Paul Pierce is joining Free Agency Palooza 2010.

According to ESPN.com it looks as though Boston's Paul Pierce will be joining the ranks of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Carlos Boozer, Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire, and Dirk Nowitzki as this offseason's most coveted free-agents. However, I don't really think he'll be going anywhere. He has become one of the best Celtics players in team history and it's just hard to imagine him playing for anyone else. I think he's opting out just for the sake of getting a new contract. By opting out, he can now get a 4 year, $96 million contract from the Celtics or a contract from another team for $3 million less.

But let's just suppose he did leave. Obviously, that would be a BIG problem for Boston. Pierce is their leading and primary scorer and at the moment there is no one on the team who could step up and take his place, unless Tony Allen somehow gets really good over the offseason or Marquis Daniels returns to his early Dallas Mavericks form. As such, I'm pretty confident that GM Danny Ainge would do whatever it took to keep Pierce should he actually decide to leave. Or they could replace him with someone via free-agency or trade, but I'm not sure who at the moment.

But where would he go if he did leave? He's from Los Angeles, so it seems like the Clippers would seem the logical place. I've also seen New Jersey as a possibility (see linked story). Whatever the case, whether it's Pierce or any of the other big names, it's going to get very interesting over the next few weeks.

Q&A: Where will top free agents land?

Also, The Onion has been cracking me up for the past few weeks with its wacky takes on the NBA free-agency hoopla. See:

Speculation About Where LeBron Will Play Could End When He Signs Contract
LeBron James Photoshopped Into Cavaliers Jersey For Some Reason
LeBron's Next Team

Boston might be in trouble.

Remember when the Boston Celtics had a 3-0 series lead over the Orlando Magic? It seems like that was a completely different series. Games 1 and 2 were close, but then the Celtics blew the Magic out by 23 points at home. This really looked like it was the end of the Magic. They had lost two close games and then got blown out, finding themselves on the brink of being swept. The series was essentially over. But in Game 4 Dwight Howard came alive, going for 32 points and 16 rebounds. Vince Carter disappeared in that game, scoring only 3 points, but point guard Jameer Nelson picked up the slack with 23 points, which included two big threes in over time. Paul Pierce had 32 points of his own to go with 11 rebounds for Boston, but failed to get a shot off that would have won the game at the end of regulation, seemingly dribbling to nowhere in the process. No big deal, right? The series was 3-1. Boston was in control of the series and it seemed that Orlando was just happy to have not gotten swept.

After last night's Game 5, however, things could get out of hand in Boston. This time the Celtics were the ones getting blown out, losing 113-92. Orlando came out and got contributions from just about everyone. 23 from Nelson, 21 from Howard, 14 apiece from Rashard Lewis and J.J. Redick. For Boston, Rasheed Wallace, Rajon Rondo, and Pierce all had nice games-scoring 21, 19, and 18 points each, respectively-but that was about it. To confound matters was Kendrick Perkins being tossed from the game after getting two technical fouls and possibly being out because of it in the next game, Glen Davis getting a concussion, Marquis Daniels getting a concussion of his own after taking Davis' place, and Wallace hurting his back.

So yeah, I think the Boston Celtics are probably in some trouble. However, I don't think they've quit; they still seem to be playing hard to me. The thing is that the Orlando Magic have started playing their game. Really, they were playing pretty well in the first two games; they lost Game 1 92-88 and Game 2 95-92. But after Game 3 it looked like they were finished. Other than Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick, and Matt Barnes, it didn't seem that anyone on the team thought they could win. But they came back in Game 4 and got back to what they're good at doing-establishing Howard in the paint and supporting him with shooting. They're giving the Celtics a fight and now, with the injuries and possible suspension to Kendrick Perkins, it might be more than just a fight. It might become the first 3-0 playoff comeback in NBA history.

This just in: the league has rescinded Kendrick Perkins' second technical foul from last night. In case you don't know, a player is suspended for one game after he gets his 7th technical foul in the playoffs. Had one of them not been taken back, Perkins would have picked up his 6th and 7th of the playoffs, which would have kept him from playing in the important Game 6. To be honest, I don't think he should have gotten two T's last night. Looking at the replays, I don't think he meant to elbow Magic center Marcin Gortat after his hand slipped as he was helping up Paul Pierce. In fact, I don't think anything would have been done about it if Gortat hadn't knocked the ball from Perkins' arm. In general, I think that the NBA referees have gotten a little too attached to the double-technical fouls. It seems to me like it's a cop-out, an easy decision to avoid upsetting either side. I also think it's lame to give a guy a T when he's got his back turned to you. The more pressing matter, I think, is the health of Glen Davis, Marquis Daniels, and Rasheed Wallace. After the way Davis went down like a KO'd boxer after taking an elbow from Dwight Howard, I don't see how anyone could go back in there and play against him. I would also like to add that it was a heads up move by ref Joey Crawford to recognize that Davis was in trouble and make sure that he didn't hit the floor. And while Daniels may not be as important a role player as Davis, having him out will obviously hurt Boston's depth and might force Brian Scalabrine back into action. Concussions are serious issues (I don't have to tell you that), and there's no telling how these two might be affected at this point. And then there's Wallace, whose play has been, at time, erratic throughout the playoffs, and that's without a tweaked back.

And speaking of bench depth, Doc Rivers should consider giving Nate Robinson more playing time.

My thoughts on the Cavs' exit.

This summer is going to be crazy. If you thought it was bad hearing about Brett Favre every second of the day, it's going to be a lot worse with LeBron James. It's already unbearable hearing about him as it is, but it's going to be taken to an entirely different level during the summer. The summer of 2010 has been mentioned ad nauseum for the past several years and now it's finally here. Not only that, the way LeBron and the Cavaliers ended their season in a 4-2 series loss to the Boston Celtics in the second round will only add to the hysteria. Because there's no doubt about it, the Cavaliers quit at the end of the game last night. They were down nine points with a minute left and chose not to foul. They just stood there and watched Boston dribble the clock out. When they did get the ball they didn't try to score quickly, opting instead to fritter away the last few seconds doing nothing.

So who's to blame? Is it head coach Mike Brown? The supporting cast? Or could it even be LeBron himself who's to blame? One thing I know is that no one is blaming the Celtics for the Cavs' loss. There have probably been hundreds of polls taken across the nation today asking who's to blame for this debacle on radio shows and websites and I guarantee you that none of the choices are the Boston Celtics. Boston showed up to play in this series, while Cleveland acted as if all they had to do was get off the bus to win. In fact, that's the general feeling I got from the media before the series began; no one expected this. Boston was being dismissed as an old, washed-up team that was beyond their usefulness. They may have gotten blown out in Game 3, but they played hard in the other five games. Watching them play defense during this series kind of reminded me of how they looked in 2008 on their way to the championship. There were times during the regular the season when they looked like they didn't have it in them to make this kind of postseason run, but they've really upped their intensity during the last month. They were also able to rely on 20 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists from Rajon Rondo, and another 18 points and 8 rebounds from Kevin Garnett. Ray Allen may have been inconsistent at times and Paul Pierce never really asserted himself, but Rondo and Garnett made for a steady presence in every game. And let's not forget about Rondo's monster triple-double of 28 points, 18 rebounds, and 13 assists in Game 4, which stands as one of the best playoff performances in Celtics history.

The lack of a second consistent player is something that helped contribute to the the Cavs' early exit. In fact, I believe you'll find that there are some similarities between last year's Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Magic and this year's conference semis against Boston. Against Orlando, LeBron was the only Cleveland player to play well the entire series. Maurice Williams, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and the rest of the supporting cast were mostly no-shows. This time around it was the same deal. LeBron played well for the series, putting averages of 26 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists per game. Williams had 20 points in Game 1 and 22 in Game 6 (20 of which came in the first half), but was nowhere to be found in the games in between. Antawn Jamison, who was picked up mid-season to give LeBron even more help, scored 20 points only once and didn't break 10 in the final two games.

