http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izT3f5xlybQ

Celtics Show (Yet Again) Defense Wins Ballgames

Back-to-back games can be a killer, especially when it's the first one of the season and the Big 3 haven't yet played 2 games in a row. And more especially when you've got KG who's still working on getting his stamina back. Well last night's game was a big "eff you" to that notion.

Sure, we were playing the Charlotte Bobcats who mysteriously traded Emeka Okafor for a struggling (and I mean struggling) Tyson Chandler. Still, when you hold a team to a franchise-low in points and also a record for fewest points allowed in a season opening game (for the Bobcats), that's something that certainly holds some weight as to how good the team is. After playing a tough buzzer-to-buzzer, heavyweight battle against Cleveland the night before (and not landing in Boston until 2 am), I'm sure I wasn't alone in my fears that this game certainly had the possibility of being a trap game. Those fears quickly went away as we ran out to and early 8-0 lead and didn't look back.

KG and Perk combine to give Boston the best defensive team in the NBA

Garnett put in another very solid performance on his return to Boston, once again showing no ill effects from the knee surgery that everyone and his mother has been worried about. 10 points on 5-9 shooting and 7 boards in 25 minutes. Definitely respectable. Not dominant, but we don't need dominant from really anybody because of the scoring distribution and defense our team has. We had 5 players score in double figures: KG, Ray Allen (18), Pierce (15), Rondo (10), and Shelden Williams (12). Speaking of Williams, I know the guy played basically garbage minutes, but he was pretty damn good. He was scrappy and continued to attack the paint and draw fouls well into the fourth quarter. Not to jinx anything, but he reminds me a little bit of Leon Powe. We'll see how the season goes with him, so we'll be able to get a better sample size. But so far so good.

KG was his usual aggressive self, showing no signs of hesitancy with his knee

Oh, hey. You gotta love Perk, don't you? He's improved so much over these 6 (?) years. The guy is BIG. Not necessarily tall, but freakin' muscular and defensively-minded. I've noticed that he falls for upfakes less and less. How could you not love that play were Raymond Felton drove into the lane and Perk rejected him ("Get that shit outta here!). Felton got the rejection on the baseline and Perk was left to guard him. Felton used his speed advantage to get past him and tried for another layup. Perk (from behind!) swatted another one away. He and Tyson Chandler (really, why did the Bobcats get this guy?) were chippy throughout the game. Perk let his defense speak for itself. Chandler tried a turn around fadeaway at the free throw line, which Perk calmly blocked back in his face. Chandler ended up getting a technical foul for yapping at Perk back up the court. Needless to say, Perk got one also, but only to show Chandler that he was in his territory. Way to be. Those t's are fine with me.

Rondo was busy as hell, too. He scored efficiently (5-6 shooting for 10 points), passed to everyone and everything (11 assists), and used his ginormous hands to make 3 steals. Here's a crazy stat: in the third quarter, Rondo had twice as many assists as the entire Bobcats team. In the THIRD QUARTER. Insane.

KG goes through his ritual pre-game routine in his first game back in Boston

Ray Allen showed some early struggles shooting from the field, but he continued to shoot the ball, and his teammates trusted him enough to keep feeding him. He ended up as the game's high scorer with 18 points (6-17 shooting, but 4-10 from deep). The best thing about tonight's game was that Doc was able to rest all of his starters (although Ray played 38 minutes). KG only played 25, Pierce played 24, Rondo played 29, and Perk played 27. This type of play bodes well in the long run, as it saves our legs for down the road.

The Celtics' solid play allowed the Big 3 to rest for the entire 4th quarter...

One point of contention, not directed at the Celtics play, but at the refs. This happened on more than one occasion, so it's totally worth mentioning and something that should get fixed (I'm talking to you, Mr. Stern). Pierce was often guarding the out-of-control Gerald Wallace and at least 2 times drove his shoulder into Pierce in an attempt to get around him and to the hoop. Both times Pierce guessed correctly which way Wallace would drive, causing him to slam directly into his chest. Each time the ref called a blocking foul. First of all, I don't care what position the defender is in, the offensive player cannot put his head down and drive his shoulder into him. Automatic offensive foul. Second, if the guy runs square into the chest of his defender, who is standing straight up and down, that's a charge. Automatic. Plain and simple. I understand that charges/blocking fouls are among the hardest calls in the game, but in those cases, they are easy.

...while the bench players continued to dominate

In all, it was another great display of defensive prowess and sharing the scoring load (see: 20-0 run to start the 2nd half). As Doc and the players have said so many times, the offense will always be there; the focus has to be on the defense. That's the equation for success and, so far this young season, it's worked to a "t".

Guest Writer

I'm happy to report that we'll be having a contributing writer here on the Celtics blog from time to time. Tim Helgesen, avid Celtics fan, has sent me this piece on the upcoming NBA draft as it pertains to the Celtics. Now, me not being a huge mock draft kinda guy, Tim's article is a great way to gap the time between the postseason run and the 2009-2010 season for the C's. Without further ado, here's Tim!

