Last Season Dennis Schroder Bet Big On Himself & That Didn't Turn Out So Well, Now He's A Celtic

    We have reached that sad dead zone in NBA free agency where almost all of the top players have long been scooped up and teams are left to fight over the crumbs or in this case, flawed guys that have shown flashes here or there but not enough to be more coveted. Enter guard Dennis Schroder: you might remember him as the bozo that for some unknown reason (was it a terrible agent or his irrational self-worth?) turned down a four-year, $84 million extension last spring with the Lakers. He didn't have a bad 2020-21 by any measure: in 61 starts for LA, he averaged 15.4 points per game, 5.8 assists per game and 1.1 steals per game. Apparently, that didn't impress anyone though (or maybe he's just a complete prick?) since he was still available until this evening when the Celtics reportedly agreed to a one-year contract with him for the mid-level exception ($5.9 million). 

    Boston will be the mercurial German's fourth NBA team (Atlanta and Oklahoma City being the others) in only nine seasons and with any luck, this will be the NBA equivalent of a one-night stand: quite enjoyable for both parties but ultimately nothing more lasting than that. Schroder will want to have a monster season individually with the C's so that when he goes back to free agency next summer, he will get paid much closer to that boatload of money that he laughably left on the table for the Lakers. Likewise, the Celtics desperately needed a starting point guard and this way, they aren't forced to shoehorn Marcus Smart into that spot every game or better yet, they can finally trade him. Haha yeah right, I'll believe that when I see it even with Danny Ainge out of the picture

    It has been an interesting ride in the NBA for Dennis The Menace (I can only assume that fantastic nickname hasn't caught on more because it's too dated?). He was a first-round pick-17th overall-for the Hawks in 2013 and after basically a redshirt year in his rookie season, he averaged 10 points per game his second season and that continued to go up his next three years in A-Town before they flipped him to the Thunder in a massive three-team trade that also involved the Sixers. After two pretty solid seasons in rebuilding OKC, he got to play with LeBron James for one fleeting campaign in LA. There are a couple notable Celtics connections to Schroder: as a Hawk, he had some epic playoff battles with the Celts early in his NBA career. Furthermore, he and former Boston point guard Rajon Rondo are mortal enemies that seem to legitimately hate each other and they always get into a hilarious shoving and shouting match every time that their numerous teams meet.

    The bottom line is that this should be an enjoyable hookup for both Schroder and Boston since nobody can deny his talent: his career-highs are 19.4 points per game (2017-18 w/ATL), 6.3 assists per game (the previous season with the Hawks) and those 1.1 steals per game (twice). You wish that he was a better shooter (just 33.7% career on 3-pointers) which no doubt makes Smart smile but at least he's a good free throw shooter (83.1% for his career). Dennis is listed at 6-foot-3 but only 172 pounds so new Celtics head coach Ime Udoka will surely need to be creative at times to protect him defensively and let the much bigger and stronger Smart take on the league's larger guards. I never thought in my life that I'd cheer for this joker but as long as he doesn't act like too much of a jackass, this is a solid move by Brad Stevens so late in free agency. Realistically, you couldn't have expected a much better player than him and we all like Payton Pritchard but he should never be more than a backup guard at this level.  

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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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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Hey It Could Always Be Worse: The Celtics Are Way Better than the Lakers

Just like in life, sometimes in sports you need the occasional reminder that as bad as things may temporarily appear, there is always another player/team/fan base/city that has it much worse. That truism was on display tonight at TD Garden as the NBA's former greatest rivalry played not on national TV (when does that ever happen?) as the Celtics (6-11 overall, 4-7 home) beat the Lakers (5-15 overall, 3-7 away) 113-96.

It is easy to get depressed regarding the Celts, believe me that's why I rarely write about their soul-crushing defeats, but seeing LA up close was a reminder that they are in much worse shape both this season and going forward. Love him or hate him, I think most would have to admit that Kobe Bryant (22 points) is one of the greatest players of all-time in the NBA. In his 18th season and at age 36, he's still very good but the issue is that Los Angeles has surrounded him with a bunch of stiffs and nobodies, many of whom would be better served playing in the NBDL or on the Sixers.

LA's next highest scorer was Nick Young who had 16 points off the bench. Harvard's Jeremy Lin added 14 points, Jordan Hill notched 13 points and Wayne Ellington came in with 11 points off the bench. That's it, Carlos Boozer and Wesley Johnson who both started combined for two points. Haha how is that possible? The Lakers are stuck with Kobe for next year but other than rigging the lottery (miss you David Stern!), it's hard to figure how they'll work themselves out of this pickle.

Every Boston starter had at least 12 points led by Tyler Zeller with his career-high 24 points and 14 rebounds. Rajon Rondo barely missed out on a triple-double (12 points, 16 assists, 8 rebounds), Jared Sullinger had a double-double (17 points, 13 rebounds, 2 steals), Jeff Green scored 19 points and Avery Bradley rounded out the group with 16 points. The Celtics only got 25 total points from its bench but it obviously didn't cost them.

