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It has been an emotional week for Allen, whose 17-month-old child was just diagnosed with diabetes. The veteran guard talked about his family situation shortly after scoring 26 points to lead the Celtics to their 17th NBA title with a 131-92 rout of the Lakers last night.

LOS ANGELES - No team in NBA playoff history has overcome an 0-3 deficit. Los Angeles superstar Kobe Bryant made sure the Lakers won’t have to overcome that hurdle. Bryant poured in a game-high 36 points in leading the Lakers past Boston 87-81 in game three of the NBA Finals. That cuts Boston’s lead to 2-to-1 with the home team winning every game so far.

Sasha Vujacic gave the Lakers a big lift off the bench with 20 points. Pau Gasol added 9 points and 12 rebounds. Ray Allen led Boston with 25. Kevin Garnett added 13 points and 12 boards. Paul Pierce, who had been huge for Boston in its opening two wins, had a rough night. Pierce shot 2-for-12 and scored just six points.

After a day off, the series resumes Thursday night with game four in Los Angeles. The Lakers have not lost at home since March 29th.

BOSTON - This is not how the Boston Celtics planned to get back to the NBA finals. The league’s luckiest franchise saw its luck run out — again — in the draft lottery last year, coming up with the worst possible pick and no shot at the megastars slotted 1-2. What the Celtics couldn’t know at the time was that it was the best thing that could have happened.

The NBA’s most decorated franchise, the Celtics were once synonymous with success — winning 16 championships from 1957 to ‘86. But twice since their last title they’ve dropped to the bottom of the standings in hopes of landing a big lottery prize, only to see the chances go against them.

With two potential franchise players at the top of last year’s draft, Greg Odenand Kevin Durant, the Celtics seemed in good position to pick up a key part of their turnaround. But three teams jumped over them in the lottery, and they wound up with the No. 5 selection.

“It was the worst possible pick we could have gotten, and it felt like the worst possible thing,” said managing partner Wyc Grousbeck, who was in the sealed-off room where the lots were drawn and found out about an hour before the TV audience that the Celtics had dropped to the fifth spot.

“I spent 50-55 minutes going, ‘This is really terrible. I feel really badly for all the Boston fans who were about to find out.’ I just felt really unlucky,” he said. “There was no joy in Mudville.”

Then came Plan B. And C.

Ainge tried to trade the No. 5 pick and developing big man Al Jefferson for Garnett, but Garnett didn’t want to come to a losing team and the Celtics didn’t want him unless he’d agree to an extension. So Ainge sent the first-round pick — which, other than Paul Pierce, was his most valuable commodity — to Seattle in a package for Allen.

Suddenly, Garnett was interested. Ainge picked him up from the Timberwolves in an unprecedented 7-for-1 deal and the Celtics were on their way to 66 wins — the biggest turnaround in NBA history — and a return to the finals against their archrival.

Pagliuca was at the team’s training facility in Waltham, Mass., watching the lottery on TV when the camera panned around the room and showed Grousbeck, who wore a green pinstriped suit he had made for the occasion as well as a frown he tailored himself.

“Wyc looked like he had been shot, so we knew we didn’t have the first pick,” Pagliuca said. “We spent a lot of time hoping for the first draft pick, but we knew there would be plenty of players available. Garnett was the No. 1 possibility.”

Then came Plan B. And C.

Ainge tried to trade the No. 5 pick and developing big man Al Jefferson for Garnett, but Garnett didn’t want to come to a losing team and the Celtics didn’t want him unless he’d agree to an extension. So Ainge sent the first-round pick — which, other than Paul Pierce, was his most valuable commodity — to Seattle in a package for Allen.

Suddenly, Garnett was interested. Ainge picked him up from the Timberwolves in an unprecedented 7-for-1 deal and the Celtics were on their way to 66 wins — the biggest turnaround in NBA history — and a return to the finals against their archrival.

Pagliuca was at the team’s training facility in Waltham, Mass., watching the lottery on TV when the camera panned around the room and showed Grousbeck, who wore a green pinstriped suit he had made for the occasion as well as a frown he tailored himself.

“Wyc looked like he had been shot, so we knew we didn’t have the first pick,” Pagliuca said. “We spent a lot of time hoping for the first draft pick, but we knew there would be plenty of players available. Garnett was the No. 1 possibility.”

The owners are effusive in their praise for Ainge — not just for making big trades, but also for drafting the “chips” that he cashed in for the All-Stars.

Without picks such as Al Jefferson (15th overall), Gerald Green (18th), Delonte West (24th) and Ryan Gomes (20th in the second round), they wouldn’t have been able to acquire Garnett.

“Look at the players he’s drafted, down the line, who are going to be fixtures in the league,” said Irv Grousbeck, Wyc’s father and another member of the ownership group.

