Celtics vs Heat Preview

A lot was against us last game, Rondo was hurt, I didn't fill the good luck water cup next to the TV, Bmack continued on his refusal to Player of the Game the Tommy Award for his own reasons, but at the end of the day the Celtics are down 3-1 and have their backs against the wall in Miami. You know its serious because Red is the opening picture and that's exactly why I think the Celtics will rattle off 3 in a row and not go out without a fight.

People may not put a lot of thought or think this is very influential because it's cliche, but I believe in Celtic pride and that these guys do have Hearts of Champions. KG, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo all have too much pride, too much skill and too much heart to lose to these guys.

Two nights ago KG played his worst game as a Celtic, he won't/can't play like that again. I would also like to see Jermaine O'Neal get more playing time, especially at the end of the game. If we keep going small when Miami goes small we are playing their game. We need to commit to our toughness, our size and ability to play defense and play good transition offense. Not much else to say the Celtics take this one.

Celtics 100-87
Tommy Award: Kevin Garnett

Heat 97, Celtics 87

Around this time 4 years ago, Celtics fans were talking about lotteries. And now we're disappointed that we've only seen the C's win 1 title in 3 years. So let's not get too depressed about the possibilities of the Big Three breaking up. Let's not dwell on lost opportunities, or focus on the negative. In the last three years, this team went from a joke to a model franchise. They won 3 divisional titles, 2 Conference Championships, and 1 NBA Championship. They've become a face-franchise of the Association. They've rekindled old rivalries (Los Angeles) and established new ones (Miami, New York). This might be the end of an era for the Celtics. But it was one hell of an era.



Now to the game. You have to give credit to Miami. LeBron's been long criticized as a poor finisher. And before this series, I felt like if the Celtics could keep games close, their experience and clutchness would propel them to victory, just as it did in the Knicks series. However, the Heat were better in those late stages. Last night, while Ray Allen missed a three, and the C's turned the ball over with ease, LeBron, Wade, and James Jones were knocking down huge 3 point shots.



The Celtics turned the ball over 17 times. Garnett was 3 of 8 with his free throws. Glen Davis still can't find himself. Rondo played 30 minutes and most of those were ineffective. There was no singular reason for the Celtics losing. They lost for a number of reasons.



And without stellar 4th quarter performances from guys like Delonte West, it might have been over much sooner. West was the Celtics' best player in the 4th quarter. That's not a winning formula.



And at least LeBron's post-game interview was classy, and laced with praise for the Celtics. At the same time, he's still an annoying bitch, and I hope either the Bulls or Hawks destroy him in the next round.



Beat LeBron



-The Commodore

KG and Rondo Make NBA All Defensive Team

Celtics guard Rajon Rondo and forward Kevin Garnett both earned spots on the NBA's All-Defensive first team, the league announced Monday.

Rondo finished second in the overall voting of the NBA's 30 head coaches, earning 16 first-team votes and seven second-team votes for a total of 39 points (coaches were not allowed to vote for their own player). Only Orlando'sDwight Howard (56 points, 27 first-place votes) earned more points. Miami's LeBron James (38 points), Los Angeles' Kobe Bryant (33) and Garnett (33) rounded out the first team. ESPN

Some good Celtics news after that loss last night. KG has 9 1st team selections making him tied for the record with Michael Jordan and Gary Payton. Of course Rondo is deserving of this award as he is always up in the league steals and plays terrific on ball defense.

....fuck, I can't believe we lost that game.

Just When You Thought Bosh Couldn't Get Any Softer

"It was intimidating and that was before anyone had even broken a sweat. Most arenas are rowdy in the playoffs and in Boston it's tradition. The intensity of that atmosphere got to Chris Bosh, something he admitted when looking back on his first road game in the second round. Bosh said nerves were a major factor in perhaps his worst game of the season, a six-point, five-rebound effort in 30 minutes in the Heat's 97-81 blowout loss.

