Celtics Central

A few things deserve mentioning.

1) Paul Pierce played a heck of a defensive game, the entire game. If you wondered why the offensive numbers looked so mundane for double P, wonder no more.

He was all over Tayshuan Prince. Prince looked inept out there and Paul was a major reason why. Paul also helped on other players with exceptional energy. And bear in mind, he was happy to do it and looked not, for his own shot. Big kudos for Paul to do what needed to be done. Oh yeah, before you it was just Prince being Prince, even Detroit fans said that Prince was on a nice streak coming in.

2) Detroit ball movement- Rip said it to me (as one UConn guy to another) after the game as one of biggest problems they have to fix and things will be fine. And it’s true. They broke down into a lot of one on one stuff when the Cs defense took their first option away.

3) How Rip did so well on Ray…

“Just have to get into his air. Close up his air space, stay tight on him.”

4) Jason Maxiell on Rondo’s dunk and the game generally…

“He went tight to the rim…good dunk.”

We decided to come out a little bit too late. We came out slow. They shot some tight rim and attacked it. We (have) guys who been there before. They been to championship before. They know what they’re doing. Allen hasn’t been there. Pierce hasn’t been there. (if we meet in the play-offs) it’s gonna be a tough series.”

Were you surprised by anything tonight?

Ummm…na. We knew they were going to come and play hard, play their game like it was a championship game, and they did.

5) The late arrival (4 a.m.) was a factor, I believe. Was it the difference? It possibly explains the slow start and that was a huge setback. I won’t say the out come would been different, but you never know.

6) I’d like to comment on the idea that Steven A. Smith put forth (I read about it, I didn’t hear it myself) that the Celtics put all their ‘cards on the table’ and that will hurt them in a return meeting in the play-offs with the Pistons.

I’ve felt all along that that the Cs have been intentionally ‘holding back’ stuff that they will bring out in the play-offs. Stuff like….. KG playing a strong offensive post game, like he did tonight. Well..that is the main thing and KG rebounding more as well.

KG has averaged a much higher board number than he has put up this season. It is not by mistake, in my opinion. I believe he will crash the boards in certain games and in certain series, far more than he has on a regular basis so far.

But as far as putting all their cards on the table..I don’t see that any great secrets have been revealed.

7) The Celtic shot distribution was skewed this game as well. KG had 22 and Rondo 16 of the Celtics 76 attempts. No one else hit double digits. That is far from normal.

Usually Doc makes sure all three stars have about the same amount of attempts. While the Celtics didn’t do that last night, they did execute under pressure much better due to Perkins, Rondo, and even Davis playing calmer under pressure. Their ‘assists per made basket’ was the highest of the series.

Garnett’s attacking Wallace early in the 4th, and getting the 4th and 5th fouls on him, was huge strategically. That opened the door for Perkins to go wild on the boards with 10 in the final period.

9) Speaking of inexperienced players, how about Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson? They both looked tight. Maxiell missed a sure dunk. He played 18 minutes and that was his only shot. He had been a factor of sorts in an earlier game. Amir was just schooled by Garnett.

10) Talking about not playing all your cards…

I liked that Doc tried to keep the 2nd unit out there, even when they started to lose the lead in the 2nd quarter. They will never get the chance to respond to pressure like that unless you give them the chance. Then he brought KG back before the lead was completely lost. I was understanding of what Doc was trying to do, contrary to those who think he left that unit in too long. Remember, this isn’t the play-offs. Doc is trying to get the whole team ready for games like these.

Well, 10 things to think about is enough for now.

I was going to add a Mensa Sudoku game for jollies. But that’s enough. Go back to work now.

Mensa Sudoku sounds like some foreign player’s name, doesn’t it? Nevermind, get back to work.

T

The Boston Celtics are the first team to clinched a play-off spot and added home court advantage against the Pistons, their adversary last night, and expected rival for the Eastern crown. They are now 47-12 and riding a 6 game winning streak.

Paul Pierce had said that this team would be scary if Perkins played as big as he did the other night. He did. It was.

