The KG Show

The Inaugural Triple Double

The Kevin Garnett court-length pass to a streaking Eddie House was the signature play from last night’s game (it was also reminiscent of baseball passes once thrown by the last great Celtics big man, but more about that later. Trust me, I will spend plenty of time reflecting on the 1985-1986 season and drawing parallels to the 2007-2008 season). Combined with his Triple Double in 33 minutes of play, KG is sending a message to the league and league observers:

If you liked what you saw in 2004, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

KG has Only One Move

The often-repeated notion that KG has only one-move—namely a fade away jumper—was once again proven false against the Cavaliers. The man has more moves than I can count. But let’s try anyway: 1) Spot-up jumper; 2) Fade-away jumper; 3) Turn-around, fade away jumper; 4) Straight-up drive and dunk; 5) Rick Barry head-fake, followed by a drive and dunk; 6) Baby hook left; 7) Baby hook right; 8) McHalesque up-and-under. And if you pay close enough attention, each of these has several variations. Now I am open to the idea that in the past he may have been reluctant to use more than one or two of these moves in crunch time. So for now, let's agree to say the jury is out on that subject.

Ray Ray

If Ray Allen stays healthy this year, he will absolutely demoralize opponents. On most nights, teams will need to double-team KG. When they do, and I mean as soon as they do, you can expect to see Ray Allen move to a vacant spot on the floor for at worst an open jumper and at best a wide-open jumper. Do I need to remind you whom we are talking about here? The jump shot of one Jesus Shuttlesworth is every bit as sweet as it was when he came into the league. And for those of a mind that he is over the hill, you may want to check your stats. His scoring numbers have gone up each of the last four years. They won’t go up again this year. But it won’t matter, cuz the ones he hits will be unforgettable, dagger-in-the-heart specials.

Best of the Rest

Other notable performances from last night's game included those offered by Rajon Rondo, Kendrick Perkins, Big Baby Davis, James Posey and the aforementioned Eddie House. Rajon Rondo is more than effective at getting into the paint, losing his defender along the way, drawing a big man, and then dishing to his teammate left open by the big-man defender picking him up. If Rondo is the worst point guard in the East, there sure must be a lot of all-star caliber quarterbacks in that conference.

Like his nickname suggests, Perk is indeed a beast. But whodda thunk he would be such a beast on offense? If KG is the Celtics best passing big man since Bird and Walton, Perk might be the most unheralded passing big-man in Celtics history. His dish to KG from 5-10 feet beyond the arc was a jaw-dropper. His jump hooks over the 7-4 Ilgauskas left me salivating for more. Again, if Perk is the worst center in the East, then the East must be chock-full of all-star big men. Oh wait. The East doesn’t have any all-star centers, unless you count the 365 pounder from Miami.

James Posey drawing charge after charge reminded me of the skills once exhibited by this annoying guy who won defensive player of the year for the Pistons in the 1980s. Speaking of the Bad Boys, I have a question for you: Who heats up faster, Eddie House or Vinnie Johnson? If Big Baby Davis starts playing defense and grabbing glass like he scored the rock last night, he will be the first big man off the bench. It is also worth noting that if Scot Pollard gets healthy and Brian Scalabrine and Leon Powe provide consistent contributions off the bench, this group of interchangeable big men might slowly be recognized as a poor man’s version of the interchangeable big men who came off the bench for the Bad Boys and Jordan’s bulls.

Toine Talk

Finally, last night’s game probably put an end to Antoine Walker Talk, at least for a few weeks. Antoine still has some game left, but, for the most part, that game reveals itself on the offensive end. The Cs proved last night that they have no trouble putting the ball in the basket. On defense, Antoine has more difficulty, and for this reason, I don’t see him taking the last roster spot, at least while PJ Brown remains available.