Tonight the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers renew their classic rivalry. Hall of Famers like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish, among others, bring back fond memories for many of us.
As a child, I grew up a diehard Lakers fan. Maybe it was the fact that the Lakers left Minnesota and we did not have a pro basketball franchise again until 1990 (Insert cruel joke here questioning whether Minnesota has a pro basketball team now), maybe it was Magic and Showtime, maybe it was Jack Nicholson on the sidelines, or maybe it was simply the allure of the West Coast and Hollywood. In any case, people did not sit on the fence in this rivalry. Much like the Yankees-Red Sox, Celtics-Lakers forced people to choose diametrically opposed sides. West coast, black, athletic, and fast breaks vs. East coast, white, not very athletic, and half-court basketball.
Last week I attended the national convention of the Association for Psychological Science in Boston. During my trip, I found the time (and the tickets, 7th row!) to attend my first Boston game in the Boston Garden. Although I spent far too much money, I justified the purchase as fulfilling one of my sporting bucket list top 100 (Attend Boston game in the Garden; the next night I crossed off another one by attending a Red Sox game in Fenway). By the end of the night, I had come to really like the Celtics, even though they had (a) traded for the greatest player in Minnesota Timberwolves history, Kevin Garnett, (b) a player, Paul Pierce, noted for his unparalleled flopping, and (c) arguably the biggest whiner in NBA history, Rasheed Wallace.
The Celtics were old, finished the regular season horribly, and were on the verge of a collapse vs. the Magic. The veteran Celtics played exceptionally and trounced the Magic. By the middle of the second quarter, the "BEAT L.A.!" chants were echoing throughout the Garden. The atmosphere was electric and set the stage for tonight's NBA Championship Series. This has all the makings of an outstanding series, in part due to the decades-old rivalry, in part due to the talent of both teams, and in part due to the psychology behind the scenes. I will refrain from picking a winner (I want the Celtics to win, but think the Lakers ought to be a decided favorite), but will offer five psychological keys to this series:
1) Mind games: Phil Jackson has already started talking about the Celtics' physical, "smackdown" style of basketball. Jackson, the Zenmaster, is notorious for planting thoughts in officials' minds about the illegal tactics of other teams. Last series it was Steve Nash carrying the ball while he dribbled; this series it is Celtics bruising style of play. In any case, watch Jackson and Celtics' coach Doc Rivers work the officials throughout the series, and in their postgame comments.
2) Home-court advantage: There is a tremendous advantage to being the home team. My colleagues Corey Guenther and Chris Rozek recently published a paper highlighting the success of home teams during deciding games. If the Lakers have a chance to clinch the series in Los Angeles, particularly in Game 7, count on them winning.
3) Mental toughness: Will Rajon Rondo and Paul Pierce be able to withstand the tenacious and physical defense of Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, and Ron Artest. In particular, watch for Pierce getting worn down as games go along, watch for Rondo's back injury flaring up, leaving the Celtics to rely on Garnett fadeaways on the left baseline and Ray Allen's quick trigger three point shots coming off screens from Celtic big men.
4) Focus on the now (and not the legacy): There are several individual subplots that make this series fascinating.
a) Phil Jackson, with a chance to win his 11th NBA Championship.
b) Kobe Bryant, with a chance to win his 5th NBA title, inching him closer to Michael Jordan, whom Bryant has seemingly tried to emulate since the day he was a rookie in the NBA
c) The Celtics franchise, which has undergone a roller coaster ride the past four seasons, having an abysmal season in 2007, winning the championship over the Lakers in 2008, getting knocked out of the playoffs in 2009, and now with a chance to ascend again to the top of the NBA after finishing the regular season in dismal fashion.
d) Rasheed Wallace and Ron Artest: Two of the more psychologically combustible players in the NBA will be on center stage - rest assured that there will be some drama.
e) Rajon Rondo has established himself as a rising superstar. Without him the Celtics are a collection of aged superstars. With him, they have the motor that keeps them whirring along at a steady clip.
f) Kevin Garnett: Can he be the go-to guy on a championship team, or will we see him settle for fadeaways on the left baseline during crunch time?
5) Team chemistry: As great as he is, Kobe Bryant has always struggled to command the respect and favor of his teammates. He seems to have improved, but will it be enough? Many believe Kobe to be the best player, and competitor in the NBA, but add that they would not want to play on the same team as him.
The Celtics, after bickering for much of the year, appears to be the veterans who have put aside their differences to pull together. A recent study by Michael Kraus, Cassy Huang, and Dacher Keltner found that prosocial touching among NBA players predicted success: among the touchiest players? Garnett, who according to Keltner, has touched four guys "Within 600 milliseconds of shooting a free throw."
The two touchiest teams? You guessed it: The Celtics and The Lakers!
Watch for mind games, mental toughness, emotional control, home court, and team cohesion to help decide which teams, fans, and coast will be celebrating an NBA Championship. In the meantime, this psychologist from the Midwest is caught in the middle both geographically and psychologically, with nothing to do but sit back and enjoy the competition. (OK...Go Celtics! I couldn't help myself - I think it's the cognitive dissonance over spending too much on a ticket to Game 6!).