Kevin Garnett had a monster game with 20 first half points in the face of a defense that is as tough as their own, and a season high 31 for the game. Kendrick Perkins turned into a 20 rebound eating beast, with 10 in the crucial 4th quarter, also a season high. The Celtics owned the boards once again as they grabbed 50 to Detroit’s 38. They ran out to a big early lead (17-3) and made Detroit play catch up all night.

It was a highly physical game. Playoff atmosphere? Hmmm….that depends on who you asked.

The Celtics jumped out to an early 17-5 lead and held on for a 23-13 1st quarter.

Chauncey Billups said…..

It’s going to be a grind every time. It’s going to be a grind. It’s great basketball. They’re not going to surprise us and we’re not going to surprise them.

A grind it was. As mentioned, a very physical game was allowed by the refs. But it wasn’t a play-off atmosphere for Rasheed Wallace…..

Nah, not for us….not for me. I have been in more intense play-off games. That was a good regular season match up though.

Statement game for the Celtics? Though many players were asked, no one on the Celtics was willing to utter that ‘statement’. Why? They already know better. Most every player called it a big game for themselves, and it was. But they know that Detroit isn’t going to lose their confidence and fold up their tent because they lost 2 out of 3 regular season games to the Celtics.

Paul Pierce knows about that from past experience as well….

You don’t want to get too over confident against them. I remember in 2002 when we were , I think, like 3-1, or 4-0 against the New Jersey Nets (during the regular season) and lost to them in the Conference Finals.

The player that propelled this win on both ends of the floor was Kevin Garnett. We received a sampling of what to expect from him come play-off time. When the game began, he came out firing…and hitting, and setting the tone for his team. From the very first shot, a straight up 16 ft jumper and then a little baseline jumper that dropped right through, the Celtics had the Pistons playing catch up.

Perkins and Garnett are looking…uhmmm…frankly…scary in the middle of late….as in ‘scary good’. Perkins has had the best three game stretch, by far, that I have ever seen him have. He has upped his rebounding to the next level, is passing very well, is a little more offense conscious, and still plays tremendous defense.

I asked him about it…

I think it’s about the best game I’ve played all season. It’s big. It’s big for my confidence. But I can’t just get caught up in one game. I think I’ve been up and down this season, so I’m just trying to keep the consistency.

You seem to have really elevated your game over the last three games. Is that intentional?

Like I said, I just have to be consistent…let you know what I’m going to give you every night. My goal from here is to get 10 or more rebounds a night, throughout the playoffs.

Defensively, this team was as good as they get last night.

Kevin Garnett exhorted Kendrick Perkins a number of times during the game. Kendrick responded with his career high in rebounds, and made life difficult for Rasheed Wallace for much of the night. Wallace tied with Billups for team scoring honors with 23, but was 10-24 from the floor and 3-10 from the 3 point line.

Garnett took 22 shots and Rondo was 2nd with 16 attempts, while Pierce and Ray Allen each took only 9. Paul hit 5, including 3 big three pointers for 15 points.

Rajon made some mistakes (5 TOs and a few questionable shots), but played a bonafide big time, and courageous game overall. He was the team’s 2nd leading scorer with 16 points. Rajon Rondo brought the house down in the 3rd quarter when he bolted to the rim for an explosive highlight film dunk, was fouled hard to the head by Jason Maxiell and hit the deck.

While it electrified the team and fans, the Pistons actually managed to recover to tie the game at 69 all in the 4th quarter and get to within 78-77 with 5:38 left, before Pierce hit a clutch 3 pointer to spark a 12-1 finishing kick to the hard earned win.

Ray Allen qualifies as the team’s unsung hero. Though scoring only 3 points on 1-9 shooting, he chased RIP Hamilton around all night and did other things that help win a game like grabbing 8 rebounds and distributing 5 assists to the cause.

Glen Davis acquitted himself well, after coming in to guard Rasheed Wallace. He played solid defense, and added 7 points on 3-5 and 4 boards.

The Celtics are now 47-12, have won 6 consecutive games, and play the Bulls at home on Friday.

