Heaven for Game 7! Magic/Celtics, Rockets/Lakers ready to square off..
Written by The Go-To-Man Mattie T. on May 17, 2009
The NBA Playoffs will take center stage on Sunday with a pair of Game 7’s, which will include the two teams that squared off in last June’s NBA Finals.
Let’s start with the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics, who will be involved in their fourth Game 7 within the past 13 months on Sunday evening against the Orlando Magic.
For Celtics’ head coach Doc Rivers, it will be his 6th career Game 7. (3-2 record)
This will be just Orlando’s 3rd career Game 7, where they have not won since defeating Indiana in 7 games during the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals.
It will be the third career Game 7 for Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy, who lost his last appearance in the 2005 Eastern Conference Finals to the Detroit Pistons.
My pick for Sunday? Well, seeing that Boston has only played 1 complete game for this entire series (Game 2’s 112-94 blowout win), i think Orlando is going to win on the road & knockout the defending champs.
This could change if Celtics’ guard Ray Allen decides to catch fire. For the series, Allen is averaging just 11.5 PPG on 23-for-75 (30.6%) shooting, which includes a dreadful 5-of-36 (13.8%) from three point range.
Onto the Western Conference, where the Los Angeles Lakers & Houston Rockets will square off in a Game 7 that nobody saw coming.
For Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, this will be his 8th career Game 7. (4-3 record)
Jackson lost his last Game 7 appearence to Phoenix during the 1st round of the 2006 NBA Playoffs.
For Rockets head coach Rick Adelman, Sunday will be his fifth career Game 7. (1-3 record)
Adelman’s only career Game 7 win was in the 1990 Western Conference Semifinals against San Antonio. (Adelman was head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers.)
I think the Lakers are going to squeak out a close win on Sunday at home.
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