Rondo is Long Gone (to Dallas), Time for the Celts to Move On & Accept This Shitty Reality

Here is all you need to know about the current depressing state of the Celtics: their only must-see games anymore involve when links to their successful past return with their new and better teams. As the last link that remained to the 2008 title team, Rajon Rondo played the role of conquering hero last night at TD Garden for his first game back as a Maverick. We all know how he plays in big games and make no mistake, this one meant plenty to Rondo who went off for 29 points (his most in nearly two years) on a career-high five 3-pointers as Dallas crushed Boston 119-101.

Dallas (24-10 overall, 11-5 away) might not be the best team in the Western Conference but the addition of Rondo (6 rebounds, 5 assists) seems like a perfect fit. Barring injuries, there is no reason that team can't make a deep run in the postseason this spring. In addition to the big game performances, Rondo should excel with the wealth of scorers around him: Monta Ellis (22 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals), Dirk Nowitzki (17 points, 7 rebounds) and Chandler Parsons (13 points, 7 rebounds). Tyson Chandler (8 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals) is also still there to do all the dirty work around the hoop.

As always, the Celtics (11-19 overall, 8-10 home) showed the Red Sox how to put together a proper video tribute without going overboard on the awful music and nauseating schmaltz. That was shown after the first quarter where Rondo went off for a career-high 15 points as the Mavs jumped out to a 31-17 lead and frankly never looked back. Boston outscored Dallas 29-28 in the second quarter but the Mavs put it away with a dominant third (33-18). The C's pretended to make it interesting in the fourth (37-27) but come on, it was long over by then.

While Dallas can legitimately think about another title run, the best that Boston can hope for this season is sneaking into the JV Eastern Conference playoffs as the seventh or eighth seed. What a lofty goal, of course any C's fan that knows anything will tell you that ultimately shooting that low is counterproductive to the franchise's return from NBA purgatory (not the worst-hi Sixers and Knicks-but light years away from contenders) to national (not to mention local) relevancy.

Avery Bradley led the Celts with 22 points, while Jeff Green had 18 points and six rebounds, Tyler Zeller put up a double-double (17 points, 10 rebounds) and Jared Sullinger added 12 points and six rebounds. All those players are solid NBA starters but none of them were ever nor will ever be All-Stars. Sadly, the only way to win consistently in the NBA is to accumulate as many stars as you can. As it stands, Boston's only hope to get those (since none want to come here in free agency) is to win the lottery (which they are allergic to). Ugh, Green 18 baby!

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Mavericks Roll In Summer League Style Pretend Game Vs. Celtics

With their dynamic point guard (Rajon Rondo) suspended, their best interior player and soul of the team (Kevin Garnett) out to deal with a personal matter and their best bench scorer (Brandon Bass) sitting with a knee injury, the Boston Celtics should have never bothered to show up in Dallas tonight.

There was no way in hell that the Mavericks (21-12) would lose to the shorthanded Celtics (15-16) and they didn't as Dallas rolled to an easy 89-73 win at the American Airlines Center.

Boston has lost six of its last seven games (since the Lakers loss) to fall back under the .500 mark. The All-Star break couldn't come at a better time for them since they look like the NBA's version of Old Yeller.

Conversely, after a slow start to their title defense, the Mavs have picked it up and won seven of eight mostly thanks to Dirk Nowitzki (26 points, 16 rebounds) getting back in shape. This win gave them the season series with the Celts as Dallas went 2-0.

Paul Pierce led the Celts with 20 points while Ray Allen had 15 and Avery Bradley scored 12. Did I mention that Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Wilcox left with injuries so essentially Greg Stiemsma and JaJuan Johnson were Boston's only big guys left? Is it too early to say I wish this NBA season (not just for the Celtics) was over?

Shawn Marion added 11 points for Dallas while Jason Terry notched 16 points off the bench.

The unofficial end of Boston's first half is Wednesday night in Oklahoma City where they'll get pummeled by the Thunder, with or without KG. This is miserable.