In the season’s biggest game so far, Doc Rivers may have his ‘veteran big’ to help out.

According to the Celtics site…

Rivers……did say there’s a chance P.J. Brown could make his Celtics debut against Detroit.

I’m not sure what to expect if he does. He hasn’t played since last season’s play-offs (for the Bulls).

That is how the Celtics are billing it according to the lead in video on the Jumbotron at the end of the last game against the Hawks.

That works for me.

It is a big game between the 2 most dominant teams in the league so far. They have split the first two contests between themselves with each stealing a W on the other’s court.

If you check the defensive statistics of the top 2 defensive teams in the NBA, it is surprising how close they are. On FG%, 3 pt FG%, and points allowed, they are almost identical. The only substantial spread was on TOs and Boston was a few better.

Boston also turns the ball over more with a differential of 3.6 more (14.5 to Detroit’s 10.9 per game).

Boston has out rebounded Detroit in both games, though by only 3 in the first game and by 14 in the 2nd. It was a game that Boston made an effort to gang rebound in, as eight different Celtics garnered between 4-9 rebounds in that game.

It was also the game Glen Davis led the team in scoring with 20 based on that amazing 4th quarter of his. I would not expect a repeat of that.

Paul Pierce had a tremendous game, though he only shot 5-16. He made big play after big play and finished with 19 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists, while going 8-8 from the foul line.

One thing Detroit has managed to do in both games is take the fluid passing game away from the Celtics. The Cs only had 18 assists on 34 made baskets in game #1, and 14 assists on 31 baskets in game #2. That is decidely below their season average and indicative of the kind of defensive pressure they are getting from the Pistons.

None of this is rocket science but…

What Boston must do to win:

1) Shoot the outside shot better.
Actually they don’t have to. They haven’t shot well from outside yet and were in both games without stroking it from the perimeter. They are one of the league’s best 3 point shooting teams …until they play the Pistons. They have shot 4-16 and 4-14 from beyond the arc in the two games they have played them. I don’t expect them to out rebound the Pistons by 14 again. So it would make things easier if they can make Detroit hurt from outside.

2) Continue to take it inside, regardless of early results.
Getting Wallace and any other of the Detroit bigs in foul trouble will pay-off in the final quarter. Doc’s mantra has been to pound the rock inside all year. Tonight should be no different. Doc has talked about interior passing and Perkins, and the Celtics did well with it against the Hawks Detroit will put up a more formidable defense.

3) Stay composed under pressure.
The lower assist numbers are from lack of ball movement and is partially due to wilting under the Detroit pressure. Detroit is as good as the Celtics are at taking away the things you are trying to do. The good thing is Boston has three guys (4 if you want to add Tony Allen) who can create their own shot when a play breaks down.

4) Limit penetration. Control the middle.
They have let the Pistons guards get their points in both games. They can allow a certain amount of that again, provided it is not down the lane. Mid range and outside shots are more manageable for keeping the Celtic bigs out of foul trouble.

These two teams are very evenly matched. Games like these are often games of will and composure. Boston needs this type of experience more than Detroit does. Perkins is playing his best ball of the year. A strong game here by Perkins would really give the Pistons something to think about. Garnett is healthy and the team has many more games under its belt since the last time they played. It should be a typical ‘east coast style’ war.

Sam Cassell is not expected to be at this game. He signed his Celtic contract and went back home to attend a funeral over the next few days.

P.J. Brown will be present, though also not expected to play.

The Celtics have been capturing a lot of media attention with their 2 free agent signings of P.J. Brown and Sam Cassell.

But a low media impact signing of shotblocker and former Celtic, 6′ 10″ Theo Ratliff, by the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday, may have an effect on their season, the play-offs and even tonight’s big match up against the Celtics.

He may even suit up and play this evening against the Celtics, according to Yahoo Sports…

The Pistons signed free agent Theo Ratliff on Tuesday, and coach Flip Saunders said he could play as soon as Wednesday in Boston.

