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updated 9:21 p.m. ET May 25, 2010

President Barack Obama is projecting a Los Angeles Lakers win in the NBA finals.

Obama told TNT in an interview that he’s been surprised by Boston, but believes Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and coach Phil Jackson would be too much for the Celtics.

“I’ve got to go with the Lakers again,” Obama said. “I think Gasol may be the best big man in the league right now. He’s different from Dwight Howard, but he’s (got) unbelievable footwork, speed, savvy, he’s playing magnificently.

“Kobe is the fiercest competitor in the league and they’ve got what I continue to believe is the best coach in the NBA right now in Phil Jackson, so they’re going to be formidable and I think it’ll be a tough series. Boston’s a veteran club, but the Lakers are looking pretty good.”

In the interview that aired Tuesday before Game 4 of the Western Conference finals, Obama also praised the Suns for taking a stand against Arizona’s immigration law, said it’d be great if Washington got John Wall with the No. 1 pick, and that ticket prices would be his biggest concern if he was NBA commissioner for a day.

“I mean, I think that ticket prices have gotten so high, and I understand that salaries are high, ticket prices are going to be high, but you know, you hate to think that the only person that can go to a game is somebody who’s got a corporate account,” Obama said. “And that’s something that I’d love all professional sports, that’s not just NBA, but all professional sports to be thinking about that a little more.”

The interview was conducted by broadcaster Marv Albert on the White House basketball court. It is available on www.NBA.com and is also being shown on NBA TV.

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Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images

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