Much like Lakers approached defending Rajon Rondo in game six, the Celtics took whoever was covering Ron Artest (in most cases it was Paul Pierce) and had them float on the defensive end of the court. Unlike Rajon Rondo in game six, Ron Artest was able to make the Boston Celtics pay for this defensive strategy. Eleven of Ron Artest’s twenty points came directly from Boston Celtic double teams. Here is a look at these plays:
Play 1 (Two Points)
Above is a play from a sideline out of bounds set. Immediately after Ron Artest inbounds the basketball and floats to the corner, Paul Pierce leaves him to float in the middle of the court. Rajon Rondo, unsure of what to make of the situation decides to pick up Artest. As the shot goes up, Artest uses his size advantage on Rondo to grab the rebound and put it right back in the basket.
For almost the entire second half, the Lakers were chipping away at the Celtics’ lead. Any time they would get close, the Celtics would create a little breathing room for themselves. That is exactly what happened after the Lakers tied the game at 61. The Celtics used three Ray Allen free throws to create a three point lead with about six and a half minutes left. That is when Derek Fisher hit another huge three pointer in a NBA Finals game.
An interesting little wrinkle with this play is Lamar Odom bringing the ball up. This is important for two reasons. When Pau gets the ball in the post, it is hard for Big Baby (the man covering Odom) to double off of him. It allows allows for Derek Fisher to float off of the basketball.
After Ray Allen hit a three pointer with about 52 seconds left, the Celtics found themselves down three points needing to get a stop to keep it a one possession game. They got their stop as Kobe chucked up a deep three pointer, but they were unable to secure the defensive rebound, and that was your ballgame:
After Ray Allen hits his three, things get a little hectic as Pau Gasol gets set to inbound the basketball. All ten players are in the Lakers’ backcourt, and this leads to some confusions about matchups. Initially you have Rasheed Wallace and Kevin Garnett just kind of hanging around not responsible for any Laker yet.