Oft-injured, and a stranger to a basketball court the past few years, he is hard to count on and that be why it’s been gotten so little attention. The BIG IF..IF he stays injury free, he will be a factor when he is on the court for the Pistons and he will give them something that they need, solid play-off experience and a defensive presence in the middle.

He appeared in exactly 2 games for Boston last year and 10 games for Minnesota this season. But it has been the season of the veteran buy-out. Theo Ratliff took a number and waited his turn in line for his. He got it and is now Detroit property as a number of the stronger teams make last minute adjustments for the coming play-off wars.

He came in a winner. He would like to go out as one. By winner, I mean NBA Champion.

38 year old Sam Cassell became such a winner as a rookie point guard with Hakeem the Dream and the Rockets in the 1993-4 season and repeated a year later. Granted he shared the duties with veteran Kenny Smith, but he played an important role on both teams.

In the 15 years he has toiled in this most difficult league, he has amassed 15,505 points (98th all time) shot 45.5%, 33.0% from the 3 point line, 86.1 from the foul line, 6.1 assists, 2.5 turnovers, and 1.1 steal per game. He has averaged as many as 9 assists per game one season.

He has quarterbacked two more teams to conference finals appearances, Milwaukee with Ray Allen and another with Kevin Garnett in Minnesota, though he missed the last 2 games due to injury. That is as close as he has gotten to the big prize since those magical first two seasons.

He also helped resurrect a moribund Nets franchise in 97-98. They went from 26-56 the year before to 43-39 and a playoff appearance where he led the team in scoring and assists. I never understood why the Nets traded him the next season.

The Celtics will be his 8th team in a well traveled career, but a career where teams seemed to play better with him there. That’s something that doesn’t show up in individual stats.

Sam has large ones. He is verbal, very verbal. Maybe teams can only handle Sam for a few years, kind of like some coaches. But he has made big shots. He will make crunch time foul shots. He can handle the ball. He performs well under pressure.

In Boston, he says he is ready to be Rondo’s back-up. That’s good, because this is Rondo’s team. Rondo has grown by leaps and bounds this year. Rondo went from the keystone cops last year to a NBA SWAT team this season. The pressure is terrific. He has to get 3 NBA Hall of Famers the ball at the right times and places. He has handled it well. But his own offense is suspect and this is no time to not have a Plan B.

As Doc Rivers just said about Rajon in Steve Bulpett’s article in the Boston Herald…

“In the playoffs, they’re going to really force him – I mean really force him – to beat you. They’re doing it a little bit now. They do it more in the fourth quarters, but they don’t do it for a game. In the playoffs, it’s going to be for the game, the whole game. That’s where he’s just going to have to keep understanding that he has to get shots that the team needs, not the shots that they’re giving him. That’s going to be tough for him, but he’ll be fine because he just keeps getting better at it.”

But if he isn’t able to do it, they now have a great back-up who can.

He comes east to sign with the Celtics today for a portion of the league veteran minimum of $1,219,590, which will be about $400,000. He received a buy-out of $800,000 on $1.7 mil, what was left of his $6.1 mil contract with Los Angeles. That means he only gave up about $500,000 to make the move to the Celtics, his desired destination. He will reunite with both Ray and Kevin to try and push through for a 3rd title while helping KG, Ray, and Paul Pierce get their first.

Sam is erratic shooting the 3 ball of late (25.9% this season), but he hits fouls at 89% and that will matter in a big way in 4th quarters. But as I already said, his impact is more about his intangibles, something Rondo is known for as well. Sam makes players better and has a confidence that he backs up as few players do.

In the recent game between the Celtics and the Clippers, everyone remembers Rondo attacking Cassell with great success. Few have mentioned that it was Sam and Sam alone who was responding successfully to the tough Celtic defense on the Clippers in that first quarter. Sam can break down a very tough defense. That will be invaluable in this year’s play-offs, where every defense will be tough.

So the Celtics add their final piece and it is a good one. Perfect, in fact.

Sam will be available to the media on Wednesday a.m. I doubt he will play against the Pistons later that night.

It won’t be long before Smilin’ Sam makes his presence known.

