CELTICS -at- LAKERS - 6/3 - Thoughts and :-)) Ratings

[DancingBarry]

Death to Leprechauns... The foul stench is powerful. Just when you think it's impossible to get worse, it somehow does. Like sewage, garbage and vomit blended together and left in the sun, it makes you recoil in disgust.

You hate the Leprechaun.

He poisons your air. He is sneaky. He pursues the Golden Boy, Little Larry O'Brien, with all the dirty tricks in the book and even some that are not.

At dusk, you see them as they attempt to crawl over the city defenses and pop out from manholes in the streets. The Horsemen are ready.

They hammer them down like whack-a-moles. They kick the scurrying green rats from the perimeter walls. The Horsemen control the city interior, and the victory is decisive.

Thirteen bells chime throughout the city.

As you help drag dead Leprechauns outside the city gates, you see a note tagged on the big toe of one of them. Written on gold paper in purple ink, DancingBarry:

"The Horsemen were here. They are stronger, better and more ticked off than last time they faced this foe. They fight with a sense of urgency and a certain sense of rage.

I will continue to track them..."

Perhaps the tone in this series was set just a few seconds into the game. Ron Artest and Paul Pierce wrestled each other to the ground and picked up double techs while battling on the glass. When you combine that with Andrew Bynum's seven feet, this is a much more physical Laker team.

With a tight whistle and more bulk to put to use, L.A. controlled the game to take a 1-0 series lead with the 102-89 victory.

From the start, the Lakers attacked the Celtic interior with guard penetration and extra passing from their bigmen. They crashed the glass and cleaned up misses. They got to the line with the continual aggression. Not only did they score with some efficiency, this execution allowed them to lock in on the defensive end.

"I thought the Lakers were clearly the more physical team today," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought they were more aggressive. I thought they attacked us the entire night."

With the Celtic counterstrikes limited, the Lakers two best defenders could lock in. Kobe helped contain Rondo, while Artest went toe-to-toe with Pierce. Neutralizing the primary weapons for the Celtics, the Boston offense could never get any flow.

Kobe dropped another 30-point performance; Pau followed with 23 and 14; and Artest's tough two-way game made life difficult on both ends for the Celtics.

"He does a great job for us setting the tone defensively with his intensity and his energy," Kobe said of Ron afterward.

The Lakers defended home court for a game. They won the first three quarters, building up a 20-point lead heading into the fourth. They will try to put together a complete 48-minute game on Sunday.


Kobe -- -- If you are going to defend Kobe with Ray Allen, you better send help (or have refs let him get away with the handcheck D). Kobe collapsed the D a variety of ways, but was on the attack and rarely settling. A number of times in this game, Kobe set up the offense off the high screen. He made the hockey assist type of pass off those two-man sequences, and the Laker bigs made the extra pass. This is a sequence that exposes the Celtic zone and something you saw the Lakers do against Phoenix at times and in previous Celtic games. Defensively, Kobe started on Rondo but had to switch onto Pierce when Ron picked up fouls. Pierce was floptastic and got Kobe into some foul trouble late in the first quarter. As long as they call it both ways, it's fine. The refs did that tonight. Hopefully, Ron can continue to do the heavy lifting on Pierce. Kobe is now second all time in 30+ point playoff games behind just Jordan. Memo to Chris Rock: Shut up. (Rock tried joking with him during the game. Kobe ignored him. Maybe he also recalled Rock's haterade in the past.) The Stats: He scored 30 points on 10-22 shooting (1-2 from three, 9-10 from the line) to go with 7 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 4 turnovers and 4 fouls in 39 minutes. He was a +6. The Action: He attacked around Allen for a layup. He hit an easy jumper from the FT line off the Bynum screen. Ray Allen picked up his second foul as Kobe worked free, he had to sit after 5 minutes. He missed an easy layup, but Pau followed it for a score. He took a pass from Pau as he cut baseline and drew FTs, he made both. He attacked the lane and missed a twisting runner. He picked up his first foul on Pierce on the perimeter. He missed a layup and wanted the foul on contact. He got Pierce to bite on a pumpfake and drew FTs, he made both. Pierce flopped as Kobe was fronting him (completely weak call and Kobe had to sit with a minute left). He had 8 points on 2-5 shooting in the first quarter. He drained a long wing jumper with the shotclock about to go off after a jumpball was tapped to him. He was stripped by Perkins. His jump pass was picked off. He hit Pau for a short jumper after drawing a double. He was undercut by Allen on a jumper with no call. He was blocked on a layup. He slithered past his man and scored a layup. He had 12 points on 4-9 shooting in 18 minutes. Second Half: He drained a jumper from the top of the key. He attacked and hit a floater in the lane. He iso'd on Allen and drew a handcheck for Allen's fourth foul early in the third. He was blocked on a drive. He missed a drive, we got it back and he hit a teardrop. He scooped up a loose ball and took it in for the dunk. Bad pass to Pau, right out of bounds trying to whip one to him under the hoop. He posted up Tony Allen and drew FTs, he made both. He rejected Tony Allen's throwdown attempt at the rim. He dunked off the lob from Fish in transition. He attacked Ray Allen, bodychecked and hit on the arm, fifth foul for Allen, Kobe made both FTs. He had 14 points on 5-7 shooting in the third. He was hit on the arm on a jumper with no call. He forced Pierce into a carry. He missed a runner on iso on Pierce. He was blocked on a jumper after pulling out an offensive board. He hit Lamar under the hoop for a layup. He missed a long jumper over Allen. He drew FTs on KG, hanging on a jumper, he made one. He drew a double and found Artest open for the wing three. He missed a wing three. He drained a long three to close out taco time after running the clock down.

