Here is a look at the Celtics first round opponents, the Atlanta Hawks. Point Guard: Mike Bibby, 6'2", 190 lbs, 29 years old 13.9 PPG, 6 APG, 1.1 SPG, 14.55 PER Bibby is a deadly outside shooter with a quick release, skills which make him among the league's better scoring point guards. Bibby isn't a natural pass-first point guard, and his assist ratios are annually much lower than the norm for his position. However, he doesn't over-dribble -- usually he just moves it into the high post and then waits for catch-and-shoot chances. Another trick of his is to go away from the screen on the screen-and-roll, something he does more than any player in basketball. Instead Bibby will fake that way, make a quick dribble left, and then shoot a jumper. Defensively, Bibby has become fairly useless and his help defense is cursory at best.
Shooting Guard Joe Johnson 6'7". 235 lb, 26 yr old 21.7 PPG, 5.8 APG, .381 3P%, PER 17.34 Though well-built at 6-7, 235 pounds, Johnson does most of his damage away from the basket. He has a smooth jump shot that he shoots comfortably off the dribble and off the catch. Johnson is a good ball handler for his size but lacks blazing speed, which is why his free-throw rate is fairly low for a big-time scorer. However, he's a good finisher when he gets to the rim and at his size he can destroy smaller guards on post-ups. Defensively, Johnson's size is a major asset and he's quick enough to defend shooting guards. This part of his game has taken a bit of a back seat as his offensive responsibilities have increased -- Atlanta rarely asks him to defend A-list scorers but in the playoffs, he will be matched up with Ray Allen. Ray scored 33 points in his only game against the Hawks this season and could be a big factor if his shot is on in this series.
Small Forward Marvin Williams 6'9". 230 lbs, 21 yr old 14.8 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.7 APG 14.53 PER Williams is a solid midrange jump shooter as he has a smooth stroke that he can comfortably convert from 20 feet. Williams clearly has the form to hit the longer shot -- he often shoots from just a foot inside the line -- but has rarely attempted it as a pro and is at only 24.5 percent for his career. He's also a good finisher in transition, but he has no post game. Williams is stronger at the defensive end, where he is quick enough to switch out against guards and has the size to bother opposing shooters. He does a solid job against most small forwards and can even play bigger shooting guards; the Hawks sometimes used him as a defensive stopper against A-list scorers. When matched up against Paul Pierce, he will definitely have his work cut out for him defensively.
Power Forward Josh Smith 6'9", 235 lbs, 22 years old 17.2 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 2.8 BPG 19.08 PER Smith's leaping ability is his greatest asset, with a quick lift off the floor. The lefty excels at taking his rebounds and heading up court with them. He almost certainly started more transition opportunities than the Hawks' guards, and he's a great finisher at the end of the play. Smith is a good passer, but has a high dribble and can be turnover prone, especially when he tries to attack in the half court. That's one reason he settles for the jumper quite a bit, something opponents try to bait him into. He's an awesome weak-side shot-blocker, but tends to lose sight of his man away from the ball and rarely boxes out. He will have a challenge trying to match up with Kevin Garnett on both ends of the court in this series.
Center Al Horford 6'10", 235 lb, 22 years old 10.1, 9.70 RPG 1.5 APG Horford is a candidate for Rookie of the Year. He has a wide body and is very strong with long arms. He has good quickness and athleticism. He is a defensive presence inside. He finds a way to score down low and also has a decent mid range shot. He is foul prone, however. Perk should match up well with him.
Bench Josh Childress, Zaza Pachulia, Salim Stoudamire, Mario West, Jeremy Richardson, Solomon Jones, Acie Law
Josh Childress is their key player off the bench. He is averaging 11.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 1.5 APG off the bench. He is a solid two-way player. Childress is an athletic wing who is a strong finisher around the basket and an outstanding offensive rebounder. He also draws fouls at a high rate and converts from the charity stripe. At 6-8, Childress' size makes him a good defender against bigger wing players and an excellent roamer in zones, although he can be outmuscled by wide bodies in post-ups. He always plays well against the Celtics and will be the key player to stop off the bench.