Also, just like last season against Orlando, the Cleveland bench got outplayed. To be fair, though, they did play well in the first three games, especially J.J. Hickson who averaged 10 points over that span. But in the last three games of the series, Boston's bench played its role much better. In Game 4 Tony Allen scored 15 points, beating the 11 points by Cleveland's bench; in Game 5, Glen Davis had 15; in Game 6, Rasheed Wallace had 13 and Allen had another 10. After looking at the stats for the series, I have to wonder: what happened with Hickson? He played for more than 10 minutes in each of the first three games of the series, but didn't even play 10 minutes in the last three games combined. What happened?

Unlike last season, however, the Cavs gave up. They lost Game 4 97-87 in Boston, but that wasn't really surprising. Boston is a tough team and they were playing at home. But to follow that up with a 120-88 home loss in Game 5 is terrible, and terrible is exactly how they played in that game. They couldn't do anything right. They were listless, and not even LeBron could be bothered to make any effort. And at the end of Game 6, as mentioned before, they tanked and didn't even want to start fouling to try to stay in the game. They had the mentality that they were beat and they wanted no part of the game being extended any longer.

So really, who is to blame? I say it's everyone. It's LeBron for not being a better leader, it's the rest of the team for not showing up, and it's Mike Brown for getting outcoached and not getting the team prepared to play in the postseason. It's everyone. I also think it's the media's fault for this being such a big deal. I'm not surprised that the Cavaliers didn't reach the Finals again. I think he was the wrong pick for the MVP and I don't think he's as great as everyone says he is. I think he's good, but he hasn't done enough to earn all of this talk. He's been to the Finals once and he got swept by the San Antonio Spurs, a fact that for some reason we NEVER hear about. It is ridiculous how people talk about him. It is so insane that we've even got New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and President Obama lobbying for him to sign with their respective teams, the New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls. If you want to know what I'm talking about, read this from ESPN Chicago; and no offense to the author, but that article reads like something off The Onion (when I say that, I mean that it's not poorly written but comes off as farcical, like this or this). If it were anyone else failing to win a championship despite having so much talent then they would be the laughingstock of the NBA; they'd be talked about like Peyton Manning, who has lots of talent but "only" one Super Bowl. Again, I think he's a really good player and I don't hate the guy, but talk to me about how great he is after his career is over instead of now when he can't win.

Can The Celtics Get Any Love? (Deadspin)
LeBron overload here (ESPN)


By the way, the Atlanta Hawks "dismissed" head coach Mike Woodson.

Chuck and Kenny Preview the Celtics-Cavs Series

I thought this was a great video to watch for a few reasons: Both Chuck and Kenny both bring up great reasons for their perspective on the series, it's an even argument, and it poses a lot of great questions about both teams coming into the series.

Chuck brings up a great point about the Celtics being able to defend the Cavs. The addition of Antawn Jamison gave Cleveland the one-up for multiple reasons; which is, a lot of their three-point shooters LBJ was kicking the ball out to before weren't and still aren't the best at penetrating the ball. However Jamison can fake a shot and drive by his defender, take a few dribbles in the situation when a help side defender is flying at him to block the shot and either take an elbow jumper or find a backdoor cutter camped on the baseline. He can also give the shot up and take his defender from the three-point line down to the post and throw a couple post moves in his face. This, along, with the tasks of being able to transition from Shaq-basketball and young Cavaliers-basketball and defending LeBron are Barkley's main points as to why Cleveland can trump Boston. His thoughts are, Pierce is going to get into foul trouble trying to guard LeBron single-handedly, hindering his offensive effectiveness (you can't score if you're not on the floor); on the other hand, if Garnett or Ray Allen or even Rondo tries to help out, those three-point specialists like Mo Williams or Anthony Parker, and weapons like Antawn Jamison could really hurt the Celts.

But since we're talking about depth, we come back to the Celtics' view of things. This year, Boston has Marquis Daniels and the best Tony Allen we've seen EVER (especially mentally), whereas the only answers they had aside from Pierce to guarding James in the semis two years ago was James Posey. That's TWO guys they can throw at LeBron not only defensively, but offensively as well. They might not be quite on '08 Posey's level, but in this case the only thing you need is a couple of capable basketball players who have the tools to stay with James while Pierce takes a breather or sits down with fouls. Additionally, shutting down crucial, hand-picked players is what this Celtics defense does best. They did it in '08 with Kobe. And they did it in the first round with Dwyane Wade. And here's why I believe they can do it even with a motivated LeBron James.

Dwyane Wade's mentality, throughout the series, left '08 Kobe's demeanor on an entirely different planet. Kobe is a guy that when you know he wants something, he's going to put everything out on the floor and destiny will take care of the rest. He has that on his side. But in the Finals, despite all the hoopla about Bryant being thirsty for blood and ready to finally win a championship without Shaq... Bryant was missing what he categorized as "bunnies." Two years later, a younger, better (don't get me wrong... I still think a juiced Bryant without the injuries is the second best player in the league, but he didn't seem to me that he was as potent as he could've been emotionally), driven Wade is knocking down deep, ridiculous threes with defenders in his face.

But it was the Boston Celtics' wisdom and acceptance that they couldn't waste their time trying to hold Wade to low-scoring nights and poor shooting percentages and let guys like Michael Beasley, Quentin Richardson, Jermaine O'Neal, and Mario Chalmers do a lot of the lifting. So what they did is what the Celts do best: They adjusted. They let Wade get his and for the majority of the series, but held players like Beasley, O'Neal, and Udonis Haslem to relatively quiet series'. Sure, in the clinching game Mario Chalmers chalked up 20. Dorell Wright chipped in in game 3, and Quentin Richardson had a good game in the one Heat victory. But it wasn't easy for the Miami Heat. Basketball is a game of breaks, and sooner or later, other Heat players were going to start contributing. Shooting streaks happen, and they happened in this series. But the Boston Celtics still won that series, and defensive tactics had a lot to do with it. So will LeBron go off on the Celtics? He might. If he doesn't, will his teammates light up Boston? It could happen. But the Boston Celtics will find a way to adapt to either road the series trails off to and play well.

Kenny also mentions Rasheed Wallace when Charles remarked that the Cavs can now handle defensive monsters and competent offensive players like Kendrick Perkins because of Shaq. Chuck counters with J.J. Hickson, whom he says can chase Rasheed around implies that he'll wear him out. I have different thoughts. We didn't really need Rasheed in the Miami series. We never did. When in that series did we need anybody but an intense Garnett and a rebounding Perkins against a big man crew of Jermaine O'Neal, Jamal Magloire, and Joel Anthony? In this series however, whether its by way of his own alertness or a teammates' mentioning, I believe Rasheed Wallace senses the need for his own effectiveness.

What, in my opinion, put Kenny's argument over the top? He never picked a winner, which was smart. In this series, despite what most think, there is no clear-cut edge. One-on-one, yes. But both teams have the luxury of turning to multiple options if one doesn't go well. Exactly what options will both teams utilize?

I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Glen Davis Starting Tonight

My man, Glen Davis, will be a part of the first unit tonight! I'm very excited for tonight's game. Look for a great match-between Davis and Michael Beasley, who is bound to go off at least one game this series. I look for Davis to regain a lot of his confidence tonight, sparking energy in the team and exploiting a lot of the garbage points (back-cuts, offensive rebounds) that are easy to get against Miami if you're good at shaking your defender (which Davis is).

I'm hoping Miami doesn't out-rebound us as badly as they did in the first half of game one. Davis has the energy to use for the whole game that Garnett saved for the second half and single-handedly demolished the Heat on the boards.

I'm also looking forward to a great performance from Rasheed tonight. Wallace, initially the go-to guy when KG was out, is going to look to avenge himself after Doc skipped over his name and called on Glen Davis to replace Garnett in tonight's game.

I'm definitely hoping to see vintage Rasheed Wallace, posting up, wreaking havoc with his bank shot, and punishing smaller defenders with a simple drop-step move.

Go Celtics!