Gasol -- -- "I was just ready to play," Pau said...and Phil played him. Pau went 47 minutes with the foul trouble to others and a nice rest between games. He attacked the glass and dominated the Celtics with 8 offensive boards. They also killed on the second-chance opportunities 16-0 in this game. "The Lakers were clearly the more physical team tonight," Rivers said. The Laker guards drew so much attention, whether on screens or otherwise, that Pau could crash the glass with a lot of success. He also was the trigger man on several passing sequences off the two-man game. That will chew up the Celtic zone. Phil would have liked more post touches for Pau. The Celtics can't cover him straight up. Meanwhile, Pau can cover their bigmen on iso. It's a big difference when Bynum can occupy Perkins on both ends and Pau gets to match up against KG. Some nice anchoring by Pau tonight also. The Stats: He scored 23 points on 8-14 shooting (7-10 from the line) to go with 14 boards (8 offensive), 3 assists, 1 steal, 3 blocks, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls in 47 minutes. He was a +13. The Action: He threw a pass away on his first touch. He drained an 18-footer straight away. He was called for a travel after picking up a loose ball (poor call on the replay, both Phil and Pau thought that he took contact, too). He grabbed an airball, KG tried to pull the chair and Pau scored a layup. He crashed the glass off the Kobe drive and scored the putback. He set up Kobe for FTs as Kobe cut baseline. He crashed the glass and drew FTs on a throwdown putback attempt, he made one. He drew a charge on dribble penetration (Tony Allen's third of the first quarter). He had 7 points on 3-3 shooting and 3 offensive boards in the first. He missed a wing jumper. He was blocked on a jumphook. Nice interior feed to Bynum for FTs. He swished a short jumper when Kobe drew a double. He blocked Allen's jumper on a switch to get a stop. He swatted Rondo on help D. He blocked KG's turnaround. He was fouled on a dunk attempt set up by Shannon, he made both FTs. He had 11 points on 4-6 shooting, 7 boards (4 offensive) and 3 blocks in 22 minutes. Second Half: He airballed a short jumper wanting the foul in traffic. He attacked off the elbow with aggression next time down and drew FTs, he made both. He hit a jumphook on KG in the paint. He was called for a foul on a flop (not sure where the foul was). He missed a jumphook, got it back and scored a layup in the crowd. Nice contest on Rondo under the hoop. Handcheck foul on Sheed in the post to give him FTs. He drew FTs on a feed from Fish when the D was scrambling, he made one. He attacked Sheed from the perimeter to draw FTs, he made one. He missed a running hook taking some contact. He sank a jumphook off a good passing sequence. He dunked on a breakaway, leaking out when we secured teh board and we hit him for a long outlet. He lobbed to Lamar off the two-man sequence with Kobe. He was tied up when Davis pulled the chair on him, he won the jumpball.