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Sorry Folks, It's Going To Be A Long Season For Our Beloved Boston Celtics

There is no better way to sum up the Celtics's game with the Mavericks tonight at the TD Garden than to list the last few plays in Dallas's 90-85 win.

With 25 seconds left, Paul Pierce shook off a brutal night (7 points) to hit a 3-pointer that tied it at 85. The problem was that there was way too much time left for the Mavs (6-5).

Everybody in the Garden except for apparently Celtics (4-5) head coach Doc Rivers and his team knew that Dirk Nowitzki (16 points, 7 rebounds) would get the last shot for Dallas. Kevin Garnett (16 points, 10 rebounds) was forced to guard him by himself and since this is 2012 and not say 2006, it didn't work. Dirk hit a crazy floater and got fouled with five seconds left. His free throw put Dallas up three points (88-85) with five seconds left.

No problem, the Celtics would get the last shot after all. Except not so much. Rajon Rondo (24 points, 7 assists) threw a crappy bounce pass at Ray Allen's (9 points) ankles and it bounced harmlessly out of bounds. It was over by then but just for good measure, Boston allowed a layup to Jason Terry (18 points) and Allen threw the inbounds pass away as time expired. Yuck.

In summation, this is who the Celtics are in 2011-12: frauds. They can beat up on the dredge of the NBA but when it comes time to play a decent opponent, they fold. This game was right there for them to snatch but all their minor mistakes added up to a particularly bitter loss. They have yet to beat a team that's over .500 this season or one that made the playoffs last season, something to chew on.

Everything that Boston does right now seems more difficult than it should be. Rondo is playing very well and Allen had been great before tonight but Pierce is lost and KG is a shell of his former self.

It's telling that the Celtics only got back into it this evening thanks to a second unit of Avery Bradley (4 points), Brandon Bass (8 points), Keyon Dooling (9 points) and Mickael Pietrus (5 points in his Celtic debut). Their younger legs allowed Rivers to put more ball pressure on the Mavs.

Shawn Marion had 15 points and seven rebounds for Dallas which has now won five of its last six games after starting 1-4. Without Tyson Chandler or J.J. Barea, I don't think they have a prayer of repeating but they'll be a factor in the Western Conference. Starting in place of Jason Kidd, old friend Delonte West had 12 points while Brendan Haywood had eight points and 11 rebounds.

After getting smoked by the Pacers on Friday and having four days off (probably as long as you can have this season in the NBA), the Celtics truly had no excuse for starting off so poorly once again. They got plenty of open looks but none of them were falling.

Dallas led 23-15 after the first quarter but Boston rallied to cut it to 42-41 at halftime. The Mavs pushed it further and were up 68-59 heading into the fourth before withstanding Boston's last spurt (26-22).

The Celts hit nine more free throws (23-14) but the Mavs grabbed eight more rebounds (43-35) including an embarrassing 12-2 edge in offensive boards. Dallas also played more big boy basketball with a 44-30 margin in points in the paint.

Things don't figure to get much better for the C's since this was the start of a three games in four days stretch. They face the Bulls (10-2) on Friday at the Garden before a rematch with the Pacers in Indiana on Saturday night. Chicago won three games in the past three nights showing that they are both legit and not prone to making excuses even though Derrick Rose (last season's MVP) sat out tonight. At this point, I'll be happy if Boston wins either of those games.

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Jason Kidd's dagger helps Mavericks to a season sweep of the Celtics

Catching up with the Boston Celtics' disappointing 101-97 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night at the TD Garden.

It was a good, tight game but Dallas (34-15) seemed to make all the plays down the stretch, including a clutch 3-pointer by ageless Jason Kidd (10 points, 9 assists).

For once, the Celtics (37-12) completely crumbled down the stretch, something we're unaccustomed to seeing from them. I will always hate on the Mavericks for being regular season heroes but it is impressive that they won both games vs. the Celtics this season. I'd love to see them in the NBA Finals but frankly, I don't think Dallas will get through either San Antonio, Oklahoma City or the Lakers.