Red's Army Responds to Quentin Richardson, and Dwyer Has An Explanation For The Garnett Hate Parade

Saturday night, Quentin Richardson did something that we didn't like. Later, he said some things we didn't approve of either. And yesterday, we learned that one of, if not the team's core player, Kevin Garnett, wouild be suspended for game 2 mainly because of him. Red's Army let it known that they along with the rest of Celtics Nation were not happy with the ignorant sequence of actions from Richardson by asking those who are heading over to the Garden tomorrow for game two to make that night livid, miserable, and painful for Richardson tomorrow. We want him to play irritated, aggravated; like he's in a downpour or loathsome boos and chants.

Maybe the Loscy picture adjacent to you will give you the general idea.

Bonus article: Ball Don't Lie, Why we don't like Kevin Garnett any more.

Where a Playoff Game Can Turn 40 Seconds Into 10 Minutes in More Ways Than One (Hardwood Paroxysm Style: Or, Where Miami's Bench Just Gave Heat the "One-Up" For Game Two)

For those of you that don't know, the Boston Celtics were down by 14 at one point during Saturday night's Celts-Heat at the playoff-atmosphere Garden. In fact, it was the third quarter, with 19:03 left to play in the game. I, likely not alone, was not happy with how the Celtics were playing.

I'll be honest: I couldn't have expected to go the entire game without seeing the Heat more juiced than the Celtics were. The Celtics played hard. We're finally getting somewhere with this team emotionally-wise. But they didn't have adversity on their side, as I mentioned Saturday, and the Heat did. It fueled Miami, to say the least. Why should they lay down to a team that they only finished three games behind in the regular season? The Heat had been scorching hot for the last two months, and there was no reason to stop dead during the playoffs.

What really caught my attention was that the Heat decided to come out and embarrass the Celtics for 48 minutes. There was no mercy in their play. They were grabbing offensive rebounds, lighting the open court trail on fire, and utilizing every opportunity they had to trump the Celtics on both ends of the floor. They were playing defense. They were playing offense. And it isn't a coincidence which one I mentioned first.

As most of us should have recognized, the Miami Heat were playing like a playoff team. And rightfully so. Sure, Miami was the underdogs. However, they weren't heavily unfavored. Most picked the Celtics, but not by way of a clean sweep. No, the Miami Heat were bound to stick around. Some picked six games. Some picked seven. But those were just the predictions pointing in Boston's direction. Down in South Beach, the Miami journalists had the Heat prevailing. After seeing last night's game, I can see reason to their forecasts.

That is, before the 7:03 mark in last night's third quarter. The Celtics hung around with the young, athletic Heat team. Hung around here, though, sounds like a much more depressing term than it should be here. The Heat were playing the basketball the propelled them to a 47-35 record and a 12-1 season-finish. They ran the fast break game with a beautiful energy, orchestrated a strong defensive effort, and their superstar was given the stretch to release his wrath. All in one bundle. It seemed that the Boston Celtics couldn't handle it. Until Kendrick Perkins made a jump hook, Kevin Garnett swatted away a Jermaine O'Neal shot, and then dropped it in for an easy two. Down 10.

The game was not out of reach. And that's because the Boston Celtics realized that it's better to imposing your will with actions instead of an air of swagger and words.

From then on out, it was the wizardry of Rondo and the ability of Boston to move swiftly, cunningly, and patiently to find open shots and loopholes in the Miami defense. Rondo wasn't on a scoring tear last night. He still wasn't 100% after recuperating from a nasty stomach virus, as noted obviously from many Celtics' fans and analysts. But he was quick and smart with the ball, and found a compassionate Pierce and the energetic trio of Perkins, Garnett, and Davis for easy buckets.

Ensuing all of that came one possession. One possession that from here on out in the series will make this a bloody war. We may or may not see another skirmish like we did last night. But it won't be just a first round playoff series anymore, which holds enough tension in itself. It will be 48 minutes of hell, 48 minutes of players and units seeking ways to avenge their teams'. However, despite the fact that this series will probably be extremely fun to watch, I'm none too pleased about what happened during the confrontation between Boston and Miami, starting with the contact between Paul Pierce and two Miami defenders.

Pierce was trying to cut around Haslem when he obviously banged up his shoulder into Haslem, who was trying to recover defensively and stay in front of Pierce. Then Pierce bumps into a second Miami defender, Richardson, whose feet were also moving. That's two possible foul calls. After that, Pierce stumbles into the crowd in evident pain, and proceeds to lie down on the floor. Now I know that this is just another example of Pierce elaborating a bruise, but there's no doubt that the contact between Pierce and the Miami defenders had an effect on Pierce's route to the basket as well as the fair clarity of his passing lanes. In other words, Pierce drew a foul.

Fine. That's just fine. We don't want to start anything, do we? Of course not.

And then Quentin Richardson moseys over.

Let me just say this: It was complete bullshit to say when first looking at the play that Quentin went over for Pierce. Pierce doesn't like Quentin and vice-versa. Quentin was specifically trying to humiliate Pierce in front of his guys. On the other hand, I don't like Quentin as a basketball player. I don't think many people do. And there's reason for that.

Quentin Richardson went over to start trouble, and then look innocent so he wouldn't have the hammer come down on him. Because you notice the entire time he's over in BOSTON'S circle, he has this pristine, tranquil expression on. Quite the trickster he is. Then Garnett flings back his elbow. Hell, let's pretend we don't know what Richardson said. You can't blame Garnett for that either provocation: one being that Quentin could've been being a complete ass, and the other being that Garnett doesn't like anybody interrupting his little huddles. And anyone and everyone there or watching knew that.

Luckily for us, we can quickly return to reality and check out with really happened. And it involves both provocations:

From CelticsBlog

"I was trying to get over there to take the ball out of bounds and he started to talk to me so I talked back," explained Richardson. "I don't have any business talking to him (Pierce), he was on the ground crying. I don't know what was going on, two actresses over there that's what they are."

"I said to Jermaine (O'Neal), ‘he's ok', because I knew nobody touched him. Is he taking another break like he does so many times? Sometimes he falls like he's about to be out for the season and then he get's right up, that's all I said."

"I don't like them, and they know it," Richardson then said.

I truly don't think I could dislike Quentin Richardson any more. And why both provocations by the way? Because Garnett was quoted later saying that he thought it was a little disrespectful for Quentin to be standing over a hurt guy and talking junk. Garnett didn't want him in that huddle, and he certainly didn't want him over there mouthing off.

Then Big Baby must've heard some words, because he comes over, furrowed-eyebrows and spit-flyin' Glen Davis, trying to defend Kevin Garnett. Garnett and Davis surround the little rat bastard until Haslem steps in and tries to break it up.

Here's where I get legitimately (in this context, meaning that I have reason here even if I wasn't a Celts fan) angry. Even though I'm a Celtics fan, I can't lie to you and say it's all been Miami boiling the pot. But when Jermaine O'Punkface and Jamal "I haven't done anything since I became satisfied after one random 13 ppg season I had" Magloire jump in and pretend they can take everyone there, it's upsetting. Partly because the only reason they looked like they could actually participate in that altercation is because no one was even paying attention to them before they started "taking charge" and ripping Glen Davis by his jersey to the ground. Partly because Kevin Garnett and the Celtics were made to look like the bad guys when all the scrubs off the Miami bench jump up and turn it into a dumb bar scuffle; none of the Celtics except for Garnett (who, once again, we KNEW was going to react like that anyway) tried to escalate the altercation. Not Big Baby, who yes, did step over and have some words with Richardson. But wasn't he trying to tend to Pierce, and then only started talking when Richardson wouldn't shut up and he found himself getting pushed around?

Not only that, by the peak of the altercation, Magloire, O'Neal and whoever was in the middle of that starts bumping Davis around like he's a school girl getting roughed up by a bunch of pedophiles in the back of a schoolyard. It's ridiculous and I personally don't think that the magnificent Miami bad boy duo should've gotten away with it.

Look, I'm a Celtics fan. And I'm sure many Heat fans and anti-Celtics' supporters realize the inadequacy of my perspective. But if you're trying to tell me that Big Baby nor Kevin Garnett deserve a backbone for their case of defense here, then I could just as easily disregard the fact that Haslem was initially trying to separate Garnett and Richardson and point out that he too, was talking and contributed a bit of shoving on his own. I could counter the argument that although Dwyane Wade was just trying to hose the fight down, he too was equally as adamant at handing a few words of his own to Garnett. But it'd be unfair to say that, because anyone in that situation would have assumed the defensive position and started getting some in for their team. Especially in an intense Garden atmosphere like that.