Bynum -- -- The question, of course, was how Bynum would look after the knee treatment. Laker fans know that having Bynum against the Celtics makes a big difference. But what Bynum would they have? He appeared to have more mobility and power after getting his knee drained earlier in the week. The Lakers set him up a few times for easy scores on low position. They didn't exploit this as much as they could, which is something Phil still has in his back pocket. There was a key sequence in the first half when Drew and Pau had to run together for extended time after Lamar picked up his third foul early in the second quarter. Having that bigman depth was huge. No Bynum there and you've got Powell or Mbenga playing big minutes. Big difference? Yeah. Defensively, his mobility seemed to help him get some better rotations. "I'm roaming, trying to stop penetration when Rondo's coming in, switching off to KG and just trying to play as good as I can," Bynum said. He can also sag off Perkins and easily recover after helping if Perkins stays stationary on the perimeter. That happened a number of times. As for the knee? "The swelling isn't that bad," Bynum said. The Stats: He scored 10 points on 4-6 shooting (2-4 from the line) to go with 6 boards, 1 turnover and 3 fouls in 28 minutes. He was a +11. The Action: He dunked off the touch pass from Pau. He was completely undercut on a pass with no call and missed a reverse. He was hacked under the hoop when Pau made the extra pass to set him up, he made one FT. He dunked off the drive and dish from Fish. He had 7 points on 3-5 shooting and 5 boards in 14 minutes. Second Half: He got tapped on an And-1 jumphook to start the second half, he made one FT. He sank a turnaround with the shotclock low.

Artest -- -- Ron led the team with a +26. Strong two-way game from him, which is exactly what the Lakers didn't have from their SF spot last time we met the Celtics in the Finals. He and Pierce started off the game with a double tech, battling on the glass just a few seconds in. That seemed to set a tone that the Lakers were going to be the physical team tonight. Maybe it also had something to do with the tight whistles, too. Pierce ended up with 24 points on 6-13 shooting (12-13 from the line), but never had any real flow to his game, which translated to problems for Boston. "He's their defensive leader. I don't know what you want me to say? What you looking for?" Pierce asked Eric Pincus in the press conference. "He's a good defender." Ron had a little foul trouble early. Phil said they had to remind Ron not to get the gambling type of fouls. Offensively, one of the keys to the Lakers getting into the paint is to not allow the Celtics to collapse off of shooters. In 2008, the Celtics could sag off Luke. Tonight, Ron made them pay, sinking several threes. This also made the Celts keep Pierce on him, instead of on Kobe for most of the night. Look to see if Boston tries to put Ray Allen on Ron more in the next game. If so, Ron needs to get in the paint and make Ray use his legs. The Stats: He scored 15 points on 5-10 shooting (3-5 from three, 2-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block and 4 fouls in 33 minutes. The Action: He and Pierce both went to the floor on a double tech to start the game while boxing out on the glass. He swiped the Pierce pass. He drained an 18-footer flashing to the ball. He scooped up a loose ball, pushed it out and missed a layup, but Pau drew a foul on the follow. He airballed a corner three (Pau got it for him again). He was whistled for a foul off the ball battling Pierce. He missed trying to create in the lane with the shotclock low. Weak second foul as he cut off Pierce's drive on the perimeter, perhaps if he falls he gets the charge call (he had to sit with 3:24 left). He was 1-4 in the first with 2 points, 1 steal and 2 fouls in the first. He drained a wing three off the screen as we started to set up a play out of a timeout. He scored a layup out on the break with Fish next time down. He missed a layup on a drive. He had 7 points on 3-7 shooting in 11 minutes. Second Half: Ron quickly picked up his third foul as Allen ran by him and he stuck out his rear. Pierce popped him in the face to get clear for a jumper. He drew FTs battling Pierce under the hoop for a board, he made both. He drained a wing three pulling up off the dribble. He missed a tough running three at the third-quarter buzzer. Sensational defense to block Davis on help D under the hoop, then strip a ball loose to ignite a breakaway dunk for Pau (Ron celebrated the stop, and Staples went insane). They left him to double Kobe, he sank the open wing three.

