1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 12-5
12/2/1983
He is one of the first two alumni from Phi Slama Jama to begin graduate work in the NBA. Clyde (The Glide) Drexler fully expects his pro career to take off just like it did when he was slamming in dunk shots for the University of Houston. But his first goal is to get off the Portland Trail Blazers' bench, where coach Jack Ramsay feels he should stay for a while and absorb some of the fine points of playing in the pros. Drexler is averaging 7.2 minutes a contest thus far and has failed to score in his last two games.
But Drexler thinks a lack of exposure is just the thing that is keeping him from becoming a polished pro. He understands the Trail Blazer system and knows he must wait his turn. But that doesn't mean he has to like it. "The pro game is fine," said Drexler, a hardship draft for NCAA runnerup Houston. "Whenever I get a chance to play, I like it.
When he (Ramsay) puts me on the bench, I don't like it so much. "I just didn't realize there was so much involved in playing. I always thought if you could show what you could do on the court, you'd get your share of playing time. But it's not like that." Ramsay says simply that Drexler, who along with Kansas City's Larry Micheaux is one of two Cougars from last year's NCAA finalist team playing in the NBA, agrees with his coach. But not entirely. "I've got a lot to learn," Drexler said, "but nothing that is impossible.
The only way you can learn it is with playing time. "You have a lot of fun playing against the best players in the world. But it's not any fun watching all the time." Drexler, with a graceful 6-foot-6 body, says people in the East like to compare him to former Buffalo and New York star Randy Smith. "I think they do that because we both leap a lot and are quick," he said. "They also tell me I play like the Doctor. But I haven't had a chance to show it yet."
MISC
As expected, both forward Kevin McHale (twisted left ankle) and guard Dennis Johnson (bruised right thigh) recovered enough to play last night . . . Red Auerbach continues to make news when there is none. He will appear on the CBS Sunday Morning show tomorrow with Charles Kuralt . . . With the 76ers coming to town that night (7:30), a beer company will distribute 15,000 green and white painters' hats.
11.30.2009
Bird's Triple-Double Leads C's over Spurs
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Celtics 130, Spurs 106
Record: 12-5
12/1/1983
The Celtics may never find perfection in their total team concept, but few could argue they came pretty close with a dazzling outing that bewildered San Antonio last night at Boston Garden.Larry Bird had his third triple double of the year in leading Boston to a 130-106 rout of the Spurs. But his 23 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists only began to tell the story of Boston's domination. Kevin McHale chipped in 22 points (15 in the second period) as did Robert Parish. Danny Ainge came off the bench for a season high of 16 of which 12 were in the second half.
The Celtics, winning their third straight, handed San Antonio its ninth road loss in a row. The Spurs did make a game of it for one half, thanks chiefly to the shooting of George Gervin, who finished with 33 points. Boston, which had a 64-60 lead at halftime, went on a 13-3 blitz midway through the third period to take a 16-point lead after three quarters. The one predictable thing about K. C. Jones is that he changes his mind in an instant. Thus one day after saying his club would not be pressing and that Quinn Buckner would be his first guard off the bench, he started the Celtics off with full court pressure and Ainge, not Buckner, was the first sub.
The reason became obvious in the first few moments. San Antonio came out running, and the Celtics responded with a fast break of their own, jumping to a 12-6 lead. San Antonio drew to within one at 14-13, only to fall behind again, 21-17. The Celtics were able to get the ball inside to Parish, who scored 10 points in the first quarter. But Gervin, the Iceman, began to do his thing and the Spurs were on the move again, tying it, 28-28, on a three-point play by Gervin. Two free throws by Gervin put San Antonio ahead, 30-28, and he followed that with a fastball scoop shot that put the Spurs up, 32-28. McHale scored with three seconds left and after one period, San Antonio led, 32-30.
In the second period, it was Boston's turn to take off with an 11-4 run led by McHale, who scored 15 points in the period, including three baskets that helped the Celtics to a 41-34 lead. The Spurs went to their bench and closed the margin to 43-40 on a layup by big Mark McNamara. But Boston came back for four points. Boston still led, 51-48, when San Antonio tied it on three Gervin free throws. Gervin was fouled and also sank a technical foul on Bird. Instead of panicking, however, the Celtics went back to basics, finding either McHale, Cedric Maxwell or Parish inside. After Maxwell gave Boston a 54-53 lead, McHale scored eight straight points and Boston led, 62-56. Parish hit a jumper with 47 seconds left, and at halftime the Celtics led, 64-60. McHale wound up with 19 for the half. Gervin had 25 for San Antonio.
San Antonio came out with the intent on shutting off the Celtics' inside game in the third period. Instinctively, Boston went back to its outside shooting, led by Gerry Henderson, who sank three straight baskets, including one for a three-pointer that broke a tie at 68-68. Parish provided the next six points and Boston's lead grew to seven at 79-72. Bird began to warm up and suddenly the Celtics' superior depth began to wear the Spurs down. Leading, 87-81, the Celtics took off and closed out the period with their 13-3 spurt.
McHale returned to chip in two baskets. Ainge hit a sensational runner at the buzzer at the end of a fast break and after three quarters Boston lead, 100-84. With only three minutes elapsed in the fourth period, the Celtics had put the game practically on ice. Bird and Parish led an 8-0 run and Boston was ahead by 24 points, 108-84. The only sad part of this run was that McHale suffered a sprained ankle and was finished for the game.
Celtics 130, Spurs 106
Record: 12-5
12/1/1983
The Celtics may never find perfection in their total team concept, but few could argue they came pretty close with a dazzling outing that bewildered San Antonio last night at Boston Garden.Larry Bird had his third triple double of the year in leading Boston to a 130-106 rout of the Spurs. But his 23 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists only began to tell the story of Boston's domination. Kevin McHale chipped in 22 points (15 in the second period) as did Robert Parish. Danny Ainge came off the bench for a season high of 16 of which 12 were in the second half.
The Celtics, winning their third straight, handed San Antonio its ninth road loss in a row. The Spurs did make a game of it for one half, thanks chiefly to the shooting of George Gervin, who finished with 33 points. Boston, which had a 64-60 lead at halftime, went on a 13-3 blitz midway through the third period to take a 16-point lead after three quarters. The one predictable thing about K. C. Jones is that he changes his mind in an instant. Thus one day after saying his club would not be pressing and that Quinn Buckner would be his first guard off the bench, he started the Celtics off with full court pressure and Ainge, not Buckner, was the first sub.
The reason became obvious in the first few moments. San Antonio came out running, and the Celtics responded with a fast break of their own, jumping to a 12-6 lead. San Antonio drew to within one at 14-13, only to fall behind again, 21-17. The Celtics were able to get the ball inside to Parish, who scored 10 points in the first quarter. But Gervin, the Iceman, began to do his thing and the Spurs were on the move again, tying it, 28-28, on a three-point play by Gervin. Two free throws by Gervin put San Antonio ahead, 30-28, and he followed that with a fastball scoop shot that put the Spurs up, 32-28. McHale scored with three seconds left and after one period, San Antonio led, 32-30.
In the second period, it was Boston's turn to take off with an 11-4 run led by McHale, who scored 15 points in the period, including three baskets that helped the Celtics to a 41-34 lead. The Spurs went to their bench and closed the margin to 43-40 on a layup by big Mark McNamara. But Boston came back for four points. Boston still led, 51-48, when San Antonio tied it on three Gervin free throws. Gervin was fouled and also sank a technical foul on Bird. Instead of panicking, however, the Celtics went back to basics, finding either McHale, Cedric Maxwell or Parish inside. After Maxwell gave Boston a 54-53 lead, McHale scored eight straight points and Boston led, 62-56. Parish hit a jumper with 47 seconds left, and at halftime the Celtics led, 64-60. McHale wound up with 19 for the half. Gervin had 25 for San Antonio.
San Antonio came out with the intent on shutting off the Celtics' inside game in the third period. Instinctively, Boston went back to its outside shooting, led by Gerry Henderson, who sank three straight baskets, including one for a three-pointer that broke a tie at 68-68. Parish provided the next six points and Boston's lead grew to seven at 79-72. Bird began to warm up and suddenly the Celtics' superior depth began to wear the Spurs down. Leading, 87-81, the Celtics took off and closed out the period with their 13-3 spurt.
McHale returned to chip in two baskets. Ainge hit a sensational runner at the buzzer at the end of a fast break and after three quarters Boston lead, 100-84. With only three minutes elapsed in the fourth period, the Celtics had put the game practically on ice. Bird and Parish led an 8-0 run and Boston was ahead by 24 points, 108-84. The only sad part of this run was that McHale suffered a sprained ankle and was finished for the game.
KC Jones Tries to Keep Opponents' Guessing
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 11-5
11/30/1983
For K.C. Jones, it comes down to basic NBA logic. If something works, he wants his Celtics to ram it down opponents' throats. But if the opposition catches on, he'll try something else.It was that philosophy he had in mind yesterday when he talked about a change in basic strategy in the Celtics' last two games - a ploy he hopes will continue to work tonight (8 p.m., WRKO) as they seek their third straight win against the San Antonio Spurs.
"We had a lot of success early because of our pressing defense," said Jones. "We used four guards and went right after teams. That's one of the big reasons we won nine in a row."But the truth is that the other teams have scouted us now, and have come up with plays to help break the pressure. They're doubling up inside and almost embarrassing our guards by giving them wide-open shots. We lost four games because we didn't take advantage of this.
But in the last two games, we've gotten good shooting from the guards, especially Gerald Henderson. If we can continue to do this, it will eventually open up our inside game."That's what happened on Sunday night against Detroit. When Gerald got hot, it opened up the middle and allowed Kevin McHale to do some things. We've pretty much got in mind what we'd like to do inside with our big men. If we can get the same flow with our guards, we'll be in good shape."
The revelation yesterday by Jones isn't exactly news. Philadelphia made a living of the "Double Trouble" philosophy when it faced Boston, and predictably the style was copied by almost everyone. In addition to easing the full-court pressure, Jones is scrapping the basic four-guard rotation in favor of a more traditional approach. Henderson and Dennis Johnson remain the starters. Quinn Buckner and Danny Ainge will continue to operate off the bench. But no longer will there be an attempt to balance minutes or egos.
Jones feels that whoever plays the best will start, and right now his best combination is Henderson and Johnson. Henderson's ability to shoot from the outside and also penetrate is something the Celtics want other teams to worry about. Johnson's forte is, of course, defense, but he is also a decent outside shot, and is not afraid to duck inside and post his man. If either man should tire, look for Buckner to be the first sub. All four will play, but obviously, somebody is not going to get a great deal of minutes.