Coupled with Wednesday's overtime win vs. Detroit, this is only the second time this season that the C's have won two games in a row. The Celts got off to a good start, leading 30-20 after the first quarter. The Lakers cut it to 53-48 by halftime but then Boston hit them with a third quarter similar to the first (33-22). Normally, no lead is safe when the Celtics are in front but the Lakers are the rare exception where you can overlook them. Boston outscored LA 27-26 in the fourth.

When you see the final numbers, it is kind of amazing that the Lakers were even able to keep it relatively close for a while. Boston shot 9.8% better from the field (51.1-41.3%), grabbed 16 more rebounds (54-38), dished out more than twice as many assists (29-14) and made three times as many steals (6-2). As if that wasn't enough, the Celts also scored 20 more fast break points (27-7) and eight more points in the paint (54-46).

The next game for the Celtics should look way different since the Wizards (13-5 overall, 1st in Southeast Division) come to the Garden on Sunday afternoon (1, CSN) as one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. If it inevitably gets ugly, the C's should take heart in the fact that nobody but their friends and family will be watching on an NFL Sunday and with the Revolution in the 2014 MLS Cup that same afternoon (3, ESPN).

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Celtics Open 2014-15 Season With Low Expectations By Blowing Out the Nets

It is only one game so there is no need to call the Duck Boats quite yet but even the most cynical Celtics fan (points at self) has to admit that tonight's 121-105 demolition of the Nets at TD Garden was one hell of a way to start off the 2014-2015 regular season. For a team pegged to be a lottery team (again) with no hope of getting to .500, this result makes you wonder if we're simply underestimating the C's in year two under head coach Brad Stevens.

For the first time since 2002, Boston had eight guys score in double figures including all five starters (who each hit a 3-pointer as well). Rajon Rondo (13 points, 12 assists, 7 rebounds) surprisingly started despite his recent broken hand. Naturally he flirted with a triple-double in 30 minutes of action. Kelly Olynyk led Boston with 19 points and six rebounds. Jeff Green had 17 points, six rebounds and two steals. Avery Bradley scored 15 points and Jared Sullinger rounded out (no pun intended, he's fat!) the starting five with 13 points and two blocks.

Paul Pierce is now with the Wizards and Kevin Garnett (10 points, 6 rebounds) entered his 20th (!) NBA campaign, this has to be his final go-around. The Nets got rid of bozo head coach Jason Kidd for the not wanted Lionel Hollins but it probably doesn't matter who is in charge because they have no clear direction. Some Yugoslavian rookie named Mirza Teletovic, a power forward, led the Nets with a game-high 20 points, six rebounds and two blocks off the bench in 23 minutes. He'll be starting in no time if he keeps up that type of production.

Brooklyn's old guy backcourt of Deron Williams (19 points, 8 assists) and Joe Johnson (19 points, 6 rebounds) would be quite a combination say five years ago but in 2014, you know that Williams will either get hurt, disinterested or both before Christmas. Former Worcester Academy (look it up) star Jarrett Jack added 11 points off the bench for the Nets, he always seems to play well vs. Boston.

Three of the newest Celtics, rookie Marcus Smart (4 steals), Marcus Thornton and Evan Turner (7 rebounds, 5 assists) all scored 10 points off the bench. The C's might not have the best starting five in the Atlantic Divison, let alone the Eastern Conference but it appears that they'll have way more depth than last season so that's worth something, right?

This was simply never remotely competitive as Boston led 32-23 after the first quarter and 67-41 at halftime. To put it into context, they only had one 20+ point lead previously in 2014 (last season). The Celtics outscored the Nets 34-31 in the third quarter before Brooklyn's scrubs made it a little more respectable in the fourth (33-20) but not really.

All these young guys on the Celts will have a few days to hear how great they look before things get real with a trip to Houston (2-0) on Saturday (8, CSN) followed by a meeting in Dallas (0-1) on Monday (8:30, CSN). Those are two definite playoff teams in the always loaded Western Conference and Boston typically plays poorly in Texas so it figures to be a different story from this evening's fun.

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Can Anything Go Right For the Celtics These Days?

When the sobering news came out on Friday night that Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo had broken his left hand, it felt like a cruel joke to a team that currently has no good luck whatsoever. It was dutifully reported by Celtics reporters that he slipped in the shower at his house, haha yeah OK. Regardless of how it happened (as long as it wasn't a domestic issue, who cares?), it casts an even deeper depression over what already promised to be another Lottery-bound season for the Green and White.

Training camp opens on Monday with their first preseason game scheduled for a week after that vs. Philadelphia. PS did you know there are eight preseason games, why exactly? Their regular season opener is October 29 vs. Brooklyn (who no longer has Paul Pierce) at TD Garden.

The ripple effects of this injury to Boston's best player are large: Rondo had surgery today but he's expected to miss between six and eight weeks so he could be out until Thanksgiving. Can the Celtics just skip this sure-to-be miserable campaign? Ugh, what a mess. I'm sure plenty of know-it-alls will fault the C's for not trading him last season (or earlier) when they had a chance. They stubbornly stuck by him as they try to rebuild one of the NBA's marquee franchises that has become completely irrelevant the last few years.