The 2009 NBA Draft and What the Celtics May Do

By, Tim Helgesen (contributing writer)

The 2009 NBA Draft is a week away, and other than Blake Griffin locked in at #1, the draft is looking extremely cloudy as scouts and GM’s compare notes and take last looks at the rookies-to-be. Memphis wants Ricky Rubio but he isn’t returning the love. Hasheem Thabeet might be their next best option as he could anchor (or create) their defense of the future. Their third option, however, is to trade the pick to surround Orange Juice Mayo and Rudy Gay with an established veteran. This seems their most viable option as they have too much youth as it is already. But this is not a Memphis Grizzlies blog, this is a Celtics blog, and here comes the connection…

ESPN, among others, is reporting that the Celtics have shown increasing interest in getting that 2^nd pick, and seeing that they have no first round picks to offer in return, they’re going to have to make a BIG move. Yes, that’s right; Danny Ainge is considering breaking up the Big Three, less than two years after creating it. Rajon Rondo’s name came up last week but Ainge quickly made it known that that would NOT be happening any time soon. The only other player brought up that could pry the #2 (or any of the top 5 picks) away is……….Ray Allen.

When I heard about this I was flabbergasted and enraged. Why would the Celtics part with their 3-point savior…their only legitimate backcourt threat? So I went back and looked at the good ol’ game logs that ESPN so graciously offers to refresh my memory more than anything else. I hadn’t forgotten about his frequent slumps throughout the season and parts of the playoffs, and thoughts such as “He’s getting up there in age, Tim” and “Jump shooters always drop off quickly so we should get rid of him now” began to flood my brain. All that stopped when I saw one stat, two numbers… 51.

How could I forget about his 51 point gem against the Bulls??? Sure we lost that game, but the result didn’t matter to me as much as the meaningfulness of that stat……….

HE STILL GOT GAME.

True Celtics fans know Ray Allen's worth, evidenced by the multiple game winners and his epic 51-point performance against the Bulls this postseason.

Shuttlesworth’s not done. Sure, he’ll turn 34 in a month…I don’t care. We were a KG knee away from a Finals appearance this year, and we owe it to the “Parquet Posse” to give them another shot at a championship. We have to; they delivered as promised just a year ago. I’d rather have three over-the-hill Hall of Famers on my team than 2 and a rookie, no matter how good he may be.

Danny: Remember, we've been through this whole athletic-young-guy phase with Gerald Green. Yeah, that's the same year we lost 18 in a row. Do the right thing.

Ainge has apparently fallen into a man crush with Tyreke Evans, a 6-5 guard from Memphis. I had seen basically none of him at all, so I caught up by watching movie after movie on youtube…mostly mixtapes and all-star games. The kid can dribble and jump, finishing nicely at the rim, but his shot just isn’t there yet (of course every mixtape shot went in…). I don’t see how pairing him with a shot-under-development Rondo would be anything close to a good idea. Just…no. Don’t do it.

Doc Rivers recently told Mike WIlbon and Tony Kornheiser on PTI that the team was looking for a backup guard and another big man. So if the “backup guard” is Evans, who will be the 2 guard when Ray Allen is gone? The same problem arises if the deal goes down and the Celtics pick Thabeet (who’s riskiness scares the heck out of me)…no 2 guard. Don’t give me, “Eddie house could be the 2 guard, he played some rootin’ tootin’ good basketball last year!” (Insert Red Neck chuckle here)

Eddie House has excelled off the bench, providing much-needed scoring as the starters rest. But what if he's moved into Allen's spot?

WRONG. Not about his exceptional play, but about his ability to fill in for Allen. Edward L. House II excels as an off-the-bench fireshooter, and should stay there. He’s started a whopping 30 games in his nine year career, mostly filling in for injured stars…not someone I want taking the shots on a championship caliber team.

Other than Blake Griffin, I see no one in this draft worth getting rid of Ray Ray for, unless perhaps Steph Curry packaged with a veteran forward. The 2009 draft is just a weaker draft, case closed. As much as people want to think making a big move to get a possible superstar is the only way to keep up in this game, it’s just not going to work this time because the star power isn’t there. And if you’re still thinking that trading Ray Allen might be a good idea right about now…well shame on you, you fair-weather thrill seeker. Sometimes the best thing to do is stick with your guns, no matter how rusty they may be.

So in conclusion…Danny Ainge, sweet Danny Ainge who hath returned our team to glory…when in one week the time comes to draft players, stick with lucky pick #58 and don’t forget about 51.

Because as the sign in a barn I know of so aptly puts, “JESUS NEVER FAILS!”

EDD-IE! EDD-IE! EDD-IE!!!!

Amen, brotha.

What a way to respond to Game 1! The moral victory that night, which saw us come back to within 4 points after being down 28 is Celtics basketball. That's just how champions play. The Orlando Magic, on the other hand, are not champions. They were out of this game from the get-go and never mounted any sort of comeback or displayed any sort of energy throughout the whole game. This is one of the main reasons as to why the Celtics can win this series. Let's start with the players who were mere footnotes to House's shooting barrage.

Kendrick Perkins. What a beast. Sure, he makes stupid plays all the time, but he's getting better and better at making fewer and fewer mistakes. He's taking on probably the most dominant big man in the game today and holding him down. Howard only had 12 points and 12 rebounds. In Game 1, he only had 16 points. Perk did a fantastic job defensively last night, limiting his fouls while pushing Howard out of the low post and forcing to take awkward hook shots. He ended up shooting 5-13 from the field, which is a sucky percentage for anyone, but even more so for someone who only plays his game 1-6 feet away from the rim. Offensively, Perkins was more efficient and effective: 16 points on 7-10 shooting, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. Gotta love the stat stuffer.

Smmmooooooooooth (as the other side of the pillow?)

For the second series in a row, Ray Allen returned to form after a very off game. He scored a (quiet) 22 points on 7-15 shooting, including 2 threes. He too filled out the stat sheet, grabbing 6 boards and handing out 4 assists. He played the most minutes out of anyone (41) and, although I'd like to see him rest in these blowouts, it was somewhat necessary that he get his rhythm back and get his stroke going before we head into Orlando to try and retake homecourt advantage.