"That's just the way it has to be right now," said Jones. "I know what it's like for guys like Buckner and Ainge to sit on the bench. I did it for five years and know how it feels. Since Buckner and Ainge have more talent than I ever did, I know it must be even more difficult."Jones says it is important that his men understand that he still wants to operate with basically 10 players, with the hope that eventually both rookies Carlos Clark and Greg Kite can be brought into the master plan.
"But certain things have to be set," he said. "We know inside that we have three starters, and McHale is likely to go in for two of them (Robert Parish or Larry Bird). But the next two guys are role people. Scott (Wedman) is going to get some time. M.L. Carr is the old pro whose job it is to come in and give us life, wherever we need him. The same thing has got to happen with the guards."
Jones said his rookies suffer under such a traditional system, but they haven't been forgotten. "Both Carlos and Greg are very talented," he said. "But they have to do their playing out here on the practice court right now. Hopefully, we can work them in later, and there is no way to predict injury. The one thing I tell them is to keep themselves ready, to continue to do the things that helped them make the ballclub."
The Spurs come to town tonight for the final game of a three-game road trip. San Antonio, which played last night at New York, has a new coach in Morris McHone, an assistant last year to Stan Albeck, now at New Jersey. Celtic assistant coach Chris Ford, who has scouted San Antonio, says they are basically the same kind of club they were last year, led by George (Iceman) Gervin, Mike Mitchell and Artis Gilmore. Veteran forward Gene Banks, however, has been the hottest Spur of late, says Ford . . . Boston will be off tomorrow before crucial home games with Portland Friday and Philadelphia Sunday.
Record: 11-5
11/30/1983
For K.C. Jones, it comes down to basic NBA logic. If something works, he wants his Celtics to ram it down opponents' throats. But if the opposition catches on, he'll try something else.It was that philosophy he had in mind yesterday when he talked about a change in basic strategy in the Celtics' last two games - a ploy he hopes will continue to work tonight (8 p.m., WRKO) as they seek their third straight win against the San Antonio Spurs.
"We had a lot of success early because of our pressing defense," said Jones. "We used four guards and went right after teams. That's one of the big reasons we won nine in a row."But the truth is that the other teams have scouted us now, and have come up with plays to help break the pressure. They're doubling up inside and almost embarrassing our guards by giving them wide-open shots. We lost four games because we didn't take advantage of this.
But in the last two games, we've gotten good shooting from the guards, especially Gerald Henderson. If we can continue to do this, it will eventually open up our inside game."That's what happened on Sunday night against Detroit. When Gerald got hot, it opened up the middle and allowed Kevin McHale to do some things. We've pretty much got in mind what we'd like to do inside with our big men. If we can get the same flow with our guards, we'll be in good shape."
The revelation yesterday by Jones isn't exactly news. Philadelphia made a living of the "Double Trouble" philosophy when it faced Boston, and predictably the style was copied by almost everyone. In addition to easing the full-court pressure, Jones is scrapping the basic four-guard rotation in favor of a more traditional approach. Henderson and Dennis Johnson remain the starters. Quinn Buckner and Danny Ainge will continue to operate off the bench. But no longer will there be an attempt to balance minutes or egos.
Jones feels that whoever plays the best will start, and right now his best combination is Henderson and Johnson. Henderson's ability to shoot from the outside and also penetrate is something the Celtics want other teams to worry about. Johnson's forte is, of course, defense, but he is also a decent outside shot, and is not afraid to duck inside and post his man. If either man should tire, look for Buckner to be the first sub. All four will play, but obviously, somebody is not going to get a great deal of minutes.
"That's just the way it has to be right now," said Jones. "I know what it's like for guys like Buckner and Ainge to sit on the bench. I did it for five years and know how it feels. Since Buckner and Ainge have more talent than I ever did, I know it must be even more difficult."Jones says it is important that his men understand that he still wants to operate with basically 10 players, with the hope that eventually both rookies Carlos Clark and Greg Kite can be brought into the master plan.
"But certain things have to be set," he said. "We know inside that we have three starters, and McHale is likely to go in for two of them (Robert Parish or Larry Bird). But the next two guys are role people. Scott (Wedman) is going to get some time. M.L. Carr is the old pro whose job it is to come in and give us life, wherever we need him. The same thing has got to happen with the guards."
Jones said his rookies suffer under such a traditional system, but they haven't been forgotten. "Both Carlos and Greg are very talented," he said. "But they have to do their playing out here on the practice court right now. Hopefully, we can work them in later, and there is no way to predict injury. The one thing I tell them is to keep themselves ready, to continue to do the things that helped them make the ballclub."
The Spurs come to town tonight for the final game of a three-game road trip. San Antonio, which played last night at New York, has a new coach in Morris McHone, an assistant last year to Stan Albeck, now at New Jersey. Celtic assistant coach Chris Ford, who has scouted San Antonio, says they are basically the same kind of club they were last year, led by George (Iceman) Gervin, Mike Mitchell and Artis Gilmore. Veteran forward Gene Banks, however, has been the hottest Spur of late, says Ford . . . Boston will be off tomorrow before crucial home games with Portland Friday and Philadelphia Sunday.
Johnny Most Celebrates 31st Year as Celtics' Broadcaster
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 11-5
11/29/1983
According to the nearest dictionary I could grab, Johnny Most certainly qualifies as a Boston institution. Webster's Third New International says that an institution is "something or someone well established in some customary relationship." It also tells us that an institution is also "a custom that is usually widely tolerated or sanctioned and that in some degree contributes to group welfare." The welfare in this case, of course, is that of the average Boston Celtics fan.
Say this about Johnny Most: even if one happens not to appreciate fully John's unique interpretation of particular game events, one must admit that the only thing worse than having John to disagree with is not having John to disagree with. In the course of his 31 years as Celtics' broadcaster, Johnny Most has done a rare thing. He has made himself totally synonymous with the ballclub. Totally. Macauley, Cousy, Sharman, Loscutoff, Heinsohn, Russell, the Joneses, Sanders, Havlicek, Nelson, Siegfried, Howell, Cowens, White, Chaney, Silas and many other notables have come and gone, but Johnny Most is still here, as enthusiastic as he's ever been.
Johnny Most has contributed to the group welfare of New England sports fans, all right. The sound of That Voice has come to represent not only the Celtics themselves, but the NBA. Through Johnny the Celtics' listeners have been introduced to a cast of characters that make the NBA what it is. What would a season be without Johnny railing about "Hysterical Harry," the PA man in Philadelphia? "Hysterical Harry" is, of course, the estimable Dave Zinkoff, and he is as much an institution in Philadelphia as Johnny is in Boston.
But they're both part of the same culture. And how about the "leather lung" who used to irritate Johnny so in Phoenix? When Johnny Most broadcasts, the listener gets more than just the play-by-play of a basketball game. The sad part about John's ever growing preoccupation with truth and justice (i.e. Celtics' wins and losses) is that modern listeners don't know exactly how good an announcer Johnny is capable of being. John has come to view each Celtics' game as a morality play. It is strictly the Good Guys vs. the Bad Guys when the Celtics play anybody and, believe me, it wasn't always quite this extreme with John. There was a time when he gave more credit to opponents than he is inclined to today, and it would be refreshing if he would recapture that tone more often.
The Johnny Most on nightly display circa 1965 was a brilliant play-by-play man who identified matchups, called out switches and analyzed the game expertly as he went along. He then embellished the call with his Celtics' passion. That Johnny Most didn't need to apologize to Chick Hearn, Bill King or anyone else when it came to describing the action. Somewhere along the way his Celtics' feeling overtook his basic announcer's stance, and it must be said that too often these days John is dangerously close to caricature.
You know what would be a tonic? Get John in a neutral situation. Let him get a shot at some 76ers-Bucks, or Lakers-Spurs games for a national network audience. New listeners would need a while to become accustomed to the voice, but after a while they would appreciate the wisdom of a man who had been to Minneapolis, Fort Wayne, Rochester,Syracuse and other ports of call from the NBA's early days. Old listeners would be pleasantly surprised at how skillful John Most really is. Above all, Johnny Most is a very knowledgeable basketball man.
There will be a dinner tonight at the Park Plaza to honor Johnny Most. The emcee will be Tom Heinsohn - an excellent choice. All proceeds will go to the Massachusetts Special Olympics - another excellent choice. Such a public tribute is entirely appropriate, because Johnny Most has been a vital part of this town's sporting fabric for three decades. And sometime in the future the Celtics should recognize Johnny's impact in the only logical manner. Johnny Most's microphone should join the retired numbers hanging from the rafters.
Be honest. Try to think of the Celtics without Johnny Most. It's truly unimaginable.
Record: 11-5
11/29/1983
According to the nearest dictionary I could grab, Johnny Most certainly qualifies as a Boston institution. Webster's Third New International says that an institution is "something or someone well established in some customary relationship." It also tells us that an institution is also "a custom that is usually widely tolerated or sanctioned and that in some degree contributes to group welfare." The welfare in this case, of course, is that of the average Boston Celtics fan.
Say this about Johnny Most: even if one happens not to appreciate fully John's unique interpretation of particular game events, one must admit that the only thing worse than having John to disagree with is not having John to disagree with. In the course of his 31 years as Celtics' broadcaster, Johnny Most has done a rare thing. He has made himself totally synonymous with the ballclub. Totally. Macauley, Cousy, Sharman, Loscutoff, Heinsohn, Russell, the Joneses, Sanders, Havlicek, Nelson, Siegfried, Howell, Cowens, White, Chaney, Silas and many other notables have come and gone, but Johnny Most is still here, as enthusiastic as he's ever been.
Johnny Most has contributed to the group welfare of New England sports fans, all right. The sound of That Voice has come to represent not only the Celtics themselves, but the NBA. Through Johnny the Celtics' listeners have been introduced to a cast of characters that make the NBA what it is. What would a season be without Johnny railing about "Hysterical Harry," the PA man in Philadelphia? "Hysterical Harry" is, of course, the estimable Dave Zinkoff, and he is as much an institution in Philadelphia as Johnny is in Boston.
But they're both part of the same culture. And how about the "leather lung" who used to irritate Johnny so in Phoenix? When Johnny Most broadcasts, the listener gets more than just the play-by-play of a basketball game. The sad part about John's ever growing preoccupation with truth and justice (i.e. Celtics' wins and losses) is that modern listeners don't know exactly how good an announcer Johnny is capable of being. John has come to view each Celtics' game as a morality play. It is strictly the Good Guys vs. the Bad Guys when the Celtics play anybody and, believe me, it wasn't always quite this extreme with John. There was a time when he gave more credit to opponents than he is inclined to today, and it would be refreshing if he would recapture that tone more often.
