Celtics Central

Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald had this bit of information in a recent article…

Stirring the nest

Kendrick Perkins [stats] offered up some cannon fodder for tomorrow’s game against the Hornets.

The Celtics center told the media that, according to Rondo, the only reason Chris Paul has so many assists is that “the ball is in his hands all the time.”

Look for a high over/under number on assists between Rondo and Paul.

My first reaction is that…well…so would Rondo. But that’s his point. In the Celtic’s offense, the ball often moves through a number of other hands on the way to a potential assist. The assist leaders like Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, and Jason Kidd do seem to have the ball more and the offense runs through them more than other players on the team. Rondo feels he is in their class.

You would have to run a check of the ‘distribution of assists’ (and research could go deeper, I guess) on those other teams to see if it really holds water. But it makes some sense to me.

We are hearing it second hand (from Perkins), but KP is just being a good teammate and might be trying to help his teammate get some “Top 5 PG love”. We have heard that ‘Top 5 PG’ status is a bone of contention between Rondo’s camp and the Celtics regarding contract discussions.

Speaking of contract discussions, the timing of this game on Sunday against the Chris Paul Hornet couldn’t be better…

Murphy in the same article…

Extra time

Though the deadline in Rondo’s negotiation for a contract extension has been pushed back to 6:30 p.m. on Monday, both sides reacted to the news in almost blase fashion.

Danny Ainge said yesterday that he knew of the extension – enacted because the NBA office isn’t open on weekends – but didn’t even discuss the change with agent Bill Duffy, who didn’t learn of the extension until yesterday. The deadline was originally today.

So it seems that neither side expects a big move in position by the other…even with the extension. If this is a game of chicken, both sides play it well.

For an interesting look at what Rondo may be worth, and it’s closer to what Rondo wants than what the Cs want to pay, according to Jack Jemsek – check out his article on Rondonomics. Here is a quick look…

It’s no secret that Rondo’s draft class is struggling mightily to negotiate the extensions that they are eligible for.  Portland has been busy as they have signed both of their 2006 1^st round draftees to extensions.  This summer, Brandon Roy received a maximum contract that amounts to a $81M/5 yr deal.  That was just recently followed by the Blazers paying LaMarcus Aldridge $70M/5 yr, $5M of which is reportedly tied to incentives.  Bargnani signed a $50M/5 yr contract with the Toronto Raptors.  But that’s it.  Rudy Gay and Tyrus Thomas are also waiting patiently this week along with Rondo.

So, should we expect an especially intriguing match up on Sunday? Or no deviation from the Celtics game plan? I’ll opt for no deviation, though I’m sure Rondo will enjoy any chance that presents itself in the individual duel with CP3 to rise to the occasion. So, I guess the answer is both.

Should be a game of closer interest for the above reasons.

The Celtics play the New Orleans Hornets at 6pm on Sunday.

Celtics + KG = No Contest

No overtime pay for this one.

The Bulls are said to have been strengthened, solidified, fortified and homogenized by their strong playoff showing against the Celtics last season. They are a more together team now.

Going toe to toe and matching the famed, but ‘not so feared’ KG-less Celtics basket for basket in the longest, most closely contested playoff series in NBA history will do that for you. Just ask the Atlanta Hawks what a 7 game series with the future NBA kings did for them the previous season.

The Bulls are now a tired, confused, disorganized, beaten team that will go back to practice to re-learn how to defend the pick and roll and pick and pop. The Celtics used those regularly with great success. The Celtics also assisted on 33 of 43 made baskets, with Rondo conducting the offense.

If a player can dominate a game with taking a shot, Rajon Rondo can – with 16 assists and 8 rebounds. The Celtics shot a superb .581 on three point shots, but an even better 62% from everywhere else. The Celtics ball movement had the Bulls in disarray for most of the evening.

Intensity is self manufactured and the Celtics have a self replenishing pool of it in Kevin Garnett.

The Bulls young leader, point guard Derrick Rose, was shut down by Rajon Rondo. He stayed in front of Rose most of the night, resulting in just two assists for the Rookie of the Year, only the 6th time in his young career he has had that few.

