Yes, Our Prediction Is In Flames

No, we were not cowering, hiding out, or otherwise avoiding our public, with the lack of posting yesterday (another homefront situation to be dealt with, another hospital run), over our bold, brazen prediction of the Orlando Magic whipping the Los Angeles Lakers in six games

How could we be so stupid, right?

It would be one thing to say it, talk about it with friends, but to post it up on the World Wide Web?

What can we say? ... Perhaps, award ourselves an Ignorant Dolt citation?

You have to admit, heading into the finals, Orlando was looking mighty shiny, dusting off the defending champs, the Boston Celtics, and then, needing only six games to blow away LeGone James and the Cleveland Cadavierliers.

Yet in this NBA Finals series, Orlando has been hampered most by ... Themselves!

You can profess that the Lakers are doing what they need to do, what a good team does, what a championship team does, to win games.

However, I am not quick to fit that particular crown on them.

Essentially, the Lakers have, simply, made less errors than Orlando.

In the past two games (Games 3 and 4), Orlando is up in the neighborhood of 40+ turnovers (including the win in Game 3), and in Game 4, missed 16 free throws (with Dwight Howard missing two, with 11-seconds left, and Orlando with a three-point lead; Had he hit, even, just one of them, it's a two-possession game for the Lakers, and even if they hit a three-pointer, it would come down in the last 5-or-6-seconds, the "foul game", and I would presume Orlando would be inbounding the ball, not to Howard, but either Turkelo or Lewis, the better free throw shooters).

So, just as you could say the Lakers are doing what they should be doing, you can also offer that, but for a missed lay-up, at very end (last second) of Game 2, and the missed Howard free throw, it is Orlando who could, just as easily, be up 3-games-to-1.

As one of the Talking Heads said after the game the other night, how Orlando plays in Game 5 tonight will be an indication if they believe they could still win this series, or if they go out, and just pack it in for the year.

It would be nice for Orlando to show some grit, and, perhaps, extend the series back to LA, for a Game 6, then, if they can keep their game together, bring it to a Game 7.

Anything to avoid the beatification of the rumored-rapist, Kobe Bryant, or their former-hatchet-man-as-a-player coach, Phil Jackson (he can win double, triple the amount of championships as Red Auerbach, and still only be a mere iota of a coach - Red built his championship line-ups, he didn't inherit them).

If that were to happen, put the pressure on the Lakers, who would be on the doorstep of blowing a 3-1 lead, and facing the prospects of losing the championship on their home court (let's not forget, Orlando beat the Celtics in a Game 7, in Boston).

Quite a few stars (both literally and figuratively) have to align for that to happen, however, as the old saying goes, "Never Say Never" ...

For now, we just want to see a good Game 5 tonight.