Picture Gallery (LAT)

May 29 - Phoenix. With another superb performance by Kobe Bryant the Lakers defeated the Suns 111-103 at Phoenix and arrived to the NBA Finals for the third year in a row, where they will face the Boston Celtics once again,

Kobe had 37 points and while Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom had a hard time on the offensive end, Ron Artest had a 2010 playoff-high 25 points, making 10 of 16 shots that included 4-of-7 three pointers.

The Lakers led by as many as 18 late in the second quarter and had everything under control until the end of the third. They started the final period up by 17, 91-74 but the Suns made one last effort to save their season and with all their reserves plus Stoudemire (27 points but 7-for-20 shooting and just 4 rebounds) went into a 16-4 run to get to 90-95 with six minutes left. Almost 4 minutes later Steve Nash two-point shot closed the gap to just 3 points, 96-99 with 2:18 remaining. But then Kobe's time began. He made a 21-foot jumper over two defenders and two free throws to calm things down, a couple of possessions later he made another impossible long shot over Grant Hill to make it 107-100. The best closer in the game had 9 points in the final 2 minutes and with his 10th 30-point game in the last 11 he moved ahead of Jerry West and into a tie with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for second-most 30-point playoff games at 75.

Slovenian fellows Sasha Vujacic and Goran Dragic had a personal duel that started in game 5. Here it included a flagrant foul for Sasha after he throw an arm to the face of Dragic as a reaction for words that only they understood with 11:18 to play

Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher will be in their seventh NBA finals in search of their fifth championship.

The Lakers and Celtics, the last two champions and members of the NBA's biggest rivalry, will meet in the finals for the 12th time. Game 1 is Thursday at Staples Center. The format will be 2-3-2, the middle three games in Boston.