Together, the Bulls went down in the second quarter and never got back up. It was the second straight third quarter TKO for the 3-0 Celtics.

At the Half
The mugging began in the second quarter with a scissors-like dissection of the Bulls’ defense by Ray Allen. He made 4 of 5 shots from everywhere but behind the arc, his usual launching pad. Ray even busted out his bank shot, in hopes that Sam Jones was watching. He led both teams at the half with 12 points.

Perkins was 3-3 leading for 7 points after two. Marquis Daniels finally had a good offensive showing with 7 first half points by taking the ball into the paint. Eddie House had 7 by half time, too.

Paul Pierce took over the third quarter with a barrage of three pointers, making 5 of 5, after having just two points at the half. Pierce finished with 22 points, 20 in the third quarter, tying teammate Eddie House for game honors.

House’s flame thrower got working in the second half as he poured it on to the discombobulated Bulls. His 22 points came in 22 minutes, 4 on three pointers.

Third Quarter Verdant Volume Three Pointers Raining from the Sky

The Celtics have averaged over 10 three point shots made so far and are hitting them at a lethal 44% rate.

The Cs were just 2 for 10 from downtown at half time. They made 7-8 in the third, with Ray Allen starting it off with the first two. Pierce took over from there.

At the 6:52 mark of the third quarter, the Bulls called time out with score already out of reach at 72-45. The Bulls could only get it down to 88-61 by the end of  the 3rd quarter.

Fourth Quarter was Second Unit Time Again

The Celtics put the second unit in for the entire 4th quarter and they maintained the advantage until the final bell. Shelden Williams contributed a double double (10 and 10) one game after missing a double double by one rebound. With two straight blow outs, Williams is getting the minutes and is contributing to the second unit’s success with fundamental basketball.

Ray Allen finished with 20 points and Garnett added 16 more, while looking refreshingly active on defense again.

The Celtics are holding the opponents to just 8 for 42 in three point shooting (19%) so far.

Now people might start believing Rasheed Wallace’s daring comment about getting the best record ever. Okay, it is very, very early for that.

But how about Doc River’s comment about playing the best defense ever? Yep, still way too early for that as well. But they’ve got you thinking, haven’t they? Admit it now.

The Celtics with Kevin Garnett present a whole different world of hurt than the valiant, but mortal Boston team Chicago faced last May.

The Big Ticket and Co. put the big hurt on the Rose colored Bulls. Though he only took two shots, Rajon Rondo took up where he left off by putting up 16 assist with 8 rebounds in a masterfully conducted game.

Perkins had three blocks, Shelden Williams added two more, and Pierce added three steals as they defeated a Bulls team that was riding high after defeating the Spurs the previous evening.

Boston continues their goal driven march through the NBA when the Chris Paul Hornets come to Boston on Sunday for a 6:00 pm game.

Let the Rondo vs. Chris Paul debates begin.

Rondo is in a contract drive this season. This could be a key match up to reference in the negotiating process by either side, depending on how things turn out in the game. The Celtics have until Monday to work out a deal with Rondo’s agent, before he becomes a restricted free agent next summer.

All the right team oriented things will be said, but Rondo believes himself to be a top five guard. He will measure himself against the player who is regarded as the number one point guard in the league, the Hornets’ Chris Paul.

Can you get a technical foul for just giving a look?

Apparently, that answer is yes.

I figured that something was eventually coming. Perkins and Chandler were getting a bit chippy from time to time and some words were passed here and there.

I didn’t see it go down, but Kendrick Perkins apparently got a tech for taunting Tyson Chandler ‘with a look’, relates Rasheed Wallace, known for collecting a few technicals himself over the years.

What went through your mind when Perkins got his technical?

Rasheed…

It was… to me…the first I said, ‘It was BS.’

For the simple fact that the ref said “he (Perkins) taunted him by looking at him (Tyson Chandler). And so, when I got in the game, I commented to that ref. I said, ‘Well I want to see if you (are) gonna call that throughout the year.’

