someone else controlling it."
Heading into the Staples Center for Game 5 (9 p.m.) with a cushion of three games and two Garden dates to get the last win, the Celtics will have a commanding voice in how things unravel. But if one small criticism lingers over this team, it's that they have hardly slammed the door on their opponents.
The Celtics are 0-2 in these playoffs after taking a two-game edge, dropping Game 3's in Atlanta and Cleveland. Through those first two series, they were 2-2 in closeout games -- both losses coming on the road. But when it boils down to "What have you done for me lately" semantics, the Celtics are pulling high marks, having brought the hammer down in Game 6 at Detroit, 89-81,
Even so, Rivers says the formula for the toughest of wins is still a work in progress.
"I don't know how you fix it, but I'm still working on it," Rivers said. "But we just have to have great mental toughness and focus, and we can't -- again, when we've only focused on the process of playing basketball, we've been very good. Whenever we start looking at scores and results, we've been very bad, and it's as simple as that."
Understandable, but tonight will be hardly as simple as focus (with the exception of the breathing-regulated Garnett). While it may seem that by the fifth game the playing board would be all but folded up to allow emotions to duke it out, there is still plenty of maneuvering to be done. The first question is what to do with the small, spread-the-floor lineup that resurrected the Celtics Thursday night?
Rivers had some crucial lineup decisions decided for him in that game -- Rajon Rondo was not at his best playing on an ankle bruise and Kendrick Perkins strained his left shoulder in the third quarter, leading Rivers to call for a boost from Eddie House, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, James Posey and Garnett. It worked beautifully, as the Celtics outscored the Lakers 49-23 over the final 19 minutes.
"It turned out to be something that we weren't as adept at defending as we felt we could defend the other way around," Phil Jackson said. "And we should have been ready for it. We saw some of it in the third game and we just didn't make that adjustment individually staying attached to some of the shooters that came in the game as opposed to some of the power players they had in before."
But with both Rondo and Perkins both expected to be in the starting lineups tonight, according to Rivers, each lineup will be available to keep the Lakers off balance. Just as there are four players, counting Tony Allen, whom Boston can use on Kobe Bryant, too many options is never a bad problem. But as for wrapping the greatest of comebacks in one, two or three games, the choice is clear.
"To win it will be special. To win it at home [in Los Angeles] would be unreal," said Pierce, who grew up in nearby Inglewood, CA. "You know, this is where I started playing basketball. This is where I picked up the sport. This is where I got into the game, watching the Celtics and the Lakers, and to win it on this court, you know, even though I wish it was the Forum, but unfortunately it's not, but just to win it here in your hometown is something that people are going to remember, you know, years and years down the road."
