Empty the Bench

As long as the Los Angeles Lakers survive through the 2008 NBA playoffs, Empty the Bench’s West Coast correspondent Christopher Thell will be submitting a local fan’s take on his beloved Lakers’ postseason trials, tribulations and successes. In this edition: The Lake Show laid an egg in Game 1.

So much hype. So much anticipation.

And such a disappointment.

Watching Game 1 of the NBA Finals was like suffering through a bad date - you just wanted it to be over so you could go home, go to bed, and start fresh the next day.

Kobe Bryant and company looked nervous and tentative in a 98-88 loss that puts The Lake Show in a series deficit for this first time this postseason.

While they were blown out in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals against the Spurs, this was a more disheartening effort given the fact that, had they played well, LA could easily have stolen this game from Boston.

Poor shooting doomed LA, and now they face a “must win” after the jump…

The Lakers even led at halftime 51-46, thanks to strong performances by Derek Fisher (13 points, 3 assists) and Pau Gasol (12 points, 4 assists) and the fact that the Celtics shot only 1-9 from beyond the arc in the opening two quarters.

But instead of the reigning MVP stepping up in the 2nd half like you kept expecting him to, it was Paul Pierce who came up big after spraining his knee and having to be carried from the court early in the 3rd quarter.

Pierce returned just in time to hit consecutive 3-pointers in a 22 second span that gave the Celtics a 75-71 lead they never relinquished.

The 4th quarter was particularly hard to watch, as the Lakers shot a putrid 5-20 from the floor and looked utterly lost on offense – something the stingy Celtics defense certainly was partially responsible for.

But the feeling here is that the Lakers simply came out and laid an egg in Game 1 and blew an opportunity to steal a win on the road. Kobe had a particularly tough night, taking 26 shots to notch his 24 points and never once looking like he was comfortable on the court.

Now, the Lakers entire season comes down to one game. If the Lakers can’t summon a better offensive effort, including doing a much better job on the boards (they were out rebounded 46-33), their season could effectively be over before they even return to the West Coast.

Seriously.

The Lake Show doesn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of winning this series if they go down 0-2.

And this young Lakers team may not admit it, but they know it.

I want to believe more than anything that the Lakers will bounce back with a great game Sunday night, but for the first time in this postseason, I’m not sure. True, it was only a ten point loss on the road in the opening game, but the vibe that the Lakers gave off left a sour taste in my mouth that’s hard to cleanse.

So, like a bad date, let’s just put it behind us and speak of it no more and hope that the Purple and Gold come to play with a purpose on Sunday night.

Their championship dreams depend on it.

More Postcards From LA:

Postcards From LA, Vol. 1

Postcards From LA, Vol. 2

Postcards From LA, Vol. 3

Postcards From LA, Vol. 4

Postcards From LA, Vol. 5

Postcards From LA, Vol. 6

Postcards From LA, Vol. 7

Postcards From LA, Vol. 8

Postcards From LA, Vol. 9

Postcards From LA, Vol. 10

Postcards From LA, Vol. 11

Postcards From LA, Vol. 12

Postcards From LA, Vol. 13

Related: Postcards from LA, Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers, Lamar Odom, Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics