Ryan, Shaughnessy recap Game 5

Kobe clearly hit him and never touched the ball. Missed foul and a dunk that should have never been. Sad way for a game to end.

Officials blue it and you are reporting it as a clean steal. check out the replay.

Lousy officiating and lousy reporting on that play......

I saw the replay too and while I suppose Kobe could have been called for a foul he DID tip that ball. Given the contact that happens every play in basketball Kobe's arm contact was a non-issue. There were far more egregious calls made during the game.
Pierce was clearly tired and just didn't move past KG's screen fast enough. He had no complaint with the way the play was called - at least publicly.

what was the LINE on the game ? NBA is crooked the Lakers will winn the championship Its fixed!

I agree with owen.Bryant hit Pierce's elbow to knock the ball loose.I'ts on the replay.

I was miffed again with Doc's substitutions. Leon Powe made ONE bad play. (let Gassou get a rebound over his back )and Doc takes him out for the rest of the game. PJ Brown has been fading the last 3 games but Doc hasn't taken notice or ignored it. I felt they needed Powe's energy and physical game as they were getting killed on the boards. I know he was limited last night but Doc loves to go with the small lineup too much in my opinion.

stop crying about fouls - there are bad or questionable calls on both sides.

fact - Pierce should take better care of the ball, especially late in the game
fact - KG needs to hit free throws, especially late in the game

Looking forward to game 6 and hopefully game 7.

Stop whining, wussies. Thank your god these refs aren't calling any moving screens.

Has anyone noticed that when Rondo is in the game the Lakers roll to a BIG lead? Rondo had an open uncontested layup, he was about 3 feet from the bucket with no defenders on him and he turns and throws to pierce for an open 3?! WTF, Rondo should not see another minute of playing time for the rest of the series, the Lakers ignore him and double team with impunity.

Guys, the fix is in. Tomorrow is the 17th and if we win game 6, it'll be championship #17th. Unfortunately , seeing a team make history (by coming back from 3-1 in an NBA championship) is attractive to Stern and his cronies.
I can see it now: Pierce or (Garnett) gets into a fight with someone like Odom, in game 6, and they both get thrown out.. Kobe has the game of his life, and his team wins the game. Tadaaa!
The NBA: N-ot B elievable A-ny more.

I agree with TBS. It looked like a steal and Pierce should have taken care of the ball. That said the game was lost when Garnett did not knock his free throws.

I agree with Don that Leon should have been given more time and Tony Allen should have also been used more. Eddy needs to handle ball better also.

I think Cassel played great and PJ Brown made some good defensive stops though I am not too sure about his offense. I loved their defense on Kobe and how they held him. Kobe had 2 chances at the end to finish off the Celtics and could not take it to the rack. However, he made it up with the steal. Yes it can be argued that it was a steal or not, he gave Lakers a chance by making a play on the ball. Great players make plays.

Game 6:
- hope Kendrick shows up but if he does not use Powe to be the enforcer and don't put Garnet in position to foul.
- If needed use Garnet less in first half and save him for later in the game. I would even take Garnett off most of 1st quarter and use him with 2nd unit to punch week Laker Line.
-Start with PJ Brown and bring Powe him later if KP is down.
-Tony Allen could start or used earlier at 4 min mark of 1st quarter
-Cassel and Tony might not bad together so Cassel takes shots and Rondo drives for 1st unit.
-Conserve Paul a little by keeping the game to half court. Paul did not loose the ball because of Kobe punching it he lost the ball because he was a little slow and let Kobe get to the ball. A faster Paul would have been in the lane already.
-Get Leon the ball down low to pound the ball and let Ray Allan drive to basket early.
-KG needs to take over in 3rd Quarter and Early 4rth. Reason because you don't want pressure of 4rth quarter on KG.

Lets hope Celtics come with 'A' Game otherwise we could be looking at Game 7. In Game 7 anything can happen and I would bet on Lakers. Other than Pierce I don't any one on the Celtics team can handle pressure of Game 7.