J.J. Redick: The New Machine. "Argrggrgrgghhhh!"

Glen Davis was especially efficient tonight. Although he got into early foul trouble, he ended up with only 3. He played solid defense on the quicker and longer Rashard Lewis, he and Scal holding him to a "more-than-it-seems" 17 points. Big Baby shot 4-5 from the field, 5-6 from the charity stripe, and had two steals, one of which was mighty purrty as he poked it away from Lewis as he tried to cross him over.

Pierce and Allen get some much-needed R&R as the Celtics cruise.

Paul Pierce played just 16 minutes, scoring only one basket: a three from the top of the key to open the game. He was plagued with foul trouble throughout, but this rest for him is the most deserved and needed. He's had a couple games here and there, especially in the Chicago series in which he's looked just...tired. Getting essentially 3 days off before Game 3 on Friday should help get his legs as fresh as possible to try and take that game.

Um, and one? Howard is pushing Rondo...so yeah. Whatever, look how HIGH HE IS!!

Rondo. What more can we say about him? The kid's a floor wizard. A mix of Bob Cousy's crazy-ass passes, Magic's scoring abilities, and Jason Kidd's rebounding talent. After a poor shooting night in Game 1, I knew and he knew that the remedy was to attack the rim and continue to do so. As Rondo goes, so does the team, as cliche as that sounds. He had another triple-double, bringing his total to 3 for these playoffs, tying Larry Bird's team record. One more would tie him for the record held by Jason Kidd in the 2002 playoffs (Anyone find this sketchy? Oscar Robertson, who averaged a trip-doub for a whole season never had more than 4 in the playoffs? Did his teams just never get far?). Rondo's line: 15 points (7-19 shooting), 11 rebounds, 18 assists, 2 steals, and only 3 turnovers. For the entire playoffs, he's averaging 18.3 ppg, 9.6 rpg, and 11.9 apg. Pretty dayum impressive. Oh, and to top it all off, to get the needed points for the triple-double, Rondo took a pass from Eddie House, drove straight down the middle, got up so that his elbow was above the rim, and DUNKED it as Howard and Lewis watched. No easy layups? I thought that was everyone's mentality for the playoffs, but Orlando was way to soft in this one. Not championship mettle, if you ask me.

The new defensive set: The Scal-D, in which Scal sneaks up from behind as Big Baby and Pierce surround Howard. Works like a charm.

Now, shall we move on to the bench? Once again, these mofos contributed greatly. Let's start with Brian "Jackie Moon" Scalabrine. What an underrated defender! Keeping the lanky and quick Lewis from going off is a tough job and Scal definitely helped out. He ended up shooting 3-4 (2-3 on threes) with 8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocked shots! Can I get a hell yeah?? I never thought I'd say this last year, but thank god we have him. He's become a great off-the-bench asset for us.

That guy in the green shirt will be havin' NONE of that!

Now, onto the hero. Eddie "Go Ahead, Make My Headband Spin" House. Man, when he catches on fire, no one, I mean NO ONE can stop that. He's got the quickest release in the game and can change the arc of the ball so dramatically that he can get it over anyone. The plays the Celtics run for Eddie are great. My favorites are the little flare screens, in which he sets a screen for the ball handler and then runs over to the baseline as screens are set for his man. It's beautiful. Thing is, they've got no one capable of staying with him (did you see J.J. Redick trying to keep up with him?). After knocking a deep two in Rafer Alston's face, he got so angry he bitch slapped House's head! (Suspension, please.) What happens the next play? Oh, just another three from House to close the third quarter. And the fun would continue into the 4th, highlighted by a great 4-point play in which House got the ball off over backup PG Anthony Johnson as he hit his arm. That's kinda when you know you've got the hot hand. Fun fact: House scored the most points off the bench in a playoff game for the Celtics since Kevin McHale got 33 (or something) in 1993. Nice company.

If Bennett Salvatore had been watching, Alston would have been automatically ejected from the game. Not like it mattered!!! Boo-yah.

I know it's just one game, but you've gotta think the momentum of this series is directly in the Celtics' hands. We had the moral victory in Game 1, losing by only 5 points. We blow Orlando out of the building in Game 2 without our Captain for basically the entire game. Heading down south, I've got total confidence that we can take a game and at least get homecourt advantage back. Perk just needs to keep Howard contained and their shooters just can't get open looks enough to get hot. They have no penetrating game like we do (Rondo, Pierce) and we've got much more solid shooters, if we resort to that (seriously, who would you pick, Ray Allen or Redick? Yeah, thanks.)

I can't decide which angle's the best. It's all so good!!

And just one more picture to give some love to the ol' timers:

Imagine sitting next to or behind these guys?!?! Wow. Experience of a lifetime.

Celtics Pull It Out in Another OT Thriller

Pierce was all smiles after owning the Bulls in the 4th and OT periods.

I hated this game. Yep. Even though we ended up winning, I just hated it. Pretty much the whole game was a microcosm of what this series has been: frustrating. These Chicago Bulls--young, inexperienced, ugly--are not supposed to be this challenging. They're very reminiscent of the Hawks of last year, but this time around, the games are much closer and you get the feeling that this is a 1 vs. 2 seed going at it. Why are they being so damn pesky? I honestly believe much of it has to do with luck. Sure, they've got some talent in Derrick Rose and Ben Gordon, that can't be denied. But in watching these first 5 games, the amount of balls that have bounced their way, the calls they've gotten (or haven't gotten), and the crazy shots they've made continue to grow in number. Last night was no exception, as the two teams fought through the 4th overtime period of this opening series. I don't really have much historical perspective, but I can't see how this wouldn't be the greatest opening round of the playoffs ever.