The Celtics beat the Atlanta Hawks at home for the 2nd time this season 98-88.

Paul Pierce had a 11-0 run, on 5 straight baskets in a 2 minute burst early in the second half and 17 points total in the pivotal 3rd quarter, in the course of reversing a 5 point deficit into an 11 point lead and finished with a game high 30 points. Paul was probably the biggest single difference in a tightly fought game. After the 16 point swing, the Hawks weathered the Pierce onslaught and tenaciously fought back to within 3 by the end of the quarter (70-67).

But Pierce wasn’t the biggest story of the night. Kendrick Perkins was.

Perkins – Double Trouble for the Hawks

Kendrick Perkins followed one of his strongest games of the year with an even stronger one.

6′ 10″ Kendrick played huge tonight against a very tough, athletic and active Hawks front line of Al Horford and Josh Smith. Al Horford is winning accolades by his own coach and Doc Rivers both.

Mike Woodson….

“I think Al Horford, being a rookie, is phenomenal. I mean phenomenal. I just don’t see rookies come in our league and play that steady as he’s played.”

Doc Rivers on Horford…

“What rookie is playing better than him? I think he’s terrific…. on a team that has a chance to make the play-offs. I don’t know if he gets enough credit.”

Horford had a double double with 2 blocks and made his presence known all night as he battled with Perkins, and he and Josh Smith made life in the middle difficult for the Celtics, with 5 blocks, and numerous other altered shots, while they attacked the middle themselves.

The ‘points in the paint war’ ended in a tie 38-38. That’s a battle the Celtics usually win when Kevin Garnett is playing and healthy, as he was tonight. Atlanta also had 7 more free throws for the game (28-21), though Boston won the rebound battle, 48-43.

That inside war was waged by a strong tandem of Garnett and Perkins this evening as they both fought hard in the trenches, each collecting a double double, with Garnett fighting inside as he has rarely done of late. Kevin finished with 20 points and 16 boards, looking more like the Kevin Garnett that started the year. 14 of his points were earned inside.

Garnett on Perkins….

Perk did a great job, he and I, talking and communicating trying to shut down the middle…it was great, he had 4 blocks, he was very active…he was the reason I looked decent tonight.

`Kendrick was more than ‘Double Trouble’, though he had his first double double of the year with 12 boards and an uber efficient 11 points on 4-5 shooting with 3 FTs. He also had a career high 6 assists and 4 man-sized blocks, including a crowd erupting, highlight reel rejection of Josh Childress early in the 4th, before fouling out late in the game.

When asked afterwards if you say something after blocking a dunk like that, Perk answered, “Of course, ‘You say… Get that out of here or something like that.’

Reporter: Did you say that this time?

Perk: No. The crowd said it for for me.

Somewhere, Yogi Berra just smiled.

Paul Pierce said afterwards…

“If Perkins comes to play like this every night, we’re gonna be a scary team.”

Scary indeed. Perkins has been the steady, unsung defensive stalwart all year, but has shown real growth in a few areas of late (rebounding, points), and seems to be getting more aggressive on both ends of the court. That type of presence, as displayed tonight, will make things infinitely harder to beat the Celtics, as the play-offs come around.

His passing was excellent, as he waited for player movement when he caught the ball in a less than optimal position, and often found the right shooter. Kevin also displayed great passing, one a behind the back to Davis, the other a leaping touch pass to Perkins for easy buckets.

Though Rondo looked to score early, and without much success (2-11), he ended up having a nice passing night himself distributing 8 assorted assists to the big three (PP=3, KG=3, Ray=2).

After beating the young, up and coming Hawks rather easily last time, the Hawks proved to be much more feisty this time around. They also have the recently acquired veteran and poised point guard, Mike Bibby, running their show. While he is learning the Hawks plays and system he finished with 14 points and 9 assists in 38 minutes.

Mike Woodson on Mike Bibby…

“He brings us more leadership. He brings us a point guard that’s capable of running a basketball team…something that I really hadn’t had since I’ve been here. Plus he can score the ball. He’s very crafty in terms of making plays for guys around him. Our guys are really starting to grow with him, considering that it’s only been 7 games with him.”

