The Celts Let The 76ers Hang Around But Take Gm 1 Behind Tatum's Playoff Career-High (32 pts)

 

    Let's be honest, this first round playoff series between the Celtics and the Sixers should not be a long one. After Ben Simmons went down with a knee injury last week, you knew that Philadelphia's days in the Disney World bubble were limited. Of course, Boston wasn't complaining since they earned the third seed in the Eastern Conference and the 76ers dropped down to the sixth seed so these rivals would meet right away rather than deeper in the playoffs. Game 1 tonight was not a classic matchup by any means but it should serve as a harbinger of things to come as the C's didn't play particularly well yet they still walked away with a 109-101 win. Jayson Tatum was the best player on the floor as he scored a game-high/career playoff-high 32 points with 13 rebounds and three blocks. 

    Many think that Boston has the best young duo in the league and Jaylen Brown certainly held up his end of the bargain with 29 points, six rebounds and three steals. Kemba Walker added 19 points and five assists while Gordon Hayward posted 12 points and a game-high four steals but unfortunately he suffered what looked to be a pretty bad right ankle sprain. He was seen after the game leaving on crutches as he headed for an MRI. Ugh, poor guy has had such an uneven Celtics career with all the injuries that he's dealt with. Let's hope it's not as bad as it looked like in real time. 

    Joel Embiid (26 points, game-high 16 rebounds, game-high 5 turnovers) is still an absolute beast but who else left on Philly scares you? Josh Richardson scored 18 points and Alec Burks produced the same amount off the bench while Tobias Harris added 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Filling in at point guard for Simmons, my man Shake Milton put up 13 points but without one of the best passers in the NBA (Simmons) not to mention ballhandlers, the Sixers turned it over 11 more times (18-7) than the Celtics. That coupled with Boston's seven more steals (12-5) and five more made free throws (23-18) were the only real differences in the contest. Oh and if you're looking for the ghost of Al Horford, he manged to have six points, seven rebounds and six assists with a game-low plus-minus of minus-18. Hey Al, do you wish you remained with the Celtics rather than go to the rudderless 76ers in free agency? Nevermind, you don't have to answer that big guy.

To Philly's credit, they came out on fire leading to a one-point lead (26-25) after the first quarter. Boston woke up and started to play their style in the second quarter which gave them a 55-49 halftime advantage. Naturally, when you thought that the Sixers would just roll over they actually controlled the third quarter completely (30-20) to go into the fourth quarter up 79-75. Philly's lack of depth and foul trouble to both Embiid and Horford (5 fouls apiece) helped Boston finally pull away a bit in the fourth though they had to sweat it out at the end despite what the final score might lead you to believe. 

    Once they start matching up with better teams further in the playoffs, Boston's bench will simply have to perform better. Tonight's total output of eight points from them is beyond embarassing. Marcus Smart (2 points, 0-for-5 shooting, 2 steals in 32 minutes) figures to slot into Hayward's spot in the starting lineup assuming that he's out for at least a few games. Smart tends to play better in the most important games and he certainly left room for improvement personally after tonight's stinker. 

    You have to love the sheer predictably of some NBA playoff series, especially those in the earlier rounds. I hate to forecast the future-which is truly futile in 2020-but here is how it'll go for the 76ers: they'll get swept by the C's or lose in a gentleman's sweep (5 games). They'll fire their head coach (BU product and Maine native) Brett Brown and replace him with some other NBA retread. Then Embiid and/or Simmons will demand a trade when they realize that Philadelphia is not going anywhere with this mostly average roster behind them. Anyways, see you on Wednesday night (6:30, NBC Sports Boston) for Game 2.   

    

     

    

     

    

    

     

    

Even Ludacris can't save you Atlanta

For a game in December, the Atlanta Hawks and their fraud fans showed up in full force last night at the Philips Arena. Native son Ludacris even performed at halftime of this circus like atmosphere.

However, it will take more than that to stop the machine that is the Boston Celtics these days though as the C's (24-2) won 88-85. Boston has now won 16 consecutive games, including 10 straight on the road.