What do I think about it today? I think it painfully overshadowed a good victory from Boston, I think Miami is ecstatic about the decision from Richardson to walk over and start trouble with Garnett, and I think I wasted 10 minutes of my life listening to Hubie Brown break down an NBA fight and watching the replay dozens of times.

Stupid Quentin Richardson...

PS. Chuck McKenney is right once again. There is no conceivable difference between Kobe's elbow to Artest in last year's playoffs and Garnett's to Richardson (other that in this year's case, there were more Celtics' and Heat players around to raise the fight to another level), and Kobe never found himself under suspension. Richardson hustled over to Garnett for the wrong reasons just as Artest did to Kobe, and Garnett/Kobe physically defended themselves and their team. And Artest got ejected!

This is reason number 759 why I wish bloggers ran the NBA.

Heating Up: Which Miami Team Will Boston See?

Here's the first of a slew of articles that will continue throughout the Boston-Miami series giving you a deeper look at the Heat, their players, and the anecdotes that lie within the team. What different looks does this team have? How loyal is their star? Just how tough is the Southeast division? And one unknown, depending on how the series goes...

For a team that only finished three games behind the Boston Celtics, the Miami Heat seem to be the clear underdogs here regardless. Maybe those opinions will pan out to be true after the first game or two of the Celts-Heat series in the first round. Maybe they won't.

But one thing is for sure: When adversity isn't placed directly in front of the Boston Celtics, they tend to disappoint. In a way, adversity must be on the Celtics' side to win.

However, it's not just about which Boston Celtics we'll see; the series is equally as dependent on what face of the Miami Heat we'll see. Will Boston find themselves against the defensively-concentrated, more team-oriented Miami Heat team, which Dwyane Wade thrives in even though the game has less possessions and his teammates are more involved; or will the Celtics be challenged with merely Dwyane Wade and Miami's "Let's funnel the ball to Wade, let him barrel towards the bucket and draw fouls, and once Boston collapses on him after a few trips, have him dump it off to the open big man or a good look behind the arc" tactics?

Which one is more difficult to handle, is the question. Let's look at a few numbers/facts.

Wade's Heat have demolished the league in their last two months taking 12 out of their final 13 and finishing the season on a defensive tear. They also lost just three game in the month of March. The Heat have held opponents to 88.7 ppg in their last 13 games and they look to be that team who replaced the Bucks as the very good but not great squad after Andrew Bogut's injury. Michael Beasley finished the season with a 25 point game and many people are expecting him to do more of the same against an older, less mobile Boston front line. Look to see the Celtics mixing things up down low if Beasley frightens them in the first few games.

But that all boils down to how Wade's teammates play. If Haslem is chipping in, Beasley is giving Boston fits, and Q, Daequan Cook, and Chalmers are all hitting their threes, then Boston is in for a tough fight. Sure, Garnett could come out more fired up than we've seen him all season, suffocating Beasley and anchoring Boston's interior D. But that doesn't alter nor fortify his defensive abilities at this age, and Beasley could still beat him if the Heat decide to open up a more athletic style of basketball.

Big Baby couldn't cover him, because although he has more talent than most recognize in the fast break game, Beasley could torch him on the wing. It's not about Davis' quickness, which surprisingly could match Davis if he was playing smart and true to Beasley. It's the fact that Beasley needs but a quarter of a step to utilize his seven-foot-plus wing span and 35 inch max vertical jump (Draft Express). To put this in more picturesque terms, Beasley's draft day vertical leap is only seven and a half inches off Nate Robinson's and he obviously has a greater wing span. And despite originally being listed at 6'10", Beasley is still 6'8" win basketball shoes on, one inch shorter than Glen Davis. But, as put by NBADraft.net put it, Davis doesn't get great lift when he jumps and has a medium wing span. So Davis is a no go.

Shelden Williams is NOT going to see time in the playoffs, Rasheed doesn't have near the mobility to slow him down, and we can't pull Perk off the block even if Miami's best post-up options are Jermaine O'Neal, Joel Anthony, Magloire, and Yakhouba Diawara. So it goes without saying that Beasley could give us more trouble than even a double-covered Wade, who is as good as finding teammates and giving them good looks than anyone in the league. Why do you think a lazy Jermaine O'Neal came close to cracking 14 a game this season, or Quentin Richardson is averaging 10.1 in the last 10 games?

On the other hand, that was the Quentin Richardson that was receiving the ball from a Dwyane Wade that sparked a dominant defensive stretch and a couple of win streaks to close out the season. What does Miami look like when Wade is monopolizing Miami possessions? For lack of a better answer, the Heat simply look beatable. The decision by Spoelstra is influenced by how well Miami as a whole is playing. If they are playing poorly, most of the offensive play sequences are centered around Wade until the defensive adapts and teammates are accumulating multiple open looks each time down the floor. The evidence? Miami has attempted just 12.4 3-pointers per game for the last 13 games (12 of them wins are arguably the Heat at their hottest in terms of the Heat as a unit) as opposed to the season average of 17.4 3-pointers. What does this mean? The Heat have more opportunities to take it down low and get easier points, which is obviously when any team is at their best, even the more potent of shooting squads, as opposed to when it's just Wade either driving and drawing fouls or driving and kicking it out for threes.

So what team do I think we'll see? I think we're going to see the Miami Heat team we've seen for the past two months. And honestly, I'm going to say that if they beat us, I will not be shocked. I don't think they will. I think we can put them away. But I'm not going to call it an upset if the Miami Heat beat us playing their best.

In the end though, it's Boston in six or less. I think we can handle Miami's style of team play if we stick to it and play every possession for 48 minutes hard. If we do, Miami might even change their game style and try to throw a Wade 45-pointer at us. Not that we couldn't handle it.

Go Celtics!

The Edge: March Madness Brings the Best Out of Athletes

There's a fun and competitive debate going on between SB Nation's Andrew Sharp and Hardwood Paroxysm's Matt Moore concerning how most NBA fans might not pay March Madness full respect, and even reasons why that time of college basketball might edge out the best NBA basketball. I thought I would give my own two cents... or three.

For a long time now, people have been debating which is the greatest fluke between the two leagues of the NCAA and the NBA: a horrific march to the Madness where the NCAA teams that eventually head to the tournament terminate boring, just-plain-bad teams, or the overwhelming egos of basketball; leading to ridiculous propositions like Paul Pierce blatantly and confidently remarking that he's the best player after his championship season or Mark Cuban losing his cool in front of Kenyon Martin's mom.

At the same time, there are discussions about what's more exciting at their respective vintage moments: an NCAA tournament where anything can happen at literally any time (HP's Moore: "Comebacks in the NBA inside a minute? Really f’ing hard. Why? Guys know how to get the ball inbounds, and can get it to guys who can hit free throws."), or two QUALITY teams (which is Moore's argument for the NBA) emaciated for an NBA ring, going back and forth the entire game, and in the end delivering a thrilling performance?

Those debates can NEVER, EVER be settled. They just can't. You develop an infatuation for one league and can't ever seem to honestly find flaws in it when you're defending your preferred league against another league or sport. Sure, there's lots of situations where you mature and your opinions begin to vary, and you might even switch over to the other league. But you mature. You change. With exception to technical tweaks, the game of professional basketball has maintained the same general look since it's inception. There was the white, slow era of the '40s, '50s, and part of the '60s, and there was the physical, bangin'/bruisin' era of the '70s and '80s. Even today, the league has become more athletic. But it's still a different species of basketball than the NCAA, and it always has.

Nonetheless, there are debates that, in my mind, that can be settled.

1) The NBA is flat-out a better brand of basketball, from a quality standpoint. It cannot be refuted or argued. It is professional basketball, and college basketball is a step below. That doesn't mean there aren't players in the NCAA that couldn't play (and be distinguished) in the NBA, but that's only the cream of the crop. That's an extremely small slice of players when in correspondence with the entire NCAA.