Fisher -- -- Fish was the first of the foul-trouble victims tonight. Just a couple minutes into the game he had to sit. It wasn't so much the cross-match with Ray Allen, just that he didn't get a chance to adjust to the tight whistles before he had to sit. Allen tried to work on Fish in the post a couple times. That resulted in one foul and two stops. Phil had Fish cover Rondo for a few brief stretches. Rondo generally looked to get aggressive against that. The key in this cross match is Kobe on both ends. He has to get the stops on Rondo and also make Ray Allen work on the other end. If Allen has to battle defensively, he will likely be less effective offensively. Offensively, Fish got into the lane and set up others. He avoided settling for the three. The Stats: He scored 9 points on 3-8 shooting (3-3 from the line) to go with 3 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal and 3 fouls in 28 minutes. He was a +18. The Action: He swished a wing jumper to start the Laker scoring. He was called for a hold on Allen in the post. He stopped him in the post next time on the same possession. He picked up his second foul after two minutes, getting a backscreen and bumping Allen. Back in after a long rest, he attacked and set up Drew for the dunk. Allen missed again trying to post him up. He stole a pass and hit Ron on the break for a layup. He got Allen's third foul, getting him in the air on a pumpfake (somehow no FTs, though). He banked a runner on the break. He had 4 points on 2-2 shooting and 2 assists. Second Half: He picked up his third foul, bogus call as Allen used his off arm on him, wow. He swished a long wing jumper off the screen. He got tapped on an off-balance jumper in transition. He got completely tapped on an open wing jumper. He missed a floater, tapped again. He took the outlet from Ron and lobbed over KG to Kobe for the oop on the break (nicely executed). He drew FTs on the perimeter on Sheed, he made both. Great feed under the hoop to Pau instead of shooting the long jumper and it drew FTs. He made a tech FT (thanks, Sheed). He drew a charge on help D on the other end when Rondo attacked. He missed a wing jumper against the shotclock. He was blocked on a long jumper trying to run clock.

Lamar -- -- Not quite a train wreck of a game, but close. Lamar certainly got derailed by the foul trouble. The sketchy thing about Bynum's health is you never know what you will get from Lamar. If Bynum struggles or can't play, Lamar has to step up. Thankfully, Bynum looked strong and could cover for Lamar tonight. The Celtics are going to have to deal with Lamar on the glass and with the Pau/Lamar passing game. It will get on track at some point. Defensively, it looks like Phil want to bring in Lamar to cover Sheed and his increased range. No huge difference in bench scoring tonight. The Celtics led that stat 16-15. The Stats: He scored 5 points on 2-6 shooting (0-2 from three, 1-2 from the line) to go with 4 boards, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 turnovers and 5 fouls in 21 minutes. He was a +2. The Action: He lost the handle on a pass under the hoop. He followed a Kobe missed drive and earned FTs, he made one. He was called for a foul holding his arms straight up (bogus). He missed a drive to his left. Looked like he had all ball on a Rondo swat, but he didn't complain on the foul. Next time down, he charged when Pierce went down. He had to sit with his third (first one that was bogus cost him). He had 1 point on 0-1 shooting, 3 boards and 2 turnovers in 6 minutes. Second Half: He missed a baseline turnaround jumper. He missed a long three with plenty of time on the shotclock (horrible shot selection when the Lakers were struggling). He was called for a late-whistle foul on Allen after he missed a layup (bogus call again). He finished a lob off the Kobe/Pau two-man sequenced. Nice hands to catch a hot pass from Kobe who drew the D and finish the layup. He missed a wide open wing three.

Brown -- -- Good minutes from Shannon. He needed that. He was able to get in the lane with the dribble or with cuts. That guard penetration killed the Celtics. Defensively, he was serviceable. He and Farmar didn't get abused by the Celtic guards. This series is going to require Shannon to play with poise and smarts. Not his strength, but he showed some of that tonight. If Shannon can get into the open lanes, someone is going to get posterized sooner or later. The Stats: He scored 6 points on 3-5 shooting to go with 1 board and no fouls in 17 minutes. He had a +/- of 0. The Action: He missed a drive from the right wing. He attacked in early offense and scored a layup. He banked a pull-up jumper from the right side with the shotclock low. He picked up a moving screen on Baby on the other end. He curled down the lane and scored a layup with his left. He set up Pau on penetration for FTs. He had 6 points on 3-4 shooting. Second Half: He missed a long jumper with plenty of time to create.

