Doc, KG, and the boys are gonna be chompin' at the bit to play the Detroit Pistons tonight, and da Gah-den will be rockin'. The Celtics will rightly see this game as their first genuine test of what they have put together thus far.
I expect the league's best defense to kick it up a notch.
I expect Ray Allen to return with Guns a Blazin'.
I expect the Celtics' focus and intensity to peak.
In a two-day span earlier this month, the Chicago Bulls beat the Pistons in Detroit and then our boys humbled the Bulls the next night on their home court.
So, in short:
We're at home.
We're rested.
We've motivated.
Sounds like win number 21 to me.
++++
A few of my favorite quotes from the last week:
The day assistant Tom Thibodeau walked into the gym was the day the Celtics got serious about winning. Thibodeau is perhaps the premier defensive coach in the NBA. He has coached defenses for 17 seasons, 14 for teams that finished among the 10 stingiest in the league.
Garnett hasn't had numbers this low (18.9 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 3.6 apg) since before the lockout. But he is in the process of spit-polishing his legacy as a leader and defensive anchor, and he has never been better.
Ray Allen, who is dealing with an ankle injury, hasn't even started shooting well yet (.408), and the Celtics are are 20-2 and third in the entire NBA in field-goal percentage.
The Celtics are No. 1 in five defensive categories, points allowed, shooting percentage allowed, three-point shooting percentage allowed, assists allowed, and does the fifth category even matter?
There's not another team in the league with two great, long-armed defenders at the point-guard and post positions.
During the 14-minute delay to start the second half against the Raptors, KG didn't smile once. He just kept on going through the layup line with his teammates until the hardwood was ready.
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