After a strong 1st quarter, Boston’s 2nd unit started with 3 straight turnovers, and with the lead at 34-28, the Hawks ran off 12 straight points to go up 40-34. The Celtics closed the half on a 7-4 run of their own to go into the half down 44-41.

Before Paul’s outburst, it was Ray Allen who actually breached an early Hawks attempt to add to their half time lead. Horford blocked a Rondo attempt and went to the other end for an alley oop dunk from Bibby. Ray Allen struck right back with 2 three pointers to give the Celtics a 47-46 lead.

From there Paul Pierce took over. Ray Allen followed Pierce and Garnett with 17 points on 7-11 shooting.

While the bench made contributions, they were not as successful as the last game in general, and Doc realized this, sending the starting 5 back for the last 4 minutes of the game, with the lead at only 5 (84-79). Going ‘tall’ was the right way to do things tonight.

The Celtics just gave Doc Rivers his best winning record as a coach with their 46th win and they still have 24 games to go to improve on that number.

But Doc will be more interested in acclimating PJ Brown and most likely Sam Cassell after Monday evening to the team. PJ was not activated for tonight’s game – coach’s decision. PJ says he is in good enough shape to get on the court, but he will happily wait until Doc says it’s time.

The next game is a big one. Detroit comes to Boston on Wednesday night. This is the expected Eastern Finals match up and each team has won on the other’s court. Talk about a war. I’m not missing this one.

If you are reading this, you are at least aware of what the internet can offer.

There is talk of people getting most all of their news via internet in the not-too-distant future. The younger you are, the more chance that you are doing that already.

I use Yahoo.com myself and read their opening page news blurbs before I meander down the yellow internet road. Before I throw my own paper’s editors into a tizzy, I read the Connecticut Post every day as well, though it may be evening before I get to read it. It’s part of my daily ritual. I doubt I will ever change.

Many ‘power up’ every morning, instead of pulling in the paper from the porch. Everything is a click away.

If you’re a Celtic fan and what you read in the newspapers about the team just isn’t enough information for you, then let me introduce you to level three for every fan who bleeds green. Level two are the on-line blogs, sports sites, and message boards. Level three, or at least 2-A, is a good internet talk show with solid, knowledgeable guests.

It is called a podcast. It is basically an audio talk show over the computer and a little more. Though it has been around a few years now, it is still a fairly new form of communication, though I wouldn’t call it cutting edge anymore. It is reaching its secondary phase as podcasters find their audiences.

Justin Poulin is a co-founder of a good one named simply enough; Celtics Stuff Live. I have briefly mentioned the show before here. It is usually on Sunday nights (often from 7-9) and is found on Celticsblog.com. You can listen, or you can participate, with a call or e-mail in to the hosts.

You won’t hear about it or any others from mainstream media. Why? Perhaps they are afraid it competes with them. Perhaps they feel it is too amateurish. While not the polished programming with people with perfect radio voices doing the shows, it has become rather a good listen.

The fact that it is put on by, and listened to, by hard core, green bleeding Celtic fans (though Justin, JB, and Jon are getting to be pretty smooth in presentation) gives it its honesty, ‘living room couch’ panache, and special place in the sports media world. It is entertaining, informative, offers a mild air of unpredictability, and you’ll often take away some good insights.

Their list of guests are impressive and have included Peter Vecsey of all people. Peter Vecsey on a Celtic show? Remember, it was Peter Vecsey that gave Larry Bird the name of Larry Legend. When you want to get deeper into the latest information about the league’s most talked about team, this is a good place to go.

Here is a Q&A interview I did with Justin….

1. What is a podcast and how long have you been doing one?

A podcast is essentially a pre-recorded audio file that is made available online for distribution which users can then download to their mp3 players. I have been producing both live webcasts and podcasts for just over 2 years now. The webcast is live every Sunday night and I also record podcaps (postgame podcasts) for all the 82 Celtics Regular Season games.