Farmar -- -- It looked like it might be a rocky game for Farmar after he threw a pass away shortly after entering the game for points after he had to take a foul. He kept his head up and played steady after that. He was able to get into the paint off the dribble, which causes all kinds of problems. Keep that up, Farmar. Defensively, he came in to cover Rondo late in the first and did a decent job. The Lakers may need to run him against Rondo a little more if we have foul issues. Neither Rondo or Nate Robinson were very effective. The Stats: He scored 4 points on 2-4 shooting to go with 2 boards, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 turnover and 1 foul. He was a -7. The Action: Horrible perimeter pass, easily picked off by an overplaying defender, then he fouled to give up FTs. He missed a drive to his right. He backed it out, attacked and scored a layup past a slower Finely. He then swiped the ball on an inbounds. He missed a long post turnaround over Nate. Second Half: He attacked with speed off the weakside screen and scored a layup over KG.

Luke -- -- Phil showed how his defensive rotation at the SF will work. First Ron, then Kobe, then Luke. The Lakers had to give Luke some extended run with the tight whistle tonight. Hopefully, they won't have to do that as often. Ron's +/- just shows how key it will be to keep him out there. Luke put together some respectable minutes, but he can play better. Defensively, we were never abused. The Stats: He didn't shoot or score, had 1 assist, 1 block, 1 turnover and 1 foul in 5 minutes. He was a +1. The Action: Nice extra feed to Bynum for the dunk. He overpassed in the lane after getting penetration, turnover. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Vujacic -- -- Phil threw Sasha in the mix right away when DFish picked up two quick fouls. He gave some so-so minutes, but enough to keep the team afloat. In 2008, Ray Allen was able to take advantage of him. It will be interesting to see if Allen can still take Sasha off the dribble in 2010. The Laker zone sequences this time around won't likely let that happen as much. Sasha does a decent job fighting through the screens, but he's going to have his hands full. The Stats: He didn't score on 0-1 shooting, grabbed 1 board, had 2 assists and 1 foul in 8 minutes. He was a -5. The Action: He missed a three on a kickout. Soft And-1 foul on Perkins under the hoop, got to try to wrap him up better. Second Half: Nothing to report.

Phil -- -- Triangle? Phil went to the two-man game a lot to take advantage of the Celtic rotations and the Lakers good passing bigmen... Phil went to Sasha on Allen after Fish picked up two fouls after just 2 minutes. Allen would follow a couple minutes later with his second foul trying to defend Kobe... The Lakers led 16-10 midway through the quarter. Kobe's help D was a little misguided, and the Lakers gave up some easy scores to Rondo... Bynum sat for Lamar after 8 minutes when Sheed came in... When Artest picked up his second foul late in the first, Phil sat him for Farmar, sliding Kobe onto Pierce. The Celtics will try to exploit this on a Pierce/Rondo two-man game. Pierce would flop instead to get Kobe's second foul... The Lakers led 26-21 after the first, but had three players with 2 fouls each (Kobe, Artest, Fisher)... Phil started a Bynum, Lamar, Luke, Shannon, Farmar lineup. The Celts ran Rondo and Robinson... Phil had to sit Lamar for Pau after a minute and a half when he picked up his third on two quick fouls... The Lakers led 30-26 after 3 minutes. Doc brought in Allen at the SF spot for Pierce... Phil countered with a Bynum, Pau, Sasha, Shannon, Fisher lineup... Up by 1, Phil brought back in Kobe for Sasha... Phil brought in Ron for Shannon. With the starters in there, they went on a run. They led 48-37 forcing a timeout with a minute left... Phil sat Kobe, Ron and Fisher at that timeout to prevent foul trouble... The Lakers led 50-41 at the half. The Lakers shot 52.6 percent (20-38, 1-3 from three, 9-12 from the line). The Celtics shot 41.7 percent (15-36, 1-6 from three, 10-15 from the line). The Lakers had a 23-15 advantage on the glass (10-0 on second-chance points). The Lakers scored 15 points off 8 Celtic turnovers... The Lakers won the first half of the third 15-11, getting a Celtic timeout when Kobe dunked on a breakaway for a 65-52 lead... Phil had Fish on Rondo out of that timeout for a few defensive stands... Phil brought in Lamar for Bynum with 3:30 left, up 11. A lot longer than usual with the foul trouble... The Lakers extended to a 75-62 lead, forcing a Celtic timeout on a Kobe alley-oop from Fish... The Lakers finished the third strong, leaving Pau, Fish and Ron on the floor the whole quarter. They won the third 34-23. The Celtics had just 2 rebounds in the third. The Lakers 11... They led 84-64 heading into the fourth... Phil started a Pau, Lamar, Kobe, Shannon, Farmar unit. They were promptly outscored 10-1 in just 3:20 to allow the Celtics right back into the game... Phil sat Kobe for Ron up by 11. Big defensive stop by Ron and dunk for Gasol forced a timeout with 6:20 and a 91-76 lead. Phil then brought Fisher in out of that timeout... The Celtics switched to put Pierce on Kobe and Allen on Artest briefly... The Lakers used up clock and closed out the game... Phil didn't like that they dropped the ball in Kobe's hands and watched in that fourth. They were outscored 25-18. The only quarter they lost... The Lakers shot 49 percent (37-76, 4-10 from three, 24-31 from the line). The Celtics shot 43 percent (29-67, 1-10 from three, 30-36 from the line). The Lakers won the boards 42-31...

