Nobody on Boston could stop Kobe Bryant on Tuesday night as he dropped 36 points in an 87-81 victory, giving the Lakers their first win of the series. After the game, Bryant remained untouchable, weaving his way through the fast-fingered censors to get off this s-bomb during the post game press conference.
If you’re one of those people who just hates waiting then, boy, do we have a solution for you. The fellas over at WhatIfSports.com used their massive brain power/computer programs to find out who’s going to win the NBA Finals matchup between the Lakers and Celtics long before either team takes to the court for Game 1 on Thursday night. Other than giving yourself a sports almanac from the future, this is the surest thing going.
We have simulated the NBA Finals between the Celtics and Lakers 10,000 times in order to determine the likelihood of either team winning it all. In the 11th Finals matchup of these two teams, the recently rebuilt Celtics come out on top by winning the series 64% of the time. The most common occurrence is a six game series, where Boston wins it all in its return home after three games in LA.
What follows is an example NBA Finals based on the most common result of those simulations.
GAME 1 Los Angeles 118 @ Boston 115 (OT)
GAME 2 Los Angeles 103 @ Boston 104
GAME 3 Boston 105 @ Los Angeles 95
GAME 4 Boston 89 @ Los Angeles 99
GAME 5 Boston 110 @ Los Angeles 101
GAME 6 Los Angeles 103 @ Boston 107
So, bust out the champagne Beantowners because it’s just a matter of time now. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Kevin Garnett is taking home Finals MVP honors with 20.3 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.7 blocks and 0.8 steals per game.
Links:
[WhatIfSports.com]: NBA Finals Preview
