Boston Sports Fan Blog

The Boston Celtics re-signed Paul Pierce to a four-year contract, and look to be the front-runners to re-sign Ray Allen as well. These are questionable moves for a team who might have just mortgaged its future for a couple more playoff exits. Whatever team LeBron James plays for could probably beat Boston. And with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat probably could too. And now Boston will not have flexibility to sign great players in the upcoming off-seasons. I understand that they were loyal to Pierce, but will it cost them?

by David at the Sports Fan Blog Network

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Tonight marks the start of the NBA Finals. The matchup of the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers is one that we have seen before, twelve times to be exact. The Celtics beat the Lakers in the 2008 finals 4-2. The series was highlighted by a 24 point comeback win in game four to take a 3-1 series lead. The Celtics eventually closed the Lakers out in game six in Boston.

I expect this series to be very highly competitive, much like the one in 2008 was. This time however, I expect the outcome to be different. The main reason I see this series ending differently is due to the fact that Kevin Garnett is no longer a dominant player. In 2008, Garnett was still a very capable offensive player and was armed with many weapons in his offensive repertoire. In 2008, Garnett was able to play above the rim and caused the Lakers front line issues. Now, Garnett is merely a spot up mid range shooter on the offensive end. The Celtics lack of a post up scorer who commands a double team will allow the Lakers length to disrupt the Celtics perimeter offense. The only way that the Celtics can win this series is if Rajon Rondo not only keeps playing well, but actually elevates his game and becomes more of a scorer. Rondo is the one Celtic who does not live by the perimeter shot on the offensive end. If Rondo is able to continuously get to the basket and finish, the Celtics may be able to take this series. I, however, do not see the Celtics being able to match the Lakers athelticism and scoring options. Lakers in 6.

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With the Celtics up 3-0 in the NBA Eastern Conference Championship, a return to the NBA Finals after a one-year hiatus looks imminent. However, Boston needs to give it their all to win this year. Rajon Rondo has played great all season long, but how much better can he get? Clearly he will never be a primary scorer, and he already does everything else well. So to think he will get a lot better is pretty foolish. Kevin Garnett is playing better in the postseason than he did during the regular season, but clearly age has caught up with him. Paul Pierce seems to be a Celtic for life. Ray Allen will be a free agent, and considering Boston was possibly shopping him earlier in the season, who knows if he will be brought back. And Kendrick Perkins is one temper tantrum away from getting himself into trouble.

Coming into the season, I would have said that Boston’s run in 2008 would be their only one with this core. But these playoffs have proved me, and many other people wrong. But as the years go on, their window closes. That is why the Celtics need to win it all in 2010 for their sake.

by David at the Sports Fan Blog Network

Too slow? Too old?

Indeed, the Boston Celtics look like they saved their best this season for when it mattered most.

“I know,” Boston’s Paul Pierce said. “It’s starting to look that way.”

Pierce scored 28 points, Rajon Rondo had 25 and the revived Celtics again avoided a late collapse to take a commanding lead in the Eastern Conference finals with a 95-92 victory over the Orlando Magic in Game 2 on Tuesday night.

Boston bullied and bruised its way to a 2-0 series lead on the road against a Magic team that had won 14 straight until this series.

After being hampered by injuries for much of the season, often showing their age, the Celtics are now just two wins away from their second finals appearance in three seasons.

Click here to read the full article – By Associated Press of ESPNBoston.com

The Boston Celtics sent LeBron James and the Cavaliers back to Cleveland to admire all of their regular-season accomplishments and ponder their future.

It’s the Celtics who are still in the chase for an NBA title.

Kevin Garnett scored 22 points and added 12 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo had 21 points and 12 assists to beat Cleveland 94-85 in Game 6 on Thursday night and advance to the Eastern Conference finals. They’ll play the Orlando Magic, who are undefeated in the playoffs.

“Winning is gratifying,” Garnett said. “You’re playing the best team in basketball; the challenge is there; you don’t have to dress it up. One thing we don’t lack is confidence. We’re a veteran team and we understand when it’s time to lock in as a group. I think we did just that. I think the experience is taking over.”

Despite his sixth career playoff triple-double, James is headed for another early offseason after winning a second MVP award and leading the Cavs to an NBA-best 61 wins and a home-court advantage they never got to use.

Click here to read the full article – By Associated Press of ESPNBoston.com

Quarterback Tom Brady reiterated Wednesday that he thought last year’s New England Patriots team was not mentally tough and, looking back, indicated there was a “lack of trust, lack of confidence” within the team.

The Patriots’ struggles in the second half of games in 2009 were well chronicled. Of their six losses, they were leading at the half in four of them and tied in another. The Patriots were outscored 94-38 in the second half of their six losses. In addition to their second-half struggles, the Patriots were just 2-6 on the road.

“When it comes down to it, games that we lose in the fourth quarter, games that we lose in the second half, or losing on the road like we did, that can be lack of trust, lack of confidence,” Brady said in an interview on Boston sports radio station WEEI on Wednesday morning. “There are a lot of issues you have when that repeats itself time and time again over the course of the season.”

The Patriots’ up-and-down 2009 season was punctuated by a 33-14 blowout loss to the Ravens in the divisional playoffs. Brady threw four interceptions in the game and the Patriots fell behind 24-0 in the first quarter.

Click here to read the full article – By Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com

Boston Celtics captain Paul Pierce understands it’s only natural for some to question whether he’s completely healthy given his offensive struggles against the Cleveland Cavaliers so far this series, but he stressed Monday he’s in good condition and reaffirmed that his production doesn’t matter so long as his team wins.

Averaging 11.8 points per game on 32 percent shooting through four games, Pierce is under the microscope for a dip in his typical offensive production. On Monday, repeating what he said after Game 4, Pierce stressed that his focus in this Eastern Conference semifinal series is more on the defensive end.

“I do whatever I gotta do to help this team win,” said Pierce. “Guarding LeBron [James] is no easy task. He’s the two-time MVP and a lot of their offense goes through him — pretty much all of it. I know I have to focus on that end, more so than the offense. I knew that coming into the series.”

Celtics coach Doc Rivers echoed everything Pierce stated, suggesting he’s healthy and doing his part defensively.

Click here to read the full article – By Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com

Boston Bruins center David Krejci will miss the rest of the playoffs with a dislocated right wrist suffered in Wednesday night’s Game 3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, the team confirmed Thursday morning.

The 24-year-old Krejci took a vicious but clean open-ice shot from the Flyers’ Mike Richards in the first period and did not return.

The play led to the Bruins’ go-ahead goal in the 4-1 victory that gave Boston a 3-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Krejci ended up in Baltimore after the game at Union Memorial Hospital, where he had surgery on the wrist. He is expected to be ready for the 2010-11 preseason.

Bruins coach Claude Julien did not take issue with the hit on Krejci, who had 4 goals and 4 assists in 9 games this postseason after tallying 17 goals and 35 assists in the regular season.

Losing Krejci could be devastating for the Bruins moving forward, especially because the team lost Marco Sturm for the remainder of the season when he tore his ACL and MCL in Game 1 of this series.

Click here to read the full article – By Joe McDonald of ESPNBoston.com