The Celtics biggest advantage in this series, besides their three stars, is going to be their bench. The Hawks can't match the Celtics depth with Posey, House, Powe, Cassell, Brown, Davis, and Tony Allen all playing very well, the Hawks just can't match that off their bench.
The Key Matchup in this series is going to be Rajon Rondo vs Mike Bibby at the point where speed and youth will be matched up with experience. Rondo has answered every question and every challenge above and beyond all expectations this season and I have to feel that he will continue to exceed expectations in the playoffs as well.
I can't wait for these games to start. I think the Celtics should have an easy time with Hawks and should sweep the series, but the Hawks are young and athletic, the kid of team that has given us problems over the season. Hopefully the Celtics will come out with focus and dominate the series. Bring it on!!! Winning is the Only Option!
It looks like the Cav/Wizards series is going to be a physical series and I expect it to go at least 6 games. Already in the first quarter of the game we saw a fight and double technicals. It was a back and forth game and they had to play hard to the end.
Former Celtics Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West started for the Cavs. I still really like Delonte and was happy to see him do well. He was very instrumental in the win. He finished with 16 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks and only 1 turnover. Down the stretch, he got a big rebound, gathered up a jump ball, drew the 6th foul on Arenas to foul him out, and hit 4 clutch free throws in the final 15 seconds to seal the win. He also played great defense on Arenas in the second half. Wally had 8 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists. I think his bone on bone knees are affecting his shooting.
The more I see and hear from Gilbert Arenas, the more I don't like him. I would love to see the Cavs knock the Wizards out in the first round. I really don't want to have to hear Arenas' mouth running for two series. But, whichever team comes out of this series is going to be tired because it is going to be a tough physical series if the first game tells us anything. Hopefully the Celtics will breeze through the first round and be fresh to face whichever team survives this series.
What a game between the Suns and Spurs! Double OT in the first game. How do you follow that up? I really don't like Manu Ginobili. He is such a flopper. It was too funny at one point when Ginobili was actually knocked down by a foul after flopping for the umpteenth time and didn't get the call, the announcers said something about when you flop all over the court all game, how are the refs to know when a fall is real? On one foul, 3 people all flopped at the same time and it didn't look like there was even a foul. Today's games didn't disappoint but I can't wait for the Celtics game.
Celtics forward Kevin Garnett returned to practice today after the missing the previous two following the birth of his first child. Garnett declined to speak about the birth and wanted to concentrate on basketball. The 11-time NBA All-Star worked out Friday night as well and has caught up with his teammates by watching video.
“Family issues are never public, so I ask (the media) to respect that. I’m looking forward to play. I’m excited to play about playing tomorrow," Garnett said.
First, they state positively that his absence was for the birth of his first child. Second, KG is a very private person. I am sure details will come out eventually, but for now, it is being kept under wraps.
I am so excited about this post season I can hardly stand it. I have been walking around grinning and have ordered a couple of new tee shirts just for the playoffs. I have bought new video tapes so as to record every moment so I can watch the games over and over. I am ready and anxious and tomorrow we finally start on the post season run that hopefully will bring us banner #17.
Rajon Rondo won the Sixth Star award. I have mixed feelings about this. Previous fan favorites that have won the award were Ricky Davis, Delonte West and Al Jefferson and all have been traded. Could it be some kind of hex on the award winner? Maybe we should have voted for Scal. And, if you didn't catch the presentation at half time, check out this video on BostonSportZ. They didn't even get his name right.
Rasheed Wallace has been busy antagonizing the refs for years. We can only hope that the refs remember that he isn't afraid of them and put a big bulls eye on his back. Maybe then, Perk can actually get a few calls go his way.