As we learned in the playoffs last spring and in the teams' first meeting in November, the Hawks (15-10) match up with the Celtics better than any other team in the league. That's not a misprint Lakers, Cavs, Pistons, Hornets or Spurs. Atlanta's combination of athletic youngsters (Josh Smith, Marvin Williams, Al Horford) with some great shooters (Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby) means that games between these two teams are almost always tight.

The Celts starting five once again was superb. Paul Pierce (7 rebounds) and Kevin Garnett (8 rebounds) each had 18 points while Ray Allen added 16. Rajon Rondo went for 15 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals. Kendrick Perkins had eight points, 10 rebounds and four blocks.

For the Hawks, Johnson led the way with a game-high 20 points. Williams had 16 points and eight rebounds while Smith and Bibby both notched 14 points.

The outcome wasn't decided until the final possessions as each team had clutch hoops and free throws. Boston went up one late with a KG hook shot. Johnson was fouled and had a chance to tie it (and likely send the game to OT) but he missed the second free throw.

Ray Allen hit two free throws to put Boston up three and Bibby missed a prayer 3-pointer at the buzzer.

The Celts shot 44.2% to the Hawks' 36.7%. That was the only number that was much different.

Boston comes home to play the Bulls tomorrow night with the chance to tie the second best win-streak in franchise history.

One Last Look Back at Banner 17

Where does the time go? It seems like only yesterday that the Celtics were embarassing the overrated Lakers in game 6 of the NBA Finals at the Garden and capturing their 17th NBA Championship.

Fast forward four and a half months to the Garden and the Celtics fittingly opened the 2008-2009 NBA season with the banner raising and ring ceremony.

From all reports and highlights, the presentation was top-notch. The viewers at home wouldn't have much idea of that though since for some reason TNT chose to show only small clips of it while also muting some of captain Paul Pierce's emotional address to the crowd.

Oh yeah, there was a game to be played too as King James and the Cavaliers were in the building. The teams memorably went seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals before Pierce outdueled James in the deciding game.

No surprise that the game lacked the excitement and buzz of the pre-game festivities. Even more predictable, the V.I.P. corporate suits at the game failed to make any noise. What is this, Fenway in the playoffs?

Anywho, the Celts (1-0) started out slowly but eventually wore down the Cavs (0-1) with team defense and clutch shooting from Pierce (game-high 27 points) to take a 90-85 win.

Much like in the Eastern Conference Finals and for all of his young career, James didn't get enough help from his mostly average teammates. James had 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Veteran center Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 15 points and eight rebounds while new point guard Mo Williams added 12 points.

Little has changed for the Cavs, they still rely on one player (James) more than any other team. It helps that he's one of the top two or three players in the league but I still doubt that they have the horses to win a title as currently constructed.

After really waking up late in the playoffs, Rajon Rondo continued his strong play with 14 points, six assists, five rebounds and three steals on opening night. Kevin Garnett was held to 11 points and six rebounds. The keys for Boston, outside of Pierce, were Tony Allen (11 points) and Leon Powe (13 points) who were great in big minutes off the bench.

James Posey is the only notable missing part from last season's championship team. Without question, the C's hope Tony Allen can fill Posey's role, with some help from rookies J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker. Nobody thinks Tony Allen is the player that Posey is but if he can regain his pre-knee injury form, Boston will be in good shape.

Cleveland was up 28-22 and 50-43 as the Celts' shooting started out uglier than Craig Sager's typical clown suit.

In the third quarter, Boston took over with a 24-13 frame followed by a 23-22 fourth. It wasn't a work of art but it was a win on a night filled with distractions.

Neither team could shoot from the outside (the Cavs were 3 of 14 while the Celts were 3 of 15). Cleveland had five more rebounds (41-36) but five more turnovers (21-16).

Let me get this out of the way early in the season: the Boston Celtics are the team to beat. As I said, they return everything but Posey and they have the championship experience that the Big Three famously lacked. Rondo and Kendrick Perkins will only continue to get better. The chemistry of the team is apparent in every game.