The Johnny Most on nightly display circa 1965 was a brilliant play-by-play man who identified matchups, called out switches and analyzed the game expertly as he went along. He then embellished the call with his Celtics' passion. That Johnny Most didn't need to apologize to Chick Hearn, Bill King or anyone else when it came to describing the action. Somewhere along the way his Celtics' feeling overtook his basic announcer's stance, and it must be said that too often these days John is dangerously close to caricature.
You know what would be a tonic? Get John in a neutral situation. Let him get a shot at some 76ers-Bucks, or Lakers-Spurs games for a national network audience. New listeners would need a while to become accustomed to the voice, but after a while they would appreciate the wisdom of a man who had been to Minneapolis, Fort Wayne, Rochester,Syracuse and other ports of call from the NBA's early days. Old listeners would be pleasantly surprised at how skillful John Most really is. Above all, Johnny Most is a very knowledgeable basketball man.
There will be a dinner tonight at the Park Plaza to honor Johnny Most. The emcee will be Tom Heinsohn - an excellent choice. All proceeds will go to the Massachusetts Special Olympics - another excellent choice. Such a public tribute is entirely appropriate, because Johnny Most has been a vital part of this town's sporting fabric for three decades. And sometime in the future the Celtics should recognize Johnny's impact in the only logical manner. Johnny Most's microphone should join the retired numbers hanging from the rafters.
Be honest. Try to think of the Celtics without Johnny Most. It's truly unimaginable.
Cornbread was Invisible Long Before He Quit on Celtics in 1985
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 11-5
11/29/1983
He has never lived down an image created many years ago. Throughout his career, Cedric Maxwell has been called the Celtics' "Invisible Man." Usually, it's not said in a complimentary way. Maxwell heard it in 1977 from his first pro coach, Tom Heinsohn, but he quieted Heinsohn by becoming a starter in less than two seasons. Since then, however, that same expression has been used to describe Maxwell by three subsequent Celtics coaches - Satch Sanders, Dave Cowens and Bill Fitch - all of whom have occasionally wondered out loud why the talent that made Maxwell the Most Valuable Player of the 1981 NBA playoffs would vanish, as if by magic, only to return the next night.
But yesterday, when current Celtics coach K. C. Jones also used the word "invisible" in reference to Maxwell, it came in solid defense of a man whom Jones feels should be named Celtics' player of the month. According to the coach, Maxwell has adapted, perhaps better than anyone on the team, to Jones' defensive-minded philosphy. "He might seem invisible out there," said Jones. "But that's not the way it looks if you're sitting on the bench. You see him banging the boards, and you know other teams have orders to keep him off.
"Maxwell is going down low and busting his tail on both ends (of the court). I like his attitude and the way he's encouraging guys. On defense, he's taking the toughest man. He's been player of the month for us." It is perhaps poetic justice that after 16 games, the most consistent Celtics player should be none of other than Cedric Maxwell. His failure to perform up to par last season was thought to be one of the keys to the Celtics' collapse in the playoffs. Maxwell's defense last season was adequate. But offensively, he suffered from a lack of consistency and a problem with the media that often seemed to affect his attitude on the court. Maxwell's scoring average dropped to 11.9 ppg, his lowest total since he was a rookie.
And further, he had only 422 rebounds, more than 100 fewer than the 525 he had pulled down in 1981. The future of the 6-foot-8, 217-pound stringbean forward did not look bright. With a new coach hired and Larry Bird and Kevin McHale signed to big-money contracts over the summer, no one was sure what would become of Maxwell, who over the past three years had been losing both playing time and scoring opportunities to Bird, McHale and Robert Parish. But what has happened, in fact, is that Maxwell has simply adjusted.
He has become a key on defense for the Celtics, and not surprisingly, it has earned him more playing time. On defense, Maxwell has been assigned all the toughies, from Julius Erving to Marques Johnson to Kelly Tripucka. And because of his experience around the basket, Maxwell has scored in double figures in 14 of 16 games; his average minutes played and points (31.4 and 12.4) are higher than last season's totals (28.4 and 11.9). What's more, Maxwell's defensive reputation earned him a spot on this year's NBA all-star ballot, giving the Celtics five candidates.
Whether he makes the team isn't the point. Maxwell would probably rather take the three days off and spend them looking for a place that sells home- cooked biscuits, anyway. But that people elsewhere see him differently than he is perceived in Boston is what keeps him striving for excellence - and another championship ring. "With each coaching change, there is always another role to play," Maxwell said of his return to consistency. "My role has changed somewhat every year I've been here. With K. C., the emphasis he's put on so far has been defense. It's basically a thankless job that I'm doing right now. There are no statistics for defense, for setting picks and trying to get guys open.
"My job is to try and contain the leading forward on the other team. But by doing that, you don't get a chance to play that much offense. When you try to go through picks and all that kind of stuff, something has to suffer, and usually it's offense. Right now, my job is to make Larry, Kevin and Robert better." Maxwell, who has been a high scorer since his college days at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, realizes the people often are impressed most by offensive statistics, and he knows that in the current system there is a chance that his scoring totals might drop. But as coaches change, so do roles. And right now, this is fine with him. He is in the final year of a three-year contract, and if things don't work out here, he knows he can still do the job as a scorer someplace else.
"If we (Celtics) win," he says, "my situation is good and basically taken care of. I think the contract will take care of itself. You don't want to break up a combo of four big guys. "I have no qualms about it. I always felt that if I did leave here, I could be a scorer. I could revert to being a scorer. If I got into that situation, I would take whatever comes." Maxwell appears to be more relaxed than he was a year ago, when he feuded with the media because he felt that reporters were invading his privacy by using material about his personal life. This year, he has patched things up with the media and is again sarcastic and fun to be around. But Maxwell credits enthusiasm for his new role - not his renewed relationship with the press - for putting a smile on his face.
"I know last year, when I wasn't talking to the press," he said, "people felt I was unhappy. I was, but only towards them. I just felt my personal life and profesional life shouldn't mix. I didn't think my personal life should be on a sports page, and I made my protest to that last year by not talking to the press. "I'm sure people will think this year, because I am talking to the press, I'm a happier player. But the truth is that I think that I've come to grips with the situation of being a public figure and my life being an open book. I have no gripes about anything that has happened."
Record: 11-5
11/29/1983
He has never lived down an image created many years ago. Throughout his career, Cedric Maxwell has been called the Celtics' "Invisible Man." Usually, it's not said in a complimentary way. Maxwell heard it in 1977 from his first pro coach, Tom Heinsohn, but he quieted Heinsohn by becoming a starter in less than two seasons. Since then, however, that same expression has been used to describe Maxwell by three subsequent Celtics coaches - Satch Sanders, Dave Cowens and Bill Fitch - all of whom have occasionally wondered out loud why the talent that made Maxwell the Most Valuable Player of the 1981 NBA playoffs would vanish, as if by magic, only to return the next night.
But yesterday, when current Celtics coach K. C. Jones also used the word "invisible" in reference to Maxwell, it came in solid defense of a man whom Jones feels should be named Celtics' player of the month. According to the coach, Maxwell has adapted, perhaps better than anyone on the team, to Jones' defensive-minded philosphy. "He might seem invisible out there," said Jones. "But that's not the way it looks if you're sitting on the bench. You see him banging the boards, and you know other teams have orders to keep him off.
"Maxwell is going down low and busting his tail on both ends (of the court). I like his attitude and the way he's encouraging guys. On defense, he's taking the toughest man. He's been player of the month for us." It is perhaps poetic justice that after 16 games, the most consistent Celtics player should be none of other than Cedric Maxwell. His failure to perform up to par last season was thought to be one of the keys to the Celtics' collapse in the playoffs. Maxwell's defense last season was adequate. But offensively, he suffered from a lack of consistency and a problem with the media that often seemed to affect his attitude on the court. Maxwell's scoring average dropped to 11.9 ppg, his lowest total since he was a rookie.
And further, he had only 422 rebounds, more than 100 fewer than the 525 he had pulled down in 1981. The future of the 6-foot-8, 217-pound stringbean forward did not look bright. With a new coach hired and Larry Bird and Kevin McHale signed to big-money contracts over the summer, no one was sure what would become of Maxwell, who over the past three years had been losing both playing time and scoring opportunities to Bird, McHale and Robert Parish. But what has happened, in fact, is that Maxwell has simply adjusted.
He has become a key on defense for the Celtics, and not surprisingly, it has earned him more playing time. On defense, Maxwell has been assigned all the toughies, from Julius Erving to Marques Johnson to Kelly Tripucka. And because of his experience around the basket, Maxwell has scored in double figures in 14 of 16 games; his average minutes played and points (31.4 and 12.4) are higher than last season's totals (28.4 and 11.9). What's more, Maxwell's defensive reputation earned him a spot on this year's NBA all-star ballot, giving the Celtics five candidates.
Whether he makes the team isn't the point. Maxwell would probably rather take the three days off and spend them looking for a place that sells home- cooked biscuits, anyway. But that people elsewhere see him differently than he is perceived in Boston is what keeps him striving for excellence - and another championship ring. "With each coaching change, there is always another role to play," Maxwell said of his return to consistency. "My role has changed somewhat every year I've been here. With K. C., the emphasis he's put on so far has been defense. It's basically a thankless job that I'm doing right now. There are no statistics for defense, for setting picks and trying to get guys open.
"My job is to try and contain the leading forward on the other team. But by doing that, you don't get a chance to play that much offense. When you try to go through picks and all that kind of stuff, something has to suffer, and usually it's offense. Right now, my job is to make Larry, Kevin and Robert better." Maxwell, who has been a high scorer since his college days at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, realizes the people often are impressed most by offensive statistics, and he knows that in the current system there is a chance that his scoring totals might drop. But as coaches change, so do roles. And right now, this is fine with him. He is in the final year of a three-year contract, and if things don't work out here, he knows he can still do the job as a scorer someplace else.
"If we (Celtics) win," he says, "my situation is good and basically taken care of. I think the contract will take care of itself. You don't want to break up a combo of four big guys. "I have no qualms about it. I always felt that if I did leave here, I could be a scorer. I could revert to being a scorer. If I got into that situation, I would take whatever comes." Maxwell appears to be more relaxed than he was a year ago, when he feuded with the media because he felt that reporters were invading his privacy by using material about his personal life. This year, he has patched things up with the media and is again sarcastic and fun to be around. But Maxwell credits enthusiasm for his new role - not his renewed relationship with the press - for putting a smile on his face.