Most observers look at the East and see the Celtics as a really good team who may or may not get past Detroit in the conference finals. Wake up, folks -- this is one of the best teams of all time, and you might be surprised how easily they roll through the playoffs. I realize this is raining on the parade a bit since everybody is so jacked up about the competition in store this postseason, but I have to warn you there's a chance the Celtics are just going to flat-out destroy everybody.
Wow! Those are some strong words. He then predicts the Celtics over the Jazz in 6 for the title. That would be a nice conclusion. Celtics would win it on their home court.
Is there anyone who doubts that KG is going to pull out all stops to win the championship this season? Listen to him talking about the game 7 that he played in while still in Minnesota. (hat tip to our friends at Lex Nihil Novi for the video- if you don't read that blog daily, you are really missing a lot).
I have 3 concerns about this team. First is the Celtics penchant for turning the ball over too much. They top the league in turnovers per possession. One might say that they won 66 games turning the ball over that much and that is very true. But, in the playoffs, mistakes and turnovers become magnified, especially in the conference finals and in the finals. This could come back to bite them if they don't gain some focus and take better care of the ball. Second, the Celtics miss way too many free throws. Like the turnovers, they might be able to get away with this in the regular season, but as the playoffs progress, each possession becomes more valuable and they can't afford to give points away by missing free throws. Hopefully with increased focus that comes with the playoffs, the team will improve in this area also. My third concern is Doc. In the playoffs, coaching becomes much more important than in the regular season. Coaches must make adjustments from game to game and even from quarter to quarter and possession to possession and it becomes a chess match. Doc has never won a playoff series and so it is natural to question whether he can take the Celtics to a Championship. One thing I know is that Doc is smart enough to accept input from his veterans I also know that Tom Thibodeau is one of the best at reading and implementing defenses. KG, Sam Cassell, Ray Allen, PJ Brown, James Posey, Eddie House and Scal are all veterans who know the game inside and out and will add their input as the series go along. Whenever I worry about Doc I just watch this video and feel a little better about it.
I have been reading so many previews and for the most part it all comes back to the writers' biases. Most have a Celtics-Pistons East finals and many have a Celtics-Lakers or Celtics-Jazz finals. I see a Celtics championship through my green colored glasses, no matter who they play.
All season long we have read that there was a playoff atmosphere in many of the Celtics games this season. The Celtics seemed to be playing all out all season long. We only had a couple of let ups during the season. One was those 3 games right after the All Star game when KG was just coming back from his injury. Another was the back to back losses to the Wizards. And a third was the loss to the Bobcats. Now the playoffs are here and the action is going to ratchet up a notch. Do the Celtics have yet another gear that they can take their game to for the playoffs? Or do they really need one?
Just to put the season into a little persepective, here are a few statistics. The Celtics lost to only 1 sub 500 team this season, and that was the Bobcats game. They lost only 3 games by double figures and the average margin that they lost by was only 6. They won their games by an average margin of 14.3 and won by double digits a whopping 45 times. They won by 20 or more 22 times. They also beat every team in the league at least once. They went 6-0 against the powerful Texas teams and they went 25-5 against Western Conference teams.
In the playoffs, defense becomes even more important than in the regular season. The Celtics have been absolutely dominant on the defensive end this whole season. They were first in opponents points per game, First in lowest opponents field goal percentage, lowest in opponents field goal percentage, First in opponents fewest fast break points, and allowed fewest points in the paints. The Celtics led the league in virtually every defensive category. Tracy McGrady said that the Celtics defense was the best he had ever seen. As good as the Celtics defense has been, I expect it to be even better in the playoffs.
The Celtics stars are coming into the playoffs well rested. The bench has also gotten some valuable experience and have built their confidence over the second half of the season. Over the last two weeks, the Celtics have been playing the bench more and more, including down the stretch of big games, and they are 9-1 in that stretch.