2) March Madness is a bigger event than the NBA playoffs. It doesn't mean that I personally enjoy it more, it means that from a general fan's perspective, I'm tuning into March Madness over an NBA playoff game (if the two schedules ever crossed paths). The NBA, on the other hand, comes from a much larger audience scale throughout the entire shebang, including preseason, regular season, playoffs, and offseason. But March Madness seems to surround people as a magical, Cinderella Story tournament, which is what people want to watch. Perhaps the only playoff series' that have caught the eye of the general fan over the past five years:

1.Golden State V. Dallas, 2007 playoffs
 2. The entire Boston Celtics campaign, 2008
3. Los Angeles Lakers V. Houston, 2009, and Los Angeles V. Orlando Finals
4. Boston V. Chicago, 2009
5. Cleveland V. Detroit, 2007
6. Miami Heat V. Dallas Mavericks, 2006

The NBA playoffs are great, and sure, that's only a five year span (and this is also considering that it would have to at least draw some attention from most of the non-basketball diehards), but if you count the number of mesmerizing March Madness games that captivated the nation over the last five years... you're going to end up using more than just your fingers.

So what keeps March Madness so exciting? Hell, what keeps March madness even alive? If the NBA is better basketball mechanically, and there isn't a clear edge (that we've mentioned yet), NCAA fans are basically telling themselves I'd rather watch a poorer standard of basketball. And that's fine... except that the ratings of the NCAA should come close to touching the NBA.

Most NBA and NCAA fans have heard that a lot general basketball fans can't deal with the arrogance of professional basketball. They'd rather watch more humble, more committed athletes. And that's cool that a lot of America chooses to believe it and have that as their logic as to why they have the NBA over the NCAA. But it's downright false in every aspect. There is no way for most of the superstars in the NBA to succeed without comforting themselves after beatings from the fans and opponents every single day for 10-15 years. They have to be overly-proud. It's basketball. Players develop that toughness on the way to their objective. That's not any player either. That's a great player. That's an NBA-ready player.

And putting arrogance aside, you cannot tell me that NBA athletes choose to relax when they hit the premier stage of basketball. The ones that we enjoy watching, the ones that thrive in this league put the same amount of work in if not more basketball-wise. It is their life. If you're playing in the Association, unless you're name is Rasheed Wallace, you're routinely in the gym for hours and shooting thousands of shots per day.

Watch Paul Pierce receive his ring after winning the 2008 championship, and you see he's WEEPING. He's overcome. How is that different from a college athlete being overcome? What separates LeBron's incredible and passionate 48-point massacre of the Detroit Pistons, which was derived from his sheer competitive edge and ravenous attitude towards winning, from Northern Iowa's recent defeat of Kansas? Both circumstances are, essentially, David versus Goliath. It was literally LeBron against a highly-regarded, heavily-favored Detroit Pistons team, and it was the number 9., unheard of Northern Iowa against the no.1 ranked Kansas. What puts distance between the constantly-discussed team chemistry of college athletes, how it shows on the court, and how it makes them better, and Leon Powe's inspiring 21-point performance during game 2 of the 2008 Finals? There isn't separation, there isn't distance, there isn't a difference.

Except that college athletes consistently show a spark when the competition narrows down to March Madness. Losing, or not leaving it all on the court, just simply isn't an option. You do not think twice about letting your team down. It is indubitable shame for all the NCAA athletes participating in the Madness to not play their best in that tournament. It just doesn't happen. March Madness brings the best out of athletes. Every. Single. Time. March Madness is magical.

And according to the nation, that's fact.

Boston Starts and Finishes the Weekend With a Loud Win in Texas

Boxscore

Highlight stats: KG with five steals on the night... Pierce, Rondo and Allen combine for 70 tallies... Garnett with a +17 +/- to trump Dirk's lowly -12... Caron Butler held to 3-14 shooting, Brendan Haywood stifled and allowed just three points in 26 minutes.

Gone unseen: Glen Davis continued his statistically unaccounted for play last night, banging up the Dallas interior D and grabbing four rebounds and checking in seven points. Davis outhustled, outsmarted, and plain outplayed the Mavs in another energetic effort that is beginning to infect the entire Celtics team.

Notes: In a good one, perhaps the only two disappointing impressions on the game was Perk's so-so rebounding numbers and the bench's poor efficiency. No bench member had a positive +/- and the unit averaged a +/- 9.4 for the night. Glen Davis is really the only bench member I'll let slide because unless the game style morphs into a garbage time/scavenger/hustle type of play or he notches 20-22+ minutes, his numbers aren't going to show for much of anything anyway. Jason Terry exploded for 18 and we looked to our bench to at least cement a little bit of a counter-attack before our starters came back in and they couldn't do it. Marquis was 0-2, Nate Robinson only played nine minutes and took just three shots, and Rasheed gave us a mere basket with three rebounds in 16 minutes.

But hey, a win is a win... Right?

Ugh.

We're not even four minutes into the Cleveland Cavaliers-Boston Celtics game on ABC and Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson are already freestyling about what LeBron James is the best at. The current topic: passing. Jackson says LeBron is the best passing non-point guard in the history of the league while Van Gundy says he may be the best passer in history. If one didn't know better, you would think that these two had only recently started watching basketball. They sound like elementary school kids at recess talking about their favorite players rather than a former NBA coach (Van Gundy) and the league's third all-time assist leader in assists (Jackson).

A Few Spare Tidbits

On Friday night, the Celtics blew out the Indiana Pacers, avenging themselves after suffering an embarassing loss to the athletic and energetic Memphis Grizzles. Here's the talk from around the Celtics' blogosphere, and more thoughts revolving around the state of the Boston Celtics during this time of the season:

The Boston Herald reports:

Rivers said he’d consider holding his veterans, both of whom are on the mend from injuries, out of games so they’re able to log practice time down the stretch.
"We have to have them playing at their peak (when the playoffs start). Whatever we have to do that, we have to do it," Rivers said before the C’s 122-103 win against the Pacers last night. "If that means working them more in practices and maybe them missing games - whatever it takes, that’s what we have to do and that’s what we’re going to do."

Garnett and Pierce didn’t exactly welcome the idea with open arms.

That's a very interesting take by Doc. Rivers may feel that if they can just hang on to a top four seed and come into the playoffs fresh, competitive, edgy, and with a new look at their goal, Boston can be a much better team, which is an understandable theory.

I said yesterday that the Celtics were saying hello to goodbye (of the championship window) if they couldn't prove to us that they still had that fire that characterizes champions. We all know they have the talent, and even most of the intangibles. So it's not entirely implausible here to think that if we go in with a fourth seed that we can't make a run at the championship. ]In addition, third seed or fourth seed aside, I still think we have enough to get past the first round.

It's a matter of getting past Cleveland though, and if we do, either Orlando or Atlanta (two teams we're 1-7 against during the regular season), that Doc is planning around for. But again, maybe rest is what's in our way of a new life. But I can't help but saying that we need to drive this team into the ground mentally to get them in condition for the big games, the must-win quarters, and the excruciatingly critical play sequences. Sure, fans aren't always able to recognize that their teams may be dog-tired. But it sure seems to me that with the relaxed style of play we've been going about with every night, we should be well-rested.

On the other hand of that argument, you have to keep your players happy. And like the article mentions, I seriously doubt Pierce or Garnett is willing to cap off the regular season and show up to games in suits because it might give them some extra recovery time. They're vets. They know how to battle through injuries. They know the bangs and bruises of a regular season and they understand that the real contenders are those who lead by example. In this case, how are Pierce and Garnett going to show their team the true mold of a contender if the validity of their playoff position is still up in the air and they're voluntarily sitting out? Which leads us to this:

From the Celtics' Twitter:

Pierce and KG say the team had a "heart to heart" and open dialogue this morning. Say that loss to Memphis and boos at home stuck with team.

