Can Celts Close It Out in 6?

The CPSN called last night’s X-factor in Paul Pierce. L.A. – or more accurately Kobe – was not enough to withstand the Celtics’ charge in Game 5. Now the pressure is on the Lakers and, judging by his performance and post-game outburst, Kobe is up to the challenge. It will be up to his teammates to decide whether there will be a Game 7, because Bryant clearly can’t do it all on his own. He tried last night – scoring the Lakers’ only points (23 at that) over about a quarter and a half – but managed to only keep L.A. within double digits. Check that, he single-handedly kept his team in the game.

Without Kobe’s scoring barrage, the Lakers would have suffered the same drought the Bucks did in Game 6 against the Hawks – a nearly-eight minute cold streak during which the Hawks peeled off 19 points versus the Bucks’ goose egg. That deficiency spelled the team’s series demise.

Could the Lakers’ feeble performance outside of its star in Game 5 be the turning point in the Finals series (even though the Celts seemed to overtake momentum after Game 1’s drubbing)? We’ll see how L.A. responds in friendly confines. Will home court advantage work its magic, as Phil Jackson suggested in his post-game comments or will the wheels completely fall off for the Lakers.

Revisiting the CPSN’s predictions following Game 4, we expect to see Kobe take over to give the Lakers its 16th title. But will it be enough? Game 5 showed us that even a spectacular individual effort can’t win a game; perhaps the X-factor L.A. needs in Game 6 is playing as a team.