Ainge also drafted Rajon Rondo (21st) and Kendrick Perkins (27th), non-lottery players who fill out the starting five of the Eastern Conference champions. Leon Powe and Glen “Big Baby” Davis were second-rounders who’ve contributed off the bench this season.

“Our strategy was to try to hit the longball, to win a championship, not to sign some midlevel players and get into the playoffs. We had to have the patience to build those chips up,” Pagliuca said. “We recognized that time was an asset for us.

“We were younger. It would have taken a little longer, but I think we would have been a contender,” Pagliuca said. “The second we got Garnett, we felt there was a legitimate possibility we could contend.”

And so did other players in the league.

Once Allen and Garnett signed on, came out of the woodwork hoping to join the team. Eddie House, James Posey, Scot Pollard, Sam Cassell and P.J. Brown all said they were eager to join a winner.

“I don’t want to make it seem like this was our master plan. But our strategy was to build assets and remain opportunistic — be looking for what you can do and build, build, build,” Irv Grousbeck said. “If you do nothing else over time, you’ll build a good team.

“We got lucky in a sense, but we planned to be able to put together a good team,” he said. “If we had kept building, it would have taken longer.”

Kobe Bryant scored all but two of his 27 points after halftime, including a go-ahead, 10-foot jumper in the lane with 23.9 seconds remaining, and the Lakers rallied from a 20-point deficit to beat the Spurs in Game 1.

Game 2 will be played Friday night before the best-of-7 series shifts to San Antonio for the third and fourth games. The Lakers are 7-0 in the postseason at Staples Center, where they’ve won 13 consecutive games overall.

Bryant’s jumper put the Lakers ahead for good after two free throws by Manu Ginobili with 1:22 remaining and a follow shot by Tim Duncan with 41 seconds left tied the game at 85. After Bryant’s basket, Ginobili missed a 3-pointer and Sasha Vujacic made two free throws with 7.3 seconds to go, completing the scoring.

The Lakers outscored the Spurs 24-13 in the fourth quarter, when San Antonio shot 3-for-21, including 1-for-9 from 3-point range.

“We almost gave up home-court advantage to a great effort by the Spurs,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “That was a big comeback. We were deep in the hole, there was no doubt about it. Twenty down and half the quarter gone in the third period. It was a struggle to fight back into the ballgame by the end of the third quarter.”

As Manu Ginobili dribbled out the final few seconds of the second-round series clincher, Tony Parker walked over and gave him a congratulatory pat on the head.

There would be no exuberant celebration for the San Antonio Spurs when the final horn sounded — only a few hugs for a job well done. This playoff-savvy group was exhausted after a seven-game triumph over the younger, upstart New Orleans Hornets, but its title defense endures.

Ginobili scored 26 points, hitting four free throws in the final minute, to send the Spurs to the Western Conference finals with a 91-82 victory Monday night.

Parker added 17 points, including a crucial jumper in the final minute, as the Spurs held off a late rally to become the first team in this series to win on the road.

“We really believed we had a chance to win on the road here,” said Spurs forward Tim Duncan, who had 16 points and 14 rebounds. “It’s just a lot of confidence. A lot of games under our belt.”

With a nucleus of Chris Paul, David West and Tyson Chandler, the Hornets appear destined for greater things, but now is not their time.

“One thing I want them to remember when they start working out next season is how they feel right now,” said Hornets coach Byron Scott, adding he was proud that his team, which did not make the playoffs last season, pushed the Spurs as far as it did.

After squandering a 14-point lead at Boston in a hail of missed free throws and getting entangled by the Celtics’ spiderweb-like defense in Game 5, LeBron James and his teammates are down 3-2 and facing elimination from the NBA playoffs on Friday night at Quicken Loans Arena.

They’ll go into Game 6 short-handed.

Guard Daniel Gibson, one of the club’s best perimeter shooters and a star in last year’s postseason, separated his left shoulder going for a loose ball early in the fourth quarter of Game 5 and will need a minimum of one week to recover.

The Cavaliers may be done before he’s well.

CLEVELAND - Back to even, and back to Boston— with authority. LeBron James scored 21 points, jamming in a powerhouse dunk over a defenseless Kevin Garnett in the final two minutes, as the beat the homesick Celtics 88-77 in Game 4 on Monday night to tie the best-of-seven series at 2-2.

Boston dropped to 0-5 on the road in the post season, a stunning slip for a team that went 31-10 on the road during the regular season. During a short visit to Ohio, the Celtics lost their momentum in the series but will now head home, where they went 35-6 before the playoffs started.

Game 5 is Wednesday night, and Game 6 will be back in Cleveland on Friday.