Via CelticsBlog

(Disclosure -- this was reported yesterday morning before last night's annihilation of the Pacers.) That's a great thing to hear. I don't care if I've been hearing reports of the team recognizing that they all need to sit down and really discuss their objectives all season -- it's about time that it's been taken care of (or at least begun) and that we have evidence that's it's started to work (once again, the annihilation of the Pacers last night). Keep it up, boys.

CelticsBlog has an interesting piece about Glen Davis, preaching something that has kept me a fan of "The Eleventh Hour" since the beginning:

Fortunately, ever since that incident in Detroit on January 20, the artist formerly knows as "Big Baby" has cut out the superfluous junk that has plagued both his game and his reputation, and has seemed to re-focus his everlasting energy strictly on the basketball court. And that energy has in fact highlighted his play of late. He certainly hasn't been a perfect player, but the various flaws that have hindered his game, have so far, for the most part, been overshadowed by the relentless effort he's putting forth these days.

Obviously "hustle" stats are not kept in NBA game logs, but if you've watched this team of late, you'd be hard pressed to argue that the energy isn't there from Davis, which must be a welcome relief for Doc Rivers, because in these troubled times, effort has sometimes been harder to find than Carmen San Diego.

Red's Army reflects on the brilliant performance put on by the blazing hot Nate Robinson during Friday night's Pacers' game. They argue, can this hot streak stay on track? And will Nate make the dire mistake of living and dying by the three from this point on?

Nate is 16-27 from long range in March... a blistering 59.3%. 

It's an impossible pace... and a dangerous one at that.  Nate has fallen in love with the 3. 

At some point, that long-range stroke is going to go cold... which is going to put a serious strain on the second unit.  And it was the second unit last night that made Gino possible. 

All I'm saying is we've got to be realistic about what Nate brings us in the future.  What we see now is not what we're going to get.  No one sustains 59% shooting from 3. 

So the question is... will Nate adjust and get back to attacking when he knows the 3 stroke has gone cold... or will he become a mini-Sheed who continues to shoot from deep without regard for reality?

Slithering in Darkness: Where the Celtics Are Disgracefully Saying Hello to Goodbye

A slightly different take of this fantastic article written by KneeJerkNBA.

By replacing gritty defensive guys like Posey, Brown and Powe with shooters like Lil' Nate and Mike Finley, Ainge further eroded the team's identity. 'Get stops' isn't an option anymore. This team isn't physically able to 'get stops.' And nobody's intimidated by them anymore, either.

Those were the words written by my fellow writer here on Celtics 17, KneeJerkNBA. And while harsh words they may be, Celtics nor any NBA fan can deny the truthfulness that lies beneath them.

As the Boston Celtics fell to the Memphis Grizzles Wednesday night, the depression that hung in the air was something that words couldn't quite describe. Yes, you could mention that the Boston Celtics were disgustingly outrebounded by 19 boards. You could point out that Memphis shot 55% from the field and 56%+ from behind the arc. But there is no way to nail the "The Celtics just didn't have it... again" aspect. There is no impact that rests in those words, or, at least not nearly an impact that measures up to the real thing.

A few years ago, we witnessed that team in the league, a team that emotionally connected with their fans as electricity in the relationship between the two sparked a run that led to a much-longed-for NBA championship. We not only had the pieces on paper, but we had the chemistry. We had the leadership. We had players that knew the right time to dish out an extra pass (the famous split-second swing for a three or open look that was stamped rightfully by the Celts' that season). We also had players that recognized that must-win games sometimes hung on the decision made by players to hoard the ball selfishly for themselves and get the job done (the 41-point Pierce V. the 45-point LeBron game).

But the attitude never changed, no matter what the game style of that night was. I was there at game 7 of the '07-08 Eastern Conference semis, and I can tell you one thing: Paul Pierce was there to score, to dominate, to bloody the Cavs in every way he was capable of doing from the start. But despite his demeanor that in times made him look self-centered with the ball, his teammates were with him from the getgo. And not only was that support playing out just because that player happened to be Paul Pierce, but because it was one of their teammates. Paul Pierce was a Celtic, and so were the rest of those who emerged victorious last night. And that never changed whether it ended up being an evenly spread boxscore or a Paul Pierce/insert any other Celtic here-takeover.

Fast forward to last year. We had a few different players, but the destination, the drive, and the purpose was still there. We scorched the league from the start, racing out to an incredible 27-2 start. That clear sovereignty continued until our precious Kevin Garnett went down immediately after the All-Star break (by the way; although this is obviously easy to say in my position, I can't help but point out that it's ridiculous for Boston to allow the NBA to use our players elected to play in the All-Star game in any way they please with no restrictions. If I'm the Cs, I'm giving the coaches that are handed the reigns of the team limits concerning how much they can toy with our guys on the court during a game that's completely meaningless to every contender in the Association).

But regardless of the hammering injury, we played with a chip on our shoulder, and as always, fighting and eventually prevailing in what is now considered one of the most thrilling playoff series' of all-time (the Boston Chicago series, which involved numerous memorable OTs). We also almost slipped past the eventual Eastern Conference champs, armed with a 3-2 lead after five games but sadly falling in the last two. And this is all without Kevin Garnett.

At last, we arrive to 2009-10. With an improved Rondo and Perkins, a healthy Garnett, and at least a little bit more rested Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, we're a better team automatically than the squad last year that advanced to the second round of the playoffs and seemed to be well on their way to the EC Finals before a heartbreaking final two games. However, that's not all. We added a woefully underrated Marquis Daniels (who has been compared to the likes of Josh Howard and also plays a game style similar to that of Stephen Jackson), a dominant post player (who can cause trouble, but should have been set straight by our vets from the beginning nonetheless) in Rasheed Wallace, and another backup big man in Shelden Williams.

Three quarters of the way through the season, we've now also added Nate Robinson and Michael Finley. Where do we stand? Well let's just say that the team we're looking at on paper doesn't resemble the team we see on the court, nor does our record hint at us having such a great team (stats-/skills-wise at least).

The differences between this team and the past two of the Big Three era? Well, there's many. For one, Boston is a much less docile group than the crews the Celts had on their side in the past. Docile in the sense of all of the players having one goal, whether it's a wild goal or a conservative objective. We were all on the same page, which made it easier to strike points and basically just coach. This team? We're all over the place, I guess, is the best way to put it.

Two years ago and even last year, I remember a team that was fired up for even the most piddling of games. Now? Maybe we just don't have the energy for that anymore, whether we'd like to our not. Maybe we're resting for strategical reasons. But while that theory is understandable in these circumstances, it's been proven to be foolproof when you, well, don't win the ones that you save energy for in the first place.

And the conclusion is evident now: Even if we do manage to find that passion, that fire, it is, in many senses, much too late. Sure, we've saved energy all year long. But to become formidable once again, to gain position against other teams or at least be at the same level they are, we're going to have to rampage the league on a ferocious tear in these next few months. And at the level of stamina this team has shown it has, I'm not sure we can do that and still get up for the playoffs. Or at least, stay up for the duration of the playoffs, which we would need to do if we wanted to attain another ring. December is long gone. Sitting tight waiting for a run in January isn't possible now. Even February has evaded us. We're in March, nervously sweating it out until April.

Hey, miracles can happen. We don't know what's being said in the locker room. We have no clue what's going on in the closed, whispered huddles during practice. But from what I've been seeing lately, I just don't see it happening. It's too bad, going through so much for so little (maybe I'm under-appreciating the glory of one mere ring, but I was hoping to at least be in contention for two). It's even more disappointing that the Celtics essentially just let this happen. They let it slip away. They watched a likely banner slowly (don't think this happened in a flash; we had all the time in the world to turn it around and we couldn't get it done) drive by them, and sooner or later, a Cinderella Story as well (if the C's can't beat out the Hawks for the third seed, then this season, this goal, really ought to be packed away).