"Given all the elements that were out there last night ... they were so hyped," Bosh said. "My emotions got the best of me early on and it kind of dictated what I was doing for the rest of the game (ESPN)."

Translation: They showed the video of Kevin Garnett screaming and Bosh shit his pants. Then he continued to shit his all over the basketball court all game, while Garnett scored 28 points grabbed 18 rebounds, and made Bosh his bitch.

THIS IS WHAT I WAS EXPECTING GAME 1 AND 2.

If the Celtics are going to win this series Kevin Garnett is going to have to come up huge. I think it's going to be asking a lot for Rondo to dominate with 1 arm, and that is half the advantage the Celtics had in this series. Kevin Garnett and Rondo were the keys. Rondo may have sparked the emotions of the Celtics with his Rocky-like return, but it going to be KG that is going to need to bring this home.

The pressure is on now for the Heat. If the Celtics win tonight its a best of 3 series. We have seen Lebron cave in the past, and we just saw Bosh poop himself from a scary video, how confident would they feel? Home cooking only goes so far.

NBA Player: Garnett a 'Punk and Coward'

In the latest edition of ESPN the Magazine, an NBA player -- in the latest of a monthly series called "Player X", where an anonymous player talks about various issues in the league -- made his feelings known about Kevin Garnett.

"Garnett is a punk and a coward," writes the anonymous player. "I know, I know. Easy for me to say behind this column. Don't worry, I'll tell him to his face, too. And I'm not the only one who thinks that: If you're not on his team, chances are you hate the guy. You can learn a lot about him by watching his eyes. If he's talking to you -- and he's always talking -- he avoids eye contact. My advice to other guys in the league: Stare him down, and he'll retreat. From what I've seen, he'll never mix it up with a player who's bigger than he is. Personally, I think he's scared to fight -- like a playground bully who barks but doesn't bite (WEEI)."

Whoever this player is I can almost guarantee they don't have a ring. I'll take that "punk/coward" that makes key defensive stops to win games like we saw in Game 2 any day, and what the fuck kind of player makes comments like this without his name being released? To me that's a real "coward". I'll take the guy standing on the court that doesn't shy away from the type of player he is. Is Garnett dirty? yea probably. Does he pick on other players? Most definitely, but at the end of the day that's the kind of player I want out there, because I know when it's crunch time and we need a stop there aren't many other players (if any) I would rather have on the court.

So fuck you anonymous.

KG Back Today, Perk Back Feb 4th

With Jermaine O'Neal most likely opting for season ending surgery their is good news on the horizon. Tonight, KG will come back for Magic game, which they will seriously need him for because they have been a hot team since blowing up their roster. Perk on the other hand is needed, he is the best defensive center in the NBA and him teamed up with Shaq should really make teams terrified of driving to the hoop.

I know their are a lot of woulda, coulda, shouldas with Perk and game 7, and I still believe the Celtics would have lost with him in the line up, however, woulda, coulda, shoulda. The Celtics are going through that boring, cruise control part of the season with keeping an eye on the three in Miami and the new look Magic, so Perk definitely won't hurt.

Also, with Jermaine most likely going down, there will be a NEED FOR SHEED. So get used to some lolli gagging because once that man steps on the court the team effort goes down significantly.

Garnett Talks About Injury

"When I'm not playing, I hate talking hoops, so sorry for not blogging. You know how when you ain't a part of something, it hurts to talk about it. That's how I feel. Know what I mean?
Don't get it messed up, just cause I ain't playing don't mean I'm not working out. I'm working super hard and feeling good...After the game, Dr. looked at my leg and we're close. Real close to getting back...Pre game, I worked out at the arena in the Bull's workout room. Anytime I get to workout around another team, my gas gets going. I was killing the weights and wanted to play (CelticsBlog)."

Sounds like good news, but I wouldn't expect him to be back tonight against the Rockets after reading this tweet...

"KG did not participate in am shootaround. Still questionable for [Celtics] game tonight vs. [Rockets] (A. Sherrod Blakely's Twitter)."