Rondo was misleadingly durable his first few seasons but I guess it makes sense that injuries are starting to pile up now (elbow, ACL, hand) since he's tiny by the NBA's cartoonish standards. He missed 95 games in the past two seasons so that total will only increase. This also means that Phil Pressey and rookie Marcus Smart (Rondo's understudy) will get much more playing time from day one which is slightly horrifying especially if your name is Brad Stevens and you'd like to win in the NBA at some point.

There just is no positive way to spin this for the Celtics. To make matters worse for all parties involved, Rondo is an unrestricted free agent after 2014-15 so his value will be even lower and I doubt there would be a real market for him. So neither he nor the team can really cash in on his unique talents. As if it hadn't already begun, I guess it's officially time to start the countdown for Tankapalooza Part 2. Haha Boston is bound to win the draft lottery at some point, right? Actually, don't answer that.

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Four More Years of Waiting for Avery Bradley to Rehab His Various Injuries, Awesome

NBA free agency opened yesterday at midnight but the rebuilding Celtics didn't make any moves until this morning: they re-signed guard Avery Bradley to a four-year deal worth $32 million (a slight improvement from the $3.58 million he was going to make in 2014-15). As always with professional contracts, it's not my money or your money so really does it matter? Still, it is easy to question both the length and amount of money for a guy that has missed considerable time in all four of his NBA seasons.

Bradley is still very young (turning 24 in November) and he's coming off by far the best year of his career: 14.9 points per game, 3.8 rebounds per game, 1.1 steals per game, 80% on free throws, 44% from the field and 40% on 3-pointers. Coming out of Texas after one year, he was a terrible shooter but I'll give him credit that he's really improved that along with his overall offensive game. He's been an excellent defender from day one.

The troubling number for him (and I would always argue that it's the most important) is games played: he played 31 in his rookie season (2010-11), 64 the next season, 50 in 2012-13 and 60 last season. Looking at all his various injuries is like playing a game of operation: both shoulders and ankles. The scary part is that with the physical way he plays, particularly on defense, I don't see how magically one day he'll stop picking up injuries at this alarming rate.

The other part about this and perhaps the most relevant to the bigger picture with the Celts is how does it affect Rajon Rondo? Boston drafted guards Marcus Smart and James Young last week then reportedly pursued Isaiah Thomas when free agency opened. Danny Ainge has talked about three or four guard lineups but honestly, what planet does he live on? Don't give us that crap. All indications are that Rondo is going to be traded which is the preferred route rather than simply letting him walk in free agency next summer.

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Celtics Keep Their 2014 Draft Picks (For Now) To Select Marcus Smart & James Young

After months and months of anticipation (remember how terrible last season was for the Celtics?), finally tonight was the 2014 NBA Draft. Boston kept both of their picks (No. 6 and No. 17; none in the second round) and chose Oklahoma State guard Marcus Smart along with Kentucky swingman James Young. Right up there with mock drafts, I think that instant analysis the night of the event is ridiculous so I'll hold off pretending to predict the future in terms of their NBA careers.



What I can say with confidence after watching him for two seasons as a Cowboy is that Smart is a winner: tough, dependable, competitive and athletic. The main knock on him is that he can't shoot but I think he does so many other things well that it's not a huge deal. I have to admit that I know much less about Young who left Kentucky after his freshman year (where they went to the NCAA Championship game and lost to UConn). He's a lefty and outstanding 3-point shooter.

The natural reaction to these selections for Celtics fans has to be wondering what this all means in terms of Rajon Rondo. You only need so many guards on an NBA team so you question if he'll be dealt at some point this summer. Still, if they hope to land Kevin Love in a trade or attract marquee free agents (keep dreaming), Rondo is the only way to accomplish that successfully.



Smart could have been the No. 1 pick if he came out after his freshman season. Young seemed to get better as his only season with the Wildcats went on, particularly in the NCAA Tournament. They are both youngsters: James is only 18 (@realjamesyoung on Twitter) and turns 19 in August while Marcus (@smart_MS3) is 20. I can't remember if the Celtics are participating in a Summer League but if so, you can bet their two newest draft picks will be in it.



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Unless We're Talking About Disney World, Orlando is Pretty Useless

If the Celtics don't get a top pick in June's NBA Draft, one of the first things we'll blame (other than the basketball Gods of course) is the Orlando Magic. Why? Well with Boston's (16-33 overall, 10-15 home) 96-89 win this afternoon at TD Garden, the Celts finished their season series with the Magic (13-36 overall, 3-22 away) 3-1, ugh.

The rare victory for the Celtics snapped a four-game losing streak. It might have been the product of playing another team doing everything they can not to win but Rajon Rondo (19 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals in only 27 minutes) looked way better than any of his other eight performances since returning Jan. 17 vs. Lakers. It was his first double-double of the season and most surprising, he was 9 of 11 from the field including a 3-pointer.

Nobody has ever debated whether Jared Sullinger (21 points, 12 rebounds) was better than Glen Davis (15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals) but this contest served as a further example of how much higher Sullinger's ceiling can be if only he stays healthy for a full season.

Brandon Bass, who was traded for Davis, also played better than the clown they call Big Baby with 19 points and nine rebounds. Avery Bradley (17 points) returned after missing the last five games with a sprained ankle.