"I know last year, when I wasn't talking to the press," he said, "people felt I was unhappy. I was, but only towards them. I just felt my personal life and profesional life shouldn't mix. I didn't think my personal life should be on a sports page, and I made my protest to that last year by not talking to the press. "I'm sure people will think this year, because I am talking to the press, I'm a happier player. But the truth is that I think that I've come to grips with the situation of being a public figure and my life being an open book. I have no gripes about anything that has happened."
11.29.2009
13-4: Celtics 92, Heat 85
Celtics 92, 
Heat 85
NBA TV
6:00 PM ET, November 29, 2009
AmericanAirlines Arena
Miami, FL
Refresh: | BOSTON CELTICS | ||||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| Kevin Garnett, PF | 34 | 11-12 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | +9 | 24 | |||
| Rajon Rondo, PG | 30 | 6-11 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | +13 | 13 | |||
| Kendrick Perkins, C | 29 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 6-11 | 1 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | +9 | 14 | |||
| Ray Allen, SG | 41 | 5-13 | 1-7 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | +6 | 11 | |||
| Paul Pierce, SF | 36 | 4-11 | 0-4 | 7-8 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | +5 | 15 | |||
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| Tony Allen, SG | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Brian Scalabrine, PF | 4 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6 | 3 | |||
| Eddie House, PG | 15 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | |||
| J.R. Giddens, SG | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Lester Hudson, G | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Shelden Williams, PF | 7 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 0 | |||
| Glen Davis, PF | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Rasheed Wallace, FC | 11 | 3-8 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | -4 | 6 | |||
| Marquis Daniels, SG | 15 | 1-4 | 1-1 | 0-2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -5 | 3 | |||
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | |||||
| 36-69 | 5-21 | 15-23 | 6 | 41 | 21 | 5 | 7 | 13 | 24 | 92 | ||||||
| 52.2% | 23.8% | 65.2% | ||||||||||||||
Fast break points: 10 Team TO ( points off ): 13 (14) +/- denotes team's net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||||
| MIAMI HEAT | ||||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| James Jones, SF | 33 | 0-5 | 0-4 | 4-4 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | +5 | 4 | |||
| Michael Beasley, PF | 35 | 7-14 | 2-4 | 2-3 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | +4 | 18 | |||
| Jermaine O'Neal, C | 29 | 5-11 | 0-0 | 4-8 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | -4 | 14 | |||
| Mario Chalmers, PG | 34 | 4-7 | 0-1 | 1-2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | -7 | 9 | |||
| Dwyane Wade, SG | 37 | 11-23 | 0-3 | 5-8 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | -13 | 27 | |||
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| Chris Quinn, PG | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Udonis Haslem, PF | 20 | 4-8 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +2 | 9 | |||
| Dorell Wright, SG | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Shavlik Randolph, PF | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Quentin Richardson, SG | 9 | 0-2 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Yakhouba Diawara, SF | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Daequan Cook, SG | 17 | 1-6 | 0-2 | 0-1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | -5 | 2 | |||
| Joel Anthony, C | 5 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -3 | 2 | |||
| Carlos Arroyo, PG | 11 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +4 | 0 | |||
| Jamaal Magloire, C | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | |||||
| 33-79 | 2-15 | 17-28 | 11 | 38 | 12 | 10 | 2 | 10 | 18 | 85 | ||||||
| 41.8% | 13.3% | 60.7% | ||||||||||||||
Fast break points: 2 Team TO ( points off ): 10 (8) +/- denotes team's net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||||
Vegas: Celtics -4 Over Heat
LINK
| Gameday Matchup | |||||||
| W-L | PF | PA | HOME | ROAD | STK | L10 | |
| BOS | 12-4 | 100.4 | 91.7 | 7-3 | 5-1 | W3 | 6-4 |
| MIA | 9-6 | 96.1 | 95.3 | 6-4 | 3-2 | L1 | 5-5 |
| Last 5 Games | |
| BOSTON (ET) | MIAMI (ET) |
| Nov 27 TOR Win 116-103 Nov 25 PHI Win 113-110 Nov 22 @NY Win 107-105 Nov 20 ORL Loss 83-78 Nov 18 GS Win 109-95 | Nov 27 WAS Loss 94-84 Nov 25 @ORL Win 99-98 Nov 22 NO Win 102-101 Nov 20 @TOR Loss 120-113 Nov 18 @ATL Loss 105-90 |
ML Carr Gets Tossed for Elbowing Laimbeer
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Celtics 114, Pistons 99
Record: 11-5
11/28/1983
K. C. Jones wanted his Celtics to get physical at the start of the fourth quarter last night. Detroit had melted a 21-point Boston lead to six points, so Jones brought M. L. Carr off the bench to join Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale at the start of the fourth. M. L. lasted a total of 2:57 before he was heaved for tossing an elbow at Detroit center Bill Laimbeer.
Carr's version: "Laimbeer came down to set a pick and I was trying to deny John Long the ball. I hit Laimbeer as I went through the pick. I really didn't have time to plant it and he faked and fell back. I didn't think it was flagrant, but they got to try to control the game." Laimbeer's version: "He took a cheap shot at me. He tried to hit me in the face with his forearm. He missed and hit under my chin instead of my face. That's the way he always plays. He tries to hurt people. If the league keeps letting him get away with it, that's their fault, not mine."
Is Robert Parish playing too many minutes? Parish is averaging 37 minutes a game (39 if you exclude the first two games of the season). He averaged 28, 31.5 and 31.5 minutes per game in his first three Celtic seasons, and has had problems in the past with sore feet. He complained of fatigue often last year and wound up having a disappointing playoff - he didn't score 20 points in any of Boston's seven post-season games.
"The way he runs up and down the floor, I'd say he's playing about as many minutes as I want him to," Jones said before last night's game. "He's getting breathers here and there. It all depends on how he's going. Robert is not the type to ask out, so you have to keep an eye on him to see when he's drooping a little." Parish would not comment on his playing time, or anything else. "I got nothing to say," snapped the Celtic center.
MISC
Parish held Laimbeer to seven points. On the opening night of the season, Laimbeer scored 26 with 13 rebounds while Parish had only six points and four rebounds . . . Substitute officials Neil Kay and Ken Mauer were brutal. In addition to Carr's ejection, there were three technical fouls (Larry Bird, Chuck Daly and Detroit trainer Mike Abdenour . . . The Celtics outrebounded Detroit, 51-42, and have been outrebounded only twice in 16 games . . . Bird was 8 for 18 and is 41-113 (.363) in his last six games . . . Isiah Thomas led the Pistons with three blocked shots . . . The Celtics are in the middle of a five-game homestand. Boston plays host to San Antonio on Wednesday.
Celtics 114, Pistons 99
Record: 11-5
11/28/1983
K. C. Jones wanted his Celtics to get physical at the start of the fourth quarter last night. Detroit had melted a 21-point Boston lead to six points, so Jones brought M. L. Carr off the bench to join Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale at the start of the fourth. M. L. lasted a total of 2:57 before he was heaved for tossing an elbow at Detroit center Bill Laimbeer.
Carr's version: "Laimbeer came down to set a pick and I was trying to deny John Long the ball. I hit Laimbeer as I went through the pick. I really didn't have time to plant it and he faked and fell back. I didn't think it was flagrant, but they got to try to control the game." Laimbeer's version: "He took a cheap shot at me. He tried to hit me in the face with his forearm. He missed and hit under my chin instead of my face. That's the way he always plays. He tries to hurt people. If the league keeps letting him get away with it, that's their fault, not mine."
Is Robert Parish playing too many minutes? Parish is averaging 37 minutes a game (39 if you exclude the first two games of the season). He averaged 28, 31.5 and 31.5 minutes per game in his first three Celtic seasons, and has had problems in the past with sore feet. He complained of fatigue often last year and wound up having a disappointing playoff - he didn't score 20 points in any of Boston's seven post-season games.
"The way he runs up and down the floor, I'd say he's playing about as many minutes as I want him to," Jones said before last night's game. "He's getting breathers here and there. It all depends on how he's going. Robert is not the type to ask out, so you have to keep an eye on him to see when he's drooping a little." Parish would not comment on his playing time, or anything else. "I got nothing to say," snapped the Celtic center.
MISC
Parish held Laimbeer to seven points. On the opening night of the season, Laimbeer scored 26 with 13 rebounds while Parish had only six points and four rebounds . . . Substitute officials Neil Kay and Ken Mauer were brutal. In addition to Carr's ejection, there were three technical fouls (Larry Bird, Chuck Daly and Detroit trainer Mike Abdenour . . . The Celtics outrebounded Detroit, 51-42, and have been outrebounded only twice in 16 games . . . Bird was 8 for 18 and is 41-113 (.363) in his last six games . . . Isiah Thomas led the Pistons with three blocked shots . . . The Celtics are in the middle of a five-game homestand. Boston plays host to San Antonio on Wednesday.
Is Paul Pierce a Serious MVP Candidate?
Though Celtics coach Doc Rivers says Paul Pierce is having an MVP season, it is far too early in the season to make such projections, nor are Pierce’s statistics impressive enough to place him in serious consideration. He is hitting 51.5 percent from the field, 46.3 percent on 3-pointers, and 84.9 percent on free throws. His career bests are 47.1 percent (2006) from the field, 41.2 percent (1998-99) on 3-pointers, and 84.3 percent on free throws (2007-08). Pierce is averaging 35 minutes 44 seconds of playing time, his lowest average since the 2000 season, and committing 2.0 turnovers; his best turnover average was 2.4 per game in the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons.
LINK
In Bill Walton's MVP season, he averaged 18.9 PPG, 13.2 RPG, 5 APG, and just less than 3 blocks per game. Not earth-shattering numbers. But the Blazers started the season 50-10, and stunk after he got injured. Paul Pierce is clearly the Celtics best player this season. If he proves to be the difference maker on a regular basis, two-thirds or more of their games, and the Celtics end the season with the best record in the NBA, I think Pierce has to be a leading candidate for MVP.
I know Kevin Garnett got short shrift in the 2008 MVP voting, and while he was probably the best player on the team with the best record, it wasn't clear how much better he was than Pierce or Ray Allen. Plus the Celtics posted a very good record while Garnett was out with an injury that year.
So the mere fact that Garnett got hosed in 2008 does not necessarily mean Pierce won't be seriously considered for MVP this year if the above two conditions are met AND Pierce has one his best years statistically. It wouldn't hurt either if Pierce earns some votes for first team All-Defense, and if he keeps playing defense the way he has, that idea isn't as ridiculous as it sounds.
This road trip should be a good initial proving ground.