Which is fine, because the Celtics really shouldn't need him to beat the Rockets. They will need him though to beat the Magic, who they play on Jan 17th, but it sounds like he should be back by then.

Kevin Garnett Injury Update

It's been a week since Kevin Garnett left the Celtics game with Detroit with what turned out to be a strained calf muscle. At the time the team put a two-week window on his possible return, although it should be noted that the time frame was only a rough estimate and is very flexible. Garnett has done his part, getting up shots after practice and working on conditioning with trainer Bryan Doo. "What was the time frame we gave you, two weeks?" Doc Rivers asked. "Is it next Wednesday? So hopefully back in two weeks (WEEI)."

We got a little more information from another website...

Kevin Garnett lifted weights and shot around yesterday during the Celtics morning practice before their game against the San Antonio Spurs. The workout was light, but it was his first participation in basketball related activities since injuring his calf against the Detroit Pistons on December 29th.

No official timetable has been set for KG’s return although speculation has him returning in a week to ten days (hardwoodhoudini.com)."


Not a big update there, but it is a good sign that he is already starting conditioning drills, but none of it sounded like he was using his legs very much. Like I said when the injury happened, you can't trust that the Celtics are telling the truth after basically lying about KG's injury a couple years back. Still, I do trust this and I think he is going to be back very soon, maybe not two weeks on the dot, but I don't see it going very much past that.

Garnett Injury Only "A Strained Calf"

"Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge made his weekly appearance on The Big Show on Thursday and talked about the injury status of Kevin Garnett. Garnett was forced to leave Wednesday night's game vs. the Pistons after injuring his right leg following a dunk in the first quarter. Garnett limped off the court and did not return.

There was some concern at first that this might be related to Garnett's surgically repaired knee, but Ainge told The Big Show that this injury isn't nearly as serious.

"Kevin had an MRI and a through examination today and it's the same as last night," said Ainge. "It's a muscle injury, a strained calf. It's actually the muscle just off the side of the leg, just below the knee. And it's not anything to do with his knee, which is great news. It's one of those injuries that may keep him out for a couple of weeks at the most, I would say (WEEI)."

Thank God. If KG went down for the year, or an extended period of time the Celtics would have no shot at winning it all. So far it sounds like he will miss 2 weeks, which actually might turn out to be a good thing, since he has been logging in way to many minutes. One thing that sucks is that Miami is so close, and there is a good chance now that they will pass the Celtics for 1st place in the East.

We have to be somewhat skeptical with this news though. Last time KG had an injury like this we were told it was nothing serious, but then it ended up keeping him out for the playoffs. I don't think it is the case this time, but something you have to keep in the back of your mind.

Why Garnett Is A Winner And Noah Is A Dink

"Bulls center Joakim Noah once had a poster of Kevin Garnett, but now, according to ESPNChicago.com, he dislikes the Celtics power forward.

"Kevin Garnett will not -- will not -- get a Christmas gift from me," Noah said Wednesday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "I don't like him."

"He's a very mean guy," Noah added. "Where's the love? None at all. Ugly, too."

Noah said Garnett was a "dirty player" during the playoffs last season when he was suspended for throwing an elbow at Quentin Richardson. Last week Noah received a technical during the game against the Celtics and said, "He is who he is."

Noah added during the radio interview: "... he was very mean to me my rookie year. And he's only mean to the young guys and the [European players], for some reason. I don't know why, but that's who he doesn't like. He's not nice. I talk a lot of trash out there, but c'mon, be a little sensitive. Be sweet (ESPN)."

You know what I don't want my power forward and defensive captain to be? Sweet. I am so sick of all this Garnett bashing, the guy leaves it all on the court, and is having one hell of a season so far. I want him to be mean, get in guys faces. The NBA has changed, and there are a lot of teams that hate each other, unlike a couple years back when everyone seemed to be friends. Don't get me wrong, I love all of this because not games are a lot more interesting and you see a lot more guys playing with heart. So, Noah why don't you take out your tampon and figure out a way to be more then just white noise in the Eastern Conference.

