Live Blog: 2009 NBA Finals, Game 1

8:30 pm - Welcome to Skip To My Lank's live blog of the 2009 NBA Finals. My name is Lank, and I'll be your guide through Game 1. It's roughly 30 minutes until the tip, and I, for one, am really excited for this series. The matchup should be a good one. Orlando's "four shooters around Dwight" philosophy versus Los Angeles' "we finally gave Kobe some help, so hopefully he can finally get his fourth ring" mantra. Seriously, though, there are tons of things to look out for in this series. For example: how will LA defend Orlando? Sure, Andrew Bynum on Dwight Howard and Lamar Odom on Rashard Lewis sounds good...until you realize that that lineup leaves no room for Pau Gasol, who's probably the third best player in the series. But can Gasol defend Howard? No. Can he defend Lewis on the perimeter? Possibly. So what does this mean for the big man rotation for LA? This, my friends, is why Phil Jackson gets paid the big bucks. Conversely, how does Orlando defend LA? Pietrus should be able to harass "One Over Jordan" Kobe Bryant enough to not let him go off, but who's guarding Odom? Rashard Lewis? Ehh, ok. Granted, Lamar Odom does just as good a job of shutting down himself as anyone else, so it might not be a problem. If LA goes big with Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, who guards Bynum? Can Dwight Howard keep Gasol from standing 15 feet out and hitting jumpers? I'm telling you, the chess match in this series is going to be legit. As any good boxing analyst will tell you, it's the clash in styles that make the big fights (think the hard-hitting Joe Frazier vs. the technical adroitness of Muhammad Ali) and this series features two very different teams in terms of how they play. I'll be back later once ABC's coverage begins to bring you my two cents on the happenings of the game...both on and off the court.

8:45 pm - I like how ABC is using EA Sports' Virtual Playbook to show me how to guard Kobe Bryant...with Jon Barry. Really? If you're trying to make this convincing, and really make people believe that Kobe is guardable (he's not), you might try to find someone besides Jon Barry to tell me how to do it. I'm just saying.

8:50 pm - Do you think Orlando Magic fans (all 26 of them) are concerned that Dwight Howard was contained by Kendrick Perkins against Boston? Perkins isn't exactly the second-coming of Bill Russell, so what happens if Andrew Bynum decides to put on his big boy pants for this series? That's bad for Orlando, right? I know that's a big "if" but still.

8:52 pm - Dear Gary Bettman, as Commissioner of the NHL, you might want to think about staggering your Stanley Cup Finals games with the NBA Finals games. If you're trying to grow the sport (which seems to be questionable at this point) having a very important Game 4 between Pittsburgh and Detroit on the same night as Game 1 of the NBA Finals isn't a very good idea. By the way, the Pens and Wings are tied at 1 near the end of the 1st period.

8:55 pm - Jeffrey Osborne (don't worry, I have no idea who he is, either) didn't do a terrible job with the "Star-Spangled Banner", but it wasn't very good either. At least he didn't butcher it; that always pisses me off.

9:00 pm - They just showed a clip of Larry Bird followed by a clip of Tim Duncan. Somebody is seriously trying to get me to lose consciousness right now. And they just might do it...

9:02 pm - I love Mike Breen. I really do. My brother gives me a hard time about this because I voice my love for him quite a bit, but he does a remarkable job of announcing the action on the court without interfering with the game itself. Always in control, always making sense; that's all we really want. Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson are also terrific, especially when they playfully take jabs at one another (no homo). This, my friends, is the epitome of a three-man booth. Too bad none of the other three-men booths work. And when I say "none", I really mean none.

9:05 pm - No matter what he does from now until he dies, I can't look at Michael Cera without thinking of "Arrested Development". What a fantastic show. Shout to the whole Bluth/Funke clan, Bob Loblaw, and both Martas.

9:08 pm - And we're underway, Dwight Howard takes a short jump-hook to start things for Orlando and misses. Yes, it's still weird associating the Magic with the Finals.

9:09 pm - GREAT pass from Gasol to Andrew Bynum. With Rashard Lewis guarding him, Gasol will have ample opportunity to create for himself and his teammates. His play will dictate how LA plays.

