Boston Sports Fan Blog

Danny Ainge has rolled the dice numerous times as General Manager of the Boston Celtics coming up a winner every time, however his latest trade may crap out! The trade of center Kendrick Perkins shook the Celtics tightly wound cocoon and left all involved emotionally drained, except for Ainge. Its a general managers job to make the hard decisions and take the heat that comes with those decisions but this one may be hard to sell. Although Perkins has been injured for most of the season dating back to last years NBA finals and recently turned down a four year $30 million extension he is still one in a small class of centers in the league. It has been logged into the history of the NBA that you can’t win a title without a good center and the Celtics just traded one of them for Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic.
Look at the last three NBA champions, in 2008 the Celtics won because the Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum was hurt and no one could guard Perkins. In 2009 the Lakers won because they were able to match Bynum against the Superior Dwight Howard and at least slow him down and in 2010 the Lakers won again! Why you ask? They won because Perkins got hurt in game six leaving them without a center for the two crucial games in Los Angeles and the Celtics had no one to replace him. Compile those previous three scenarios with the fact that one of the Celtics biggest threats is the Orlando Magic who have possibly the best center in the league in Howard. Howard is a monster and he abuses most teams with his size and strength, however his worst performances in his career have come against whom you ask? You guessed it…the Celtics!
Yet the biggest issue I have with this trade is that Ainge put all his money on Shaquille O’Neal being the Celtics center for the playoffs. The oft-injured Shaq isn’t able to dominate a game anymore, matter a-fact he isn’t much of a factor at all anymore. Take a look at the last two teams who put there playoff hopes in Shaq’s hands, the Phoenix Suns and the Cleveland Cavaliers and check the results…it blew up in there faces. I fear that Ainge and the Celtics have sealed their own fate with this ill-advised trade of Perkins. Again, you need a big man to win titles and the Celtics lack that now. So I ask you this question Mr. Ainge. Why take something that wasn’t broke and try to fix it?

Both O’Neal’s have had lingering injury problems throughout the twilight of their careers and it has once again become a problem with the Celtics. Shaquille O’Neal said that his bruised right knee is in good enough shape to get back on the court for Thursday night’s round two showdown with the Heat after missing the last five games. Jermaine O’Neal, who sat out the second half of Monday’s loss to the Mavericks, said the soreness in his left knee has not subsided so he will sit out, possibly for the remainder of the Celtics four-game road trip.

It is possible that Doc Rivers leans on rookie Semih Erden to start at center if both O’Neals can’t go. Erden is having his own injury pangs with his left shoulder which will apparently require surgery eventually.

Kendrick Perkins could not be more needed right now for the Celtics. Rivers said it himself, this team is merely trying to survive until he gets back. There still is no timetable for his return.

As far as tonight goes, I think the Heat have the upper hand at home. They should learn from their poor offensive performance in their loss on opening night. Dwyane Wade probably won’t have another dud like he did in that game. The Celtics interior defense will be weaker due to the deteriorating health of their frontline. That fact is just one of the things that will be in the Heat’s favor in tonight’s contest.

By Josh Delp of 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

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

The Boston Celtics have a few days off to prepare for the second round of the NBA playoffs and a matchup with LeBron James.

Dwyane Wade has all summer to recruit him.
Ray Allen scored 24 points, making five 3-pointers in the second half to help Boston beat Miami 96-86 on Tuesday night and eliminate the Heat in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series. The Celtics will play James and the Cavaliers in a seven-game Eastern Conference semifinal series that will open Saturday in Cleveland.
“I think it’s a great matchup. It’s great for basketball — such a classic series,” said Paul Pierce, who scored 21 points on Tuesday. “They’re the team to beat right now. They showed it through the course of the season the way they played. We know this is going to be a tough series, another really, really tough series.”

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

Even without Kevin Garnett, the Boston Celtics beat the Miami Heat.

Easily.

With the good-humored but hard-playing Glen Davis filling in while the Celtics’ emotional leader served a one-game suspension, Boston rolled to a 106-77 victory Tuesday night that Miami coach Erik Spoelstra called “embarrassing.”

It gave the Celtics a 2-0 lead in their playoff series and Davis a chance to reprise the nickname he hung on himself last year when he replaced the injured Garnett — known as the “Big Ticket” — in all 14 playoff games.
“The ‘Ticket Stub’ came,” Davis said. “Whenever they need the ‘Ticket Stub,’ he’ll be there.”
Davis had 23 points and eight rebounds, and Ray Allen heated up in the third quarter and scored 25 points. Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 29.

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

Celtics forward Kevin Garnett has been suspended for Game 2 of Boston’s first-round playoff series against the Heat for landing an elbow to the face of Miami’s Quentin Richardson in a fourth-quarter fracas during Game 1 on Saturday.

The announcement was made Sunday by Stu Jackson, NBA executive vice president of basketball operations.

Richardson was fined $25,000 for his role in the altercation.

Garnett earned a double technical and ejection in the melee that unfolded after Paul Pierce tumbled to the ground near the Miami bench with 40 seconds left in Boston’s victory at the TD Garden.

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

Every so often, the scar that runs down Doc Rivers’s right thumb reminds him about the importance of games at the end of the season.

He got the wound on the last day of the 1992-93 season, in a game that was more or less meaningless aside from the fact that the two best teams in the Eastern Conference — his Knicks and Michael Jordan’s Bulls — were playing on national TV.

The Knicks had wrapped up home-court advantage in the playoffs and were sitting on 59 wins. It wasn’t getting to 60 as much as league pressure that led coach Pat Riley to play his regular rotation.

“They basically threatened that back then you had to play,’’ Rivers said. “Everybody had to play. Jordan had to play in the game that was completely meaningless.’’

Click here to read the full article – By Julian Benbow of The Boston Globe

Boston Celtics T-Shirts
and other Celtics Apparel

Boston Celtics True Court Performance Shirt

Kevin Garnett Boston Celtics NBA Player T-Shirt

Boston Celtics Adidas NBA Retro 3 Stripe Premium Soft T-Shirt

The struggling Boston Celtics just got Kevin Garnett back from injury. They’ll hope he doesn’t trade places with Paul Pierce.

Pierce injured his left foot in the first quarter of Boston’s 99-88 win over the Washington Wizards on Monday. He sat out part of that quarter and all of the fourth even though the win was not certain. The Celtics outscored the Wizards 25-10 without their captain to beat the Wizards.

“I’ll get some X-rays tomorrow, but I think it’s not going to be too bad,” Pierce told reporters after the game, adding that he thought it was a sprain. “I would have known by now [if it was broken]. I think I’ll be all right.”

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said the injury was nothing serious, but he didn’t want to risk aggravating it by pushing Pierce.

Click here to read the full article – By of ESPN.com