Lakers' meltdown to Celtics is hard to swallow

They didn't choke.

By definition, when one chokes, there is noise, movement, desperation.

The Lakers didn't choke.

They blew the NBA Finals without making a sound.

They botched their entire season while standing still.

They lost a 24-point lead -- the biggest collapse in the NBA Finals in at least 37 years -- by staring dreamily into the hardened eyes of a Boston Celtics team that angrily shoved them into next fall.

Choke? On Thursday night in front of a Staples Center crowd whose early cheers lapsed into a stunned and horrified silence, the Celtics' 97-91 victory was more like a smote.

The Lakers led by 21 points after the first quarter, the biggest first-quarter lead in NBA Finals history.

The Lakers led by 20 points midway through the third quarter, an insurmountable margin for a team playing at home and possessing the MVP.

And, yeah, they lost by six.

They gave the game away, but not before one of them walked away.

You know how Los Angeles fans are famously criticized for leaving games early.

Add Kobe Bryant to their list.

He walked off the court with three seconds remaining as the Lakers were bringing up the ball for a final shot.

It was a most egregious act for a most valuable player.

Meltdowns everywhere.

Even the NBA stat folks melted down, as they have no detailed records of Finals games before 1971, thus this can only officially be the biggest collapse in 37 years.

Unofficially, though, it also probably gives the Celtics the championship, as the Lakers now trail three games to one, an historically insurmountable Finals deficit.

When asked afterward how his team was going to recover from this loss, Bryant said, "Lot of wine, lot of beer, lot of shots, like 20 of them."

That quote would have been a lot funnier if Bryant hadn't actually taken 19 shots in the game, and made just six of them.