As always with the Mavs, Dirk Nowitzki was the star with a game-high 29 points. Tyson Chandler has been a great pickup for Dallas, he added 14 points and 15 rebounds while Northeastern product (Huskies!) JJ Barea notched 11 points.

Jason Terry (17 points) and Shawn Marion (13 points, 9 rebounds) were great off the bench in the win.

Speaking of ageless, Ray Allen paced the Celts with 24 points. Kevin Garnett added 16 points, Kendrick Perkins (in his first start this season) put up 13 points and 12 rebounds while Paul Pierce (12 points) and Rajon Rondo (8 points, 12 assists, 3 steals) were more contained.

The one bright spot off the Boston bench was Marquis Daniels (10 points).

Dallas was up 34-27 after the first quarter and 54-51 at halftime. Boston tied it at 77 going into the fourth quarter but the Mavs got it done in the fourth quarter (24-20).

The Celts are back at it tonight against another serious contender: the Orlando Magic come to the Garden for a pre-Super Bowl game. Should be another tight one.

Back to backs are going to be an issue all season, huh?

A win slipped thru the Boston Celtics' hands last night as they suffered a couple defensive breakdowns in crunch time and as a result, lost 89-87 to the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Arena.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks (4-2) with a game-high 25 points and Jason Terry added 17 points off the bench. Not surprisingly, they both made the biggest shots in the win. Terry hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 87 and then Nowitzki hit a mid-range jumper over Glen Davis (8 points).

Boston (6-2) had two chances to tie or win it but an uncontested 3-pointer by Rajon Rondo (11 points, 15 assists, 6 rebounds, 5 steals) and a fadeaway three by Kevin Garnett (18 points, 15 rebounds) are not exactly the first, second or third options in a late-game situation.

Despite having their five-game win streak snapped, this one had some meaning for the Celts since KG had probably his most impressive game yet (3 alley-oops from Rondo). Let's close the book on last season, time has caught up to him somewhat but he's not washed up yet and that's a big development for this team.

Paul Pierce also had a very nice game with 24 points and seven rebounds. Ray Allen had 11 points. Jermaine O'Neal left the contest in the second quarter and didn't return with knee soreness. Can we merge him and Shaq together? There's just no way either of them is healthy for more than half a season apart.

Tyson Chandler had 12 points and 13 rebounds for Dallas, Caron Butler and JJ Barea (Northeastern in the house!) added 11 points apiece and the ageless Jason Kidd had a classic JKidd line: 0 points, 10 assists.

In the second night of a back to back, against two playoff teams, the Celts started off slowly as usual. The Mavs led 23-19 after the first quarter and 50-40 at the half (the first time this season that Boston has trailed by double digits).

Dallas is a team that lives on jumpers (which is why they choke every year in the playoffs) so when those didn't fall in the third quarter, the Cs climbed back in (29-20).

Boston was up by five late in the fourth quarter (19-18 Dallas) but couldn't get enough stops and/or timely buckets to get a nice road victory.

Dallas shot 50.0% to Boston's 41.8%. The Mavs also took 13 more free throws (20-7) and made 10 more (17-7). Boston had four more rebounds (42-38), four more assists (24-20) and five more steals (11-6). Dallas had six more blocks (8-2), showing how little lift there was in Boston's legs (third game in four nights).

The Cs get a couple days off then travel to Miami on Thursday to face LeBron, Wade, Bosh and the Heat for the second time this season. I guess the NBA is taking a page out of MLB's playbook to have overkill early in the regular season of the money matchups (ala Red Sox-Yankees). Thank you Donald Sterns.

PJ Brown is rolling over in his grave

It doesn't take a haughty degree from Harvard or M.I.T to figure out the formula for success for the Celtics. Without KG, they're pretenders; with KG, they're one of the NBA's best teams and a championship contender.

As Kevin Garnett sat out his eighth straight game, the Dallas Mavericks came into the TD Garden last night and beat the Celtics 99-90 behind 37 points from Dirk Nowitzki.