Because there’s certain ‘stuper stars’ that they (the refs) like, that get dunks and all that, and they look at people, and it’s all fine. So I want to see if he’s going to be consistent with that through out the year.

Rasheed Wallace. You have to like him. I always have. He has a loud ‘game time’ persona that I always believed to be his ‘front’. In person, my intuition wasn’t disappointed. Intelligent and personable – when he wants to be. He is one of those guys that seem like a great guy to hang with. He tells you what he thinks. And now that he’s a Celtic, I get to hear it first hand. God is good.

Always a subject of some interest, technical fouls with the Celtics could be factored into this season’s ‘things to watch’.

Rasheed Wallace, last season’s technical fouls co-leader has been added to the Celtics’ ‘library zone quiet’ team of introverts, led by Kendrick Perkins, Kevin Garnett, and even Paul Pierce.

Like all top stars, this is not a group you will see attending seminars for self esteem issues. That they are among the more vocal is a given. It is a part of their personalities. They have made it work as they attained unique success in one of the most hyper competitive environments in the world – the NBA.

Personally, I completely understand referees using technical fouls to control players and games. But consistency has been an ongoing issue of debate with regard to NBA officiating for years now.

The article isn’t about any technicals that Sheed got. Celtics’ big man Kendrick Perkins and Bobcats’ center Tyson Chandler kept an ongoing dialogue for much of the game. Eventually they both got T’ed up. So did Gerald Wallace and Paul Pierce.

Perkins got mixed up with both Chandler and Wallace He was philosophical about the whole thing. It’s about cause and effect. The first one causes it. The second gets the effect. Instigators and retaliators. It’s all that simple.

Kendrick….

(Regarding Gerald Wallace)…
I don’t know. I was just trying to go for the offensive rebound. He said I just threw him out of the way or whatever, and he pushed me but …you see… You (are) wrong when you like the retaliator. But you (are) right when you (are) the instigator. So I instigated the situation (with Gerald Wallace) and I ended up getting him a tech.

Tyson Chandler instigated the situation with me and I ended up getting the tech, because I retaliated. So it works both ways.

On the ongoing dialogue during the game with Chandler..

Seems like he was kind of mad at me for whatever reason. But I (wasn’t) doing nothing. I’m just playing hard. You know, he got in foul trouble early. He was frustrated, you know. But I was just trying to play basketball. It wasn’t nothing personal.….big difference between playing Shaq last night, so I just wanted to be extra physical.

I had actually talked to Perkins first. So I wasn’t able to confirm whether he was T’ed up for ‘just looking’ or not.

I think that would set a bit of a new standard for qualifications for getting T’ed up. I’d have to research it more to know for sure.

But I guess, as Rasheed suggests, it’s about consistency as much as anything. You have to know the boundaries for what behavior is considered a ‘technical’ offense.

A new book called Blowing the Whistle by de-frocked, ex-communicated and feloniously convicted former NBA referee, Tim Donaghy just adds fuel to the fire. Donaghy is back in prison for breaking parole. But hold your fire until you finish the article.

Here are a few excerpts that give credence to the idea that technical fouls (and regular fouls) are not always fairly and equitably dispensed…

Donaghy…

To have a little fun at the expense of the worst troublemakers, the referees working the game would sometimes make a modest friendly wager amongst themselves: first ref to give one of the bad boys a technical foul wouldn’t have to tip the ball boy that night.

It even occurred with regular fouls to regain control of a physical game…

Similarly, when games got physically rough, we would huddle up and agree to tighten the game up. So we started calling fouls on guys who didn’t really matter — “ticky-tack” or “touch” fouls where one player just touched another but didn’t really impede his progress. Under regular circumstances these wouldn’t be fouls, but after a skirmish we wanted to regain control. We would never call these types of fouls on superstars, just on the average players who didn’t have star status. It was important to keep the stars on the floor.

The book has been pulled from publication at this time, but the material is up on at least one website and Yahoo Sports Dan Wetzel has written a solid article dealing with the book’s content.

Wetzel even mentions Rasheed Wallace….

