Trading Rajon Rondo Had to Happen, Still The Next Few Years are Going to Suck for the Celtics

I can't ever remember another guy in recent Boston sports history that was squarely on the trading block for longer than point guard Rajon Rondo. That's what made today seem almost like a relief since we knew this was coming literally for years: Boston traded their mercurial star and rookie forward Dwight Powell to Dallas for a package of scrubs (Brendan Wright, Jae Crowder and Jameer Nelson) along with a conditional first-round pick in 2015, a second-round pick in 2016 and $12.9 million trade exception.

It's easy to tear apart the underwhelming return they got for a four-time All-Star but keep in mind a couple key factors: 1) Rondo is a free agent next summer so Boston risked losing him and getting nothing back. 2) The Celtics aren't going anywhere this season and probably the next few so it didn't make much sense to try to rebuild around him, especially when they drafted his replacement (Marcus Smart) last summer in the lottery. 3) He plays his best with many talented guys around him and in the biggest games, two things that are really lacking these days for the C's.

Rondo was by far the longest tenured Celtic, he was 21st overall draft pick in 2006 and traded here from Phoenix. He helped Boston win an NBA title in his second season and also get back to the NBA Finals in 2010. The last few years frankly have been a mess since he blew out his knee two seasons ago, causing him to play only 38 games in 2012-13 and 30 games in 2013-14. He is still a triple-double machine, more so than anyone else in the league but the obvious warts in his game (namely shooting of any kind and now even free throws) make him so unique but also supremely frustrating. He currently leads the NBA in assists per game (10.8) and 7.5 rebounds per game is far and away a career-high thus far but his 8.3 points per game is the lowest since his rookie year.

He will turn 29 in February so naturally Rondo is looking for a max deal that will set him up for the rest of his life. The problem is that he's not quite that type of player anymore, or at least he never would be in Boston's current state of nothingness. Going to Dallas is about as good a situation as he could ask for: a team a couple years removed from a championship that is filled with veterans, winners and most importantly shooters and scorers. He should put up big numbers in the loaded Western Conference and everyone across the country will fall in love with his game all over again.

So where does this leave the Celtics? Rondo has always been a diva and the furthest thing from a leader, not the type of guy you want all their young players to emulate so getting him out of here shouldn't make that much of a difference (after all they were 9-14 with him playing for a contract). All they can bank on is the eight first-round picks that Boston owns in the next four years. Their two main recruiting tools for free agents-head coach Doc Rivers and Rondo-are both gone now making it nearly impossible to attract any marquee names. This speaks to a larger issue in the NBA but basically, the Celts have to win the lottery or get a very high pick (something which they are allergic to) in order to get back to relevance. These last few years have not been fun at all, I know I can barely sit through a quarter let alone an entire game and honestly, Rondo was one of the only reasons I'd ever tune in.

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Celtics Survive Overtime In Orlando, 116-110

I'm not saying that it's right but it is at least understandable that the Celtics would have a letdown after their emotional win against the Thunder on Friday-their best victory of the young season. Luckily for them, tonight they played the Magic and not a better team that probably would have beaten them.

Boston (8-6, 4-3 away) needed overtime at the Amway Center but they outlasted Orlando (5-8, 4-3 home) 116-110. Kevin Garnett had a game-high 24 points and 10 rebounds, Paul Pierce scored 23 and Rajon Rondo just missed out on a triple-double with 15 points, 16 assists and nine rebounds.

Brandon Bass (13 points, 12 rebounds) added a double-double while Leandro Barbosa (15 points) and Jared Sullinger (11 points, 6 rebounds) were stellar off the bench for the Celts.

Some of the Magic took a time machine back to their college days as J.J. Redick had a team-high 21 points off the bench, Jameer Nelson scored 20 while Arron Afflalo had 15 points and seven assists and former Celtic Glen Davis added 15 points and seven rebounds. Josh McRoberts had 14 rebounds and former Celtic E'Twaun Moore notched eight points.

For once, Boston dominated inside-something which is very rare these days. They outscored Orlando 60-34 in the paint, grabbed nine more rebounds (51-42) and had eight more points off turnovers (23-15) thanks to Rondo's excellent performance.

The Celtics return home for a few days of practice followed by a rematch with the Nets (8-4, 2nd in Atlantic Division) on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., CSN). It'll be basically two weeks (Thursday, November 15) since Brooklyn edged Boston 102-97. They are a quality team now and not the pushover they have been in recent years.