It seems as though the Celtics have been playing in playoff gear for the entire season. They have been stressing defense whereas most teams don't ramp up their defense until the playoffs. They have been playing with a purpose and intensity that have rarely been seen in the regular season. They faced the best of every team as teams got up for the Celtics and gave those games their all. When the games really mattered, we saw the Celtics ramp up their games and pull out the wins. We saw it in the Detroit games, in the Texas games and in several others. They stepped it up when they had to.
The playoffs are completely different from the regular season. The Celtics will face defenses that they haven't seen in the regular season. Games weigh much more heavily on scouting, individual matchups and exploiting the opponents weaknesses. It becomes a chess game between coaching staffs. I believe that the team will be able to turn their games up a notch. We rarely saw all three have great games at the same time. I think we will see this in the playoffs, however. The three stars are so hungry for a ring that their play will be off the charts, even more so than the regular season. The Celtics role players have grown in leaps and bounds this season and the Celtics now have one of the deepest benches in the playoffs. Hopefully, Doc is up to the task of scouting and adjusting from game to game to make use of the team's play. I also feel that with Tom Thibodeau plus the veteran players who will give their input, the coaching will be fine. The Celtics do have another gear and I have a feeling that it is going to be very exciting when we get to see it.
The schedule for the first round of the playoffs has been released. The Celtics games are all in prime time and there aren't any afternoon games in the first 4 ( I hate afternoon games. Here is the schedule for the Celtics/Hawks series that will start on Sunday.
Game 1 - Atlanta @ Boston: Sunday, April 20 8:30 PM (TNT) Game 2 - Atlanta @ Boston: Wednesday, April 23 8:00 pm (TNT) Game 3 - Boston @ Atlanta: Saturday, April 26 8:00 PM (ESPN) Game 4 - Boston @ Atlanta: Monday, April 28 8:00 pm (TNT) Game 5 (if needed) - Atlanta @ Boston: Wednesday, April 30 (TBD) Game 6 (if needed) - Boston @ Atlanta: Friday, May 2 (TBD) Game 7 (if needed) - Atlanta @ Boston: Sunday, May 4 (TBD)
As an added bonus, here are this weekend's other games in case you are like me and want to soak in every moment of this postseason that will hopefully end in the Celtics first title in over 20 years.
Saturday's Games Washington @ Cleveland: 12:30 pm (ESPN) Phoenix @ San Antonio: 3:00 pm (ABC) Dallas @ New Orleans: 7:00 pm (ESPN) Utah @ Houston: 9:30 pm (ESPN)
Sunday's Games Toronto @ Orlando: 12:30 pm (TNT) Denver @ LA: 3:00 pm (ABC) Philadelphia @ Detroit: 6:00 pm (TNT) Atlanta @ Boston: 8:30 PM (TNT)
Here are comments found around the Nets boards during their final season game against the Celtics. Apparently YES chose to show baseball instead of the Nets game and so unless they had League Pass, they didn't get to watch the game. Not a lot was said about the game, but who could blame them? I hate to break it to them, but a player who can dominate the other team's starters is far from a scrub.
Last Game of the painful season Does it even matter if we lose or win this game?(draft order wise)
Well no need to play our starters . The Celtics rest their's and our bench doesn't get killed so just play it out .
Charlotte yesterday pooped on the approach for a nice pickup game the C's don't .
Y did RJ play 44 minutes?
I saw it on league pass, from nba.com. Powe destroyed us. Why did RJ play 43 min? Was it to set the nets franchise record for minutes played in one season? Offseason now begins.
It was his wish , by playing out the 4th quarter he set a Franchise record in minutes played for a season .
...It's finally over. Maybe I'll take the time to make a mock draft now...
Embarrassing to have our starters beat by Boston's scrubs. At least we could have made it a game.
No, we just tanked.
Got blown out by a couple of scrubs, what a disappointing way to end the season
Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen all played tonight but limited minutes as KG played 14 minutes and Pierce and Ray played 17 minutes. Rajon Rondo and James Posey both had the night off. Sam Cassell started at the point and finished with 9 points and 4 assists in 19 minutes.