Arron Afflalo led Orlando with 18 points, underrated Nikola Vucevic had a double-double (14 points, 11 rebounds), Tobias Harris added 13 points and five rebounds while promising rookie Victor Oladipo notched 12 points and five assists even though he was bricktastic (3 for 16 from the field, woof!).

Boston has rarely won this season but even more strange to see is them leading from start to finish. The C's were up 27-19 after the first quarter, 54-45 at halftime and 71-64 heading into the fourth quarter. Thanks for playing, Magic.

The Celts shot 8.7% better from the field (50-41.3%), grabbed five more rebounds (44-39) and handed out six more assists (24-18) thanks to Rondo's re-emergence.

It seems like Boston has played a round-robin tournament lately with the other teams in the Eastern Conference trying to tank. After losing on a fantastic Evan Turner buzzer-beater for the Sixers on Wednesday, they go to Philadelphia (15-33 overall, 5th in Atlantic Division) this Wednesday (7, CSN & 98.5 FM).

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Doc Rivers Says Goodbye To Boston, Starts New NBA Journey With Clippers

We can't let this bizarre ending that dragged on far too long overshadow the important point: Doc Rivers was wildly successful in his nine years as head coach of the Celtics and was a big part of them being relevant again in the NBA. Now that it appears his time is over in Boston with reports of him going to the Clippers and signing a three-year deal worth $21 million (in return for a first-round draft pick in 2015), we can look back and fully appreciate the excellent run that he had with the Celts.

Doc started out in Boston in 2004-05. The dysfunctional team that he inherited went 45-37 but lost to the Pacers in a seven-game first round series complete with Paul Pierce's meltdown at the postgame press conference with a ridiculous bandage on his head. To get good again, the Celts truly had to bottom out which they successfully did in the next two seasons. Tanking put them in prime position to get the No. 1 or 2 pick (Greg Oden or Kevin Durant) in 2007's draft but as it turned out the ping pong balls didn't bounce their way and they were stuck with the No. 5 pick.

That's when things changed though as Danny Ainge traded for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen which totally transformed the franchise and returned it to the glory days with a title in their first season, a return to the Finals two years later (2010) and one last memorable run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2012 vs. Miami.

Let's not get it twisted, coaching in the NBA is largely akin to a babysitting position and less of a teaching role than in MLB, NHL or NFL. More so than any of those other three professional sports, it's a player's league. That's no disrespect to Rivers, he's a very good coach but most importantly, he could handle the huge egos in the Celtics' locker room. It also didn't hurt that he was great with the media (he used to be a fine NBA broadcaster) and a standup guy to boot with the All-American family of athletes. These are admirable qualities and not something you find in your average NBA lifer who has no personality or coaching acumen.

Doc Rivers came to the Celtics at the perfect time and as a result, he was transformed into one of the most well respected coaches in the NBA. His regular season record in Boston was 416-305 (.577%) and playoff record was 59-47 (.557%). He coached in the NBA All-Star Game twice (2008 and 2011) and his teams made the playoffs in seven of nine seasons.

Who can blame him for wanting out? Everybody knows that the C's are about to embark on another rebuilding project that will center around the mercurial Rajon Rondo. Doc has plenty of other interests and he doesn't want to be a coach for life which means after paying his dues once, he wants to coach a contender. The Clippers certainly fit the bill-assuming they re-sign Chris Paul. Rivers leaves impossibly big shoes to fill and I have no clue who the Celtics will choose to replace him. They can go with a young, energetic no-name guy (think Tom Thibodeau) or perhaps an NBA retread like George Karl or Lionel Hollins who have surprisingly found themselves out of a job this spring after leading their respective squads to the playoffs.

It'll be a busy couple weeks for the Celtics as they look for a new head coach, draft a player on Thursday (No. 16) and decide whether to buy out Pierce by June 30 or have him return next season.

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The Celtics' Luck At The Moment Could Be A Little Better: Sullinger Is Out For The Season

The hits keep coming hard this week for the Celtics: five days after Rajon Rondo's season was deemed over with a torn ACL, today we learned that rookie Jared Sullinger had back surgery this morning so he's also out for the rest of the season. Ugh.

Just when we were slowly getting a little interest to see what Boston could do without Rondo, they suffer another serious blow. Clearly, I'm not equating Sullinger's value to Rondo's but we can all agree that he had been a bright spot and seemed to be getting better all season long. He averaged 6.0 points, 5.9 rebounds and shot .49% from the floor plus 75% from the free throw line in 19.8 minutes per game mostly off the bench although he started the last few games.

Part of the reason he's been so effective is that Sullinger has an old school game: he likes to play inside so he's tough and he can rebound very well despite not being particularly athletic. Without him, the Celts lack any other real inside threat. Kevin Garnett and Brandon Bass prefer to shoot mid-range jumpers while Chris Wilcox is a bench guy that basically can just dunk. Don't get me started on rookie center Fab Melo since he hasn't played a minute in the NBA yet.

The good news for the C's is that Sullinger should be healthy and recovered by the start of training camp in the fall. Who knows what the rest of the squad will look like at that point? The cruel part is that Sullinger dropped to Boston in last summer's NBA Draft (21st overall) since NBA doctors thought he had serious back issues. Obviously, the Red Sox medical staff weren't in charge of checking out the rookies since sadly those guys got the diagnosis right. All you can hope is that Sullinger has a solid career and this doesn't hold him back (no pun intended) from turning into the player we know he could be.