2. Who else does Celticsstufflive with you?

My co-hosts are Jim “JB” Metz and Jon Duke. We met via the internet message boards and did not meet one another in person until several months after we began doing the show together.

3. The blogging community takes a lot of criticism from the mainstream media. Is it deserved?

I think it is, but mostly because the blogging community fired the first shot often targeting those who have dedicated their lives to journalism or broadcasting. Blogging is also the face of new media and poses a great threat to mainstream media in its current form. Having credentials to the game and being in close contact with the writers who cover the team, I have learned that much of the criticism from the blogging community is unfounded, but not entirely so.

4. You are credentialed for Celtic games. Has your perspective on games and players changed since that happened?

When I walked into the locker room for the first time I was quite star struck and the players seemed so tall to me (I’m 5’9”). Now that I have acclimated to the environment they don’t seem to tower over me as they once did a year ago. But nothings changed, Kevin Garnett is still 7’1” soaking wet.

5. Tell me about Celticsstufflive, the format, time, etc.

CSL is a live webcast that broadcasts from the internet on Sunday nights, usually from 7-9pm EST, and is equipped with a toll free for us to take calls. The show is hosted on CelticsBlog.com and we have a number of excellent guests every week.

6. Who have you had for guests?

Mike Gorman (Celtics TV announcer), Sean Grande, Steve Bulpett (Boston Herald), Marc Spears (Boston Globe), Scott Souza, Mike Fine, Bill Doyle, Robert McChesney, Mark Murphy (Boston Herald), Eric Weiss (NBA DraftExpress), Jackie Moon, and more.

7. Your favorite? Why?

I really can’t pick a favorite. I know it’s a copout to your question, but I’d hate for any one of our guests to think that I appreciate them any less than another. It’s amazing what all the guys have done for us and our show and I am too thankful to all of them to make a choice.

8. There is a lot of talk about the three stars. What they bring is pretty much a known factor. What is your take on Rajon Rondo?

Rajon is growing very quickly in this environment. He has all the tools and more importantly he has the work ethic. Many players come into this league with the talent, but it’s the ones with the professionalism and the work ethic that succeed. In that way the sport is just like most other jobs. Work hard and you will be rewarded (I am hoping anyway).

9. How about Kendrick Perkins?

Kendrick is a good defensive player. He needs some work on little nuances of the game as far as what he can get away with and what he can’t. He gets a lot of fouls setting moving picks and that is all about focus. Offensively he’s really only good for wide open dunks this season, but he’s got more than that in his arsenal and I don’t think he trusts himself at that end of the court yet.

10. What has surprised you about this Celtic team?

Their commitment to play at a high level on so many nights has been a surprise. Very rarely, if at all, has the entire team mailed in a game this season.

11. Do they need to address any weaknesses with additional players?

Well, they signed PJ Brown and it remains to be seen if they will have a shot at Sam Cassell, but if they get those two then I think they will have addressed their needs with what was available to them. [This was done before Sam's agent said he would sign with Boston on Monday]

12. Who would your choices be of the available players?

The aforementioned, I can’t think of anyone else that is truly possibility for them other than Brent Barry, but I don’t really see the need for another wing.

13. Your opinion of Doc Rivers ability?

Doc is a good coach, especially coming out of timeouts. My only real complaint is the small line-ups he employs at the ends of games. However, this could largely be a result of the personnel he has available to him, it certainly was last season when you consider wins and losses.

14. Your prediction for the Celtics this year?

I honestly think they will make the Finals, but they will have to get by The Pistons. I think they can accomplish that, but it will take a lot out of them. The West is really tough this season and I am cautious to think they can win a championship in the inaugural season of the Big Three Redux.

15. Any final comment.

Salmon and mashed potatoes.

Great finish. Listen in if you don’t know what he meant by that last line. If fact, call him and ask him!

So check out Celticsstufflive on Celticsblog on Sunday nights. Justin also does 15 minute post game recap podcasts available on the same site.

They will have Eric Weiss as a guest this Sunday from 4-6pm, before the Atlanta Hawks game.