He’s the MVP in the league as far as I’m concerned. Just all the things - leadership, preparation, his intensity on the floor, scoring, assisting. Even on nights he didn’t have big numbers, he made the timely baskets or made a timely defensive play. He’s just been very impressive.I just think he’s doing everything, making the extra pass. Early on [in Friday’s 116-103 win over Toronto], he had five shots he could have taken and passed them up to get to the next pass. He saw the action that led to the next action. He had a bunch, a ton of hockey assists, or soccer assists.
LINK
In Bill Walton's MVP season, he averaged 18.9 PPG, 13.2 RPG, 5 APG, and just less than 3 blocks per game. Not earth-shattering numbers. But the Blazers started the season 50-10, and stunk after he got injured. Paul Pierce is clearly the Celtics best player this season. If he proves to be the difference maker on a regular basis, two-thirds or more of their games, and the Celtics end the season with the best record in the NBA, I think Pierce has to be a leading candidate for MVP.
I know Kevin Garnett got short shrift in the 2008 MVP voting, and while he was probably the best player on the team with the best record, it wasn't clear how much better he was than Pierce or Ray Allen. Plus the Celtics posted a very good record while Garnett was out with an injury that year.
So the mere fact that Garnett got hosed in 2008 does not necessarily mean Pierce won't be seriously considered for MVP this year if the above two conditions are met AND Pierce has one his best years statistically. It wouldn't hurt either if Pierce earns some votes for first team All-Defense, and if he keeps playing defense the way he has, that idea isn't as ridiculous as it sounds.
This road trip should be a good initial proving ground.
He’s the MVP in the league as far as I’m concerned. Just all the things - leadership, preparation, his intensity on the floor, scoring, assisting. Even on nights he didn’t have big numbers, he made the timely baskets or made a timely defensive play. He’s just been very impressive.I just think he’s doing everything, making the extra pass. Early on [in Friday’s 116-103 win over Toronto], he had five shots he could have taken and passed them up to get to the next pass. He saw the action that led to the next action. He had a bunch, a ton of hockey assists, or soccer assists.
11.28.2009
McHale Lifts Celtics Over Pistons
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Celtics 114, Pistons 99
Record: 11-5
11/28/1983
This is why the interminable and sometimes ugly Kevin McHale contract talks were important. All that summer silliness involving John Sandquist, Dave DeBusschere, Red Auerbach and Gulf & Western paid off last night. The Celtics beat the Detroit Pistons, 114-99, and they did it because Kevin McHale was wearing a Boston Celtic uniform. Simply stated, the 6-10 Minnesota millionaire flattened the Detroit Wheels, scoring 19 of his 29 points in fourth-quarter crunch time.
Boston's 21-point second-quarter-lead had wilted to 84-78 when McHale took over. Poor Cliff Levingston was utterly vaporized. First, McHale drove the baseline for a three-point play. In rapid succession, he followed with a six- foot hook, a 14-foot baseline fallaway, a tip-in, two free throws, a 13- foot baseline turnaround, a short jump-hook, a three-point play off a perfect feed from Cedric Maxwell, and one last free throw. The 19-point vignette took only 7:55, and enabled the Celtics to outscore Detroit, 28-17, for a 112-95 lead with 1:35 left.
"When he's got that kind of touch with the jump hook and he's getting the position he had, there's not much you can do," sighed Detroit coach Chuck Daly. "It was just one of those times when K. C. (Jones) called my play and we kept going to it," said McHale. "The guys made a lot of great passes and all I had to do was put the ball in." McHale's supporting cast was a formidable one. Every member of Boston's starting five played well. Gerald Henderson hit 8 of 14 shots and had 8 rebounds to go along with his 19 points. Robert Parish had 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Larry Bird had 17 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Dennis Johnson had 11 points and 8 rebounds. Cedric Maxwell had 15 points and did a virtuoso defensive job on Detroit's Kelly (4-12, 14 points) Tripucka. In the first quarter, the Boston starters played as if the Pistons had insulted all of the Celtic wives. K. C.'s Sunshine Band shot 61 percent (16-26) and outrebounded the visitors, 15-7, to take a 39-23 lead after one.
"That had to be the best we've played this season," said Henderson, who had 12 in the period. "We were really moving the ball well and when we do that, defenses can't get set." The Green Team scored at a pinball pace, running to a 16-6 lead with 8:09 left in the quarter, then boosting the margin to 24-10 as visions of blowout city danced in the heads of the ever-faithful. Bird (8-18 overall) broke out of his slump, scoring four baskets in the final three minutes of the initial period, including a bomb just before the buzzer.
The Celts kept running in the second and Boston's lead ballooned to 21 (49-28) when Max scored on a hook after taking a pass from Scott Wedman with 7:49 left in the half. John Long (22) tried to fight back for the visitors. He scored eight points in a 14-2 run which enabled the Pistons to close to within 14 (60-46) by halftime. Detroit shot a woeful 37 percent in the first half. The third quarter was sluggish and streaky, but the Pistons were able to make up eight points because the Celtics cooled down considerably (6-19) and Detroit rebounded from its first half ice age.
Levingston scored 10 in the period and Isiah Thomas (25 points) led a late surge to cut the margin to six after three. It was the closest Detroit had been since trailing, 9-4, in the first quarter. It was as close as they would get. K. C. Jones went with his muscle in the fourth. M. L. Carr, DJ, McHale, Larry Bird and Robert Parish strolled out of the Celtic huddle to start the final 12 minutes. "They were banging the boards and getting away with it," said Jones. "I figured if they were going to go with the physical stuff, we might as well."
Less then three minutes into the period, Carr was gone after being tagged with a flagrant foul for elbowing Detroit center Bill Laimbeer. Carr's departure coincided with McHale's takeover and the game was never in doubt again. "Kevin was the hot guy," said Jones. "Robert and the other guys said Keep it on Kevin,' and that's what put it out of reach."
Celtics 114, Pistons 99
Record: 11-5
11/28/1983
This is why the interminable and sometimes ugly Kevin McHale contract talks were important. All that summer silliness involving John Sandquist, Dave DeBusschere, Red Auerbach and Gulf & Western paid off last night. The Celtics beat the Detroit Pistons, 114-99, and they did it because Kevin McHale was wearing a Boston Celtic uniform. Simply stated, the 6-10 Minnesota millionaire flattened the Detroit Wheels, scoring 19 of his 29 points in fourth-quarter crunch time.
Boston's 21-point second-quarter-lead had wilted to 84-78 when McHale took over. Poor Cliff Levingston was utterly vaporized. First, McHale drove the baseline for a three-point play. In rapid succession, he followed with a six- foot hook, a 14-foot baseline fallaway, a tip-in, two free throws, a 13- foot baseline turnaround, a short jump-hook, a three-point play off a perfect feed from Cedric Maxwell, and one last free throw. The 19-point vignette took only 7:55, and enabled the Celtics to outscore Detroit, 28-17, for a 112-95 lead with 1:35 left.
"When he's got that kind of touch with the jump hook and he's getting the position he had, there's not much you can do," sighed Detroit coach Chuck Daly. "It was just one of those times when K. C. (Jones) called my play and we kept going to it," said McHale. "The guys made a lot of great passes and all I had to do was put the ball in." McHale's supporting cast was a formidable one. Every member of Boston's starting five played well. Gerald Henderson hit 8 of 14 shots and had 8 rebounds to go along with his 19 points. Robert Parish had 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Larry Bird had 17 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Dennis Johnson had 11 points and 8 rebounds. Cedric Maxwell had 15 points and did a virtuoso defensive job on Detroit's Kelly (4-12, 14 points) Tripucka. In the first quarter, the Boston starters played as if the Pistons had insulted all of the Celtic wives. K. C.'s Sunshine Band shot 61 percent (16-26) and outrebounded the visitors, 15-7, to take a 39-23 lead after one.
"That had to be the best we've played this season," said Henderson, who had 12 in the period. "We were really moving the ball well and when we do that, defenses can't get set." The Green Team scored at a pinball pace, running to a 16-6 lead with 8:09 left in the quarter, then boosting the margin to 24-10 as visions of blowout city danced in the heads of the ever-faithful. Bird (8-18 overall) broke out of his slump, scoring four baskets in the final three minutes of the initial period, including a bomb just before the buzzer.
The Celts kept running in the second and Boston's lead ballooned to 21 (49-28) when Max scored on a hook after taking a pass from Scott Wedman with 7:49 left in the half. John Long (22) tried to fight back for the visitors. He scored eight points in a 14-2 run which enabled the Pistons to close to within 14 (60-46) by halftime. Detroit shot a woeful 37 percent in the first half. The third quarter was sluggish and streaky, but the Pistons were able to make up eight points because the Celtics cooled down considerably (6-19) and Detroit rebounded from its first half ice age.
Levingston scored 10 in the period and Isiah Thomas (25 points) led a late surge to cut the margin to six after three. It was the closest Detroit had been since trailing, 9-4, in the first quarter. It was as close as they would get. K. C. Jones went with his muscle in the fourth. M. L. Carr, DJ, McHale, Larry Bird and Robert Parish strolled out of the Celtic huddle to start the final 12 minutes. "They were banging the boards and getting away with it," said Jones. "I figured if they were going to go with the physical stuff, we might as well."
Less then three minutes into the period, Carr was gone after being tagged with a flagrant foul for elbowing Detroit center Bill Laimbeer. Carr's departure coincided with McHale's takeover and the game was never in doubt again. "Kevin was the hot guy," said Jones. "Robert and the other guys said Keep it on Kevin,' and that's what put it out of reach."
The 1969 Celtics
KC Jones: You give everything you have to your teammates so you can be everything you can be.
Hondo: We, not me.
Russell: A lot of things can happen tonight in game 7. But the Lakers winning isn't one of them.
Frank DeFord: There was always something about the Boston Celtics. They somehow found a way. They just willed themselves to win.
Ubuntu, baby.
Celtics Finally Win One
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Celtics 109, Hawks 102
Record: 10-5
11/26/1983
It wasn't very pretty, but when you're fighting your way out of a locked closet, you don't particularly care what you look like when you finally break down the door. The struggling Celtics resorted to second-half defense and inside muscle to snap a four-game losing streak and defeat the Atlanta Hawks, 109-102, last night at the Garden.
It was Boston's first victory since Ray Flynn was elected mayor, and it prevented the Celtics from slipping into third place in the Atlantic Division. On a night when Larry Bird was again Doctor Zhivago (8 for 19), the arctic chill spread throughout the Green Team. It is a tribute to Boston's defense and rebounding that the Celtics were able to win despite hitting only 39 of 94 floor shots, their lowest percentage (.415) of the season.