Game Flow -- LINK -- Several decent sized runs for the Lakers, before the Celtics opened the fourth with a 10-1 run to keep things from getting out of hand.

[Tanlentueux]

thanks- 3 to go baby.

[mhan00]

game one, ours.

[Vicky T]

thx DB Just three more wins to go
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Macho Men:
http://tinyurl.com/2ajhhov

[Omar Little]

I have a dumb question: what is a hater like Chris rock doing courtside, much less right next to our bench?
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“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” ― Elie Wiesel

[Vicky T]

and finally Magic Johnson admits Kobe is the best player in the game
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Macho Men:
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[City_Dawg]

Thanks DB
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*sighs*

!...

[tenike1]

Sasha still scoreless dating back to the 2009 Finals.
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https://psntrophyleaders.com/user/view/tenike1

"Experience is the best teacher of them all." - Lamar Odom (after Game 6 @ DEN, 2009 WCF)

I am an irrational and pathetic poster.

[OregonLakerGuy]

[ABynum17]

Not much to add, except I think "everyone" should come into the next game with the mentality "to kill." Can't afford them to "out-determine" us. The pressure is now on them so I think this mentality should work.

Just be careful not to throw any elbows is all.

[TooMuchMajicBuss]

Thanks DB!!! THREE MORE!!!!!!!

[Mation]

Thanks DB!

Glad I have some new memories now of facing those lettuce-heads in the finals. Keep em' coming!

Good to see Pau overcome all the physical play by kg and sheed and produce big numbers.

finley needs to play more, he only helps our bench.

[PopcornMachine]

[DancingBarry]

^ Yep. I think we can pound the ball to them a lot more, too. Bynum looked fairly spry on a few plays out there. That's just so key for us.

[srm90]

TOUGH ENOUGH
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[LakerDynasty6.0]

[IPK]

[IPK]

[DancingBarry]

[DancingBarry]

[MedRomLaker]

Thanks DB, great start to the series, Celtics are going to come back, dirtier than ever,could also see a ref slant towards the C's. We just have to stay mental tough and protect home court.
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11/9/12 the day the brown was flushed down!!!!!!

4/30/14 the day the ant left the building!!!!!!

[IPK]

[Nobody]

What a satisfying feeling it is to watch the game from 3 to 6 AM with 4 people who are all rooting for the Celtics... needless to say they were all dozing off by the end of the 3rd, while I was clutching my fists, letting out silent war cries and clapping my hands in my Lakers jersey until the very end.

3 more like these please!

Go Lakers!

[LakerDynasty6.0]

[Isaiah]

love the title