9:10 pm - Well, here we go. Hedo Turkoglu (the Michael Jordan of Turkey) hits a 3-pointer and Orlando is off and running. Bynum responds with a jumper to give him LA's first four points of the game. Interesting.

9:11 pm - Orlando begins with Courtney Lee guarding Kobe Bryant, and Kobe begins by driving in on him for two points. Pietrus will be in shortly, trust me on that.

9:13 pm - Andrew Bynum with a grown man rebound and a put back. 10-9 Lakers. Six points for Bynum. Paging Mr. Howard.

9:17 pm - Great drive by Courtney Lee, who missed the layup, but followed it up with a putback lay-in. Impressive. Dwight Howard just picked up a foul by allowing Bynum to get position in the paint before attempting a turnaround jump-hook. Seriously, Dwight, you need to guard this guy.

9:20 pm - Look, ABC, I don't care how many ads you run, I'm not watching "Wipeout". I'm just not. Unless you put Cristal Taylor, Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian, Zac Efron, Ryan Leaf and Octo-mom on there. Then I'm there all season.

9:23 pm - Pietrus is in. Look for him to shadow Kobe early and often. This is one of the more interesting individual matchups of the series.

9:24 pm - Derek Fisher just hit a shot. Every time I see him, I think of the .4 shot against the Spurs in 2004. And then I cry. We should've gone three in a row. Really. And if Manu hadn't fouled Dirk Nowitzki in the 2006 Western semis for a game-tying 3-point play at the end of the 4th quarter, we'd have gone 5 titles in a row. Man, my heart hurts just thinking about it. 20-18 Lakers with 2:56 left in the 1st quarter, by the way. Good game thus far.

9:36 pm - Sorry for the delay, I was relaying my dad, a diehard St. Louis Cardinals fan, to Albert Pujols's player page on baseball-reference.com. Did you know that Pujols is 3-3 with the bases loaded this season with 2 HRs and 10 RBIs? Me neither. That's amazing. Anyway, it's 24-22 Magic at the end of the 1st quarter. Nobody's really gone on a run yet. It feels like the early rounds of a heavyweight fight; guys throwing jabs and dancing a little bit to see how the other one will respond. This is shaping up to be a good start to the series. I hope I didn't just jinx it.

9:40 pm - We have a Lamar Odom sighting!! He ties the game at 24 with a jumper to open the 2nd quarter. Also, Jameer Nelson is in. I think this is a bad idea by Stan Van Gundy. The guy hasn't played in forever, so you bring him back for the Finals? Not a good idea if you ask me. You know what is a good idea? Giving the ball to Marcin Gortat. That's a bad, bad man right there. The Polish Hammer, ladies and gentlemen.

9:42 pm - After a Rashard Lewis 3 makes it 29-24 Magic, Lamar Odom follows up a missed shot with a putback dunk. Nicely done. Jameer Nelson looks very spry, by the way. I love that guy, so I hope I'm wrong about it being a mistake playing him, but I just can't believe it's going to work.

9:44 pm - NICE PASS by Nelson to Courtney Lee under the basket, who promptly lays it in. 3 mins, 2 pts, 3 ast for Nelson so far. Maybe I should be quiet.

9:47 pm - I'm calling my mom to ask if she'll go see "The Proposal" with me. She said yes. Thank goodness; it'd suck to be turned down on a date by your own mother. Yes, that just happened.

9:49 pm - Gortat just blocked Andrew Bynum. It appears as if the Magic have found someone who can guard him. And just as I type that, Bynum misses a shot and Gortat rebounds the miss. I'm just saying...

9:50 pm - ABC just played "Thriller" as the outro before the commercial break. Am I the only one that misses sane Michael Jackson? His musical catalogue speaks for itself. Don't act like you don't like "Beat It" or "Billie Jean" because you're only kidding yourself.

9:55 pm - The Lakers have scored 8 straight, so we have our first real "run" of the game. 36-33 LA with 5:30 left in the 2nd. Kobe seems to be picking his spots at this point and seeing how Orlando is going to defend him. And he hits another jumper as I'm typing to put the run up to 10-0 and the Lakers up 5. Timeout, Magic.

9:58 pm - Gortat is now out of the game, Howard is back in and LA promptly gets three straight offensive rebounds. I'm not arguing that Gortat is better than Howard or anything silly like that, but Stan Van Gundy might want to think about giving Gortat more playing time, even if it's alongside Howard. He's definitely having an impact on this game.