Borrowing a line from the 1983 Chicago White Sox, Celtics coach K. C. Jones said, "I'll take ugly wins any time." "We're the most brutal shooting team in the NBA right now," added Kevin McHale. "But winning ugly is better than losing ugly, which is what we've been doing." Dennis Johnson led the Celtics with 25 points. Bird and Robert Parish followed with 22 each. But this game was won on the boards. The Celtics outrebounded the Hawks, 54-40, and had 29 offensive rebounds to the visitors' nine. The Celtics also limited themselves to a season-low 10 turnovers.
The burning of Atlanta was accomplished in the final eight minutes. The Hawks led, 86-82, when Boston erupted for nine in a row to take the lead for good. Parish started the drive, converting a Kevin McHale feed. After a steal by Bird, Quinn Buckner scored on a followup off the break, and when the Celtics rebounded another Atlanta miss, McHale scored on a follow to give the Celtics an 88-86 lead. Parish hit a jumper after another Hawk miss, and one free throw by DJ completed the 9-0 run and gave the Celtics a 91-86 led with 4:53 left.
Eddie Johnson (22 points) and Dan Roundfield (23, 11 rebounds) did their best to keep the Hawks alive, but it was too late. Atlanta never got closer than three the rest of the way.Borrowing a line from NFL coaches everywhere, Atlanta's rookie coach Mike Fratello said he'd have to view the films to account for Boston's sudden surge, but admitted, "When you get outscored, 9-0, in a stretch like that, either you're taking bad shots or committing turnovers, or the defense is so tenacious that you can't get the shots you want."
"I was very impressed with our defense," said Jones. "We could have folded early the way we were shooting, but we worked hard defensively." The Celtics held the Hawks to 33 percent shooting in the third quarter and outrebounded Atlanta, 13-3, in the fourth. In the first half it was the Celtics who shot an anemic 33 percent. Bird was 3-12, and Gerald Henderson and McHale missed 9 of 11. The Hawks, meanwhile, started out taking the highest percentage shots. Atlanta's first four baskets were dunks, two each by Wilkins and Rollins.
Atlanta's Right Stuffs didn't prevent Boston from running to a 13-8 lead and forcing Fratello to call time. With Bird still clanging everything off the rim, the Hawks outscored Boston, 10-2, to take an 18-15 lead. DJ brought the Celtics back to a 26-26 tie at the end of one.In the second quarter, Wilkins led a 14-3 run, giving the Hawks their biggest lead (48-39). Boston's offense was in utter shambles, and the Celtics weren't able to close the gap much before intermission. Atlanta led, 53-47, at halftime.
The Celtics outscored Atlanta, 16-5, at the start of the third and led by five before the Hawks ripped off seven straight to regain the lead. The big moment of Atlanta's surge was a summit meeting in which Tree Rollins (five blocks) effectively blocked a shot by Parish. Dominique Wilkins (21 points) followed with a jumper. Slowly working his way out of the arctic circle, Bird hit a jumper to give the Celtics a 70-69 lead, then stole the ball and set up a McHale foul-line turnaround. After a couple of EJ free throws, Bird canned another out top beforethe start of the fourth.
Celtics 109, Hawks 102
Record: 10-5
11/26/1983
It wasn't very pretty, but when you're fighting your way out of a locked closet, you don't particularly care what you look like when you finally break down the door. The struggling Celtics resorted to second-half defense and inside muscle to snap a four-game losing streak and defeat the Atlanta Hawks, 109-102, last night at the Garden.
It was Boston's first victory since Ray Flynn was elected mayor, and it prevented the Celtics from slipping into third place in the Atlantic Division. On a night when Larry Bird was again Doctor Zhivago (8 for 19), the arctic chill spread throughout the Green Team. It is a tribute to Boston's defense and rebounding that the Celtics were able to win despite hitting only 39 of 94 floor shots, their lowest percentage (.415) of the season.
Borrowing a line from the 1983 Chicago White Sox, Celtics coach K. C. Jones said, "I'll take ugly wins any time." "We're the most brutal shooting team in the NBA right now," added Kevin McHale. "But winning ugly is better than losing ugly, which is what we've been doing." Dennis Johnson led the Celtics with 25 points. Bird and Robert Parish followed with 22 each. But this game was won on the boards. The Celtics outrebounded the Hawks, 54-40, and had 29 offensive rebounds to the visitors' nine. The Celtics also limited themselves to a season-low 10 turnovers.
The burning of Atlanta was accomplished in the final eight minutes. The Hawks led, 86-82, when Boston erupted for nine in a row to take the lead for good. Parish started the drive, converting a Kevin McHale feed. After a steal by Bird, Quinn Buckner scored on a followup off the break, and when the Celtics rebounded another Atlanta miss, McHale scored on a follow to give the Celtics an 88-86 lead. Parish hit a jumper after another Hawk miss, and one free throw by DJ completed the 9-0 run and gave the Celtics a 91-86 led with 4:53 left.
Eddie Johnson (22 points) and Dan Roundfield (23, 11 rebounds) did their best to keep the Hawks alive, but it was too late. Atlanta never got closer than three the rest of the way.Borrowing a line from NFL coaches everywhere, Atlanta's rookie coach Mike Fratello said he'd have to view the films to account for Boston's sudden surge, but admitted, "When you get outscored, 9-0, in a stretch like that, either you're taking bad shots or committing turnovers, or the defense is so tenacious that you can't get the shots you want."
"I was very impressed with our defense," said Jones. "We could have folded early the way we were shooting, but we worked hard defensively." The Celtics held the Hawks to 33 percent shooting in the third quarter and outrebounded Atlanta, 13-3, in the fourth. In the first half it was the Celtics who shot an anemic 33 percent. Bird was 3-12, and Gerald Henderson and McHale missed 9 of 11. The Hawks, meanwhile, started out taking the highest percentage shots. Atlanta's first four baskets were dunks, two each by Wilkins and Rollins.
Atlanta's Right Stuffs didn't prevent Boston from running to a 13-8 lead and forcing Fratello to call time. With Bird still clanging everything off the rim, the Hawks outscored Boston, 10-2, to take an 18-15 lead. DJ brought the Celtics back to a 26-26 tie at the end of one.In the second quarter, Wilkins led a 14-3 run, giving the Hawks their biggest lead (48-39). Boston's offense was in utter shambles, and the Celtics weren't able to close the gap much before intermission. Atlanta led, 53-47, at halftime.
The Celtics outscored Atlanta, 16-5, at the start of the third and led by five before the Hawks ripped off seven straight to regain the lead. The big moment of Atlanta's surge was a summit meeting in which Tree Rollins (five blocks) effectively blocked a shot by Parish. Dominique Wilkins (21 points) followed with a jumper. Slowly working his way out of the arctic circle, Bird hit a jumper to give the Celtics a 70-69 lead, then stole the ball and set up a McHale foul-line turnaround. After a couple of EJ free throws, Bird canned another out top beforethe start of the fourth.
11.27.2009
Road Unis at Home
I'm not sure if Mike or Tommy commented on the Celtics wearing their road uniforms at home, but my take is that the Celtics were sending a message, mostly to themselves. Tonight was the first game of the road trip, at least in the players' minds, and the road trip is being looked at as the first turning point of the season. Play well or play poorly. Either way, we're gonna learn something about this team.
Rasheed Wallace said it best after the game. This team plays Celtics basketball in spurts. In the third quarter, I saw this team moving in unison on defense like they did two years ago, and it was in the third quarter that we started to build a lead. Still, allowing the Raptors to shoot 55% for the game is a sign that the green's D has a ways to go.
Best movement laterally and vertically we've seen from KG this year.
Best all-around performance from Sheed this year. Sheed looks more interested, and that probably doesn't hurt.
My new MVP candidate--Paul Pierce--played another very good game. He gave us what we needed, and you can't ask for more than that. Larry Bird always seemed bigger than the game. I'm not sure I get that impression from Pierce, but he can still have an MVP year if he keeps giving us what we need and we end up with the best record in the NBA.
Too many offensive possessions still end with no shot due to turnovers, offensive fouls, or three second calls. For a veteran team, this should be fixable, but has always been our Achilles heel.
Big Baby will make a difference upon his return. It might take a few games, but throwing those young legs and that big and fairly nimble body in the paint can't do anything but help.
Road begins now. Bring it on.
Rasheed Wallace said it best after the game. This team plays Celtics basketball in spurts. In the third quarter, I saw this team moving in unison on defense like they did two years ago, and it was in the third quarter that we started to build a lead. Still, allowing the Raptors to shoot 55% for the game is a sign that the green's D has a ways to go.
Best movement laterally and vertically we've seen from KG this year.
Best all-around performance from Sheed this year. Sheed looks more interested, and that probably doesn't hurt.
My new MVP candidate--Paul Pierce--played another very good game. He gave us what we needed, and you can't ask for more than that. Larry Bird always seemed bigger than the game. I'm not sure I get that impression from Pierce, but he can still have an MVP year if he keeps giving us what we need and we end up with the best record in the NBA.
Too many offensive possessions still end with no shot due to turnovers, offensive fouls, or three second calls. For a veteran team, this should be fixable, but has always been our Achilles heel.
Big Baby will make a difference upon his return. It might take a few games, but throwing those young legs and that big and fairly nimble body in the paint can't do anything but help.
Road begins now. Bring it on.
