Lakers fall for this one

He lay in a heap on the parquet floor, visibly weeping into the silk-suited sleeve of his doctor.

He was pushed in a wheelchair down a narrow back hallway, head down, season over.

Paul Pierce, the Boston Celtics captain, was carried from the opening game of the NBA Finals in the third quarter Thursday with an apparent serious knee injury that momentarily deadened and distracted the Lakers.

At which point, Pierce came running back to finish them off.

To nearly 50 years of delicious Celtics-Lakers lore, add a new apparent bit of chicanery.

Call it the Fake N'Shake.

The Celtics won Game 1, 98-88, on the momentum of a recovery that smacked more of professional wrestling than professional basketball.

When Pierce crumpled on the floor after being apparently faked out of his kneecap by Kobe Bryant with 6:52 left in the third quarter, the Lakers led by four points.

When he returned after just 1:45 had ticked off the game clock, the Celtics led by one.

The "Rocky" theme played. The crowd roared. Pierce hobbled out with drama dripping from every step.

He was so hurt, he immediately began sprinting around the stunned Lakers defenders.

He was in such pain, he hit consecutive three pointers late in the period that gave the Celtics the lead for good.

At which point, a Lakers season filled with colorful adjectives had been reduced to one word.

C'mon!

Afterward, Pierce played the part of the resurrected hero, shaking his head at the wonder of it all.

"You know, I think God sent this angel down and said, 'Hey, you're going to be all right, you need to get back out there, show them what you've got,' " he said.

The Lakers, meanwhile, were just shaking their heads, period.

"You know, you don't know what happens," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said of Pierce. "Guys can break a shoelace and go out, the pants break down, a drawstring falls apart."

Pierce said he heard his knee pop.

"Once I heard the pop, and I couldn't move it at first, I thought that was it," he said.

He was literally carried from the court. While the Lakers were staring at him, the Celtics were being inspired by him.

"I reminded them . . . there will be adversity and you've got to overcome it," Celtics Coach Doc Rivers said. "I said, this is it right here."

The Celtics responded, the Lakers retreated, and the game was never the same.