It was Boston's (27-12) third consecutive loss at home as they continue to play better on the road than at home (better road beef?).

Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 24 points, Ray Allen scored 21, Kendrick Perkins had 14 points and 12 rebounds and Rajon Rondo notched 12 assists. Rasheed Wallace added 11 points but when he got in foul trouble, the game shifted in Dallas' (27-14) favor.

The ageless and hairless Jason Kidd had 13 points and 17 assists, Shawn Marion added 16 points and eight rebounds, Erick Dampier scored 11 and Drew Gooden had 10 points off the bench.

The C's were up 25-20 after one quarter and 50-41 at the half but once Wallace went out in the third quarter, Glen Davis and Brian Scalabrine were forced to cover Nowitzki, advantage Mavericks.

Dallas outscored Boston 34-18 in the third and they pushed the lead to as much as 18 points in the fourth while Boston didn't have any type of comeback in them.

Dallas shot 57.4% for the game to Boston's 50.6%. The Celts continue to struggle at the line (8 for 16) while the Mavs (17 for 24) did enough to win.

With KG's possible return looming on Friday vs. the Blazers, the Celts have a very winnable game tomorrow night in Detroit against a garbage Pistons team. A blowout would be just what the Doc (Rivers) ordered.

You almost feel bad for the Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks are a reality TV show. You can't quite look away from whatever they're doing but you know that no matter what, they're frauds that won't ever amount to anything.

A little harsh? Yes but what else can you say after Dallas (31-21) built a 15-point lead last night against the Celtics (31-21) then predictably let it all slip away, 99-92.

It was the last game for both teams before the All-Star break, so what a way for the C's to go into it and conversely, the Mavs and their fans have to be cringing at what's looking like another first-round exit from the playoffs in the spring.

There is no disputing that Dirk Nowitzki is a great NBA player. What is debatable is if he can ever win a championship. For all of his crafty German offensive skills, he's a liability defensively and basically useless if his shot isn't falling.

Nowitzki had a game-high 37 points and eight rebounds but he couldn't do anything down the stretch as Paul Pierce and the Celts showed off their championship mettle.

Pierce scored 18 of his team-high 31 points in the fourth as he consistently isolated on Dallas defenders, who knew it was coming but still couldn't stop him.

Hurt thumb or not, Ray Allen added 20 points, Rajon Rondo posted a juicy triple-double (19 points, 15 rebounds, 14 assists) and Kevin Garnett dropped 16 points.

Boston head coach Doc Rivers received two technicals and got tossed from the game in the third quarter while Garnett also took a technical to fire his team up.

Without Jason Terry, the Mavs lack a consistent second scorer for Dirk. Josh Howard tossed in a quiet 17 points, Antoine Wright scored 10 and the ghost of Jason Kidd handed out 10 assists.

Dallas led 21-17 after one quarter and 51-40 at the half but who could be worried? The Mavs are about as opposite of clutch as you'll find for a team in the NBA.

Boston woke up with a 29-24 third and took it going away with a 30-17 dismantling in the fourth.

Mavs owner Mark Cuban sitting courtside could only weep in his limo on the way home as he wiped his ass with hundred dollar bills.

For the game, the C's shot 48.6% to the Mavs' 39.5%. Boston owned the glass (50-31) and had eight more assists (24-16) which made up for the ton of turnovers (19-8).

The big three will head to Phoenix for All-Star weekend while the rest of the team gets a few days off. With the win, Boston wrestled back the best record in the league. What more could you ask for at this point?

Suck It Cuban

Regardless of what happens tomorrow night in New Orleans against the Hornets, the Celtics road trip has to be considered wildly successful.

With last night's 94-90 win over the Mavericks (44-25), the Celtics (55-13) completed the extremely rare sweep of the dreaded Texas Triangle. In doing so, they became the first team since the Kings in Nov. 2001 to complete the task.