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Celtics Lose Rajon Rondo For The Season (ACL) But Beat Miami 100-98 In Double Overtime

Today was definitely one of the more bizarre sporting events I've ever experienced in my life. The Celtics (21-23, 14-9 home) snapped a six-game losing streak with a much-needed 100-98 win over the Heat (28-13, 10-10 away) in double overtime this afternoon at TD Garden.

The excitement of winning their best game of the season (so far) was heavily tempered by the fact that Rajon Rondo is out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL (right knee). That fact is something that we slowly figured out at the game since he wasn't in the starting lineup then rumors started flying on Twitter that he was at the hospital. By the time he returned to the arena in overtime, most people in the crowd already knew the awful news.

It's hard to put into words (and there have been plenty written and said already) what this means to the Celtics since he is by far their most instrumental and talented player. Boston didn't have more than a sliver of a chance of capturing a title with him but without him, it's hard to picture them winning even one round in the playoffs. Yes, it's that bleak. Today's win showed what they can do against the top team in the Eastern Conference when they are inspired and working together, but how could they keep that emotion up for months?

Paul Pierce had his seventh career triple-double with 17 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists while Kevin Garnett put up 24 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Boston's bench outscored Miami's 39-29 thanks to Jason Terry (13 points), Jeff Green (11 points) and Leandro Barbosa (9 points)-the three guys along with Courtney Lee who will have to step up the most with Rondo out.

LeBron James had a game-high 34 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists and three steals, Dwayne Wade scored 17 points and handed out seven assists while Chris Bosh notched 16 points and 16 rebounds. Ray Allen's first return to the Garden after playing with the Celts for five seasons went well for him (21 points, 5 rebounds) and the fans got it right by mostly cheering him during a highlight video then booing him when he came in the contest.

Due to the fact that Boston was desperate for a win and that these teams absolutely hate each other, this did not feel anything like a game in late January. It seemed like a playoff game with the effort level and intensity from both squads. LeBron hit a 3-pointer with seven seconds left in regulation to tie it at 87. Terry missed a prayer of a 3 to sent it to overtime. Wade drew contact from Pierce but no foul call at the end of the first overtime before he bricked his jumper. Battier had a chance to win it at the end with a 3-pointer but it was an airball since he rushed.

The C's have to be physically exhausted since they played back-to-back double overtime games (Atlanta on Friday) and now emotionally drained as well since they found out about Rondo's injury during this marathon. They'll have to bring a veteran point guard in here (Delonte West?) since they don't have a true one behind Rondo.

The NBA Trade Deadline is a little over three weeks away (Feb. 21) so it'll be interesting to see what Danny Ainge can do. Don't expect any miracles because given their age, I don't know how many teams would really trade anything useful plus it's doubtful that he'd just giveaway KG or Pierce for nothing.

Nobody will feel bad for the C's so they have to circle the wagons and figure out how to proceed from here. I still think they possess enough talent to comfortably make the playoffs but other than that, who knows? This wasn't how this season was supposed to go for them, probably over before they even get to the All-Star break. They host the Kings (16-29, 4th in Pacific Division) on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., CSN). Boston owes Sacramento a beating since the Kings humbled them 118-96 on December 30 (during that 0-3 trip to California).

UPDATE 1/29: The Celtics recalled rookie center Fab Melo from the Red Claws.

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Q: Who Blows A 27-Point Lead (In 1 Quarter) Then Loses in Double Overtime? A: The Celtics

Thank God the NHL has returned and the Bruins are really good because we need something to shield us from the flaming wreckage that is the 2012-13 Celtics. Boston's (20-23, 7-14 away) 123-111 double overtime loss tonight at Atlanta's (25-18, 15-7 home) Philips Arena was borderline impossible to execute. It is their sixth straight defeat, the longest losing streak in the Kevin Garnett (24 points, 10 rebounds) in Green era.

The Celts got up 48-21 in the second quarter but apparently that wasn't enough as the Hawks tied it at 59 midway through the third quarter. If that didn't make you want to jump off the Tobin Bridge, how about watching Kyle Korver (27 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks) drain eight 3-pointers in the second half alone? Pass that bottle of bleach please.

Rajon Rondo (16 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds) had his second triple-double in as many nights and third straight against Atlanta so he's probably content. Avery Bradley had 14 points while Paul Pierce struggled to get 12 points and six rebounds in 40 minutes. For once, Boston's bench wasn't the issue as they outscored Atlanta's 45-21. Jeff Green (17 points, 6 rebounds), Courtney Lee (16 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals) and even Jason Terry (12 points) were all excellent.

Al Horford put up 24 points, 13 rebounds and two steals, Jeff Teague had 23 points, seven assists and three steals, Josh Smith notched 17 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists and two blocks and Ivan Johnson added 11 points (which has to be a career-high, only a slight exaggeration). Devin Harris (remember him?) had 14 points off the bench.