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Celtics Win The Atlantic Division, Clinch No. 4 Seed In The Eastern Conference

Tonight's Celtics-Magic game had a slight feel of a JV game since both teams were missing their best players (Rajon Rondo and Dwight Howard respectively) but that didn't stop Boston from picking up a very meaningful win.

With their 102-98 triumph at TD Garden, the Celts (37-26, 22-9 home) clinched the Atlantic Division title (their 5th in a row) and also the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Woo homecourt advantage (for one round at least)!

The Celtics are 22-9 since the All-Star break.

Right now, Orlando (36-26, 16-14 away) is in sixth place, meaning that Boston would face No. 5 Atlanta (37-25) in the first round. There are still three games left for the C's and four for the Magic and Hawks to sort that out.

Paul Pierce (29 points, 14 assists) played point forward with Rondo sitting and he set a career-high in dimes in the process, not too shabby. Avery Bradley scored 23 points and Brandon Bass had 21 points. Kevin Garnett put up 15 points and nine rebounds.

Glen Davis (27 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals) played like this was the most meaningful game in his life and knowing him, it probably was. Jameer Nelson had 21 points and nine assists, J.J. Redick had 13 points, Ryan Anderson notched 12 points and nine rebounds while Jason Richardson scored 11 points.

The Celts are off until Friday when they travel to Atlanta for their final road game of the regular season. Doc Rivers should pull a Gregg Popovich and not even let the Big 4 travel with the team. Their work is done for the next week.

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Oh my, not again

For a team up 3-1, with another chance to close out and get to the NBA Finals (for the second time in three years), it's hard to imagine a more batshit crazy game than last night's Eastern Conference Finals Game 5 between the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic.

When the dust had settled on a wacky and shady contest, the Magic had won 113-92 at Amway Arena, sending the game back to Boston for basically a must-win Game 6 tomorrow night at the TD Garden.

Things are complicated by the fact that Glen Davis and Marquis Daniels both sustained concussions last night, Rasheed Wallace fouled out but then left the bench with back spasms and Kendrick Perkins was tossed for two technical fouls. Since Perk has seven, he could have been suspended for Game 6 but the NBA wisely rescinded one of the two pathetic calls.

Got all that?

The refs were a joke and did nothing to dissuade anyone from saying that the NBA is rigged. Still, Orlando dominated this game physically and found their game (going 13-for-25 on 3-pointers).

I'm doing my best not to make a Bruins reference but the similarities are eerie. The team down 3-0 wins Game 4 in OT then in a Game 5 blowout. Yikes. And for a playoff schedule that is ridiculously long, it figures that the Celts have no time to rest as their bodies pile up on the sidelines.

For the second game in a row, Jameer Nelson (24 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) and Dwight Howard (21 points, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks) were the two best players on the floor. Rashard Lewis even found a way to brave his stomach virus and was effective with 14 points and seven assists. J.J. Redick continued to outplay Vince Carter, adding 14 points.

Sheed actually led Boston with 21 points in just 18 minutes. Rajon Rondo (19 points, 6 assists) and Paul Pierce (18 points) but they shot a combined 12-for-29 from the field. Kevin Garnett (10 points) and Ray Allen (9 points) were non-factors.

This was a game that the Magic owned from start to finish; they led 31-27 after one quarter and 57-49 at the half. The C's were able to cut it to six a couple times in the second half but with their lack of healthy, in rhythm players, they were cooked.

Orlando owned all the numbers: shooting 52.2% to Boston's 43.1%. The Magic made six more threes and five more free throws with 17 more rebounds.

The fact that Shelden Williams and Brian Scalabrine could see minutes in the most important game of the season is horrifying but here we are. Big Baby said after the game that he'll play but after losing a tooth and stumbling around the court last night after being elbowed by Howard, he clearly was messed up.

Magic lose for the first time since April 2

Remember when nobody gave the Celtics a chance heading into the 2010 playoffs? It seems like a long time ago since they knocked out the Cavs and yesterday beat Orlando 92-88 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Amway Arena.

Boston played great for the first three quarters, leading by as much as 20 and although the Magic cut it to two points with eight seconds left, the Celts hit their free throws to ice it.

It was shockingly easy against a team that had won all eight of its playoff games and 14 overall. They hadn't lost since April 2 and it's clear that they didn't know how to react to getting their ass kicked.

Ray Allen led the Celts with 25 points and seven rebounds while Paul Pierce notched 22 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Rasheed Wallace scored 13 off the bench, Kevin Garnett had eight points and 11 rebounds, Rajon Rondo added eight points and eight assists while Tony Allen and Glen Davis had six points off the bench.