12-4: Celtics 116, Raptors 103
Raptors 103, Celtics 116
7:30 PM ET, November 27, 2009
TD Garden
Boston, MA
| TORONTO RAPTORS | ||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Hedo Turkoglu, SF | 34 | 8-11 | 4-5 | 0-2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | +2 | 20 |
| Chris Bosh, PF | 39 | 9-13 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | -10 | 20 |
| Andrea Bargnani, FC | 23 | 2-6 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | -10 | 7 |
| Jose Calderon, PG | 33 | 3-7 | 0-1 | 3-4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | -13 | 9 |
| DeMar DeRozan, F | 17 | 4-8 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -8 | 9 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Rasho Nesterovic, C | 15 | 5-7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 10 |
| Antoine Wright, SF | 11 | 1-3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | -17 | 2 |
| Pops Mensah-Bonsu, C | 5 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | N/A | 0 |
| Jarrett Jack, G | 33 | 5-8 | 0-1 | 8-8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | -5 | 18 |
| Amir Johnson, PF | 13 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | -9 | 3 |
| Marco Belinelli, SG | 16 | 1-3 | 1-3 | 2-3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -4 | 5 |
| Sonny Weems, SG | 2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 0 |
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | ||
| 39-70 | 7-14 | 18-23 | 10 | 21 | 31 | 15 | 7 | 6 | 25 | 19 | 103 | |||
| 55.7% | 50.0% | 78.3% | ||||||||||||
Fast break points: 22 Points in the paint: 48 Team TO ( points off ): 25 (22) +/- denotes team's net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||
| BOSTON CELTICS | ||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Kevin Garnett, PF | 28 | 6-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | +11 | 12 |
| Paul Pierce, SF | 35 | 7-12 | 0-3 | 4-4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +8 | 18 |
| Kendrick Perkins, C | 33 | 8-8 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +17 | 18 |
| Ray Allen, SG | 34 | 8-15 | 3-4 | 1-1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | +24 | 20 |
| Rajon Rondo, PG | 32 | 5-10 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | +23 | 12 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS |
| Rasheed Wallace, FC | 23 | 6-11 | 3-6 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | +7 | 15 |
| Eddie House, PG | 14 | 1-3 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6 | 3 |
| Brian Scalabrine, PF | 2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | N/A | 0 |
| Marquis Daniels, SG | 25 | 4-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 8 |
| Shelden Williams, PF | 10 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -7 | 6 |
| J.R. Giddens, SG | 2 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 4 |
| Lester Hudson, G | 2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | N/A | 0 |
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | ||
| 48-77 | 7-17 | 13-15 | 6 | 20 | 26 | 33 | 15 | 1 | 16 | 20 | 116 | |||
| 62.3% | 41.2% | 86.7% | ||||||||||||
Fast break points: 22 Points in the paint: 68 Team TO ( points off ): 17 (20) +/- denotes team's net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||
Paul Pierce, Larry Bird, and my Celtic Crankiness
Despite my prediction, I'm still kind of cranky. A couple of thoughts on my crankiness. First, I read today where during Magic Johnson's rookie season, his teammates kept waiting for him to wear down. It never happened. He played balls-to-the-walls the entire regular season, and kept going until he won the NBA championship. Jamaal Wilkes said that Magic's intensity forced everyone else on the team to raise the level of their game.
Sound familiar?
I like KG, and, like Ray Allen, I like having KG on the court in a uniform instead of on the bench in a suit. More importantly, I'm sick of talking about his knee. But that doesn't mean I'm tired of looking for some member of our team to step up. First I advocated Rajon Rondo. For the most part he has answered the bell. I'm almost embarrassed to admit it, but I never realized how great Larry Bird played in 1987 and 1988, mostly because I was so pissed that our team had no bench and no chance of winning it all. But now that I can look back and appreciate Bird's greatness in those two seasons, I asked myself how old he was.
Answer: 31 in 1987 and 32 in 1988. Paul Pierce is 32 this year. He may have thought the days of him carrying the team every night were over. They may not be. Whaddya say Paul? How about posting a season for the ages? I think you can do it and still play reasonable minutes.
Better yet, I've got something to entice you. Four words.
Know what they are?
League Most Valuable Player.
You've got an ego that needs feeding. How 'bout it?
Sound familiar?
I like KG, and, like Ray Allen, I like having KG on the court in a uniform instead of on the bench in a suit. More importantly, I'm sick of talking about his knee. But that doesn't mean I'm tired of looking for some member of our team to step up. First I advocated Rajon Rondo. For the most part he has answered the bell. I'm almost embarrassed to admit it, but I never realized how great Larry Bird played in 1987 and 1988, mostly because I was so pissed that our team had no bench and no chance of winning it all. But now that I can look back and appreciate Bird's greatness in those two seasons, I asked myself how old he was.
Answer: 31 in 1987 and 32 in 1988. Paul Pierce is 32 this year. He may have thought the days of him carrying the team every night were over. They may not be. Whaddya say Paul? How about posting a season for the ages? I think you can do it and still play reasonable minutes.
Better yet, I've got something to entice you. Four words.
Know what they are?
League Most Valuable Player.
You've got an ego that needs feeding. How 'bout it?
Vegas: Celtics by 9.5 over Raptors
LINK
I started posting the Vegas odds with the Utah game. More than anything else, these posts have served as my substitute for a real pre-game analysis. In any event, since the loss to Atlanta, we've covered one point-spread, Wednesday's game against Philadelphia. It appears that the odds-makers have noticed, too, as tonight's 9.5 point spread seems historically low for a Friday night in the Garden, but about right for how the Celtics are playing at the present.
I'm gonna go all Celtics Blog on you and predict that the green starts getting it together tonight. This prediction assumes the Celtics can in fact get it together and play great basketball. If they can, now would be a good time to do it, as they play seven of the next nine games on the road.
Screwing-around for three and a half quarters has Celtics fans a tad bit annoyed. It says here that the Celtics players are annoyed, too, and they start to do something about it tonight.
| Gameday Matchup | |||||||
| W-L | PF | PA | HOME | ROAD | STK | L10 | |
| TOR | 7-9 | 105.8 | 108.6 | 5-2 | 2-7 | L1 | 4-6 |
| BOS | 11-4 | 99.3 | 90.9 | 6-3 | 5-1 | W2 | 6-4 |
| Last 5 Games | |
| TORONTO (ET) | BOSTON (ET) |
| Nov 25 @CHA Loss 116-81 Nov 24 IND Win 123-112 Nov 22 ORL Loss 104-96 Nov 20 MIA Win 120-113 Nov 18 @UTA Loss 104-91 | Nov 25 PHI Win 113-110 Nov 22 @NY Win 107-105 Nov 20 ORL Loss 83-78 Nov 18 GS Win 109-95 Nov 14 @IND Loss 113-104 |
I started posting the Vegas odds with the Utah game. More than anything else, these posts have served as my substitute for a real pre-game analysis. In any event, since the loss to Atlanta, we've covered one point-spread, Wednesday's game against Philadelphia. It appears that the odds-makers have noticed, too, as tonight's 9.5 point spread seems historically low for a Friday night in the Garden, but about right for how the Celtics are playing at the present.
I'm gonna go all Celtics Blog on you and predict that the green starts getting it together tonight. This prediction assumes the Celtics can in fact get it together and play great basketball. If they can, now would be a good time to do it, as they play seven of the next nine games on the road.
Screwing-around for three and a half quarters has Celtics fans a tad bit annoyed. It says here that the Celtics players are annoyed, too, and they start to do something about it tonight.
C's Face Tree Rollins Year after He Bit Ainge
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 9-5
11/26/1983
This is a tough house for Tree Rollins to work in. Two years ago he filed a $4-million lawsuit against M. L. Carr (and the Celtics) for an alleged knife-wielding incident (the suit was later dropped). Last spring he was fined and suspended for two games after biting Danny Ainge's middle finger during a playoff free-for-all. In a Globe cartoon yesterday, he was shown going for a rebound with a fork in one hand and a dinner knife in the other.
One hesitates to approach the big fella about such incidents, but what the heck. Tree won't bite. Has the finger sandwich incident had any effect on him? "That was last year," says the 7-foot-1, six-year veteran. Will he be bothered by the reaction of the Boston crowd? "It's the usual crowd stuff, that's all." Rollins and Ainge didn't exchange get-well cards after the incident. "I've never heard from him," says Ainge. "The thing is forgotten. My hand is all better."
Tree got the expected reception during the player introductions last night, but things were pretty uneventful after that. The Hawks are 7-0 at home and were 0-5 on the road coming into the Garden. "There's a couple of factors involved," says rookie coach Mike Fratello. "There are nine new coaches in the NBA this year, which means that nine coaches are trying to get a feel for the players they have. I think that has a part in it with us."
Fratello's stately forward, Dan Roundfield, adds, "It's difficult to solve the problem, but we have played well at home and I think we have a better team than we had last year. We have a better bench than we had then." The Hawks still regret losing their three-game mini-series to the Celtics. "We blew that first game in Boston," says Rollins. "We stll thought we could beat them in that last game. We had their number for a while, but after the fight, everything went their way."
MISC
The Hawks play host to the Houston Rockets and you-know-who (Bill Fitch) in the Omni tonight . . . Atlanta officials have noticed that although there are more than 100 USA and ESPN NBA cablecasts this season, the Hawks will be fetured only once. It might have something to do with the fact that Ted Turner's WTBS outfit telecasts 41 Hawk games . . . Celtics center Robert Parish was honored at halftime last night for his cooperation in promoting public awareness of lupus . . . The Celtics play the Pistons in the Garden tomorrow night.
Record: 9-5
11/26/1983
This is a tough house for Tree Rollins to work in. Two years ago he filed a $4-million lawsuit against M. L. Carr (and the Celtics) for an alleged knife-wielding incident (the suit was later dropped). Last spring he was fined and suspended for two games after biting Danny Ainge's middle finger during a playoff free-for-all. In a Globe cartoon yesterday, he was shown going for a rebound with a fork in one hand and a dinner knife in the other.
One hesitates to approach the big fella about such incidents, but what the heck. Tree won't bite. Has the finger sandwich incident had any effect on him? "That was last year," says the 7-foot-1, six-year veteran. Will he be bothered by the reaction of the Boston crowd? "It's the usual crowd stuff, that's all." Rollins and Ainge didn't exchange get-well cards after the incident. "I've never heard from him," says Ainge. "The thing is forgotten. My hand is all better."
Tree got the expected reception during the player introductions last night, but things were pretty uneventful after that. The Hawks are 7-0 at home and were 0-5 on the road coming into the Garden. "There's a couple of factors involved," says rookie coach Mike Fratello. "There are nine new coaches in the NBA this year, which means that nine coaches are trying to get a feel for the players they have. I think that has a part in it with us."
Fratello's stately forward, Dan Roundfield, adds, "It's difficult to solve the problem, but we have played well at home and I think we have a better team than we had last year. We have a better bench than we had then." The Hawks still regret losing their three-game mini-series to the Celtics. "We blew that first game in Boston," says Rollins. "We stll thought we could beat them in that last game. We had their number for a while, but after the fight, everything went their way."
MISC
The Hawks play host to the Houston Rockets and you-know-who (Bill Fitch) in the Omni tonight . . . Atlanta officials have noticed that although there are more than 100 USA and ESPN NBA cablecasts this season, the Hawks will be fetured only once. It might have something to do with the fact that Ted Turner's WTBS outfit telecasts 41 Hawk games . . . Celtics center Robert Parish was honored at halftime last night for his cooperation in promoting public awareness of lupus . . . The Celtics play the Pistons in the Garden tomorrow night.
Bulpett Bashes Late 80s Celtics
Watching the way the Celtics are playing now brings to mind their forefathers from the 1980s. Unfortunately, we’re talking about the very late ’80s. The teams from that decade needed more than just their significant talent to win. They were often tougher and willing to work harder than their opponents. But a strange thing happened as the decade got late. Though they still clearly were one of the NBA’s elite teams, they started acting like it was their birthright. And that was a problem.