A soul crushing loss like this will overshadow something great that the Celtics actually did: they went 20-for-20 from the free throw line. Smith missed a layup at the end of regulation that would have won it but he made up for it by stuffing Pierce's predictable move and shot at the end of the first overtime. After that, Boston completely ran out of gas in the second overtime.

I suppose there is only one way for the Celtics to go from here: up. They can't possibly suffer two more brutal losses in the regular season on back-to-back nights. The Heat (28-12, 1st in Southeast Division) make their first trip to Boston on Sunday (1 p.m., ABC) which means that Ray Allen will be back. Luckily, since the C's are so bad at the moment, we won't have to be bombarded with that storyline non-stop.

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Rondo's Triple-Double Can't Help The Celtics Avoid Another Loss, 89-86 To The Knicks

We keep waiting for the Celtics to dig themselves out of this ever expanding hole but so far, they can't do anything about it. Boston (20-22, 13-9 home) lost 89-86 to New York (26-14, 12-8 away) tonight at TD Garden in a game that they desperately needed to win.

The Knicks had lost 11 straight games at the Garden, their last win was way back in 2006. This was Boston's five straight loss (on the heels of a six-game win streak no less) which ties their roughest patch in the Kevin Garnett era (8 points, 12 rebounds).

The scene was all set for the C's to get a victory: a national audience (TNT) which always pushes Rajon Rondo (23 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds, 3 steals) that extra amount. The problem was that despite his 27th career triple-double (20th on national TV), he still made some careless turnovers. It was a team-wide virus too since Jason Terry and Paul Pierce (22 points, 6 rebounds) both had killer turnovers late in the fourth quarter when the Celtics had to rally.

It's hard to say what is causing all this temporary lack of focus or attention to detail but it's clear that the margin of error for Boston is so thin at the moment that blunders like that always seem to cost them this season.

Carmelo Anthony had a game-high 28 points, nine rebounds and two steals. Jason Kidd put up 12 points and three steals while Iman Shumpert added 10 points and five rebounds. Amar'e Stoudemire checked in with 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocks off the bench. J.R. Smith (3 for 16 from the field) was mostly awful but even he managed to knock down a clutch 3-pointer. The same can't be said for Terry (1-for-6), who looked completely lost in his worst game as a Celtic.

Everybody knows that New York takes and hits an absurd amount of 3-pointers. On this night, it was the main reason that they ended up winning. The Knicks hit five more 3-pointers (8-3) than the Celtics, the only statistic that was really in their favor.

There is no reason for the Celts to feel sorry for themselves since they are probably already in Atlanta. They play the Hawks (24-18, 2nd Southeast Division) tomorrow night (7:30 p.m., CSN) in what could be termed another must-win. When we last saw Atlanta, Boston rallied for an impressive 89-81 win on January 5. They often find ways to lose but the Hawks usually make it tough on the Celtics with close games.

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I Know The Celts Like To Sleepwalk Thru The Regular Season But This Is Getting Ridiculous

Hey gang, remember that time the Celtics won six games in a row a few weeks ago, wasn't that wonderful? It seems like so long ago since Boston (20-21, 7-13 away) has followed that up with a four-game losing streak that seems to get worse each time they take the floor.

Cleveland (11-32, 5-12 home) has to be the low point of this debacle, yes even more depressing than the Hornets and Pistons-two other garbage teams that somehow have beaten the C's in the last week. The Cavs hung around and outscored the Celts 25-17 in the fourth quarter to win 95-90 tonight at Quicken Loans Arena.

Don't get me wrong, Kyrie Irving (40 points, 5 assists, 2 steals) is a great player (he should be an All-Star in February) but if you saw just his games against Boston, you would confuse him with Michael Jordan. They make him look like the greatest player in NBA history.

Tristan Thompson had 21 points, nine rebounds and five assists and I'm pretty sure it was almost all on dunks. The amount of layups and dunks that Cleveland (Cleveland!) got tonight was appalling. The immortal Alonzo Gee (10 points, 6 rebounds) was the only other Cavalier in double-figures.

It was actually very entertaining, except for the part where the Celtics blew a lead against a truly awful opponent. Rajon Rondo just missed another triple-double with 17 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Kevin Garnett had 16 points, five rebounds and five blocks, Paul Pierce struggled (3 for 15) to get 12 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals while Jared Sullinger had 12 points and 10 rebounds in his home state, in front of his parents.

The good news, I guess, is that Boston has two more games against Cleveland. They beat them by 12 in December so hopefully they remember what that feels like when they meet again.

The Celtics will try to get back to the .500 mark as they unofficially begin the second half of the regular season on Thursday night (8 p.m., TNT) vs. the Knicks (25-14, 1st in Atlantic Division) at TD Garden. Ironically, the first time they played also got Boston back to .500 (17-17) while simultaneously delivering their best win of the season (102-96 at MSG on Jan. 7). It should be a great atmosphere with all the Honey Nut Cheerios references that Carmelo Anthony and LaLa can handle.

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The Bulls Are Still Not Scared Of The Celtics

As a Celtics fan, you'd have to be insane to want to see the Bulls this spring in the playoffs. They are so tough, unselfish, they play great defense and rebound well which equals just an awful matchup for the C's, even without Derrick Rose (who has yet to play this season).