Vince Carter (23 points) and Jameer Nelson (20 points, 9 rebounds) were the only Magic players to show up. Dwight Howard (13 points, 12 rebounds, 5 blocks) still looks like a guy that can't solve the defense of Perk, Sheed and Big Baby.

Boston led 22-14 after the first quarter and 41-32 at the end of the ugly first half. The Celts were able to take the third quarter (33-26) which let them hang on in the fourth (30-18 for Orlando).

Orlando is the best 3-point shooting team in the NBA but they looked nothing like that team yesterday, shooting 5-for-22. They had seven more rebounds (45-38) but the C's did a much better job spreading it around (21-10 assists).

Is it too early to call Game 2 a must-win for the Magic? I don't think so; no doubt they'll play ten times better than yesterday but if the Celtics can pull out another road win, this series could be over quickly.

The Celtics can't beat good teams, simple as that

Remember when the Celtics consistently beat the NBA's best teams? On the road, at home, back-to-back, it didn't matter.

Times have changed as the Celts are still a good team but right now, nobody can say that they're great.

Thanks to a coma in the third quarter (36-11), Boston (32-17) choked away an 11-point halftime lead and lost to the Orlando Magic (34-17) 96-89 yesterday afternoon at the TD Garden.

That wrapped up the season series with the Magic taking it 3-1. Overall, the Celtics are 1-7 against Orlando and Atlanta this season, two teams they are very likely to see in the playoffs.

Vince Carter led Orlando with 20 points and Dwight Howard battled foul trouble but still managed 16 points and 13 rebounds. Jameer Nelson had 15 points, Rashard Lewis scored 14 points and Matt Barnes added 11 points.

Rajon Rondo nearly had a triple double with 17 points, eight rebounds, nine assists and three steals. Ray Allen added 14 points, Kevin Garnett had 13 points and nine rebounds while Paul Pierce scored 13 after missing the last two games.

Key reserve Marquis Daniels after missing just over two months of action and scored eight points off the bench.

Boston led 24-23 after the first quarter and 51-40 at halftime in one of their best halves of the season. Of course, they juxtaposed this with their usual third quarter/second half meltdown.

The C's outscored the Magic 27-20 in the fourth and cut it down to five points but it was too late. A 19-0 Orlando run in the third quarter, thanks to some great outside shooting, put them in control for the rest of the contest.

Boston has one more game before the All-Star break as they travel to New Orleans (good timing) on Wednesday night to play the Hornets minus star point guard Chris Paul.

Celtics take back mantle of NBA's best

With last night's thrilling 90-80 win over the Orlando Magic at the Amway Arena, the Boston Celtics proved once again that they are the team to beat in the Eastern Conference and the NBA as a whole.

The Cavs lost Delonte West to a broken wrist last week so they're just a notch below and while the Magic (33-9) had been playing great-they came in winners of seven straight-they're not the defending champions.

The C's (36-9) have gotten back to their defensive roots that led them to the title and the 27-2 start this season. The win was their seventh in a row.

On a night when the NBA All-Star starters were announced, Paul Pierce proved why he's NBA elite, even if he'll have to make the East squad as a reserve.

The Truth had a game-high 27 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Kevin Garnett had 16 points and five rebounds. The key to the win, other than the air-tight D was the play of Glen Davis. Big Baby had a season-high 16 points and actually outplayed Magic center Dwight Howard (11 points, 11 rebounds, 3 blocks), who he covered most of the time he was in.

Ray Allen added 12 points, Rajon Rondo had nine points and eight rebounds and Kendrick Perkins managed seven points, seven boards and two blocks in 25 minutes as Doc Rivers tries to ease him back into the lineup.

Orlando has one of the best starting fives in the league but where they might run into trouble in the playoffs is their pathetic bench. It combined for a measly ten points last night.

Hedo Turkoglu led the Magic with 22 points and Rashard Lewis had a double-double himself with 20 points and 10 rebounds but it wasn't enough. Jameer Nelson notched 17 points.

The C's led 24-19 after the first quarter and 44-36 at the half. That lead was extended to 65-54 and Boston was able to hold off Orlando in the fourth (26-25 Magic).

For the game, the Celts shot 46.7% to the Magic's 38.2%. That offset the fact that Boston didn't make a 3-pointer (0-6) and Orlando had seven.

The Green and White came home and will face the up and down Dallas Mavericks on Sunday afternoon at the Garden.