9:59 pm - Derek Fisher hits a three and the Laker lead is up to 7, 41-34. This is a big 4 minutes for Orlando. You can't LA run and hide.

10:00 pm - Howard makes a nice move to draw the second foul on Pau Gasol. If Pau picks up his 3rd before the half ends (3:48 to go), that could be a factor in the 2nd half.

10:01 pm - Kobe just hit a fadeaway that only he can make. It's moments like this when you realize how much better at basketball Kobe Bryant is than you. And everyone else. His skill set is simply breathtaking.

10:04 pm - They just showed Leo DiCaprio in the crowd and he was rocking a Wichita State Shockers hat. That's awesome. A big shout-out to the whole Missouri Valley Conference, especially those Indiana State Sycamores.

10:06 pm - 47-39 Lakers, and the Magic have struggled to score here in the 2nd. Nelson hits a bankshot to alleviate that a bit. Lakers by six.

10:10 pm - "One Over Jordan" hits a runner over Marcin Gortat with a few seconds left to give the Lakers a 10-point lead at the half. He's done pretty much everything this game offensively, and it's clear that he's locked in. I can't wait to see what he has planned for us in the 2nd half. Orlando, on the other hand, needs to regroup. Play your game, shoot your 3s, let Howard get going in the paint. They had a terrible quarter, but are only down ten at the half. It could be worse. I'll be back in a few for the start of the second half.

10:31 pm - And we're back. To start the 3rd, Kobe hits a short one to give LA a 12-point lead. Looks like he didn't cool down at all over the break. Good for us, bad for Orlando.

10:32 pm - Kobe hits another shot to give him 22 points for the game. Can he get to 40? The way it looks now, maybe so.

10:34 pm - Bynum just picked up his fourth foul. It'll be interesting to see how LA decides to defend Howard now. And if Howard is a superstar, this is where he takes over and brings Orlando back. We'll see what happens.

10:38 pm - Courtney Lee drains a 3-pointer to bring Orlando back within nine. Here we go...

10:41 pm - Never mind. Kobe just hits a jumper as he's getting clipped. Free throw is good, and we're back to 14. 64-50 LA, just over 6 mins to go.

10:43 pm - BEAUTIFUL bounce pass from Kobe to Gasol for a dunk. Staples Center is rocking and the Lakers are up by 18. This one, my friends, is now over. Don't worry, I'm sticking around to entertain you; but I have no visions of Orlando winning this game.

10:47 pm - Rashard Lewis misses another shot. I don't remember him hitting a shot tonight. I'm sure he has (he's actually hit 2), but I haven't seen either of them. And I've watched the entire game. I'm just saying.

10:49 pm - Since Rafer "Skip to my Lou" Alston is shooting free throws, allow me to clear something up. Rafer has nothing to do with the naming of this blog. Since my nickname is "Lank" and my homeboy's nickname is "Skip", it just worked. Thank you for allowing me to clarify.

10:51 pm - Unreal. Unreal. Unreal. Once again, Kobe makes a move no one else in the league can make, and converts another 3-point play. All of a sudden, the Lakers are up 23 points. 53-28 is the score since the end of the first quarter. Looking back at it, this thing hasn't been close in a while.

10:56 pm - Remember earlier when I mentioned that the first quarter resembled the opening rounds of a heavyweight fight? We have now entered the later rounds of a one-sided affair. The Lakers are landing every blow, the Magic are flailing at every attempt, and the ref would call it if he were allowed.

10:58 pm - Trevor Ariza just hit a 3, and now the lead is 25. Kobe now has 8 assists to go with his 36 points (and 7 boards). It sounds like he's ready to roll in these Finals after being somewhat overshadowed by Paul Pierce last year. Good for us fans, bad for Orlando. That's going to be a common theme in this series, I think.

