by Lundberg - June 4, 2010 - - Comment Now »
My assessment of the situation changed a bit last night. The Lakers clearly wanted to answer those who said Boston would out-muscle them (like me) and did so emphatically. They were clearly not happy with that situation. They fed the big boys, Gasol (who is an animal) and Bynum went to work and then Kobe did his thing. Plus, the Celtics legs looked old and tired. (However, if Boston wins Sunday, it’s a whole different situation.)
Another thing that stood out for me about last night and was the impetus for this stupid situation gimmick (I’ll stop soon, I promise), was watching Nate Robinson play meaningful minutes in the NBA Finals. It’s amazing what a new situation (almost done) can do for someone.
Nate was called a clown, a sideshow, selfish and immature during his tenure with the Knicks, many times deservedly so. But he was always a good basketball player. No average player comes off of a 14-game stint on the bench to drop 43 points. Robinson was and is an absolute athletic freak. He was just in a bad situation (doh!).
These sorts of things happen all the time. Another former Knick, Jamal Crawford, was the most tenured player without a playoff berth. This season he was the sixth man of the year on a team that went to the second round. He just needed a new situation (only one more).
Seeing Nate Robinson out on the court last night made me realize that he will impact the Finals in some way. He was +10 for Boston last night and looked quicker than the Lakers trying to check him. He will go off in one of these games and it will change some people’s perception of him. That my friends, is the situation (the end).
Tags: basketball, celtics, kobe, lakers, nate robinson, nba, nba finals
