The L.A. Lakers won Game 5 of the NBA Finals in large part because Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom had good games on the interior. And that came about likely because Boston starting center Kendrick Perkins did not play with a strained left shoulder.
Well, as Boston attempts to clinch the series in tonight's Game 6 in Beantown - with the Celtics 4-point betting favorites (over/under 191.5) on WagerWeb.com - Perkins is a game-time decision, although most everyone admits it's rather doubtful he will play.
"Obviously, it's not a great injury to have," coach Doc Rivers said.
In fact, Perkins might be out for Game 7 as well, as it's the same shoulder that required surgery two years ago. He has averaged only 4.5 points and 3.5 rebounds in the Finals.
"It's a good question," Perkins said of whether he could play the rest of the series. "I couldn't tell you. I can raise my arm, but there's just a lot of pain right now. I don't know if I can take a hard hit on it."
Boston needs his big body, as evidenced by Gasol's 13 rebounds in Game 5."Perk is a physical guy," said Kevin Garnett. "He plays the post better than anybody in the league. That's what he does. When you lose a key guy, you're losing something."
Meanwhile, Celtics guard Ray Allen should be in the lineup after dealing with a "health issue" of one of his children after Game 5.
Celtics' team spokesman Jeff Twiss said today he did not believe it would force Allen to miss Game 6, although he didn't fly back with the team from L.A.
Allen has bounced back from a playoff-long slump to be second on the Celtics with 19.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in the Finals.
Boston is 12-1 at home in these playoffs, scoring 97.2 points per game while shooting 47.3 percent at home, compared with 87.4 on 41.4 percent on the road. They've allowed opponents to score 85.2 points per game at home, holding them to 40.7 percent shooting, while surrendering 92.3 points on 44.7 percent shooting on the road.
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