Consider Rasheed Wallace, who has recorded a record number of technical fouls during his career-long battles with refs. He earned many of them, but he also claimed the refs had it in for him.

“Some of them cats are felonious, man,” ’Sheed famously declared, even before Donaghy became a felon.

But Wetzel makes an interesting observation…

Ask around the NBA this week and you won’t find too many people outside the league office dismissing Donaghy’s claims.

“I read it last night and was laughing, and said, ‘Yep, that’s about right,” one team executive said. “I don’t think anyone is going to dispute the possibility.”

If the NBA’s own front-office people believe this, then how can fans simply dismiss it?

Great point. That it fuels all kinds of refereeing conspiracy theories and paranoia is a given.

But I digress.

That Perkins was given a tech for taunting with a look, and stars won’t get a T for the exact same thing is what bothers Sheed.

To Perkins, it is simply instigating and retaliating…technically speaking. It works both ways.

I agree with Rasheed that it unevenly distributed. I also agree with Wetzel that there is not a top down and league wide conspiracy. At times, individual bias – yes.

But I think we knew that.

Stop looking at me that way. I’m calling a referee.

Who the heck is Shirley Coshatt and what is she doing in a Celtics article?

Well…if you are asking that question, you are not a Boston Celtic die hard fan. Certainly not a big internet Celtic fan, anyway. And..other there any other kinds?

As the world moves on-line for its entertainment and news, there emerges a strange and wonderful co-mixing of people who would never otherwise meet, let alone form a relationship based up on a common interest or interests. No, I’m not talking about eHarmony.com, but she is an integral cog in harmonizing Celtic information and spirit.

And no, I don’t know Shirley on any level other than the Boston Celtics internet world. It is a world made up mostly of youth and the youthful. Shirley and I come in the ‘youthful’ category, meaning we are youthful in outlook only, with our beloved Boston Celtics.

Shirley posts the links to Celtic articles every single day for Celticsblog.com and Celtics Green. She also pens a number of original pieces herself and when you finish reading her stuff, you walk away far more informed than you were a few minutes earlier.

Generally a youth oriented environment, for the most part, there are some older fans that like to join the conversation. The nice thing is that the kids (anyone under 30 to me and maybe even older) let us join them and join in the discussions about everything Celtic. We even bring a unique point of view to share. We both saw the legendary Bill Russell play.  But the main thing is that any age can appreciate a committed die hard Celtic fan. FLCeltsfan is definitely that.

Early on, a Celtic fan from Florida, of all places, won over everyone that ever read her posts and discussed the finer points of basketball the Celtic Way. You learn who knows their stuff and who doesn’t. The fan with the online moniker of FLCeltsfan knows her stuff. But I’ll let her tell her story. I asked FLCeltsfan if she would answer a few questions for Celtics Central, and she was kind enough to oblige.

To help you understand who FLCeltsfan is, she does some wonderful in depth articles or reviews on books written about the Celtics, Red Auerbach, or any of the storied players who have worn the Green.  She also writes well researched articles on players and teams and writes a mean game day preview for certain sites.  Specifically, she links all the days articles on the Celtics to two sites for you to read. But I’ll let her tell you about that, too.

Time to meet FLCeltsfan:

1: Shirley, how and when did you become a fan of the Celtics?

It was the 1968-69 season.  The game of basketball had captured my attention both with my high school team and the NBA.  I lived in Pennsylvania so didn’t get to watch the Celtics games or even get that much information on the Celtics but what I did get, really impressed me.   I began reading everything I could find on the Celtics as an organization and as players. The more I read the more I loved the team.  I read all I could about the Celtics of the 60’s and decided that my favorite player was Loscy.  He was like the Perk of the 60’s.    I never actually got to watch him play but loved everything I read about him.    I loved that ’69 championship team because it seemed they didn’t have a chance, going in as the 4^th seed in the East and then reaching down deep to pull out the championship.  That was also the start of my dislike for the Lakers.

2: When did you become involved with blogging?