KG gives the cocky Ben Gordon a piece of his mind: "Mother [Expletive], [expletive] Celtics will dominate your punk [expletive] [expletive] [expletive]. Bitch."

I hated this game. From the start, the Celtics were shooting around 50%. The energy from the crowd was electric and certainly gave a boost to the home team. But those damn Bulls just kept hanging around. How deflating is that? It's so frustrating coming out with fire, yet still only leading by 2 points at the end of one and down by 3 at halftime. How is it that such a streaky player like Ben Gordon who has a strained hamstring (Grade 2, which indicates a partial tear) comes out and goes 2-11 until hitting just his third shot with 1:30 left in the third, but suddenly make some of the most unlikely shots? Mostly luck, my friends. Shooters shoot, yes, which is what he kept doing, but getting double-teamed and hitting a fall-away bank shot from 18 feet is NOT skill no matter how you cut it. Hitting a leaner from the baseline falling to his right with Stephon Marbury draped all over him is definitely more luck than skill. Getting Tony Allen to foul you on a three point attempt when you have ZERO other options is, I'll admit, a huge gaffe on Allen's part, but still, the stars aligned for that more than anything else. 

The Celtics looked tired after their initial push through the first quarter and a half. Rondo's turn around at the buzzer to end the half didn't prove to be the spark we desperately needed in the second half. They extended their lead to 11 points about 3 minutes into the 4th quarter. Now, I often yell and complain that I could do a better job executing than the crap that the Celtics sometimes run. If I had been playing in that 4th quarter, I would've thrown the towel in out of complete frustration. Joakim Noah's layup off of the (admittedly) pretty pass from Brad Miller put them up by the 11-point margin. But his goddamn scream after. Unnecessary. Here are the times when a player is allowed to do a "KG" after a DUNK ONLY, if you're a big man: 

1) To begin or end a quarter

2) To tie the game

3) To put your team within 2 or three points after coming back from a considerable deficit

4) After the other team has called a timeout after said comeback

5) If you're blowing out the other team (i.e. exclamation mark before you come out of the game for good...job well done, etc.)

That's about it, Noah. Cool. You put your team up by 11 on a play you really did nothing to create. You were just standing in the paint and happened to get your hands finally on a Miller pass and you...made a layup. If ANYTHING, Miller should be the one letting out a primal scream, not your butt-ass ugly piehole.

"Hey, Noah! Your penis is thiiiiiiis small! Fucker."

As for the Celtics, our starters are playing the best ball of the season. Unfortunately, the same can't be said about our bench. Sure, it's depleted, but when you only get 5 points out of them the entire game, chances are, you're screwed like Babe Ruth. Marbury canNOT pass up a wide open baseline jumper for a Rondo floater from a little closer in on the baseline. To make such a floater, one has to put it up perfectly. No backboard can help you out. No friendly rolls are likely to occur from that angle, i.e. the airball. Marbury's having noticeable confidence issues, but just look at what happens what he shoots the open shots: His 13 point performance in the Game 3 blowout. See what happens when the bench contributes? Yeah.

Aside from that, Pierce's performance obviously sticks out. He started the game quietly, getting 7 points in the first frame, but slowed considerably after. Jackie MacMullan who was at the game, commented that she thought something was wrong with Pierce. He didn't have any lift and wasn't really looking for his shot. That changed once the 4th was winding down. The Celtics were down to one true scorer and damn, did he deliver. He scored 15 points from the 9:15 mark of the fourth to the end of the OT. That's 15 points in about 14 minutes. Pretty good offensive production, if you ask me. Which you didn't, but I told you anyway.

How come the Chicago defense didn't double Pierce? I'm not complaining, but after about the third time he makes the same shot in a row, you'd think they'd try something different. There were no other real threats on the floor, aside from Rondo. Anyway, his play was 100% vintage and something only a superstar could do. After Ray Allen fouled out on a BULLSHIT call, Pierce took the game in his hands as only he could do and won it for us. Made shots when it matters most.

Ray Allen struggled, but hit this big 3 in the 4th quarter. Miller would later try and suffocate him, leading to a...double foul. Great job, Mr. Derosa.

As for Ray Allen. He struggled, sure. But, after hitting a much needed three from the corner in the 4th, he picked up one bogus call chasing Ben Gordon. It was essentially a hip check foul, something that happens literally EVERY offensive possession for either team. Unbelievable. Then, he gets picked off by Brad "Choke Artist" Miller who, rather than standing there, decides to bear hug Allen, holding him so he can't get out. Allen tries to fight out of it, and the ref calls a double foul. A DOUBLE FOUL! How often does THAT get called? And in such an important game? Holy mother of God. Exhibit Y in the case of the Celtics vs. Given Opponent & the State of Officials. However, like when a coach gets thrown out of a game, it may have been a blessing in disguise, as Pierce took over the game.

Rondo's putting in an all-time playoff performance.

Lost in the shuffle were Rajon "Where the EFF is this coming from?" Rondo and Kendrick "Still Making Some Mistakes, But Progressing a Lot Better" Perkins. Rondo's averaging--get this--24.2 ppg (leads the team), 10.2 rpg (2nd to Perk's 11.0), 10.2 apg (leads the team), 3.2 spg (leads the team), 51% on FG (2nd to Perk's 60%), and 4-7 from three. Yeah, that's a triple-double average with 3+ steals. Pedal to the metal. Soak it in because this is something that is only witnessed once in a very long while. His box score last night: Game-high 28 points (12-22 FG, 2-2 on threes), 11 assists, 8 rebounds, 2 steals.

