Celtics Ray Allen Wins NBA Title... But Biggest Challenge Is Yet To Come, His Son's Juvenile Diabetes

Ray Allen tied an NBA Finals record seven three-point shots in the embarrassing Celtics win over the Lakers. He then held the championship trophy on the podium for a brief moment. As soon as he let it go, he reached for his son Walker.

It has been an emotional week for Allen, whose 17-month-old child was just diagnosed with diabetes. The veteran guard talked about his family situation shortly after scoring 26 points to lead the Celtics [team stats] to their 17th NBA title with a 131-92 rout of the Lakers last night.

“He was very happy to be in my arms,” Allen said of his son. “He was very content, and just knowing him, in the years to come he’ll realize how big of a moment (it was), and he was able to share this moment with me, both my sons and my daughter.”

(Allen were spotted on his way into Letterman Studios yesterday)

The drama began Sunday morning when Walker Allen began feeling ill...

This Story in its entirety at Dan Ventura, Boston Herald.com

Celtics Crush Lakers 131-92 And Clinch 2008 NBA Championship

Celtics Ain't Havin It

The Boston Celtics have just ended their 22-year title drought tonight.

Gunning for its 17th NBA championship, the Celtics blew past the Lakers, embarassing the purple and gold with a 131-92 butt-whoopin! How about that defense they threw at LA. It was bananas!!!!

MVP Paul Pierce clearly emerged as the star of the series. But an emotional Kevin Garnett was straight clowning after the massacre and left me SMH.

It was a nice moment, however, when Garnett paid homage to the legendary Bill Russell, looking like he was auditioning for the part of Moses in The Ten Commandments.

Although I love my LA boys, I'm glad that a Black coach got some love. Doc Rivers is a class act, and him talking about his recently deceased father Grady just affirmed that African American men, like Tim Russert and his family, understand the meaning of fatherhood.

Ray Allen was in the Boston Celtics' starting lineup for Game 6 of the NBA finals on Tuesday night, but missed much of the first half after getting poked in the left eye.

Allen, who stayed in Los Angeles to tend to his sick child and flew overnight to make it to Boston in time for Game 6, had a scratch above his nose after getting raked in the face by Lamar Odom while making a layup with 4:30 left in the first quarter.

Coach Doc Rivers went to Allen when he returned to the bench, rubbed him on the head and said something that made Allen smile. Allen sat on the bench and appeared to be blinking before going back in the game.

Looks like one of the most successful franchises in NBA history is back, thanks to Doc, Danny Ainge, and brothers doing their thing on the court in this best-of-seven series that ended with a 4-2 tilt toward the Irish.

Lakers Hold On 103-98 In Game 5!!!

I just got the best Fathers Day present. My LA Lakers kept the dream alive, forcing the Celtics into Game 6. Pack up the championship trophy and book a flight back to Boston, the NBA finals are still on and poppin'. That 103-98 win was too close for comfort, but I was totally feeling the game.

After church, breakfast on Santa Monica Boulevard, splashing around at Zuma Beach in Malibu, and capping off the evening on the couch with my boys and my girl, this what living in Southern California is all about! Don't hate!!!

When Kobe Bryant tipped the ball away from Pierce in the final minute and went to the other end for a dunk, it was enough for a victory at the Staples Center that kept the NBA Finals alive for a possible historic comeback.

The Celtics still lead 3-2 in the best-of-seven series. Game 6 is Tuesday night in Boston.

Pierce had 38 points to lead the Celtics. Bryant’s 25 were high for the Lakers, who came periously close to blowing a huge lead for the second straight game.

No team has overcome a 3-1 deficit in the finals to win a title. The first 28 failed, and now the Lakers, who blew a 24-point lead and lost Game 4 and nearly squandered a 19-point lead in Game 5, have a chance to do something extraordinary.

They'll have to win on the Celtics' parquet floor Tuesday night to force a winner-take-all Game 7, where anything is possible.

Especially with Bryant, the game's best player, on hand.

Celtics Coach Doc Rivers Riding Victory Waves Over NBA Hall Of Famer Phil Jackson

Is This It?????

Well today may be the day that the NBA Finals comes to an end and the Boston Celtics start making plans for that parade.

And throughout these games where have the Phil Jackson adjustment been. In the beginning, given that the teams seamed equal in talent the big nod went to the Lakers to win it all because they had the "Zen Master" Phil Jackson.

Phil who during games hardly ever leaves his seat and who was notorious for effective cerebral game time strategy and renown for adjustment when things were not going good.

Who da' thunk with 5 games gone we'd be talking about Doc Rivers the "master coach" and how he is coaching Phil under the table.

But this is how Doc made it happen from the very beginning.

The day before the Boston Celtics embarked on a trip across the Atlantic Ocean for training camp in Rome, Coach Doc Rivers wanted Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce to start thinking about the Charles River in June. Rivers called his three all-stars and told them to be at his apartment at 8 a.m., which created some serious problems for Garnett, who was new to Boston and had no clue how to get there.

So that means I had to get up at 6:30," Garnett said. "I don't think the three of us were real happy about that, but we finally got there."

Shortly after they settled in, Garnett was stunned to see an amphibious tank -- "this boat basically, you know, on wheels," he said -- pull up just outside the apartment. Rivers had planned to take Garnett, Allen and Pierce on a surprise ride on one of Boston's famous Duck Tours. Garnett, Allen and Pierce rolled their eyes for what they thought was an unnecessary history lesson about Paul Revere and tea parties.

Me, myself was looking at him like, 'Are you serious?' This could have waited till the sun came out, you know," Garnett said.

But as the tour guide took the four of them through Boston's historic streets and the Charles River, it slowly began to sink in that this was no ordinary ride. Rivers took his players through the same parade route used by the Red Sox and Patriots, while preaching about the sacrifices it would take for them to follow suit.

