Lakers vs. Celtics: Which Has Better 'Big Three'?

I hope the Celtics have copyrighted the phrase "The Big Three," like the Bulls did with "three-peat." Because on the serious, I've begun wondering just how much bigger theirs is than Los Angeles's trio of Bryant, Gasol, and Odom. I know, I know, it sounds crazy. But let's compare the playoff stats for the respective bunches.

-- Kevin Garnett: 21.1 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.2 spg, 1.1 bpg, .525 from the floor, .824 from the line
-- Paul Pierce: 19.0 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 4.1 apg, 1.0 spg, .443 from the floor, .790 from the line
-- Ray Allen: 14.2 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.8 apg, .403 from the floor, .935 from the line

-- Kobe Bryant: 31.9 ppg, 5.8 apg, 6.1 rpg, 1.3 spg, .509 from the floor, .814 from the line
-- Pau Gasol: 17.7 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 4.2 apg, 1.0 spg, 1.6 bpg, .446 from the floor, .727 from the line
-- Lamar Odom: 14.7 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 2.9 apg, 0.8 spg, 1.4 bpg, .481 from the floor, .667 from the line

Granted, when the Celtics are on, they hit more threes. But that hasn't exactly been the norm these days. And when Kobe gets going, he can knock down shots from long range without the slightest bit of hesitation.

This is a gross over-simplification of something everyone will be talking about all week. Yet it's worth staring at this cluster of stats for a while and wondering what, if not name, the Celtics's core really has giving it such luster. This really might come down to debating role players, so get ready to put your faith behind Derek Fisher (good idea) or James Posey (a deal with the devil in chef's clothing).

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.