Perk showed what being a Celtic is all about. He's a wily veteran...and only 3 years older than I am.

Another "whoa!" line from Perkins: 16 points, 19 rebounds, SEVEN (7) blocks, tying Robert Parish's Celtics playoff record. And get this: ZERO FOULS. Way to be. We had a short bench and needed our big men to limit their fouls and Perk, well done. Aside from one "wtf?" shot (a 17 footer at the beginning of the shot clock), he went above and beyond the call of duty.

The "controversial" play. Rondo no doubt hits Miller, but this is post-swipe at the ball, so lower the ball more and bring Rondo's arm back and it's clear to me that he's making a play on the ball more than anything.

I must say, this game may still be going on had it not been for the final play. Down by 2 with just over 3 seconds left, the Bulls drew up a surprisingly simple, yet effective play. Brad Miller set a screen for Ben Gordon, forcing Perkins to switch out on him as he faded to the baseline. Rondo recovered, following him under the pick, but giving Miller an open lane to the hoop. Perkins shifted over as Rondo again recovered, committing the foul rather than have Miller sink an easy layup. Ya know, a playoff foul. Miller went for the finger roll straight on instead of attempting the conventional layup, going to one side and using the backboard. My understanding is that Rondo thought he'd go the conventional way (i.e. the smart way) and swiped at the ball. Now, I have no photos of Rondo's face at the time of impact, but I can almost guarantee that his eyes were on the ball. If he was intentionally trying to decapitate Miller, as some Bulls and Bulls' fans are contending, than he would definitely be looking at Miller's head. One looks where one is intending to reach/grab/whathaveyou. The refs made exactly the right call for once. Miller bricked the first and intentionally missed the second, but he hit nothing (DUHHHHH IDIOT!?!) giving the ball to the Celtics. The free throws at our end were inconsequential as good ol' Vin had no timeouts and the Bulls had to go full court to get a shot off. Big Baby actually got the offensive rebound. Game. 

*southern accent* "Hot damn, that there sandwich was deeeelicious. Oops, showin' mah beer-belly on TV. Oh, sugar. I gotta go brick me some free throws! Yippie-kay-ay!"

On to Chicago, where we can close this bitch of a series out. I'm not gonna make any predictions, but last time we won on our home court and then went to Chicago and blew them out. We've got two chances to take this thing. Our experience and fortitude give the impression that this time luck may be on our side... 

[No caption necessary.]

Ray. Allen.

Ray Allen knocks down the game-winning three as the Bulls bench is SAD!

What a great game. I mean, what a fantastic game that was. These first two games remind me very much of the Atlanta series a year ago: a young, upstart team (with an ugly big man who thinks he's better than he really is) surprisingly challenges wily old veterans who were the favorites. This time, however, the Celtics are the defending champions and are playing with some real fortitude in the face of a TON of adversity. They could have packed it all up upon hearing news of KG being out for the entire playoffs with a right knee strain, especially when every reporter (even the faithful Bostonians) have flatly said that the C's have no chance at all. As the injured guy himself has said, though, "Anything is possible." Being underdogs isn't all that bad either. Everyone picked the soft Lakers to take it all last year and look what happened to Kobe-wan Kenobi (as my dad calls him). There's still a ton of pressure coming from the home crowd and the fact that we're the defending champs, but some people are even now thinking that Chicago will pull off the "upset." Last night's game was more than just a great win. It showed that we're not backing down and that despite all the bad news that keeps pouring in, we're gonna put up a hell of a fight.

The Celtics played great team defense on Rose, holding him to just 10 points.

How much can you say about Walter Ray Allen? The guy is one of the best shooters of all time. He's been through a lot these past couple of years, coming off ankle surgery before joining the team last year, struggling mightily in the opening rounds of the playoffs, many calling his career over and done with. Doc has said that he had the hardest time adjusting to the team of 2008, which is not to say he was a selfish player. His role was just very different from that in Seattle. But no complaints...just kept on shooting. Shooters shoot. This was on full display last night, as he went 6-10 from downtown, including more than a couple huge buckets to counter Ben Gordon's onslaught. This coming after a 1-12 effort in Game 1 and a 1-4 half to start Game 2. Shooters shoot. The Celtics did an incredible job of running plays for Allen that really got him going. You could even hear Pierce yelling, "Go to Ray! Go to Ray!" as they ran the ball up the court. All-in-all, 30 points for Allen, 28 coming in the second half. And when he got into that groove in the 4th quarter, there was no stopping him. Example of Ray staying in the game rather than getting frustrated: Pierce gets stripped leading to a 3-on-1 fastbreak, with Allen the only one back. Joakim (The Joke) Noah drives the lane and Allen picks up the blocking foul, and one. Next play down, Allen knocks down a three pointer off the feed from Rondo to bring the Celtics back to within one. How great is that? He uses his anger and frustration to be aggressive and score. After Gordon made back-to-back threes to put the Bulls up by 5, the two teams traded baskets, leading up to another three by Ray, putting us up by 2...

The Battle of UConn Alums: Gordon had more points, but Allen walked away the hero.

About that shot. Red Auerbach had his hand in this one (although, where was he for Pierce's missed free throw in Game 1?? Tip that in, man!) Rondo took a contested jumper and fell to the ground (no whistle..surprise). There was a long rebound and Rondo popped back up, got it, and dished it to Allen's hands beyond the arc. BAM! 2 point game with 25 ticks left. Gordon would make an insane free-throw line jumper with Big Baby and Allen in his grill leading up to the game winner.