Back in 2006,  I was just discovering the Celtics online community.  I had found Celtics Green boards and the founder of Celtics Green, Loyalist, had started a blog and mentioned on the boards that he was looking for some help to keep the blog updated.   I had never done any writing.  I am quite left brained and never thought of writing.  But once I got my hand in it, I enjoyed it and just kept going with it.

3: You do a lot of writing about the Celtics now. How did your writing evolve?

I started out just posting news articles of interest and then I got brave and would write a paragraph of opinion to introduce the articles.  Eventually I put up a couple of full articles that I wrote and it snowballed from there.  I had the bug.  I still don’t consider myself a writer but I sure have fun doing it.  Mostly I just write my opinions and observations.

4: You are every Celtic writer’s favorite person because you assemble such a great set of links every single day of Celtic and NBA related articles. What got you started doing that? And how do you find so much?

I started posting the news articles on Celtics Green and from there realized how many stories there were out there on the Celtics.  I then started posting a list of the links on Loy’s Place along with the news stories on Celtics Green.   I have google alerts for every player and word associated with the team. Some mornings I wake up with 400-500 emails to sort through.   I also have the links bookmarked to all of the Celtics blogs that I know of along with the newspaper sections from all the Celtics major competitors.  I go through them all every morning.  It takes anywhere between 2 and 4 hours to gather and post them, depending on the number of links on any given day.

5: You can’t possibly read everything you put up each day, do you?

No, if I tried to read them all I’d never get anything done other than posting links.  I do skim through most of them as I am posting them and I go back later in the day and read the ones that catch my attention.

6: How many sites do you do links for?

Currently, I post links on CelticsBlog and Loy’s Place.  There were 2 other sites that I posted links on in the past but they aren’t currently active so for now, it’s just the 2.

7: On to this year’s Celtic team…prediction?

I think this team has the potential to be something very special.  I agree with Sheed that this team is capable of winning 72 games. But, in the end, my prediction is for 64-18.  The Celtics have improved but then again, so have the other teams in the league.  I am allowing for them to slack off a little toward the playoffs to be ready for that championship run.  I also predict Banner 18 in June.

8: Who is the true Celtic team MVP?

This is a tough one because you can make a case for several players. Rondo is the engine that makes everything go and we really don’t have a replacement for him if he was to go down.  We saw how much the team missed KG last season and how much he means to this team.   Paul Pierce is still the Captain and the go to player.  And Perk is probably the most underestimated player on the roster.  Just watch the 2008 finals and the difference his absence made in Game 5.  Ray is the player who has changed his game the most to fit the team and that counts for a lot.   I don’t think we can pick just one MVP.  This team was built on ubuntu and I believe that they would be the first to say it is a team effort and there isn’t one MVP but many.

9: Who on the Celtic roster will surprise the most this season?

I think Perk will surprise a lot of people because he is going to be more involved in the offense this season and is going to take yet another step up in his development.  However, that won’t surprise me as I’ve known what Perk could be since his rookie season.    I was thinking that Lester Hudson could be the biggest surprise, but there would have to be an injury for Doc to even give him a chance.  After reading that Big Baby could be out for awhile, I think that Shelden Williams could be the biggest surprise.  If Big Baby is out, Shelden should get more minutes and may just make the most of them.   I think he has the talent and just needs the chance on the right team.

10: Doc Rivers…great coach or… great situation?

I think it is a little of both.  I think Doc is in a great situation and even great coaches can’t win without the players.  He is the same coach that everyone wanted to lynch back in 2006-07 when the team went on an 18 game losing streak but with the players he has proved that he is a very good coach.   He is definitely the coach for this team because he inspires loyalty in his players and has the ability to manage big egos into a team ego.  I’m not sure how many other coaches could manage this many stars on a team and maintain an authority over them,  yet Doc has done it.

11: I know Kendrick Perkins is a personal favorite. How high is up for KP?

Perk has improved every season he has been in the league.  He is the perfect center for this team because he is willing to play his role and not step outside of it.  He is content with being the defensive stopper and enforcer and leave the glory to the other guys.  He has a great work ethic and attitude and is absolutely crucial to the success of this team.  I believe he will take another step up in his development again this year.  He is just 24 years old and before he is done, he will be a top 5 center in the league.  (And have a couple more rings as well.)

