Lakers vs. Celtics, stat by stat

Most NBA savants have the Lakers (11-1) and Celtics (13-2) as the top two teams in the NBA. They don't play each other until Christmas Day at Staples Center, so until then the eyeballing of each team's strengths will be largely reduced to watching games on the tube and making some statistical comparisons.

So far, the Lakers have the edge. Here's how the teams match up in a few key categories:

Points per game: Lakers 105.9, opponents 92.7; Celtics 97.2, opp. 89.9

Field goal percentage: Lakers 45.7, opponents 42.9; Celtics 46.4, opp. 39.7

Rebounds per game: Lakers 48.2, opponents 41.8; Celtics  43.1, opp. 40.3

Blocks per game: Lakers 6.3, opponents 4.5; Celtics 5.3, opp. 3.8

Steals per game: Lakers 10.4, opponents 8.4; Celtics 8.7, opp. 7.9.

Assists per game: Lakers 22.3, opponents 22.6; Celtics 20.4, opp. 17.4

Turnovers per game: Lakers 14.0, opponents 18.0; Celtics 16.9, opp. 16.3.

-- Barry Stavro

Photo: The Lakers' Pau Gasol (left) and the Celtics' Kevin Garnett battle during Game 6 of the NBA Finals in June. Credit: Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times. 

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Lakers 2008-2009 NBA CHAMPIONS