It was fan appreciation night and Pierce addressed the crowd before the game. Last season he guaranteed that the Celtics would not be going home after this year's final regular season game. He really had no idea. This year, he was not only talking playoffs, but about going for Banner 17. At half time, they announced that Rondo was the winnner of this year's Sixth Star Award.
With the Celtics playing their subs for most of the game against the Nets starters (Jefferson played 43 minutes and Krstic played 30 minutes, Carter and Harris played 24 minutes), they proved that they have a very deep bench and that this team is much more than just the 3 stars. Leon Powe was the player of the game, setting a new career high of 27 points to go with 11 rebounds in 34 minutes. He is going to be a big factor in the playoffs. He is such a tough player.
Tony Allen also played big and came up with the play of the game with a huge block on Ager and came away with the ball. He finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block and 1 steal. Gabe Pruitt played 12 minutes and finished with 5 points, 1 rebound and 3 assists and had some nice passes and has a very nice looking shot. He is also very quick and will be a great back up PG for this team in the future.
The Celtics shot 45% from the field while the Nets shot 44%. The Celtics out rebounded the Nets 44-36. The Celtics finish with 66 wins, third most in franchise history. This season has been a dream season and this team has accomplished way more than most people ever imagined. Now the Celtics go into the playoffs with the best chance of winning the championship that they have had in 20 years. Bring on the Playoffs!!!
As we prepare for the playoffs that will start this weekend, I have been thinking back to the 1980's Celtics teams and the playoff battles from back then. The thing that stands out most in my mind about those teams was their swagger. Defense was important and no one got anything easy. Part of that swagger came from winning, but anther part came from just being the Celtics. They had the attitude that they were the Celtics and they won because of the swagger, not the other way around.
I was thinking back to the 1984 finals between the Celtics and the Lakers. Larry Bird wasn't happy with his teammates. He called them out saying that they had played like a bunch of sissies. In the game after this pronouncement from Bird, the two teams locked in a classic battle. It was literally 48 minutes plus overtime of a basketbrawl. Kareem attempted to take Larry's head off his shoulder with an elbow. James Worthy hammered Cedric Maxwell into the basket support and Rambis and Carr were at each others throats over and over. The most memorable of these run ins was Kevin McHale's clothesline of Kurt Rambis. Laker fans still hate McHale and talk about it to this day. This play and this game changed the whole complexion of that playoff series. A little intimidation goes a long way.
I remember one incident from the classic 7 game Detroit/Boston playoff series in 1987. In game 4 of this series, the Evil Bill Laimbeer jerked Larry Bird to the floor by the neck. Bird reacted with some good punches and a bench clearing brawl ensued. After the tangle of bodies was straightened out, Bird and Laimbeer were both ejected. It was at this point that Larry fired the ball point blank at Laimbeer's face so hard that it had to have left an imprint of the logo on his face. Later, hearing that Laimbeer claimed he was just trying to go for the ball, Larry replied that he was just giving it to him.
In game 5 of that same series, Robert Parish, who was generally even tempered and very hard to rattle, got very tired of all of the elbows and abuse he was getting from Laimbeer and he sucker punched him. No foul was called and he wasn't thrown out of the game for it but was later suspended one game. Since he was nursing a mildly sprained ankle at the time and probably wouldn't have played in that game anyway, it wasn't all that bad of a punishment. Most fans in the league at that time felt that he did a very good deed since Laimbeer was well known for his dirty play.
There are no two players who are as professional and as classy as Larry Bird and Doctor J. But in 1984, frustration set in and with his team losing, Doctor J punched Larry Bird. Larry then went for Dr J's throat giving us the classic photo above that will forever live in infamy.