12: What is the most surprising about yourself that readers might find interesting?

I’m not sure what would be surprising or interesting.  I guess maybe that I have 4 kids ages 13 to 35, all living at home and a son living in South Florida.  And I also have 2 grandchildren, ages 3 and 10, living here that I am helping to raise as well.

I’m sure those kids are lucky to have a grandma like FLCeltsfan. I know that Celtic Nation is.

Thanks Shirley! Keep on rockin’ the green!

It was supposed to be another scrappy game against the Bobcats. For most of one half it was.

A reloaded Boston Celtic team has begun its march in impressive fashion towards what it hopes is another NBA title. According to Larry Brown, the Celtics were scary good.

Ray Allen led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points. Paul Pierce was second with 15. Rajon Rondo had 11 assists, and Shelden Williams led the Celtics with 9 rebounds. Garnett slipped in the third quarter, without injury. But Doc Rivers took him out anyway.

On the opening night of the World Series, the Celtics came as close as you can to pitching a shut out of their own. The Celtics held the Bobcats to their lowest point total ever.

In truth, the Bobcats played a big part in their own demise. They had 21 turnovers and missed most of the open shots they did manage to get. Intimidated? You bet.

Scary Celtics? Halloween Came Early for the Bobcats.

Coach Larry Brown…

We (had) a lot of guys scared to death and that’s tough.

After suffocating Charlotte with a 13 point first quarter (3 for 15 shooting), Boston stopped Charlotte cold in the second half, allowing just 28 points more.

The Cs pitched a shut out for the first 6 minutes of the second half, stretching an 11 point half time lead to 26 points at 57-31 before Charlotte scored its first points of the quarter on Gerald Henderson’s (former Celtic Gerald Henderson’s son) first NBA jump shot. Gerald’s father was in attendance.

The game was over for all intents and purposes.

Perkins on the 3rd quarter knock out…

Very Important. That’s something  that we try to do through the course of the season where.. if we (have) someone on the ropes, we gonna take them out.

The Beantown Ballers decked the Bobcats coming out of the gate with an 8-0 run that was aided by Bobcat turnovers. Charlotte had 9 in the first quarter alone. But the Cs had a hand in those turnovers as well.

Doc Rivers…

(We had) tons of deflections. We keep that number and it was extremely high – as high as you can possibly get it at halftime.

Starting with Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Kendrick Perkins and Rasheed Wallace, this team communicates on defense as well as any in the league.

Paul Pierce…

When we’re talking on defense, it starts with Rondo at the top, with Kevin in the back, guys helping each other. And we always stress hot hands, and when we’re able to get in passing lanes, force turnovers, get out on the break – it makes things easier when you are doing those things.

Balanced Scoring
With six points each from Rondo, Garnett, Wallace, and Ray Allen, the Celtics stretched the first half lead to 13 points at 28-15, before the Bobcats regrouped. They fought back to within 3 points (32-29) on a Boris Diaw lay-up with 4:19 left in the first half.

From there, the Celtics went on a 10-2 run to end the half at 42-31, fueled by two Ray Allen three pointers and baskets by Pierce, Perkins and Rondo.

Rasheed Wallace got a warm Boston welcome on a wet, cold Boston night. They lit the place up when he hit his first two three pointers.

Boston used the three point shot to good avail with 7 in the first half.

Doc Rivers….

We’re taking good threes. I’m a fan of the three if the ball starts from the inside and works its way out. And I thought that’s what we did, especially in the second half. You know, most of them came on drives to the basket and out, and posts and out. I thought in the first half we went in that little stretch where we were searching for the three point line instead of….we had a size advantage. I thought, in the second half, we did that.

The Celtics’ defense was very good, but honestly, the ‘Cats were missing open shots all night. If they swung the ball to the weakside they usually had open looks. They were just missing them.

