[Juan]

When the Miami Heat let James Posey slip away most people just shrugged their shoulders and kept going about their business. No big deal, right? He was a minor participant for the Heat during their championship run. Then again, his new team is where his old team was, on the verge of winning a championship. I'm not suggesting that Posey is the sole reason the Celtics are close to adding yet another banner to the rafters of the Garden, but he is the kind of player every championship team needs - the kind the Lakers are lacking at present. Posey is the Jerome Kersey, the Mario Elie, the Tayshaun Prince - the guy who makes the big stop, makes the extra hustle play, and the guy who can also hit a big shot when you need one to help his team get over the hump. It's interesting, then, that printed reports today have Posey on the Lakers' summer free agency list. Posey took a minimal deal from the Celtics, one of the advantages of which was opt-out language, so that he could show his value and hopefully earn a bigger deal for next season. One option will, of course, be for the Celtics to retain him. It's hard to imagine that they wouldn't if they win a title this week, but if they don't Posey could become the key player for the Lakers next season . . .and possibly help produce a championship for them. Maybe Posey will actually become the next Robert Horry, going from team to team bringing championships in his wake despite most of his work being invisible in the box score. If he wins a title this year in Boston and next year in LA, don't be surprised to see his name come up a lot more often.

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