After missing the last three games, Ray Allen came back with a vengeance last night, hitting the biggest shot of the game (a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left that put the C's up two). Allen sat for a good portion of the fourth but he still managed 21 points. Paul Pierce (22 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks) and Kevin Garnett (20 points, 13 rebounds, 3 steals) also did some fine work all game.

The key to the win for Boston was its defense. Josh Howard led the Mavs with 24 points and six rebounds while Dirk Nowitzki had 22 points, 19 boards and six turnovers. Jerry Stackhouse added 17 points while Erick Dampier and Brandon Bass both notched 10. Oh and since the Mavericks picked up Jason Kidd (2 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals), they're 0-7 against teams over .500

For the game, Boston held Dallas to 39.3% from the floor. The C's are now 24-2 when they hold opponents under 40%. Even though Boston couldn't shoot (34.5%), they got to the line more (30-35 vs. 18-24) and took advantage.

Nowitzki was having a great game until the fourth quarter-a common theme to him this season. He was 0-6 in the fourth and only scored on two free throws while the C's continually harassed him into forced, tough shots.

Boston also made the most of its steals advantage (10-2) and only turned the ball over eight times which is amazing on the road.

All of this offset some terrible shooting by almost every Celtic. Rajon Rondo (0-7) and Sam Cassell (1-9) combined to go 1-16, Pierce was 6-14, Allen was 7-17 and KG was 7-22. James Posey was another standout, with 12 points (including a clutch 3-pointer) and four rebounds.

The road trip comes to a close tomorrow night as Boston travels to New Orleans to take on the only team they haven't played yet in the NBA this season. Everyone keeps waiting for the Hornets to fade but they're back in the top spot in the West so they seem pretty legit. It'll be fun to see Chris Paul (currently the best point guard on the planet) up close. I feel like he should be getting much more MVP consideration for the job he's done so far.

Celts beat Mavs without KG

Last night marked the first time that Boston faced one of the top teams in the West (Pheonix, San Antonio, Dallas) as the Mavericks came to the Garden for a TNT nationally-televised contest. Playing once again without Kevin Garnett, the Celts (36-8) got just enough from Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Co. to hold off the Mavs, 96-90 in a game that had the feel of a playoff game in May, especially in the second half.

The All Star reserves were named yesterday and while Pierce deservedly made it, Ray Allen did not (just like I said he shouldn't). Who knows if that was a big motivating factor but Allen came out on fire, scoring 15 in the first quarter and 22 in the first half, on the way to a team-high 26 points. Pierce also had 26 points and six rebounds.

Dirk Nowitzki (game-high 31 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocks) made the stacked West all star team but teammate Josh Howard (19 points, 6 rebounds) failed to do so. Dallas (31-14) was starting a tough three game stretch in the East against Boston, Detroit and Orlando, without point guard Devin Harris, who is out for the next few weeks with an ankle injury. The always overrated Jason Terry (13 points, 6 assists) didn't impress.

Boston was up 27-20 after the first quarter but Dallas won the second quarter, 24-17 to send it to halftime tied at 44.

Rajon Rondo (14 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists) had a great all-around game, showing off his crazy athletic ability. James Posey (13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals) and Leon Powe (10 points, 4 rebounds) were big sparks off the bench.

The Celts were up one going into the fourth and it stayed tight the rest of the way. The outcome came down to a couple huge plays by some unlikely Boston heroes. First, when it was tied at 90, Rondo ripped away a offensive rebound under the basket from the 7-foot Dirk and put it off the glass for two. Then Posey had steals on back-to-back Mavericks possessions and hit all four of his free throws to ice it.

The Mavs were terrible from 3 (4 of 22) while the Celts were 5 of 11. Both teams were automatic from the line, Boston was 25 of 29, Dallas was 24 of 28. Dallas had more assists (20-13) but they also had more turnovers (13-8). It was a very well-played game between two solid NBA teams.

It was easily one of the best wins of the season for the C's as they proved that they can beat an elite team without KG. It's something that they surely don't want to make a habit of but at least they know they're pretty good by themselves. They have the next few days off and don't play again until Tuesday night in Cleveland against LeBron and the Cavs.