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Celtics, Lakers set to renew historic rivalry

Sat 31st, May 2008

(Sports Network) - It's been a long time coming. In fact, it's been more than 20 years since the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers have met in the NBA Finals.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and the Lakers defeated Larry Bird, Robert Parish and the Celtics in six games in the 1987 championship round. This is the 11th time these storied franchises will square off in the finals.

Boston has won eight of the 10 previous matchups in the finals. The Celtics defeated the Lakers in 1959, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969 and 1984. However, LA has won the last two meetings as it beat Boston in six games in 1985 and 1987.

Some of the greatest players to ever lace up a pair of sneakers have participated in this historic rivalry. Bird, Bob Cousy, Dennis Johnson, John Havlicek, K.C. Jones, Sam Jones, Kevin McHale, Parish and Bill Russell are some of the great Celtics who have been part of the intense championship battles between these two squads, while Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic, Jerry West, Jamaal Wilkes and James Worthy were there for the Lakers.

The names have changed once again, but the rivalry is still, and always will be, one of the greatest in professional sports.

Boston's Big Three of Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce match up against LA's finest in Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom. It should be an entertaining best-of-seven series, which will become another exciting chapter in NBA Finals history.

Both teams have been on a mission. The Celtics had the biggest turnaround in NBA history during the regular season, as they finished a league-best 66-16, a 42-win turnaround from a season ago. They struggled in rounds one and two, needing seven games to oust both Atlanta and Cleveland.

Allen, Garnett and Pierce got some much needed help from center Kendrick Perkins, swingman James Posey and guard Rajon Rondo in Boston's six-game series victory over the Detroit Pistons in the East finals.

Each of the Big Three will be appearing in the NBA Finals for the first time. They are all All-Star players and have received much recognition throughout their storied careers, but a victory over the Lakers would be the most impressive entry on their resumes.

LA's season took a turn when it acquired Gasol in a trade from the Memphis Grizzlies on February 1. Gasol was the low-post scorer the Lakers desperately needed, and he became the perfect compliment to 10-time All-Star Bryant, who captured his first NBA MVP for his outstanding regular season.

The Lakers, who were the top seed in the Western Conference, finished the campaign with a 57-25 record and captured their first Pacific Division crown since the 2003-04 season.

Bryant has continued his stellar work in the postseason. He led the Lakers to a sweep over Denver in round one, a six-game series victory over Utah in the West semis and a surprising 4-1 win against Tim Duncan and the defending world champion San Antonio Spurs in the conference finals.

Veteran guard Derek Fisher, who has won three titles (2000-02) during his career with the Lakers, Jordan Farmar, Vladimir Radmanovic, Sasha Vujacic and Luke Walton have all done their part to help LA get back to the finals.

The 29-year-old Bryant will also attempt to rid himself of the label that he can't win a championship without Shaquille O'Neal by his side, while Boston's executive director of basketball operations Danny Ainge hopes the Big Three that he assembled will continue to make him look like a genius by winning another championship for the franchise.

There is history, star power, plenty of storylines and many intriguing statistics in this matchup. Will Bryant end his MVP season with the fourth championship of his career? Can Allen, Garnett and Pierce complete their journey to the promised land?

Two of the elite franchises in sports have made it back to the big dance. This is great for the league and fantastic for the fans.

It will all be settled on the hardwood.

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