Tyson Chandler played poorly, especially offensively. He is healthy but not in game form yet. He is recovering from off season ankle surgery. But really, how much is there to Chandler’s offensive game?

Kendrick Perkins and Chandler had a running dialogue going all game. They both received technicals at different points.

Rasheed Wallace on Perkins technical…

(incredulous) The ref gave him a technical for a look that he said was ‘taunting’. I asked him if he’s going to call it like that all year. Just for a look. (paraphrase)

The fourth quarter was mostly second string time and Shelden Williams made the most of it with 11 points and 4 rebounds. Eddie House found the range with 7 points, and for the first time all game, the Celtics out rebounded the Cats,14-9. The Bobcats did mange to win the rebound battle for the game 46-44. It was the only thing they beat Boston at.

Gerald Henderson…

We did? I didn’t know that. At least we can take that from this game.

That and a memory eraser. This was a game between a prepared and focused team against an unprepared and unfocused team – unusual for a Larry Brown team. He took all the blame…

I did a hell of a coaching job. That’s my first thought. Our team wasn’t prepared, weren’t ready to go. That’s nobody’s fault but the coach.

But Doc’s done a great job with them. Danny’s done a great job of getting the right guys. He’s just a heck of a lot better coach and better prepared than we are.

Prepared? They are just starting out themselves. But they look good and seem to have added Wallace seamlessly.  2-0. So far, so good.

Next up: Chicago on Friday night.

The new rebuilt bench played great.

The Celtics defense was good enough to hold the Cavs to 89 points.

Kevin Garnett looked good.

The Celtics head into tonight’s home opener on a high note after focusing only on basketball for 48 minutes last night in Cleveland and leaving with a very satisfying win.

That the Celtics were able to put off-court distractions like the Rondo contract posturing (by both sides), and Glen Davis’ altercation behind them is a sign of what makes this team special. They are as tough minded as any team in the league. Maybe more.

Their focus under duress was forged in the crucible of last season’s grueling playoffs, while undermanned, and serving up no excuses, nor accepting any. You have to love this team.

Now, they opened in very hostile enemy territory, absorbed an initial punishing assault, and then stormed the beaches, raised serious basketball hell, absorbed another run by the Cavs, and walked out with a stolen and well deserved victory.

They have a ‘kick butt and ask questions later’ attitude that you have to appreciate. That attitude and their combined talent will work well in most circumstances. They have a goal. It was summed up in their absolute disdain for watching the Lakers get their championship rings shortly after the Celtics rose up on the Cavaliers. They believe they should have been the team getting those rings. One Kevin Garnett injury put an end to that possibility.

They are 1-0 and heading towards a special season and they will tell you so.

Tonight they open at home against the resurrected Charlotte Bobcats under coaching legend Larry Brown.

Under Brown, the Bobcats added some bite,  playing the Celtics tough every time last season, including two overtime games (one was double OT) and Charlotte won one of those games. This year should be no different.

The Bobcats are dealing with their own injury issues. New comer Raja Bell has a torn ligament in his wrist that he has decided not to have surgery on for now. He won’t play tonight.

Center Tyson Chandler is recovering from ankle surgery and won’t play a full game tonight. He is healthy now, but needs to get game conditioning before he is ready for full time minutes.

With Bell out, Coach Brown will start Stephen Graham with Raymond Felton, Gerald Wallace,  Boris Diaw, and Tyson Chandler

The Celtics are ready for game two in their quest for title two in their era, and banner 18 in Celtic history. I’ll be there to give you a report later.

Bonus! All fans at the game will get a free Celtic t-shirt.

Also…the Celtics will unveil the new Lucky character as their mascot. Maybe that was part of the problem last season. No lucky.

Paul Pierce will welcome the fans back before tip off with a crowd address.

The Boston Celtics, led by Paul Pierce’s 23 points, including 6 in the last minute, defeated the Cavaliers on their own court for the first time since 2004.

Kevin Garnett looked good in his first game back from off season knee surgery, scoring 13 points on 5 of 10 shooting and grabbing 10 rebounds, while blocking three shots. He also got his first technical foul of the season. Shaking off some rust, KG missed two dunks in the game. But KG is back and so are the Celtics.