Seriously, is there anyone uglier than Joakim Noah?? Ugh, looks like an ogre.

What a gorgeous play it was, too. The C's ran several screens down low as Rondo held the ball at the top of the arc. The brilliance comes in the amount of options we had. Allen was the first option, but if that wasn't there, Pierce was ready to post up down low UNDER the free throw line. Big Baby had Kirk Hinrich on him in a switch: another option. Eddie House was over on the wing and he's always dangerous with his quick release. Rondo had smoked Derrick Rose all night with his speed, so the possibility of him driving for the rim was there as well. Luckily, we had Option Numero Uno going for us. Hinrich called for The Joke to switch as he got stuck on Big Baby's pick. The big man recovered pretty well and Allen juuuuuust got the shot off over the 7-footer. The look on Noah's face after it splashed was epic. What a freaking loser.

Noah's face says it all: "Aww, man! I'm a complete moronic asshole who just got schooled by someone 2 feet shorter than I am!"

As I said, this game was Allen's, but there were so many other factors. Take Rondo. I was surprised to hear that he had a triple-double in the THIRD QUARTER! I had no idea. I knew he had a lot of points and a bunch of assists, but by the 3rd? No way. He ended up with 19 points, 16 assists, 12 rebounds. Oh, and 5 steals. There are only 3 players who have had a triple-double and 5+ steals in a playoff game: Magic Johnson, Gary Payton, and Rajon F. Rondo. What a baller. What a two games he's had! 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists in Game 1. Insane. Derrick Rose can have his 36 points in Game 1. I prefer dominance and consistency, thank you very much. Speaking of which, way to be, Rondo. He really attacked the rim from the get-go, drawing a quick 2 fouls on Rose (one of which was indirect--drove to the hoop, got blocked, K Perk got the board and Rose stupidly fouled him, and one), and then THREE on the backup, Hinrich. Do that every night and we have a great chance of winning.

Even on a sprained ankle, Rondo drove the lane all night, getting easy layups.

How about Big Baby?! He's been really stepping up for the absence of KG. Although he lacks the intensity The Ticket brings, he has that 18 or 19-foot jump shot down to a science. He ended up with 26 points on 12-21 shooting. The Celtics were a +20 with him on the floor. Pretty good for a "back-up" PF. Perk also went above and beyond the call of duty, going for 16 and 12, including seven offensive rebounds and a limited amount of boneheaded plays (RUN BACK ON DEFENSE!!). Pierce did a decent job (18 points, 8 boards), but was clearly very tired. John Salmons is a pesky person to defend and really ran Pierce around. Despite his sluggishness, I'll take 18 points for sure.

As for the bench....yeahhhhhh, where the eff were ya??!!? I thought Steph would get a few baskets after he knocked down a pretty jumper, but that was all he ended up with (1-4). Eddie only knocked down one three ball, Mikki Moore only made one shot, and Leon Powe as well (although he left early). And about Powe: Just learned today that he tore his ACL (my initials!) and will require surgery. He'll FOR SURE miss the rest of the playoffs, which is a pretty major blow to us, although I'm starting to get used to this type of news.

On the flipside, a glimmer of hope. Apparently, KG practiced the other day with the Celtics, although from what I heard, he merely dribbled the ball around the court a few times...no hardcore stuff. My message to Doc is this: If KG will be getting surgery, which I'm thinking is going to be the case, I say put him in games for brief (5 minute?) stretches a few times every game. I mean, sure it'll swell up, etc., but if he's getting surgery to repair it anyway, might as well give him a little work? He ran for 20 minutes straight and the knee swelled up after, causing Doc to say they'd shut him down, so play him just for a little amount of time. Even if he does nothing but stand there, his presence will be very much useful in both our psyche and the opposing team's. Of course, I'm probably just desperate and my plan would run the risk of worsening the situation beyond what surgery could fix (maybe???), but we'll see if he has any more practice time.

KG gives Pierce some advice and was incredibly vocal on the bench the entire night (Did he ever sit down?)

So there we have it. Ben Gordon's 42 points were just not good enough versus our team approach. We stuck with our game plan having Rondo drive, drive, drive and running multiple plays for Allen. You simply cannot expect their guys to continue to have epic nights...our defense will almost surely shore up. Our guys, on the other hand, are capable of having such games night in and night out. Rondo's a walking trip-doub threat, Ray Ray can knock down anything, Pierce is capable of getting way more than 18, Big Baby's been having nights like this for weeks now, and Eddie is due. Watch out, Chicago.

I made this!! Perfectly captures the moment.

Blahhhhhhh

So I know I said there'd be a Celtics recap of today's game, but since we lost and I was driving back to school for half of the game, I ain't gonna do it. From what I saw, though, we couldn't get anything going and allowed Charlie Villanueva to get whatever he wanted. Perk tried his best (26 points), but it wasn't enough. Both Pierce and Ray Ray were extremely inconsistent. Even still, this was one of those games that didn't bother me that we lost. A "whatev" game, if you will.

KG's looking for a Friday return vs. the Spurs. We obviously need him badly, as our opponents PPG is +13 in his absence. Yeah. Defensive Player of the Year again please?

Celtics at Denver

Great win for the Celtics again tonight. We're now 14-2 without Garnett since he came over here. No detailed analysis tonight...choppy video stream which made it hard to see things and some of the keys on my keyboard don't work.