Of course, we can't doubt the potentials of a sensational offseason, as this would be the perfect time to do it (although we always have to keep money in mind). Danny might sense that the team as a whole (which includes the ENTIRE organization) didn't feel that the fans got their full due after 16 years of atrocious misfortune after Bird hung up the laces. But these are all possibilities that are battling the odds. And since we've seen that we can't complete the likelihoods that were graciously given to us at the beginning of this season (a refueled, recharged, revamped team that could easily have been included in the top five, maybe even top three teams in the league right now, and close to the end chunk of the season where contenders rest and teams battling for position continue to fight tirelessly), what leads us to believe that we have the proof to doubt the odds?

For one, there's hope. Basketball is a game of breaks. Sometimes, there's opportunities you ride out for much too long than destiny should have allowed you too. And in others (particularly this one), you fall way short of expectations and in all honesty, are stripped of what should have been.

So yeah, there will always be that next year, those next few years, those next 10 years. But the only thing at this point that I can say with all the certainty in my mind, with no counter-arguments available to mention is: Ubuntu might want to get a head start on getting comfort with the dark, dingy cellars of the NBA.

Bird & Magic: To See The Other Sides

Inspired by the passionate thoughts of my friend over at North Station Sports, Nick Gelso.

Even if you knew 99% of what happened in this film, that other 1% is worth your time. -- Red's Army

I saw the Magic-Bird documentary a few nights ago. I saw Earvin and Larry relive their relationship --  even more so their individualized friendship -- and I saw Magic and Bird extoll their storied rivalry of extreme competition and unmatched edginess that was felt between the two of them on the court.

Last night, I saw the many different perceptions of Bird and Magic spawned by reporters of the era, and the difference in opinion between the players, the close friends and family, and those who merely watched greatness from the confines of their television screen. I saw the difference between those interviewed who wanted not just to meet Bird and Magic, but to have friendships with them, who desperately wanted to see them open up about the ups and downs between their lives on, and off, the court. But in addition, I saw something a little bit more specified, that being those who wanted to be the ones to ask them the questions, instead of offering their own opinion during their responses to questions. I also recognized those who realized that after fully being able to see the true Larry's and Bird's, and the true Earvin's and Magic's, they were comfortably admiring them from a distance.

On the other hand, I had my own experience last night. I truly, in their emotional, physical, and tolling state, witnessed the Magic and Bird rivalry. I sat amazed as I looked back at the rebirth of basketball, the importance of paving the way from Elgin, West, Robertson, and Russell; Julius, Kareem, and Walton; Bird and Magic; and THEN Jordan, Isiah (despite playing at the same time), Pippen, Rodman, Barkley, Hakeem, and the greats of the '90s. Magic and Bird artistically carved the true meaning of specifying parts of their game to help their team win on certain nights. They mastered the craft of exerting themselves in narrowed styles, in an effort to push their team over the top in categories that on various nights were essential to win.

They were the pioneers of the '80s, bringing back the teachings and the examples of basketball heroes in the past. Think about it: Bird in Larry were revolutionary players, not just in their position, but how to rise to greatness in the proper way.

Isiah Thomas, for example, went down in history as one of the most talented guards who can dish out assists and get other guys involved. A harrowing performance with him was game 6 of the 1988 Finals, with Thomas being able to rise up in score 43 points in a crucial match, on a badly twisted ankle. It had Bird and Magic all over it. He also went on a 14-point spurt after the Lakes went up by eight in the third (and eventually rampaged the entire Los Angeles team by dropping 25 in the entire third, something that, while you would be shell-shocked nonetheless, over time became something expected of Magic and Bird). Bird and Magic were just unimaginable to watch, precisely the reason I mentioned that game Isiah had. They were always playing with, as Bill Simmons likes to describe it, a "There's no way we're not walking out of here without a win" face on.

Isiah probably had it in him all along. Heck, he ended up being one of those "Just watch me and you'll become better" players anyway. But just the mere presence of Bird, and the excellence they displayed so easily that inspired players to put on such performances is the reason basketball is where it is today (or at least the reason we have basketball greats that are knowledgeable enough to satisfy the fans and their teammates with proper team-oriented and dominant play). There's just no way that Magic's phenomenal inspiration he provided for the league, as well as Bird's, didn't put Isiah or any other star of that generation on the fast-track.

Bird and Magic were measuring sticks. Players didn't want to just be at their level, but they wanted to have the same impact as them. They wanted to literally light a match to the crowd's energy, either positively or negatively, with a simple salvaged loose ball or a precise pass leading to a thunderous dunk or finish that would deflate the opposing team. They yearned for that bone-crunching shot, that heart-stopping finish in the paint, that blood-chilling defensive presence, or that disturbing competitive edge. It was almost unnatural for any other player to have it. Only Bird and Magic could let it flow the way they did. It couldn't be imitated. It wasn't a gimmick. It was just Bird and Magic.

Going back to their inspirational play, let's visit some other greats... maybe that stamped greatness on the records of the '90s with their own Bird and Magic exhibits?

Pippen and Jordan were pissed-off matadors from the beginning, fighting to prove themselves worthy of the status they were building off of those who had watched them. But again, who do you think they looked to for advice, or maybe just example?

Pippen and Jordan played like warriors, bloodied by their critics, by their adversities, and never lost their drive. They never relinquished their aggressiveness along the way to fame, and always kept basketball as their number one priority. Perhaps Pippen and Jordan were the greatest unintentional students of Bird and Magic, meaning that they learned so much, constructed their game styles and demeanors on and off the court when playing with the paradigms attained from Bird and Magic.

Bird and Magic knew how to win in a way only the greatest successors not just in sports, but in life, could comprehend. They performed in ways that words couldn't do justice for. They made everyone seem better, and knew how to balance feeding off of others energy and game techniques and creating for themselves.

And I can say that from the other night's documentary, I was able to wholeheartedly grasp what all the excitement that was hyped around Bird and Magic was. I'll be honest with you, I narrowly missed seeing Bird and Magic grace the court. The only memories I had of them were, sadly, YouTube videos and flashbacks of their battles on CBS and other major networks. But I couldn't quite see for myself where the greatness glowed from them. In my mind, sure, they both played like top 10 players.

But where was that unique personality? The superiority MJ steered the reigns of his team with for so long; the sheer arrogance that for some reason we put up with during the Kobe era because he played so terrifyingly; the humor Shaq and Walton gives/gave us; or even the aura of winning that steams off of Bill Russell and Robert Horry? Well, I found out where it lied last night.

I saw the grit of Bird and the gentleness of Magic. I saw how nothing got to Bird, and how a lot of things could easily affect Magic. I relived the awe-inspiring understanding of the game Bird possessed and the riveting feel of the game that Magic let explode on the court. I finally realized that Larry couldn't have been nearly as good a player as he was if he wasn't such a prick -- and didn't have a black hole inside his heart and mind that could suck up all distracting emotions when he needed to focus -- and I realized that Magic wouldn't have came close to his ceiling as he did in the career we watched him play had he not had an itching for fame.

I couldn't help but admire Bird's passion for work and near-disgust with the spotlight and Magic's hunger for another "front door," as they referred to it in the documentary.

But all in all, I saw the two of them becoming mirror images of each other as they took their places on the floor that was equally as special to them, despite their polar-opposite personas. I saw how amazing it was to see them take form as they transformed from their personalities off the court to fire-breathing dragons on the court -- one graceful and one scrappy. I saw the surreality of the two of their styles that I hadn't nearly captured before. So maybe I didn't see them play. But I saw a documentary that gave me the next best thing.

That's good enough for me.

Michael Finley a Celtic

From ESPN:

"It's official now," Finley told ESPN.com after verbally committing to Boston. "I'm soon to be a Celtic."

Finley, who turns 37 Saturday, requested and received a buyout from the San Antonio Spurs earlier this week, freeing him to sign with a title contender while maintaining his playoff eligibility.

I only have one thing to say, and that is that I refuse to assess this deal until I see anything that Finley might have impacted. His veteran presence might help, it might not. He might be able to light it up even at this age, he might not. But the state of this team has been vacillating constantly throughout the year, there's no use cluttering this deal up with a bunch of predictions and guesses.

So all in all, the only thing we can really say right now is, welcome Michael Finley!

Welcome Joe Spencer to Celtics 17!

