A Look at the Lakers-Celtics Series For What it Is, Not What the Hype Wants it to Be

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↵Hi, my name is Lakers/Celtics. You probably can’t walk six feet out of your door, or two clicks down the virtual lane, without bumping into some evidence of my existence. I sport so many big names it’s sick, am a threat to bring back one dynasty and ignite a new age of glory, and just generally make every basketball fan glad to be alive.↵
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↵I get started tonight, at Boston. Judging on what’s come before, this will mean lots of smoke, bellicose fans, and defensive intensity. Bold prediction: If Kobe Bryant does to the Celtics tonight what he did to the Spurs in game one, on the road, no less, the series is over. But that won’t happen so let’s just assume that this will be close, as will all games, as will the series. And presto, a game seven for the ages.↵
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↵If there’s any point to this rant, it’s that, unfortunately, this really isn’t a collision of styles or outlooks. The Lakers have their triangle, Kobe, and misfit cast of Euros, multi-skilled stragglers, and a coach on the verge of supremacy. The Celtics are, well, The Celtics. Garnett is intense, most of the time, Paul Pierce is a workhorse, Ray Allen may or may not show up, Perkins and Rondo are just consistent enough to be lovable, without being important enough to be worth judging harshly. Besides, what good would that do? There’s nothing else to work with.↵
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↵I know, there’s the crushing defense, and the funny rallying cry, and the tough, show-and-prove slog through the East. But at the end of the day, I’m worried we’ll have to spend way too much time talking about how important and profound these Celtics are, how much they connect directly to the of the past. When, looking forward, it’s the Lakers who have a top-to-bottom identity now that isn’t based on implication or sloganeering, and one that spells out a plan for the future.↵
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↵I’m all for a renewed rivalry, but I sincerely hope that doesn’t distract us from the real facts on the ground. One of these teams has the feel of a classic contender, the other is a Frankenstein experiment hanging on to sanity by the skin of its teeth.↵