-Ray Allen continues his hot shooting scoring 26 (6-11 from three).

-Rondo is the catalyst for this team. You need a point guard to lead your team in order to go deep in the playoffs and Rondo proved that last year. And he's better than last year especially on the road. He nearly had a triple-double tonight going for 14-8-8.

-The Denver announcer actually made a good point about us. Because we're a defensive team when we lose one of our star players it doesn't affect us too badly. in other words we don't rely on his offense to win games. Since we're a team-defense we're able to cope with his absence....but come back. An extended loss (a la Amare Stoudamire) would suck.

That is all for now. Here's a great video of Bill Russell chatting it up with fellow big man Dwight Howard. As Wokkus told me wouldn't he be GREAT at Celtics barn parties???

Couple of Notes from the Game...

-Ray Allen had his free-throw streak ended at 72 one more than the franchise record Larry Bird had set. Of course the announcer had to mention it right before the mss therefore jinxing him. Oh the humanity!

-Rondo had a career high 32 points and 10 assists on his 23rd birthday. Way to step up n G's absence.

-Ray Ray also had 30 points marking the first time since 1977 or something that the C's backcourt scored 30+.

-Scal had a season-high 15 points. So glad he's back.

-Pierce did a nice job not getting down on himself and kept shooting eventually catching some fire n the second quarter.

-We're now 3-1 on this long road trip moving on to Denver for tomorrow's game at 9.

Now it's Oscar time. Go Heath!

Way to Rebound, Boys

Well, back to business. This is a bigger win than probably most people thought for a few reasons. One, after the Celtics got their other gargantuan  win streak snapped back on Christmas Day (that was a great present), they went on an AWFUL 2-7 run vs. completely awful teams like the Warriors and Portland and Charlotte. This time was different. The game was much closer (only a one point loss...still sucked the big one though). And think of this: we had basically the same team out there that was there on Christmas Day vs. the Lakers (albeit, KG was about 50% I'd say and Scal was out), but the Lakers were at full strength with Andrew Bynum. We lost that game by 9 points. Fast forward to a couple days ago where they DON'T have Bynum, but we cut the deficit to ONE point in overtime in a game we definitely should have and could have won if it weren't for some shitty calls and an abundancia of turnovers. 

That being said, it was fantastic to see the boys rebound off of that tough and draining loss just a night before. The C's took over in the second half, weathering the storm of Al Harrington ("BURIES IT! RIGHT IN HARRINGTON'S FACE!!" remains my all-time favorite call in all of sports, but I digress), and David Lee (probably the best white, American born player in the league. Seriously, there really is no one else). Pierce led the way with 26 points and a really pretty three pointer as the shot clock was going off with a guy right on him. Niiiiice. Rondo nearly had a trip-doub with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists. The Ticket seemed back in line with 16 points on 7-15 shooting and 11 rebounds. Ray Ray was strokin' it yet again from downtown going 4-8 from deep. Powe and House provided the necessary spark off the bench to give the Celtics the W against a team that had beat the Celtics last time out. Yeah, we're talking about the Knicks here. Good job.

I couldn't find the picture of the aforementioned play, but here's another one of Pierce taking Harrington to school.

After taking that Lakers loss to heart...and body and soul...the other night, I came to realize a couple things. One, we still have the second best home record in the league, behind the 23-0 Cavs (we're a modest 30-4 at home). We are also tied for the most wins on the ROAD in the league with Orlando (18-7). Also, we've played more games than anyone else and more back-to-back games than I can remember in a looooong time. The All-Star break next week will be much needed. Our strength of schedule (i.e. composite winning percentage of the teams we've played thus far) is .501. To put that into perspective, the Lakers have had an SOS of only .494 and the Cavs a mere .486. In other words, no need to worry with a loss here and there the rest of the way. We've "earned" it in a way. Of course our expectations are going to be high, but we were fooling ourselves to think that the Celtics were gonna go 30-0 or whatever the rest of the way. 

Always remember, we're still the defending champs, baby!!

I searched "Green 17" in Google Images, and this guy came up. So I naturally used him.

P.S. Paul Pierce is just 38 points away from netting 18,000 for his career. Yay!

P.P.S. Look for the U2's new music video for "Get on Your Boots" later today. It's pretty cool!!

Until then...

Hot Off the Presses...

...for me at least.

It was announced today that Ray Allen will be (rightly) taking over Jameer Nelson's spot on the All-Star reserve list, after Nelson injured his shoulder in a game a few days ago. This marks Allen's 9th All-Star selection. He may have tipped the scales in his favor in Tuesday night's game against the Sixers, in which he took over the fourth quarter, hitting the game-winning three pointer with 0.5 seconds left. The Celtics won by one point, 100-99. 

Allen was a replacement last year as well and nearly won the All-Star MVP (he should have), losing out to LeBron James--even though Allen was the game's high scorer with 28 points, including a shooting clinic from beyond the arc. 

Celtics vs. Lakers tonight at 8 on TNT!!!!!!

C's Extend Streak on Ray Allen's Game Winning 3

Aiight, so hear me out. I'm not gonna be doing a big recap of this game. I wish I could because it was a helluva game. But, my SlingBox wasn't working. PC suddenly doesn't carry CSN anymore, but the ever popular "GolTV" which shows soccer (ahem, football) matches all day. So I was forced to watch online to a stream that wasn't directly from the TV, but a guy holding a camera up to his TV. I was able to watch smooth-flowing video for about 5 second intervals, but the video would lag and the audio would continue. So it was like radio with sometimes pictures. Awesome. But I battled through it the whole game (almost headache inducing).