The Pistons and Sixers (with Elton Brand) will be up there with the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference but it's the Celtics' to lose. In the West, everyone is picking the Hornets and Lakers (who have a healthy Andrew Bynum) to be the two best teams.

Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls come to the Garden Friday night (Halloween).

See You Next Week Suckas

It isn't official yet but you can be sure the Boston Celtics will play the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. With the regular season almost over, those two teams squared off in Atlanta last night with the Celtics coming away with a 99-89 win.

The Celtics (64-16) swept the season series, 3-0, and didn't give the Hawks (37-43) any confidence going into their matchup next weekend.

Kevin Garnett led the C's with 24 points, six rebounds and four assists. The other star was Sam Cassell, who had 20 points and five assists off the bench. I lost track of how many times he did the big ball dance, needless to say it was beautiful. Ray Allen and Paul Pierce both scored 14 points. Big Baby had eight points and 10 boards.

Joe Johnson had 21 points and eight assists for the Hawks. Al Horford posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Josh Smith scored 17, pulled down six rebounds and blocked four shots. Mike Bibby notched 16 points, eight assists, seven boards and three steals. Finally, Marvin Williams scored 11.

The Celts made their free throws (26-29) while the Hawks (15-24) did not.

Boston was up 55-44 at the half before Atlanta tied it at 74 going into the fourth.

The C's go to the Knicks tomorrow night in what Webster's Dictionary defines as "pointless game."

Did you really think the Celtics would lose on St. Patrick's Day?

Last night could not have started any worse for the Celtics but nobody will remember that as they came away with a thrilling, 93-91 win at the San Antonio Spurs.

Watching championship week on ESPN last week, I remember former Vermont men's basketball coach Tom Brennan talking about how a team getting out to a big lead too early can strangely enough be the kiss of death as they get complacent.

That theory was on display last night as the Spurs (44-23) couldn't do anything wrong for the first quarter and a half. They led Boston (53-13) 28-11 after one quarter and by as much as 22 points in the second before the Celtics fought back to cut it to 10 at the half.

The win was a complete team effort as Sam Cassell (17 points, 5 rebounds) settled down Boston in the second with 10 points while Rajon Rondo (20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals) had his best quarter in the NBA: 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists in the third. Paul Pierce (22 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists) took over in the fourth and Kevin Garnett (21 points, 8 rebounds) was steady all game. Ray Allen missed his second straight game as he recovers from an ankle injury.

The Celts used a 15-2 run to start the third and take the lead. From there, the game was back and forth the rest of the way.

Manu Ginobili (game-high 32 points, 4 rebounds) was unstoppable all game while Tony Parker (17 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds) and especially Tim Duncan (10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks) were shut down when it mattered most.

The fourth quarter had the look and feel of a playoff game. There were big plays all around. Eddie House hit a 3-pointer, Cassell hit a three (prompting Kendrick Perkins on the bench to imitate Sam's big balls dance which Sam obliged him with) and Rajon Rondo turned in the hustle play of the game as he gathered a Garnett miss and was fouled. He calmly hit the two free throws and put Boston up four with under a minute left.

Parker got a layup then KG threw away the ensuing inbounds pass (he was about to be called for 5-seconds) and Bruce Bowen intercepted it. Wouldn't you know, Big Shot Bob-Robert Horry-got a decent look at a 3-pointer (which would have won it) but it hit the side of the rim at the buzzer.

The Celtics also got a break in the fourth when Ginobili's attempt at an And-1 lay-in somehow rimmed out after being down (it spun around for a good two seconds, just wild).

San Antonio was desperate for a win as they've now lost four in a row which is a death sentence in the Western Conference. Impressively, since the end of last season the C's are now 3-0 against the Spurs. Tim Duncan had never lost to them until last St. Patrick's Day.

Things don't get any easier as the Celts go to Houston tonight to take on the Rockets, winners of their last 22 in a row. It's the second-longest streak in NBA history. No guarantees but a win against the Rockets would be another notch on the belt of this team that can once again claim the moniker of best in the league.