The Bulls (23-15, 12-5 away) outlasted the Celtics (20-19, 13-8 home) 100-99 in overtime tonight at TD Garden as Marco Belinelli (10 points) hit a mid-range jumper with three seconds left. Courtney Lee (7 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals) understandably rushed 3-pointer which was way off as Chicago escaped with a wild victory.

Boston had multiple chances to win it but they couldn't hang on up 88-85 with 12 seconds left in regulation. The Celts fouled Kirk Hinrich (8 points, 5 assists) so he couldn't take a 3-pointer. That sound strategy looked smart when he missed one of two free throws. Unfortunately, Paul Pierce (13 points, 6 rebounds) later got trapped in the corner and a jump ball was called. The Bulls won that then raced down the court with Hinrich swishing the tying jumper with two seconds left.

In overtime, Jason Terry (9 points) hit a jumper of his own to put the C's up 99-98 with 12 seconds left. Rajon Rondo (30 points, 7 assists, 2 steals) fouled out earlier in overtime on a bogus call when Hinrich appeared to push him into Jimmy Butler's (13 points) knee.

UConn's Richard Hamilton led a balanced attack for the Bulls with 20 points. Carlos Boozer added 19 points and 20 rebounds, Joakim Noah had 14 points and 13 rebounds while former Celtic Nate Robinson scored 11 points off the bench.

Rondo scoring that many points is usually not a good thing as the rest of the Celtics weren't nearly as effective offensively. Kevin Garnett had 16 points and seven rebounds while Brandon Bass added 10 points (seems like the first time in weeks that he's been in double figures).

When you look at the numbers, it's surprising that the C's made it that close. Chicago shot 6.2% better from the field (48-41.2%), hit two more 3-pointers (5-3), three more free throws (23-20) and handed out six more assists (21-15). Boston stayed in it since the Bulls had 10 more turnovers (21-11), the Celtics tallied six more steals (10-4), 12 more fast break points (14-2) and eight more points in the paint (46-38).

In the worst timing for a game all season as far as we're concerned, the Celtics visit the Pistons (14-25, 4th in Central Division) on Sunday night (7:30 p.m., CSN). Set your DVRs or just flip over during the numerous commercials on CBS when you're watching Patriots-Ravens.

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Well This NBA All-Star Game Should Be Interesting, For A Few Minutes At Least

The starters for the 2013 NBA All-Star Game in Houston (February 17 at Toyota Center) were announced tonight. Boston has two players that will start for the Eastern Conference: guard Rajon Rondo (13.0 ppg, 11.2 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 1.85 steals) and forward/center Kevin Garnett (14.6 ppg, 7.0 rebounds).

The hilarious part is that the other three starters for the East are Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. So basically, the Eastern Conference guys all despise each other. KG and Melo just had their Honey Nut Cheerios beef a few weeks ago while KG and Rondo have hated LeBron and Wade for years now.

The Western Conference starters are Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard and Blake Griffin. Haha four guys from Los Angeles but only two on a winning team.

It's the fourth consecutive All-Star Game for Rondo but the first that he's been voted as a starter by the fans. He had the second most votes for guards in the Eastern Conference, behind Wade.

Believe it or not, this will be the 15th All-Star Game for Garnett. He had played in 12 consecutive All-Star Games before he didn't get invited last season. Maybe that's why he seemed so refreshed in the playoffs, the shortened season definitely helped as well. He got the third most votes behind LeBron and Carmelo at forward.

The seven reserves for both teams will be announced next Thursday-great marketing ploy by the NBA. Two guards, three frontcourt players (centers are basically extinct) and two other utility guys will be chosen by NBA coaches who can't vote for their own players.

Obviously, Paul Pierce (19.4 ppg, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.45 steals) is the only other Celtic with any hope of making it. He had the sixth most votes for forwards, behind Chris Bosh and Tyson Chandler. Keep in mind that somebody will get hurt or skip out on the All-Star weekend so injury replacements are always a possibility as well.

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Doc Rivers' Late Christmas Gift To His Son Austin: A Win At TD Garden For The Hornets

I thought the Celtics had gotten past the point of losing to shitbum teams with some regularity this season. Apparently not, their six-game win streak was ruined tonight as Boston (20-18, 13-7 home) laid down 90-78 to New Orleans (13-26, 7-13 away) at TD Garden.

Rookie Austin Rivers (No. 10 pick of 2012 Draft) won the first ever meeting with his dad-Celtics head coach Doc Rivers-as he tossed in eight points off the bench (4th father-son meeting in NBA history). The Hornets are truly awful and losing to a bad team always leaves a particularly bad taste in a fan's mouth. Granted, this was New Orleans sixth win in their last seven games.

The immortal Al-Farouq Aminu had a game-high 18 points, nine rebounds and two steals for New Orleans, Robin Lopez had 17 points and six rebounds, Greivis Vasquez added 15 points and 11 rebounds while No. 1 pick Anthony Davis notched 10 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks. Ryan Anderson had 10 points and six rebounds off the bench for the Hornets in their disgusting teal road jerseys (maybe the worst look in the NBA).