Anyway, here's what I surmised (nice word, huh?) from what I could see/hear.

--The 2nd quarter was complete bullsh*t. Turnover after turnover after turnover. The sloppiest 12 minutes of game I've seen the Celtics play the whole year and probably since The Trade. 

--We've gone 2-0 with KG out, but I thiiiiink I'd like him back for the Lakers game on Thursday. Thanks.

--Big Baby continues to impress with his jumper.

--We were lazy and got outhustled for the most part in the transition game. Show up!

--Despite shutting down Allen for most of the game, he stuck with it and scored 3 key baskets down the stretch (including the game winning three from the baseline from Pierce, a play he'll make I'd say honestly 8 out of 10 times.)

--Pierce hit some big free throws that he does not make 3-4 years ago.  The best clutch player in the league.

--Intestinal fortitude. After an awful second quarter and extended periods of awfulness and the last two frames, the Celtics showed why they're a veteran team/the champs. They buckled down, didn't let it get under their skin, and stole one in Philly.

The win streak stands at 12 now, with the Lakers coming into town for a rematch of the Christmas Day stupidfest (mostly the refs fault, if I remember correctly. And I'm not even saying that because we lost. It was an abysmal night for the refs on both ends, but ending up hurting the C's more. Oh well, revenge is a dish best served with the Big Three on your ass all game.). To top it off, the purple and gold (ha, they suck) are without Bynum, who's out 10-12 weeks with a torn something-or-other in his knee. OOPS! Too bad.

Nice win tonight. Now 41-9, still best in the league. Sorry for the skimpy recap. If you were on my end for the whole game you'd understand. Yowzahs. Kthxbye.

C's Continue to Dominate...and a Sighting of Leon Powe??

Led by KG, the Celtics have newfound energy, especially at home, where they are now 22-2.

That game was textbook. The C's are now at 8 wins in a row after going 2-7. It'd be great to keep this energy up through the All-Star break in February.

First and foremost, the main worry going into the game was the matchup nightmare with Dirk Nowitski. Now, any fan of the game knows that this 7 footer has the ability to shoot the three as well as post up with the best of them. In fact, he's one of only half a dozen or so who has shot at least 50% from the field, 40% from 3-point land, and 90% from the line. Nash had done it twice, Larry Bird once, and Ray-Ray is currently doing it. So KG clearly had a big load to carry. And carry it he did. Dirk was held to 0-7 shooting to start a game, including missing a couple of bunnies after faking out smaller defenders. In all, Dirk was 4-17 (0-3 from downtown) and was a -23 when he was on the floor.

KG was nothing short of dominant in this one. He played only 25 minutes, yet shot 7-11 for 23 points. The game was over by halftime, which has become a common occurrence at recent Celtics games. We lead by 35 at one point and scored 74 points by halftime (season high for the C's...the Knicks had scored 82 in a half this season).

Basically everything was falling for us, too (65% in the first half, 54% for the game). Ray Ray was again on fire, possibly making a case for a reserve position on the All-Star team (to be announced this Thursday). He went off for 23 points on 4-5 from three and dishing out an uncanny 7 assists. Rondo again took control of the game and outplayed vet Jason Kidd. He shot 6-10, including a handful of pretty jumpers. When he shoots those with confidence, he can knock them down. He nearly had a triple-double with 13 points, 14 assists, and 7 rebounds, while sitting out the entire 4th quarter. This guy is so mature beyond his years, it's scary. His talent keeps improving it seems from game to game and it's only a matter of time before he's a household name around the country and an All-Star.

The C's tied a team record for three pointers made with 16. Eddie House, of course, made a significant contribution to that total, making 7-11, tying his personal best and coming one short of the most made this season (Ray Allen with 8). He also had 23 points in 28 minutes and is quickly proving himself to be a VERY dangerous (and efficient) scorer. Give him a good look these days (which for him means the defender only has to be about 7 inches away) and he'll knock it down.

Eddie House was so hot from long distance, he actually made this shot...

I love these blowout games, not only because we get the win, but also because we get to see the young players and what they can do. There has been an abundance of garbage time this year already and it's great to see the 10, 11, and 12 guys gaining more confidence. Remember, when Perk was out for a while and Scal got to start, his confidence just kept on growing. Before that, his scant minutes saw him airballing threes and making rookie mistakes. But because of those increased minutes, he has become a very underrated defender and once again a threat from deep (he was 2-3 today with 6 points). Big Baby is asserting himself more down low, scoring an and-one on a pretty layup in which he cleared out space from Dirk, causing the foul.

Gabe Pruitt is getting more playing time as of late because of Tony Allen's absence and from what I've seen, he's a great third option off the pine. His jump shot exudes confidence and he seems to bury it more often than not. He handles the ball up the court better than Eddie and has three point range. Bill Walker got some minutes tonight, and although there are signs he can be a very explosive player, he did seem nervous out there, fumbling a few passes and getting a layup blocked by Kidd. Patrick O'Bryant, one of the guys I'd like Doc to play more, hit a DEEP two (swish!), and his length is great for rebounding. He did try a hook shot, coming up a little short, but I have seen him hit that a few times and it is prettayyyy.

And how about the Leon Powe sighting! Does anyone know why he hasn't been playing recently?? I don't think he was hurt or anything...Anyway, he wasn't effective, to say the least, going 0-3, which was probably due to some rust.

Overall, great win by the C's yet again over a quality West opponent, proving that their stutter from the Christmas game was just that. They're still the champs and are still the team to beat in the Association. Until they're knocked off that perch, they will be the best team out there.