Charlie Villanueva Blasts KG

KG and Charlie Villanueva got technicals last night, but it hasn't stopped there...

Villanueva tweeted: "KG called me a cancer patient, I'm pissed because, u know how many people died from cancer, and he's tossing it like it's a joke ... I wouldn't even trip about that, but a cancer patient, I know way 2 many people who passed away from it, and I have a special place 4 those."

Before the game against Boston on Tuesday Villanueva tweeted: "KG talks a lot of crap, he's prob never been in a fight, I would love to get in a ring with him, I will expose him (ESPN)."

I bet KG says a lot of awful things on the court, so this really doesn't shock me at all. Is it over the line? Probably, but KG plays with fire and likes to get in guy's heads. Plus he is 100 times back then anything Charlie Villanueva will ever be, so if I was him I'd just let it go, or at least actually fight him instead of Twittering him to death.

Garnett Is A Badass

We all know KG is a badass, but that doesn't make me sick of hearing him speak, and how honest he really is...

Garnett spoke of the depressed mood he was in following the Celtics' NBA finals Game 7 loss to the Lakers.

Said Garnett: "Very dark, to be honest, dark. 'Just leave me alone, let me be my myself. I don't want to deal with anything right now. Let me just be in a dark place.' Just the way I replay the game over and over in my mind, trying to get a resolution to some type of place to where you can settle with it. I never found it, but that's what it is. I say it's fuel to the fire."

I fucking love this. I love that he cares, and that this team is fired up to get the season started. I know it sounds like such a simple thing, but I love KG being a leader on this team. His skills are in decline, but even after he retires I hope he stays involved somehow.

Garnett also talked about his use of "cuss words"...

"Cuss words are a part of life, let's say that. You know what, I always said if I kid has never heard of cuss words, they don't know what I'm saying. I don't promote cussing, but it helps. I look at it like it's straight to the point. It's nothing that I'm proud of. If I could stop, I would. But [expletive]. This is me. If you don't like it, then you don't have to like it. This is who I am, though."

Hell yea, KG keep being a crazy, scary bastards. I think intimidation does work against some teams, and hopefully Lebron will be just as soft as he was on the Cavs this year.

Celtics Updates (UPDATED)

Celtics forward Kevin Garnett (foot) and center Kendrick Perkins (knee) both sat out Boston's practice session Wednesday at the Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint with injuries, but both are expected to play in Friday night's Game 3 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Luckily in the NBA you have 90 days in between games and so you can afford to have a player or players sit out a day. Doc said that if there was a game yesterday KG wouldn't play, but come playoff time it's hard to gauge if people are telling the truth or not. If these injuries are significant we will obviously lose, however, I believe they will be fine and be ready to go Friday.

***UPDATE***

Kevin Garnett practiced Thursday with the Celtics, a stunning development considering coach Doc Rivers said Wednesday that he would be out. But his mid-foot strain is mending and he convinced Rivers to practice.

"He said he didn't feel a lot of pain," Rivers said. "Kevin was a surprise. I really didn't want him to go much today. But he was moving so well, I just let him go."

“You make your bed, you have to lay in it”

Well of course KG is suspended for game two on Tuesday. I personally think it's BS how ticky tacky the NBA is, but they are consistent with the rule so I was expecting this. However, this is exactly why we have Rasheed Wallace. In case KG went down and couldn't play in the playoffs. He will get the call on Tuesday and I'm sure a lot of Big Game Big Baby will get a lot of burn too. Since the Heat are a very small team, this will be fine because we can almost run a 4 guard set with Baby, Sheed, or Perk in.

Losing KG is big, but it may not be as big as you would expect due to our depth.

Joakim Noah needs to shut his trap

When asked about Kevin Garnett's elbow incident in yesterday's game (stupid question since it has nothing to do with CHI/CLE) here's what Noah had to say:
Noah said Garnett is "always swinging elbows." He also said he's hurting because of an elbow he took recently from the Celtics star.