Ok, enough of the reminiscing. That was then and this is now and that swagger and Celtics Pride are back in Boston. While I don't expect the Celtics to come out fighting, I don't expect them to back down from anyone or take anything from anyone either. Just like the Celtics of the 80's before them, these Celtics don't back down from anyone. This year's Celtics have that tough defense that says "Not on my watch" and teams know that these Celtics won't back down and that we are a force to reckon with. It starts and ends with defense and players back each other up. The attitude and swagger starts with KG's intensity and Perk's no layups motto and goes all the way to Rondo who takes the ball hard at Jason Maxiell for a dunk without an ounce of hesitation or who squares up against Raefer Alston to show that he won't be pushed around, and to Leon Powe who leads the team in tough plays of the night. I don't know about you, but I can't wait for the playoffs. The swagger and the Celtic pride are back and we are in for a fun time ahead.
Here are comments found around the Knicks boards during their game with the Celtics. As much as I dislike the Knicks, you have to feel for their fans. One day the Isiah reign of terror will be looked back on like the Pitino years in Boston. They have a good man in Walsh who can pull them out of it so that's a start.
I was going to go simply for the free food but, you are right, this could be isiah's last home game. I have to be there to be part of the fire isiah chants. Although I hope they have that song, heyyy goodbye, lalalala lalalala heyyyy goodbye.
Thank God. Now, time for break from this complete disaster of season and get ready for more of the same for the next two years. Thank you Isiah. Good riddance. Go back to the Pistons and make them suck.
I have better things to do than watch the Knicks. Like clipping my toenails.
Free hot dogs, pretzels, soda and water are available tonight, starting at 6 p.m. Didn't James Dolan's team give the fans enough indigestion this season?
Rumor has it, 0 of the big 3 will play tonight. Sucks for us.
Oh don't worry, they don't need them to beat us. All they need is scrubs like Veal, Eddie House and James Posey. We seem to have more trouble stopping them than those three.
Nah, we'll win.
No big three = no 4th place tie. Just another reason to hate Boston
Boston has found away to really screw us tonight. Either they clown us with their bench.... Or watch the Knicks win and get screwed for their lottery position.
PJ brown has always been a jerk.. That foul is dangerous simply because he used his left hand running full speed to brace him self against balkman who is in the air...
The Knick starters play the entire 1st quarter even against Celtic backups. I can imagine the agenda driven Isiah will coach this game like game 7 of the finals. He needs one more win at home to move ahead of next-town-Brown. Both are tied for second lowest wins at MSG with 15.
Damn. That Leon Powe Story is something else.
If we don't get a top 3 pick from Stern's lotto magic then we're screwed. This team needs to lose tonight. Period.
This team may look like their playing hard, but its against Boston's bench,
I don't think the knicks will lose today unfortunately.
Great.. Now chandler IA really hurt ET must pay.
Every game is a must lose game.
Rofl scalabrine tripped on the baseline.
Rondo is throwing up trash. I am sorry and you can say whatever, but that guy is a joke!!!!
Rondo reminds me of this guy in Souh Carolina I knew some years back.. He swore he was good, he would take these wild 20 foot hook shots that would sometimes go in. I mean off the backboard, swish, off the top of the backboard, he would sometimes drive, trip and throw up a shot that would find the basket.. You couldn't tell this guy he wasn't good... LOL.. It must have been rondo's relative... This guy rondo is a clown.. I am sorry.. I have no respect for his game... Besides the fact that he can defend.. Big deal.. So can mardy Collins..
Thank you Celtics bench. LOL @ people saying the Celtics had no bench.
Thank you very much Sam Cassell. I knew your clutch play would be useful to me someday.
Z-Ro is a friggen jerk man .. Lee took off his warmup suit to give it to a little girl and Z-Ro comes in the way and blocks him and just throws the warmup suit to the side and Lee had to pick it up.
Boston tanked miserably last year and got the 5th seed.
This season were a miserable team so everything is going on our favor. Until tonight. We lost to another teams bench. I don't think one win matters in this case for the lottery. Now if you think it does then how does it look for the NY knicks to lose to a team without their three best players playing. For all we know they have the lottery all set and is just waiting for June to actually reviel the results. So what I'm saying is that a win tonight probably would have gone a lot further looking good in sterns eyes than losing to the Celtics without the big three.