Joe Spencer of Knee Jerk NBA will now be posting columns on his thoughts about the NBA and specifically the Celts here on Celtics 17! You can get familiar with his work on Knee Jerk (linked above) as well as welcome him here on his first post.

Finley Waived, Doc Intrigued

The Herald reports: 

Now that the Celtics have expressed interest in veteran shooter Michael Finley, Doc Rivers can admit to a bias. The Celtics coach and the former Spur, who is expected to clear waivers tomorrow night, are both products of Chicago’s Proviso East High School.

“Every team has some holes, and shooting is something we can’t have enough of,” he said. “You look at some of these other teams, their shooting was ridiculous. We’re looking around. I don’t know if I can even say anything about Michael.

I don’t think a veteran ever hurts. It always helps if it’s the right one.” … Rivers said that Kendrick Perkins, who missed this trip with a case of the flu, is expected to play tomorrow night’s game against Charlotte.

Via Red's Army

Interesting. It couldn't hurt, but it's nothing to get excited about. Here's Finley's statline for this year: 15.8 mpg, 1.5 rpg (0.3 orpg), 0.8 apg (0.5 TOpg), 3.7 ppg, .381 FG %, .317 3-pt. FG. Not too encouraging, nor attractive, but you have to look at him as a character guy at this point. He was on the '06-07 Spurs team which, as Red's Army mentioned, struggled during the meat of the regular season and ended up being the NBA champions come Spring/Summer.

My thoughts? If he's really that committed to winning a ring, there is absolutely no reason not to welcome him. We need another voice in there to rejuice these guys, and not only to give them energy, but get them angry. We need someone other than Garnett (and Pierce -- though we can't say how Pierce has been doing in terms of the clubhouse) to dig into these guys and fire them up. How do you think proud guys like Rasheed or young guys like Perk and Rondo are going to feel when a guy averaging 3.7 ppg is criticizing them?

Larry Bird Smiles for the Camera

Looking into writing, reporting, or other forms of sports journalism? Celtics 17 is looking for writers! Check it all out here.

Via North Station Sports 



Catch the documentary on March 6th, a Saturday (debuting times reported in video), for a great look back at possibly the NBA's most definitive rivalry between Larry and Magic Johnson.

Celtics Lose to Nets: Wow

There isn't much to say but... I'm astonished. KG put it perfectly: These guys have make the decision to put at the least the minimum effort in to win THESE type of games. I mean, we could've just completely ignored offensive tactics, just played DEFENSE on the Nets, and probably wont he ballgame. Instead, we gave up 104 points to a now 6-52 team.

I understand that the Celtics are trying to save energy for the important games, for the playoffs, but I can't believe this. I'm not even going to give you the box score because the mere fact that we lost this game is pathetic.

I don't think I've ever been more exasperated writing two paragraphs in my entire stay here at Celtics 17. This is... unimaginable. Unfathomable. KG scores 26 and Rondo dishes out a season-high and we lose? Were we playing D whatsoever? We allowed five Nets to reach double-figures in the eight-point loss.

Here's my thing. We've shown that we had the energy, we've shown that we have the heart, the intelligence, the skills, and the team unity to win (although the last part is becoming an iffy for me, but I think we still have it). We went on a 16-4 run in the fourth, cutting the deficit to six after a red hot slew of buckets and a few defensive stops -- and of course, the Celtics being the Celtics, and Boston fans being Boston fans, we all thought we had this one in the bag, even when we were in improbable circumstances. We'd done this before. We had let the Nets ride with us for three quarters and then dropped them off just a few minutes before their stop.

But oh no. Not this time. The Nets outsmarted us. They outplayed us. They outhustled us. The worst team in basketball had thrashed us deservingly, and it resulted in a well-earned win for one of the worst teams in history, if not THE worst come the end of the season.

I'm fed up to my green goggles with this cocky, "swaggerized" Celtics team. They're not playing basketball. They're playing "Let's be a bunch of punks and see if the other team will let us win." And if the other team doesn't back down, it's over. Forget it. Goodbye. See ya.

And it's not just about making that decision, like Garnett said, to play hard for 48 minutes. It's becoming a situation where they don't even KNOW where and when to pick their games, their offensive spurts, their defensively dominated quarters. The Boston Celtics are lost. They don't understand anymore. It's almost like they can't tell when they can hit cruise control because they're on such a rule, riding such an adrenaline, that they can just play on pure instinct. But now they're not that pure team anymore. They don't have that smooth confidence (NOT cockiness or swagger) anymore.

A few days ago, I mentioned on a piece that an ESPN analyst commented: "the Celtics know what to do to win a title. The Cavs, the Magic, they don't quite know 'where the finish line is,' whereas Boston knows the level of play they have to commit to in order to win." Do they really though?

Do the Boston Celtics know where their map is anymore?

Because I see the Cleveland Cavaliers on a straight path to destiny (you knew they were going to make some sort of a move and take over the league after Boston basically fell apart and Orlando/Los Angeles/the rest of the contenders sat quiet at the deadline), and the Orlando Magic, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, and the Portland Trail Blazers (yes, even after the 20-point shellacking in Portland) all very capable of beating the Boston Celtics when healthy. The Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, and San Antonio Spurs might be able to topple the Celtics if they were on their game as well. And while all of this is taking place, the Celtics continue to struggle. The Celtics continue to comfortably "play their game."

Final thoughts: I honestly don't know what's wrong with this team anymore. I know what the problem is, but I don't know why this wasn't settled a while ago. You have proven leaders in Allen, Pierce, and Garnett. You have assertive young guys like Perk and Rondo who can lead by example. Hell, they even have high-energy guys like Marquis Daniels and Nate Robinson coming off the bench now, and this still doesn't seem to be getting anywhere!

Maybe Donny Marshall's right. Maybe this loss is a good experience for this troubled '09-10 Celtics team. Maybe it was good to look around and see the embarrassment on the faces of teammates, coaches, and fans. Maybe it was good to see a team like the Nets flat-out handling the Boston Celtics, champions just two years ago. Maybe it was motivating to watch as loyal, yet demanding fans begrudgingly drag theirselves out of the arena as their team abysmally watched another loss fly right by their eyes.

But for all I know, we've piled a few too many maybes on the Boston Celtics this season. Can they rise to the occasion?

Looking For a Writing Home? Celtics 17 Is Looking For Assistance!

Hey everyone,

First off -- I just wanted to thank those of you that stuck with Celtics 17 during it's lull between mid-January and early-February. For those loyal readers/friends/promoters out there, it's a pleasure to have you reading the blog.

That being said, Celtics 17 is looking for skilled writers and knowledgeable basketball fans, experienced or inexperienced, to come in and share their valid thoughts about the team and the NBA on the site. We're open to looking at anyone who has an alliance to any team, not just Boston Celtics' fans.

We're looking for a variety of positions, so please, don't hesitate if you think your idea of what you would like to contribute to the site isn't useful to us.

Here's a few popular and recognizable role descriptions: Celtics game previewer/recapper (more commonly known as beat writer. This could either fall to two writers or one, depending on their time availability; NBA columnist (again, fans of any team are welcome to share their outlook on the league -- this involves looking at recent games that are abuzz the Internet/media world, looking at certain players, giving your thoughts on certain teams, situations, or reports, etc.); Celtics/NBA reporter (sharing links of reports from any major media or well-respected website involving rumors, important reports, and maybe even a few amusing/informative quotes from players, coaches, organizations, and fans); or social networker (this would entail the head of this position -- as I'm looking for multiple people to help out in this area -- to post on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Google Buzz, Google Reader, etc., any articles that are posted on the site, as well as to reach out and link to other blogs/websites where you find articles/posts you think readers would enjoy taking a look at).

Again, that's only a few of many positions that Celtics 17 is looking to activate right now. There could be more specified roles branched off of those positions that I just mentioned that you might be interested in, or you might have an idea of a new, unique role for Celtics 17 that you want to discuss with me. If you have anything you'd like to talk with me about at all, please don't be reluctant to email me at Celticsfanatic@gmail.com. Resumes/former pieces that I can look at to see how you can/what you can do to help the site are a necessity also.

Thanks!

CF