Really? Joakim you might want to concentrate a little more on what you and your team need to do against King James and his squires. The situation with Garnett has nothing to do with you, and you'd better believe those comments won't be forgotten. You may not meet the Celtics until next year, but I wouldn't be surprised if Mr. Garnett introduces you to one of his bony elbows.

So shut the fuck up and mind your own p's and q's, as my grandmother would say. You little bitch.

Celtics 109 Knicks 97

Last night was the first time in a long time that Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett dominated a game. Pierce scored 29 points, Garnett had 22 and Boston cruised to its third straight lopsided victory at home. Now if they could only do this against good teams.

Rajon only had 5 point, but he didn't need to score. His 12 assists were enough to keep the Celtics offense flowing (Rondo had 12 assists in just 27 minutes and tied Bob Cousy for 5th place among Celtics players for assists in one season with 642). This is actually the statline you want to see from Rajon. If he doesn't have to score, but puts up a bunch of assists, it usually means the Celtics offense is doing well.

The Celtics moved into a 3rd place tie in the East with Atlanta, which lost to Toronto last night. That is all well and good, but this upcoming road trip should give us an answer to whether or not the Celtics are playing better or just beating up terrible teams. On the road trip the Celtics play Houston, Dallas and Utah, all of which are playoff teams.

Garnett Looks To Be On Track

We have been reporting all week the Garnett will make his comeback to the Celtics on Friday. There were some reports that he could play tonight, but Doc was quick to shoot down those rumors. The good news is that Garnett is back at practice, and people who were in attendance for the media portion said he looks fantastic. Great news for the Celtics, as they really need him back to help their interior defense which has been raising some red flags of late.

I expect that when KG returns you will see the Celtics play a lot more emotional on defense (no not just techs, haha). While he has been out the Celtics seem to be playing a little flat, which very rarely happens while KG is on the floor.

Anyways, everything looks to be a go for Friday's game against the Trail Blazers.

Kevin Garnett Injury Update

Garnett has missed the last 2 1/2 weeks with a hyperextended right knee. Doc Rivers told the Boston Herald that Garnett may return on Jan. 22 against the Blazers, but when there are rumors about Garnett it is really open in the air if they are true. The Celtics could really use him back as they are only 4-4 without him, including a lackluster loss last night to the Bulls (who were only 3-13 on the road).

In the end, he needs to be 100% before he comes back. Boston needs him for the playoffs, and as much as home court is nice, the Celtics need to continue to look towards the playoffs when making these kinds of decisions.

K.G. Out Another 10 Days

Almost two weeks ago the prognosis for Kevin Garnett's return was 10 days. That timetable has passed and head coach Doc Rivers says 10 more days should be a sufficient amount of time for Garnett's right knee to be healthy enough for him to play.

"In the next 10 days, in that area," Rivers told the Boston Herald. "Now I'm pretty sure it's in the next 10 days. He started working out today for the first time. Now it's just a conditioning thing. We want to make sure he's strong and back in shape, because he literally hasn't done anything. Ten days to two weeks is what it will take, but I think it will be 10 days with him." ESPN

Doesn't this kind of seem like last year? I'm still turning my back on this whole situation and ignoring as the Celtics are resting him, however, I am starting to worry about this. The injuries are mounting with the Celtics, and it's starting to get really annoying. I just want to see this team make a run when they are healthy.

Garnett Injury Update

"The Boston Globe reports that Kevin Garnett, who did not suit up for Tuesday's game against Indiana due to a right thigh bruise, sustained the injury in a recent game. Coach Doc Rivers made the decision to rule him out before the team took the court for warmups. Garnett is scheduled to join the team for their visit to Orlando Friday (CBSSports)."

There was really no news that Garnett would sit last night, until a little bit before the game. Still, this is not serious at all, and I expect he will play the next game. The only reason they sat him is because the Pacers were playing without Granger, and it looked like a good time for him to rest. I think you will see this throughout the season, and not just with Garnett, but with a lot of the veterans.