Why should we cheer for the knicks to lose to Boston...out of all teams......I still didn't understand how you was cool after we lost by 50 something points to Boston early in the year.....
Well they don't show the lottery process for a reason, there is some not so right things going on in that room where only two people are doing the whole thing. We need to impress to get a great pick and tonight impressed no one in the nba front office.
The fact that this team just lost to the Celtics bench is EXACTLY why people root for them to lose. They suck and deserve to lose, its that simple. How can you root for a team to win that cant even beat a Celtics bench?
Last years draft reeks of a fix. It was Stern's middle finger to tankers.
If we didn't go on that 3 game winning streak we could have been in third!
On a night when Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen all had the night off, the Celtics subs came through for them again, beating the Knicks 99-93 at Madison Square Garden. It wasn't all the bench though, because Doc still played Rondo and Perk along with Posey, Tony and Powe in the starting lineup. Rondo played 41 minutes and came up big with 23 points on 11-15 shooting to go with 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal. Doc said after the game that he will probably give Rondo the night off Wednesday and so wanted to play him big minutes tonight. James Posey also came up big as he finished with 15 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks in 41 minutes.
Sam played 30 minutes and scored 22 points, but shot only 7-18. Cassell and House are both very streaky scorers and can shoot you into a game or shoot you out of one just as quickly. Sam also pulled down 5 rebounds but didn't get any assists. Powe was back after missing 2 games with a foot injury and as usual, he got the tough play of the game. He finished with 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 assist in 19 minutes. I am certain that Powe is going to be a factor for the Celtics in the playoffs.
Tony continues to struggle to find his way back to pre-injury form. He had 8 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists in 19 minutes but just isn't all the way back yet. Big Baby had a good game with 13 points and 9 rebounds. It was pretty funny to hear the Knicks broadcasters talking about how big Baby is and how he needs to lose weight and then they show Zach Randolph who is definitely even begger than Baby and not a word about his size. Gabe Pruitt played 6 minutes and finished with 1 point and 1 rebound but impressed me with his speed and defense. At one point, he stayed in front of Nate Robinson going full out up the court. Gabe has the potential to be something special.
The Celtics shot 48% while holding the Knicks to 40% from the field. The Celtics achilles reared its head again as the Celtics missed 8 free throws. They just can't do that in the playoffs where every possession counts. They did keep the turnovers down to 14 but even that may be too many in the playoffs, but much better than the 20+ they have been racking up lately. All in all, a nice win for a team that was said to have no bench in the beginning of the season.
We may have witnessed Isiah Thomas's finsl home game as a coach tonight as "Fire Isiah" chants sprung up throughout the Garden in the 4th quarter. The Knicks finished the season with a 15-26 home record, tied for the worst in franchise history. One final note on the Knicks: David Lee deserves better. I have always been impressed with this kid and how hard he plays all the time. I hope they either trade him or get him some help and a decent coach. On another front, the Pacers lost and so the Hawks clinched the 8th spot in the East and will be the Celtics 1st round opponent.
I just love this video. For those of us who are Celtics fans and aren't lucky enough to attend games at the Garden, this gives us a taste of the virtual victory cigar that is Gino Fever. I remember when Red would light up that victory cigar and thinking how demoralizing that had to be to the other teams to see Red light up game after game as the Celtics dominated the league. But that has nothing on Gino, the virtual victory cigar. Is it any wonder that teams have come at the Celtics with all they have after getting beat by them. I love the shot of the opposing team just standing there staring up and not quite knowing what to do. It is great when they cut away during games to show KG, Pierce and the bench dancing on the sidelines. Red Auerbach was a master at gaining any kind of mental edge over the opponents and the victory cigar was just one of his tactics. But, it only works when you are winning like Red's teams did and like this year's Celtics have done. It just wouldn't have the same effect for a 24 win team. What Red started with the Victory Cigar, Gino takes to new levels.