James was just 7-for-20 from the floor, but he did everything else for the Cavs, who are attempting to overcome an 0-2 deficit for the second time in two years.

In the final 8:45, James had four assists, a 3-pointer and a right-handed dunk that rattled Quicken Loans Arena and became the signature moment of this series.

SAN ANTONIO - There was no third-quarter breakdown for the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night, just the desperate play of a team whose quest for a second straight NBA title was on the line. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili both scored 31 points to lead the Spurs to a 110-99 victory over the New Orleans Hornets in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals.

With the win, the Spurs avoided falling into an ominous 0-3 hole from which no NBA team has never returned.

Chris Paul led the Hornets, who still hold a 2-1 series lead, with 35 points and nine assists. David West had 23 points and 12 rebounds for New Orleans, which was dominant in the first two games of the series.

Game 4 is Sunday night in San Antonio.

LOS ANGELES - Finally, an MVP award for Kobe Bryant.

Regarded as the NBA’s best player for several years but never its most valuable, Bryant earned the honor at last on Tuesday after leading the Los Angeles Lakers to the best record in the Western Conference.

He called the award a blessing and an honor and emphasized that he wants another trophy this year.

“It’s Hollywood, it’s a movie script. The perfect ending would be for us to hold a championship trophy at the end of it,” Bryant said at a news conference attended by his teammates, club officials, his wife and two daughters.

“This is an award I couldn’t have won on my own. I can’t thank these guys (his teammates) enough. These are my guys, these are my brothers. Let’s get ready for tomorrow.”

The Lakers try to take a 2-0 lead against Utah in their conference semifinal on Wednesday night. Bryant will receive the MVP trophy from commissioner David Stern before the game.

Bryant entered the season as the league’s two-time defending scoring champion. He had finished as high as third in the MVP voting twice — after the 2002-03 season, when he averaged 30 points for the first time, and last year when Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki won.

“I don’t know anybody who’s ever deserved this trophy more. I don’t know anybody who’s ever worked as hard to accomplish what he’s accomplished,” said Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who had five-time MVP Michael Jordan with Chicago and was at the Lakers’ helm when Shaquille O’Neal won the award in 2000.

Bryant received 82-first-place votes and 1,105 points in the media vote. He was followed by New Orleans’ Chris Paul (28 and 889), Boston’s Kevin Garnett (15 and 670) and Cleveland’s LeBron James (1 and 438).

“I’ve said since two, three years ago that Kobe Bryant is the best player in the league,” James said before the Cavaliers faced the Celtics in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series. “He’s been the best player the last five, six years. I’m glad he won it. His team had a great year, finishing first in the West.”

This season there was no denying the Lakers’ 6-foot-6 star. Los Angeles rose to the top of the West despite key injuries and following Bryant’s trade demands last spring when his team was eliminated in the first round by Phoenix for the second straight year.

Bryant averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.84 steals while playing all 82 games despite tearing a ligament in his right pinkie in February. He put off surgery until after the Olympics.

The knock on the 29-year-old Bryant had been that he didn’t make those around him better — not anymore.

“He’s deserving in this particular season with all of the question marks and everything going on coming into the season and the uncertainty,” teammate Derek Fisher said. “Not only did he statistically have an MVP type of season, everybody can reasonably say they were better this year because of what he did. He met the so-called criteria, elevating his teammates’ games.”

Word leaked last Friday night that Bryant had won the award.

Bryant, second in the NBA in scoring behind James, is the first Laker to win the MVP award since O’Neal. Other Lakers to win since the award was first presented in 1956 were Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson — each times. Abdul-Jabbar also won three with Milwaukee.

“I didn’t expect this award would come to me,” Bryant said. “I’m surprised. I’ve played pretty well in other seasons. Our team hasn’t been as good. Things just fell into place.”

Bryant and O’Neal led the Lakers to three consecutive championships, from 2000-02, and a berth in the finals in 2004. The Lakers hadn’t won a playoff series since until sweeping Denver in the first round last month.

Bryant and O’Neal were often at odds during their eight years together. Assistant coach Brian Shaw, who played for the Lakers from 1999-03, has noticed a big difference in Bryant.

“He’s a much better teammate now than he was in the championship days. That’s a credit to his maturation. There were definitely times when he was not a good teammate. No one worked harder than he did. The same is true today,” Shaw said.

The Cavaliers have rested and are waiting for the Celtics.  Boston has played all seven games in the series against Atlanta. Cleveland sent the Washington Wizards packing in six games.

Now they have sat long and waited. In NBA rest is always good.  But the Cavs have done a lot more than just resting. They have planned and perfected that plan.  Now they are ready.  And Boston wont hav it any easier than they did with Atlanta.

For sports betting this will be good exciting and a money making matchup.