For whatever reason (playing down to competition?), the Celts never seemed to be into it mentally or emotionally. Kevin Garnett led Boston with 15 points, Paul Pierce had 12 points and 10 rebounds, Rajon Rondo dished out 11 assists with three steals and Jason Terry (12 points) was the only bench guy to show up.

The C's led 25-20 after the first quarter but the Hornets outscored them in the final three frames. New Orleans was up 44-43 at halftime and they extended it to 68-63 after three quarters.

New Orleans was by far the more aggressive team, all you need to look at in that regard is three statistics: they made 20 more free throws (26-6) than Boston, grabbed 15 more rebounds (48-33) and pounded it inside for 16 more points in the paint (48-32). In their only other meeting of the season, Boston visits New Orleans on March 20. You have to believe the Celts will play much better then since tonight was basically a disaster.

The Celtics wrap up their five-game homestand on Friday (7 p.m., CSN) against the Bulls (22-15, 2nd in Central Division). The teams have split the first two matchups with Chicago most recently winning 100-89 at the United Center on December 18. These games are almost always close and entertaining.

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Nothing Says Excitement Like A Visit From The Bobcats

Like a solar eclipse or an episode of "Keeping Up With The Kardashians," games against the Bobcats require that you don't look too closely at them or else you risk potential serious harm.

Tonight at TD Garden, Boston (20-17, 13-6 home) beat Charlotte (9-28, 4-14 away) 100-89 in what will undoubtedly be the Celtics' most boring victory of the season. Boston has won six games in a row and this one was all thanks to Rajon Rondo's 26th career triple-double (3rd this season): 17 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds. He has 13 triple-doubles (regular season and playoffs) since the start of last season, nobody else in the NBA has more than two.

Paul Pierce was the high scorer in this emotionless contest with 19 points and six assists. Avery Bradley scored 16 points (including four 3-pointers), Kevin Garnett grabbed 11 rebounds and Jeff Green added 11 points off the bench.

Charlotte is still a complete mess that can't figure out what they want to be. Journeymen Hakim Warrick (16 points) and Ramon Sessions (16 points) led them in scoring while talented young guys like Kemba Walker (12 points) and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (10 points, 8 rebounds) waste away on one of the worst teams in professional sports. Gerald Henderson had 10 points and former UConn star Ben Gordon notched 12 points off the bench.

The Celts led by as much as 18 (50-32) in the second quarter but the Bobcats stuck around for a while, tied it at 58 in the third quarter and cut it to four in the fourth (78-74) before Boston decided to save themselves a world of embarrassment.

Boston shot 7.0% better from the field (48.8-41.8), hit two more 3-pointers (8-6), hauled in eight more rebounds (42-34), dished out 12 more assists (27-15) and blocked four more shots (8-4).

In Dan Shaughnessy parlance, another tomato can-the New Orleans Hornets (11-26, 5th in Southwest Division)-comes to the Garden on Wednesday night (8 p.m., CSN). It's the first time Celtics head coach Doc Rivers has faced his son, Hornets rookie guard Austin Rivers, in an NBA game. On paper that sounds like a swell idea but the reality is that Austin has been awful and he barely plays at the moment while his team is similarly terrible. Fun times! Tune in for another Celtics romp.

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Celtics Show No Signs Of Slowing Down, Win Their Fifth Straight Game

Over the summer and during the preseason when people talked about this being Boston's deepest team in years, this is what they imagined, not the struggles of November and December. For the second game in a row, the Celtics' (19-17, 12-6 home) bench was superb as they helped them beat the Rockets (21-16, 7-10 away) 103-91 at TD Garden.

Boston avenged a 101-89 loss in Houston on December 14 and picked up their fifth straight victory just for fun. The Celts pretty much led wire to wire, however they almost blew a 17-point lead (62-45) from the third quarter as the Rockets cut it to 83-81 in the fourth but the C's hit them with a 12-1 run to end it.

Paul Pierce led the home team with 23 points and six rebounds, Kevin Garnett had 17 points, eight rebounds and four blocks and Rajon Rondo put up 12 points and eight assists. Avery Bradley scored seven points but his real contribution was holding James Harden to 24 points and five assists, seriously. That ended Harden's streak of 14 straight games with 25+ points.

Jared Sullinger had another double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, Courtney Lee added 14 points while Jeff Green scored nine.

Chandler Parsons had 18 points for the Rockets while Harvard's Jeremy Lin notched 12 points, six assists, five rebounds and three steals. Omer Asik had seven points and 11 rebounds but a 1 for 8 night at the free throw line took the shine off his work.

Free throw shooting was a teamwide epidemic for Houston, they went 12 for 29 so that was the primary reason why they lost. I can't ever remember an NBA team having that kind of wretched performance. It was stunning, especially since they entered shooting 76% as a team. The Celtics also shot 8.1% better than the Rockets (51.9-43.8%) from the field which was the other main theme of the game.

Boston gets the weekend off then they basically get Monday off as well since the Bobcats (9-26, 4th in Southeast Division) come to TD Garden (7:30 p.m., CSN) in the third game of a five-game homestand for the C's. Charlotte played well at the beginning of the season but it's been all downhill from there, they are still one of the NBA's worst teams.

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