See more of this Michael Lee story at WASHINGTONPOST.COM

The Great, Incredible Lakers Beat The Undeserving Celtics

Yeah, I Said It!

Kobe Bryant scored 36 points as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Boston Celtics at home 87-81 to pull within 2-1 in the National Basketball Association Finals. That's what we're talking about here at 3BAAS!!!!!

The Lakers outscored the Celtics 27-19 in the fourth quarter to improve to 9-0 at the Staples Center this postseason. The Celtics fell to 2-8 on the road in the playoffs.

Game 4 of the best-of-seven championship series will be played in two days in Los Angeles. The fifth game will also be at the Staples Center. While Bryant scored 10 of his points in the Lakers' fourth quarter surge, the NBA's Most Valuable Player got help off the bench from Sasha Vujacic, who added 20 points while hitting 7-of- 10 shots. The Lakers avoided falling behind 3-0 in the series, a deficit no NBA team has overcome in a playoff series.

"We tried to stay calm,'' Bryant said. "They did a good job defending home court. We knew we had to do the same.''

Ray Allen led the Celtics with 25 points and hit 5 3- pointers. Paul Pierce was held to 6 points on 2-of-14 shooting, while Kevin Garnett finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds while hitting 6-of-21 shots.

"Putting Kobe on Pierce was a difference in tonight's game,'' Lakers coach Phil Jackson said at a news conference. "He had to work to get free."

Source

WOW! LAKERS LEAVE SAN ANTONIO WONDERING, IT'S OVER ALREADY???

Don't hate non-Lakers fans, but it's on to the NBA Finals as our boys defeated the defending champion San Antonio Spurs 100-92 Thursday, advancing forward for the first time in four years.

"The first half was tough for us because they caught us off guard," said Kobe Bryant after wrapping up the best-of-seven series in five. "We just wanted to cut the deficit to a manageable level by half time and we did that and then turned on the gas in the second half."

The Lakers will meet the winner of the other semi-final between the Boston Celtics and the Detroit Pistons. Boston leads the best-of-seven series 3-2 with game six in Detroit on Friday. The Lakers and Celtics have not met in the finals since 1987.

Although Bryant scored 39 points, the Lakers actually trailed by 17 points in the first half. "Never a dull moment with these boys," said Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
Trailing 44-28 with 3:57 remaining in the second, the Lakers finished the half on a 14-4 run en route to a 48-42 deficit entering the third quarter, setting up Bryant's performance in the final two periods.

Los Angeles received the Western Conference championship trophy after the game from Laker legend Jerry West.

"This is dream come true," Bryant said. "It is such a blessing to be able to share this with a group of guys who are like brothers."

This from the guy who had demanded to be traded in the off-season. "It is really a very victorious point in time. For Kobe to come back after a bewildering two weeks in pre-season when things were so tenuous," added Jackson. (AFP)

NBA CONFERENCE FINALS ON TV... ONLY 2 GAMES ON NETWORK TV???!!!

"What's Up NBA, Why So Many Games On Cable?"

--- Pistons' Rasheed Wallace

NATIONAL TV SCHEDULE - 2007-08
Date Opponent Time (ET) Network
Tue, May 20 Detroit @ Boston Conf. Finals 8:30 pm - ESPN
Wed, May 21 San Antonio @ L.A. Lakers Conf. Finals 9:00 pm - TNT
Thu, May 22 Detroit @ Boston Conf. Finals 8:30 pm - ESPN
Fri, May 23 San Antonio @ L.A. Lakers Conf. Finals 9:00 pm - TNT
Sat, May 24 Boston @ Detroit Conf. Finals 8:30 pm - ABC
Sun, May 25 L.A. Lakers @ San Antonio Conf. Finals 8:30 pm - TNT
Mon, May 26 Boston @ Detroit Conf. Finals 8:30 pm - ESPN
Tue, May 27 L.A. Lakers @ San Antonio Conf. Finals 9:00 pm - TNT
Wed, May 28 Detroit @ Boston if necessary 8:30 pm - ESPN
Thu, May 29 San Antonio @ L.A. Lakers if necessary 9:00 pm - TNT
Fri, May 30 Boston @ Detroit if necessary 8:30 pm - ESPN
Sat, May 31 L.A. Lakers @ San Antonio if necessary 8:30 pm - TNT
Sun, Jun 1 Detroit @ Boston if necessary 8:30 pm - ABC
Mon, Jun 2 San Antonio @ L.A. Lakers if necessary 9:00 pm - TNT

Spurs Do What They Do Best... Win The Tough Ones, Sending The Hornets Packing

Kobe And Da' Lakers Better Look Out,These Three Are Some Bad, B-Ball Play'n Boys!

'One thing I want them to remember when they start working out next season is how they feel right now... You don't go from not making the playoffs last year) to winning a championship. It just doesn't work that way...

We're headed in the right direction.'' --- NBA Champion and current Hornets Coach Byron Scottafter loosing last night to a classic, hard nose, get the job done, San Antonio Spurs.

As Manu Ginobili dribbled out the final few seconds of the second-round series clincher, Tony Parker walked over and gave him a congratulatory pat on the head.

There would be no exuberant celebration for the San Antonio Spurs when the final horn sounded, just a few hugs for a job well done. This playoff-savvy group was exhausted after a seven-game triumph over the younger, upstart New Orleans Hornets , but its title defense endures - for now.

Ginobili scored 26 points, hitting four free throws in the final minute, to send the Spurs to the Western Conference finals with a 91-82 victory Monday night.

Parker added 17 points, including a crucial jumper in the final minute, as the Spurs held off a late rally to become the first team in this series to win on the road.

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