2009 NBA Finals Preview- A Journey Ends, A Champion Crowned

by Marcus Barkley

Well…it all comes down to this. Two teams ready to square off in a final conflict. Four wins to take home the prize that 28 other teams can only dream of or be haunted by. On one side stands a program seeped in legacy, bathed in championship gold and seemingly deserved hype. On the other side- an organization that no one expected to be there, a team who was one of the league’s worst just a few years ago that has now climbed to the top, stepping over the former champion and the team many thought would be the new champion on their way to this chance at basketball immorality. Pretty exciting stuff, eh?

The Western Conference Champion Los Angeles Lakers

Previous Series: 4-1 over #8 Utah, 4-3 over #5 Houston, 4-2 over #2 Denver

(18 Games Played)

Offense: 102.9 PPG (106.9 PPG during the regular season)

Defense: 96.3 PPG (99.3 PPG during the regular season)

Difference: 6.6 PPG (7.6 PPG during the regular season)

Leading Scorer: Kobe Bryant- 29.6 PPG (26.8 PPG during the regular season)

Leading Rebounder: Pau Gasol- 11.3 RPG (9.6 RPG during the regular season)

Leading Assister: Kobe Bryant- 4.9 APG (4.9 APG during the regular season)

Interesting Stat Note: Out of 12 victorious games, the Lakers have only won one game while scoring less than 100 points, game 7 against Houston (89-70).

What LA has going for them: Can you say legacy? This is the Lakers 31st Finals appearance (most ever) and, if victorious, it would be their 15th championship (second only to the Celtics with 17). Not to mention, they were here last year and, being lead by one of the game’s top players, are looking for vengeance on the Eastern Conference.

What LA has going against them: The Lakers were here last year. Though this gives the Lakers added experience and perspective, they (and their leader, Kobe Bryant) have yet to prove they can win an NBA championship without Shaq at the helm. They also have some weaknesses when it comes to PG and SF and their bigs will have their hands full with genetic freak of nature in Howard.

X-Factor: Lamar Odom- I have always considered Odom to be the Lakers X-factor and thought the Lakers were actually better off with Bynum out or at least coming off the bench. Odom provides that spark in tough times and has that “jack of all trades” quality that makes him quite the asset at the highest level. But beyond all that, the biggest reason Odom is so pertinent is that it will often be his job to guard Rashard Lewis and help out on Dwight Howard- and keeping those two entities in check will likely be the dividing line between another Lakers championship or another off-season of lamenting how they were close, yet so far away.

VS.

The Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic

Previous Series: 4-2 over #6 Philadelphia, 4-3 over #2 Boston, 4-2 over #1 Cleveland

(19 Games Played)

Offense: 98.5 PPG (101 PPG during the regular season)

Defense: 93.7 PPG (94.4 PPG during the regular season)

Differential: 4.8 PPG (5.6 PPG during the regular season)

Leading Scorer: Dwight Howard 21.7 PPG (20.6 PPG during the regular season)

Leading Rebounder: Dwight Howard- 15.4 RPG (13.8 RPG during the regular season)

Leading Assister: Hedo Turkoglu- 5.1 APG (4.9 APG during the regular season)

Interesting Stat Note: The Magic could be the modern day basketball version of the “Cardiac Kids”. In 19 games, the Magic have either won or lost 10 games by 5 points or less (though only 4 of those 10 were wins).

What Orlando has going for them: Though most would say that the Magic go into this series as a clear underdog- is this anything new for them? They came back from being down 2-1 to Philadelphia, came back from being down 3-2 to beat the reigning World Champion Celtics and then shocked the world by taking out the top seeded (and undefeated) Cavaliers, who many thought would win the championship, 4-2, with the most crucial victory in that series being a game 1 upset of massive proportions in Cleveland, where the Cavs had only lost 1 meaningful game all season. Lead by a slimmer and noticeably less green Incredible Hulk, pressure doesn’t seem to be a problem for the Magic. They also swept the Lakers 2-0 in the regular season.

What Orlando has going against them: Though they took care of the Cavaliers in a fashion that no one outside Florida expected, the Lakers are a different animal altogether. This is not to say they are any better than the Cavs, but they play a much different style and have three bigs who can bring the heat down low. If the Lakers can shut down Dwight Howard enough that he doesn’t work as a gigantic decoy for their 2-point based offense, the Magic quickly become a one-dimensional team of shooters.

X-Factor: Mickael Pietrus- Though the casual basketball fan may have no idea who he is, you can just ask the Cavaliers and their fans about him and you will get a sigh of disappointment and possibly even some fun cursing. Pietrus has always been a shooter (which is why he quietly fit so well on the Golden State Warriors for a number of years), but it wasn’t until these playoffs that Pietrus showed his worth and his ability to stroke the three, especially in crucial times. Pietrus averaged only 9.4 PPG in the regular season, but is averaging 10.5 PPG (as well as 2.7 RPG and 1 BPG in only 25.3 PPG) and averaged 13.9 PPG against the Cavaliers. His scoring when the Magic are either looking to pull out to a big lead or make one of their now standard playoff comebacks will be key if the Magic hope to survive the barrage from LA.

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