It was the second straight regular season home loss for the Cavaliers, including the final home game last season against the 76ers. Before that, they had only lost one home game all year.

Rajon Rondo passed out 10 assists, grabbed 6 rebounds, pocketed 3 steals and added 8 points. Ray Allen scored 16 points on 5 of 16 shooting, but added 3 steals of his own.

Comeback Game in a Comeback Year

Hitting 7 first half three point shots, the Celtics slowly recovered from a lethargic opening quarter where they were down 21-7 at one point. O’Neal was getting solid position on Kendrick Perkins, making 8 first half points. Lebron was leading the Cavalier scoring with 38 points and was coming from out of nowhere to block what looked like easy dunks and lay ups on fast breaks by the Celtics. Rondo and Ray Allen both had sure baskets rejected by James. He ended with 4, mostly highlight reel, blocks.

Led by new comer Rasheed Wallace’s two three pointers, the Celtics’ bench outscored the Cavalier’s bench 17-2 in the first half and helped lead the Boston comeback. Marquis Daniels scored 7 points in 17 minutes and, with a few exceptions, played decent defense on James.

It is Wallace’s ability to hit that deep shot that will make opposing defenses send their big man out to guard Rasheed, opening things up in the middle for drives to the hoop by Pierce, Rondo, and Daniels. Wallace also showed off his inside game with 2 blocks

Shaquille O’Neal made his ‘Big Witness Protection Program’ presence felt with two hard fouls on Garnett going to the hoop. Both times Garnett jumped up acting unfazed. ‘I did not hit a brick wall’, he kept telling himself. (Well, that was what he was thinking.)

Perkins played Shaq much better in the second half, holding him to only two points more.

Boston fought back to reverse that 14 point 1st quarter deficit to lead by 66-52 by the 5:44 point of the third quarter, on a Rondo lay up. Mo Williams then made 6 straight Cavalier points before handing the scoring baton to LeBron James for Cleveland’s last 7 points of the quarter to close within 72-65.

The Cavs closed to within 4 points twice, before Pierce took over with time running down to clinch it.

The Quickens Loan Arena was rocking as Cleveland has high hopes that this is their year…finally. Boston has plans of their own, and on this night, Boston’s dream trumped Cleveland’s.

Boston headed home for their first home game tonight against the Charlotte Bobcats at 7:30.

On May 17th the Celtics walked off the court for the last time of the 2008-9 season. They were beaten handily (101-82) by the Orlando Magic.

The Magic went on to surprise the league leading Cleveland Cavaliers in 6 games. It wasn’t supposed to happen that way – to either team.

Tonight, both fallen teams with busted dreams renew their missions to gain an NBA title. A rivalry has developed between them that really began in a 7 game series two seasons ago, ending with two epic performances by two of the league’s biggest stars, Lebron James, and Paul Pierce. The Celtics went on to win the title. The Cavs continued to search for answers.

Since then it has been war. The Cavaliers have added Shaquille O’Neal in an effort to put the Cavs over the top. 37 year old Shaq is still bigger than life and has been to the mountain top – four times. He can show LeBron and the Cavs the way to what has eluded them for the past 5 years.

The Celtics have unfinished business of their own. They lost team leader Kevin Garnett to injury for 27 games at the end of the year and for the playoffs. It was the difference between them playing for another title and going home on May17th against an inferior Magic team. They are painfully aware of that.

Tonight, Garnett is healthy and the team added reinforcements of their own in Rasheed Wallace and Marquis Daniels. The Cavaliers also added Anthony Parker, and Jamario Moon to their supporting cast of 1000s.

Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Rajon Rondo are ready to get it on and have been for over a week now. The Cavs are still piecing the team together but are also ready.

The Cavs are missing guard Delonte West, out with personal issues. The Celtics are without Glen ‘Big Baby’ Davis, who broke his hand in an altercation with a friend. Davis will be out at least 6-8 weeks.

The fireworks begin at 7:30 pm.