11:01 pm - End of the 3rd, and the Lakers are up by a lot. So allow me to voice my displeasure with the previews for the new "GI Joe" movie. That was probably my favorite cartoon growing up (if not that, then "ThunderCats"). Reason being, it was just a bunch of hardass soldiers shooting and beating up bad guys (the C.O.B.R.A. organization, to be specific). So imagine my joy when I hear that a GI Joe movie is being made. Then, imagine my horror when I see guys in projectile suits, missiles blowing up everywhere, and not-normal-looking soldiers in the previews. I mean, is that really "GI Joe"? As an expert, I say no. Will I go see it? I doubt it. And I don't think I'm the only one who feels this way. Man, this is such a wasted opportunity. Look how good the "X-Men" series turned out. Look at "Transformers". The precedent had been set; cartoons could translate well to the big screen. But the morons in charge of "GI Joe" wouldn't allow it to be one of them. Sheesh.

11:05 pm - Great interview by Phil Jackson. I honestly don't remember anything he said, but he actually looked like a coach who's up 24 points. That's refreshing. Normally, you get worry-warts who complain about what their team needs to do not to blow the lead.

11:06 pm - After ABC shows a graphic asking fans to vote for "Player of the Game", Jeff Van Gundy cuts things short, demanding that the voting be closed because it's obvious who the player of the game is. Yet, he still found time to hype the graphic's sponsor, T-Mobile. "Great company, great idea, but the voting has been closed for a while." Well said, Jeff.

11:09 pm - Apparently, the Penguins beat the Red Wings in Game 4 to even the series at 2. Good for them. But did it really happen? Or did the NHL just issue a box score after simulating the game on a video game? Seriously, who watched that game? I want the ratings numbers for the non-Detroit, non-Pittsburgh markets. Thank you.

11:15 pm - Dwight Howard has made one shot tonight. Yes, o-n-e. Look back earlier in the blog, and you'll see a comment I mentioned using the words "Kendrick" and "Perkins". You might want to re-read that one.

11:17 pm - Kobe Bryant has 36, Pau Gasol has 14, and not a single other Laker is in double figures. And they're up 89-64 in the 4th. Amazing. They really brought it on defense tonight, I have to hand it to them. The Magic offense, which has given EVERYONE fits all postseason long, has been rendered impotent.

11:21 pm - I thought I was done with these Kobe-LeBron puppet commericals. Or did the ABC advertising directors not get the memo that LeBron isn't playing? Do you think he's even watching? If so, does he think Cleveland would be winning right now? He can't honestly think that, can he? Why am I asking so many irrelevant questions right now? LOUD NOISES!!

11:24 pm - I think if I could get one person to narrate my life on a daily basis, it'd be Mark Jackson. I love his combination of witty phrases and a New York City street accent. Imagine when I do something legit and as I'm leaving the room, Mark says, "Mama, there goes that man." I'm telling you, I'd pay for that to happen. A lot. And I'm getting ready to lose my job.

11:26 pm - I text message my buddy, Britt, to tell him about how much I hate the "GI Joe" previews (yes, I'm still talking about this). His response, "Yeah, that thing looks like the cinematic equivalent of guinea pig rape." Right on, Great Britt, right on.

11:28 pm - That's what I'm talking about, JJ. Mr. Redick (yes, he's still alive) came in and shot a 3 the first time he got the ball (and made it, too). It's one of my pet peeves when guys come in for garbage time and try to run the offense. Look, you're out there to kill time, so you might as well try to enjoy yourself. Hoist that thing, young fella. Just like JJ did.

11:35 pm - DJ Mbenga and Josh Powell are on the floor for the Lakers. That's all you need to know about how this game went. Very impressive display by the Lakers; not so much for Orlando. Somebody whom I didn't recognize just hit a 3 to give LA 100 points. Orlando finished with 75.

11:37 pm - Remember when I discussed the difference in matchups earlier? Los Angeles won them all. Bynum defended Howard very, very well; Rashard Lewis couldn't get going no matter who was guarding him; and Kobe Bryant absolutely ate Mickael Pietrus's lunch. It was over when the Lakers decided to score 10 in a row in the middle of the 2nd quarter. Kobe had 6 of them. That was the first big blow of the game, and Orlando cowered instead of showing a champion's resolve. Keep that in mind for later when the going gets tough for Orlando again. How will they respond? Unless they man up and come out with a little more resilience, this series is going to be over quickly. It was my pleasure entertaining you folk(s) this evening. I'll be back for Game 2 to do it all over again. Hopefully, we'll have a better contest then. Until Game 2, stay classy.

~~ Lank