Both teams entered the playoffs as the number one seed in their conference. The Lakers came out of the Western Conference by leaning on Kobe Bryant’s MVP skills. The Celtics are led by the trio of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.

Boston’s biggest advantage in the Finals will be their homecourt advantage. It will be difficult for the Lakers to win a game in Boston — especially with their rowdy fans doing all they can to bring another championship to Boston. Garnett, Pierce and Allen are now all play very well and the young players on the team have grown up in a hurry.

The Lakers, on the other hand, have the best player in the planet. Bryant will be tough for anyone to stop. On top of that, their team is amazingly deep. From Pau Gasol to Lamar Odom to their young and explosive bench, it’ll be difficult to keep the Lakers from scoring. Defensively, the Lakers are also very underrated.

My prediction on the 2008 NBA Finals? The Celtics will win Game 1 but then the Lakers will reel off four straight wins to win the championship.

Photo: Newscom

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2008 NBA MVP Kobe Bryant led the way with 39 points, as he once again proved he’s the best player in the world. He was ruthless in the fourth quarter and single-handedly sent the Spurs packing.

In the East, the Boston Celtics lead the Detroit Pistons 3-2. The Celtics will look to close it out on Friday in Detroit. If the Pistons win Game 6, the next and last game will be in Boston on Sunday.

Here is a video of the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers:

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This could be a big blow for the Spurs because Splitter has long been regarded as one of the best prospects in Europe. He’s a mobile center who is already a very good defender. His offense is solid but it remains unpolished.

With the Spurs trailing in the Western Conference Finals, it’s almost time to start planning for next season for San Antonio. The Spurs apparently have to cross off Splitter’s name from their next year’s roster.

With Splitter seemingly out of the picture, that could open up room for Ian Mahinmi. Mahinmi is a young center prospect who starred in the NBA D-League during the 2007-08 season. He’s expected to make the Spurs roster for the 2008-09 season.

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This latest video shows Perkins dunking during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals and then yelling to his teammates the phrase: “F— These Fools!”

As a fantasy basketball player, Perkins is getting better and better. While he was only a borderline fantasy player during the 2007-08 season, Perkins appears to be improving on a nightly basis. By next season, his stats should be good enough that he’ll at least be the level of a fantasy backup center. Down the line, he projects to be a player who could average 12 points, eight rebounds and two blocks per game, while shooting a high percentage from the field.

Here is the Kendrick Perkins video:

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While obviously Garnett is a very good fantasy basketball player, Maxiell is starting to come into his own as a decent fantasy option. During the regular season, Maxiell averaged 7.9 points and 5.3 rebounds, while shooting 53.8% from the field. He also blocks more than one shot per game and does a good job taking care of the ball.

With the series tied at 2, critical Game 5 will take place in Boston on Wednesday. The Celtics have only lost one game at home in the playoffs – which happened to be Game 2 against the Pistons.

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In Game 3 against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, Billups had one of the worst games of his Pistons career. In 27 minutes, Billups had only six points and four assists, while shooting 1-for-6 from the floor. The Pistons ended up losing the game at home and now trail the Celtics 2-1 in the best of seven series.

Stuckey, on the other hand, was very good in Game 3. Stuckey, who is a rookie point guard who was drafted in the first round, played 27 minutes and had 17 points, four assists and four steals. In the playoffs, Stuckey has improved his numbers of his regular season statistics and may now be a better options than a hobbled Billups.

In Game 4, don’t be surprised if Billups sees more time on the bench and Stuckey sees more time on the court.

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Since the Celtics finished with the better record, they’ll have homecourt advantage in this series. While the Celtics will be favored due to their homecourt advantage, there are reasons to believe that the Pistons can give the Celtics a run for their money.

First of all, the Celtics have been far from dominant in their 2008 playoff run. They’re 0-6 on the road in the playoffs and have had to win two Game 7’s to even reach this point. The Celtics’ offense has struggled and they aren’t getting a lot of production from a few key players — including Ray Allen.

Secondly, the Pistons are playing really well. After struggling at the beginning of the series against the Sixers, Detroit has turned it around. They beat the Magic in five games, despite the Game 3 injury to Chauncey Billups.

On the other hand, the Celtics have a few reasons to be happy with their position. They won two out of three matchups against the Pistons in the regular season. Their defense has been the best in the NBA in both the regular season and the playoffs — especially at home. Additionally, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce are arguably better than any player on the Pistons.

That said, I’m going to predict that the Pistons will win this series in six games. The Celtics have played with fire too much in these playoffs and this time they will get burned.

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If the reports are true and D’Antoni is let go, there could be major changes in store for the Suns. With fantasy basketball in mind, this could be devastating news for players on the Suns. D’Antoni’s free flowing offensive sets allowed the Suns to have some of the best fantasy players in the game over the last few years.

Steve Nash particularly will undoubtedly suffer from the loss of D’Antoni. Nash thrived under D’Antoni, winning two MVP awards and cementing his legacy as a Hall of Fame player. If a defensive oriented coach comes on board, Nash’s offensive production could be severely hurt and he could see his minutes reduced.

The only player on the Suns who likely won’t be affected much is Amare Stoudemire. Stoudemire will likely continue to get many offensive touches. If anything, Stoudemire’s rebounding and shot blocking could increase under a new management.

However, everyone else – from Nash to Raja Bell to Boris Diaw to Shaquille O’Neal to Leandro Barbosa – will need to be reevaluated for the 2008-09 fantasy basketball season.

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Western Conference
1) Los Angeles Lakers
8) Denver Nuggets
Prediction: Lakers in six. The Nuggets have no one to guard Kobe Bryant and Bryant will destroy the Nuggets’ porous defense.

2) New Orleans Hornets
7) Dallas Mavericks
Prediction: Mavs in six. Dallas will get revenge for last year’s first round flameout by pulling an upset of their own.

3) San Antonio Spurs
6) Phoenix Suns
Predictions: Spurs in seven. The Suns are built to beat the Spurs. However, they don’t quite have the cohesiveness to beat the Spurs this season.

4) Utah Jazz
5) Houston Rockets
Prediction: Jazz in five. The Jazz may have gotten the easiest draw of the first round. The Rockets enter the playoffs limping.

Eastern Conference
1) Boston Celtics
8) Atlanta Hawks
Prediction: Celtics in four. The Celtics are just too good.

2) Detroit Pistons
7) Philadelphia 76ers
Prediction: Pistons in five. The Sixers will get one game but that’s it.

3) Orlando Magic
6) Toronto Raptors
Prediction: Magic in six. The Raptors come into the playoffs struggling. The Magic should take advantage.

4) Cleveland Cavaliers
5) Washington Wizards
Prediction: Cavs in seven. LeBron James is just too good, even though the rest of his team isn’t very impressive.

Image details: Cleveland Cavaliers v New York Knicks served by picapp.com

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