LINK
One very good point and one head-scratcher. The Boston Celtics' teams from the 1980s needed more than just talent to win. Of this there can be little dispute. Check out this article from 1985 if you need a refresher about the hard-hat, blue-collar manner in which Bird's Celtics played basketball, or this series of articles from 1987 if you want a graduate course in heart and courage on the hardwood.
Which brings us to the second claim that the Celtics of the late 1980s started playing basketball like winning titles was their birthright. Give me a break. Let me first be clear on one point. Bird's Celtics played with a swagger that was matched only by Magic's Lakers (and maybe, to some extent, Zeke's Pistons). But to suggest that the swagger somehow got in the way of winning games is off mark. Sure the Celtics took nights off. Look here, here, and here for that.
But talented players taking a few nights off and playing a few bad games does not mean that they lost games due to a sense of entitlement. Players are human. It is virtually impossible for even the most well-conditioned and committed athletes to play an 82-game schedule over six months without experiencing a few physical or emotional letdowns. Look at the 2007-08 Boston Celtics, a team thought by many fans and pundits to have played the entire regular season like it was the seventh game of the NBA Finals. Sure, they started out the season 29-3. Once that streak was over, however, they dropped 6 of their next 13 games. They also lost the first three games after the All-Star break to teams they'd handily defeated earlier in the season. Why? They were still on break. A year later they started 27-2, and then proceeded to lose six of their next nine.
Players have ups and downs, and veteran players who realize the prize is not awarded until June may have a difficult time getting up for games early in the schedule. I was there for the demise of the 1980s Celtics. I watched it. They won every regular season game they possibly could. KC Jones made sure of that by grinding the starters into the ground with big minutes. The reason the older Celtics got into trouble was because of 1) injuries; 2) old age; 3) younger opponents; and 4) more talented opponents. That's it. They may have taken some games for granted (expansion teams at home), but they still put their hard hats on and went to work.
I don't see that being the case thus far for the 2009-10 Boston Celtics. They've played long stretches of lethargic and listless basketball. They might be rightfully accused of meandering around the basketball court in a fog. I don't ever recall that being the case in the late 1980s. Every night the late 1980s Celtics played basketball knowing that home court was at stake. They had to win at least 60 regular season games if they wanted a shot at home court in the ECFs or NBA Finals against younger, arguably more talented teams. And those Celtics' teams took home court VERY SERIOUSLY, having gone 50-1 in 1986 at home (regular season and playoffs) and 39-2 (regular season) in 1987.
A sense of entitlement, I remember not.
LINK
One very good point and one head-scratcher. The Boston Celtics' teams from the 1980s needed more than just talent to win. Of this there can be little dispute. Check out this article from 1985 if you need a refresher about the hard-hat, blue-collar manner in which Bird's Celtics played basketball, or this series of articles from 1987 if you want a graduate course in heart and courage on the hardwood.
Which brings us to the second claim that the Celtics of the late 1980s started playing basketball like winning titles was their birthright. Give me a break. Let me first be clear on one point. Bird's Celtics played with a swagger that was matched only by Magic's Lakers (and maybe, to some extent, Zeke's Pistons). But to suggest that the swagger somehow got in the way of winning games is off mark. Sure the Celtics took nights off. Look here, here, and here for that.
But talented players taking a few nights off and playing a few bad games does not mean that they lost games due to a sense of entitlement. Players are human. It is virtually impossible for even the most well-conditioned and committed athletes to play an 82-game schedule over six months without experiencing a few physical or emotional letdowns. Look at the 2007-08 Boston Celtics, a team thought by many fans and pundits to have played the entire regular season like it was the seventh game of the NBA Finals. Sure, they started out the season 29-3. Once that streak was over, however, they dropped 6 of their next 13 games. They also lost the first three games after the All-Star break to teams they'd handily defeated earlier in the season. Why? They were still on break. A year later they started 27-2, and then proceeded to lose six of their next nine.
Players have ups and downs, and veteran players who realize the prize is not awarded until June may have a difficult time getting up for games early in the schedule. I was there for the demise of the 1980s Celtics. I watched it. They won every regular season game they possibly could. KC Jones made sure of that by grinding the starters into the ground with big minutes. The reason the older Celtics got into trouble was because of 1) injuries; 2) old age; 3) younger opponents; and 4) more talented opponents. That's it. They may have taken some games for granted (expansion teams at home), but they still put their hard hats on and went to work.
I don't see that being the case thus far for the 2009-10 Boston Celtics. They've played long stretches of lethargic and listless basketball. They might be rightfully accused of meandering around the basketball court in a fog. I don't ever recall that being the case in the late 1980s. Every night the late 1980s Celtics played basketball knowing that home court was at stake. They had to win at least 60 regular season games if they wanted a shot at home court in the ECFs or NBA Finals against younger, arguably more talented teams. And those Celtics' teams took home court VERY SERIOUSLY, having gone 50-1 in 1986 at home (regular season and playoffs) and 39-2 (regular season) in 1987.
A sense of entitlement, I remember not.
Will Bird's Celtics Match the Futility of the Wicks-Rowe Era?
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 9-5
11/25/1983
We are reminded today of the last lace, 29-53 Celtics of 1978-79. They were the creation of John Y. Brown, featuring Bob McAdoo, Curtis Rowe, Sidney Wicks, and Dennis Awtrey. We are reminded of this awful outfit because they were the last Celtics team to lose more than four straight games. They did it several times, of course, the last being an impressive eight-game swoon between March 27 and April 7 in 1979.
The 1983-84 Celtics face the prospect of a fifth consecutive loss tonight (7:30) when the high-flying Atlanta Hawks come to the Boston Garden. The Central Division-leading Hawks have won four straight and could create some dubious Celtics history by winning tonight. Take comfort. Cedric Maxwell, the only link between the awful Celtics of '78-'79 and the current Boston unit, sees no resemblance.
"This team doesn't have that knack," says Max. "We've got the quality to bounce back. The team I was on back then, we'd lose four and we'd know it was gonna be five or six. We've got too many leaders now to go into that kind of a
tailspin." Maxwell thinks he knows what's causing the Celtics' skid. "Our inside game has been strong," says Maxwell. "But we've got to be more consistent from the outside. Teams are starting to jam back in on us like they did last year." Larry Bird's much-publicized shooting slump has temporarily stripped the Celtics of their best outside threat. Bird is shooting an abysmal 32.9 percent (25 for 76) in the four-game losing streak.
The Celtics have fallen behind by considerable margins in each game of the streak. "We won't get stuck in the mud again Friday," coach K. C. Jones promises. "We have to eliminate that. We've gotten into some bad habits . . ." Bird added, "We're not executing and not moving the ball, but I still feel really good about this team. I think we've got a better chance of winning a championship than we've ever had. Standing around on offense has been our biggest problem."
The Celtics haven't been able to complete any comebacks either. They made up huge deficits in the Philadelphia and New York losses, but still stand 0-5 in games in which they are trailing or tied going into the fourth quarter. The Hawks are 7-5 and have won four straight, all at home. Rookie guard Glenn (Don't call me Doc until Julius retires) Rivers has started the last three games at point guard and is averaging 32.7 minutes, 10 points, 6.7 assists and 3.7 rebounds in that span. Overall, the 6-foot-4 rookie from Marquette is shooting 52 percent (35-67) from the floor. He has been starting in place of Johnny Davis, who is out with a pulled hamstring.
Eddie Johnson is Atlanta's shooting guard and is averaging 23.2 points and eight assists in his last five games. Mike Glenn is the first guard off the bench, and when he takes over at the wing, Johnson moves to the point. Up front, Tree (Love at First Bite) Rollins makes his first appearance in the Garden since he gnawed Danny Ainge's finger in a playoff brawl last April. Tree is averaging a league-leading 4.6 blocks a game. He took a stray elbow from Indiana's Steve Stipanovich Tuesday, but expects to play.
Dan Roundfield and Dominique Wilkins will flank Tree. The estimable Roundfield has 35 rebounds in his last two games and is averaging 17.3 points and nine rebounds overall. Wilkins is averaging 19.9 points and a whopping 4.1 offensive rebounds a game. He has scored in double figures in every game (something none of the Celtics can claim), and has hit for 20 or more in eight of 12 games.
Record: 9-5
11/25/1983
We are reminded today of the last lace, 29-53 Celtics of 1978-79. They were the creation of John Y. Brown, featuring Bob McAdoo, Curtis Rowe, Sidney Wicks, and Dennis Awtrey. We are reminded of this awful outfit because they were the last Celtics team to lose more than four straight games. They did it several times, of course, the last being an impressive eight-game swoon between March 27 and April 7 in 1979.
The 1983-84 Celtics face the prospect of a fifth consecutive loss tonight (7:30) when the high-flying Atlanta Hawks come to the Boston Garden. The Central Division-leading Hawks have won four straight and could create some dubious Celtics history by winning tonight. Take comfort. Cedric Maxwell, the only link between the awful Celtics of '78-'79 and the current Boston unit, sees no resemblance.
"This team doesn't have that knack," says Max. "We've got the quality to bounce back. The team I was on back then, we'd lose four and we'd know it was gonna be five or six. We've got too many leaders now to go into that kind of a
tailspin." Maxwell thinks he knows what's causing the Celtics' skid. "Our inside game has been strong," says Maxwell. "But we've got to be more consistent from the outside. Teams are starting to jam back in on us like they did last year." Larry Bird's much-publicized shooting slump has temporarily stripped the Celtics of their best outside threat. Bird is shooting an abysmal 32.9 percent (25 for 76) in the four-game losing streak.
The Celtics have fallen behind by considerable margins in each game of the streak. "We won't get stuck in the mud again Friday," coach K. C. Jones promises. "We have to eliminate that. We've gotten into some bad habits . . ." Bird added, "We're not executing and not moving the ball, but I still feel really good about this team. I think we've got a better chance of winning a championship than we've ever had. Standing around on offense has been our biggest problem."
The Celtics haven't been able to complete any comebacks either. They made up huge deficits in the Philadelphia and New York losses, but still stand 0-5 in games in which they are trailing or tied going into the fourth quarter. The Hawks are 7-5 and have won four straight, all at home. Rookie guard Glenn (Don't call me Doc until Julius retires) Rivers has started the last three games at point guard and is averaging 32.7 minutes, 10 points, 6.7 assists and 3.7 rebounds in that span. Overall, the 6-foot-4 rookie from Marquette is shooting 52 percent (35-67) from the floor. He has been starting in place of Johnny Davis, who is out with a pulled hamstring.
Eddie Johnson is Atlanta's shooting guard and is averaging 23.2 points and eight assists in his last five games. Mike Glenn is the first guard off the bench, and when he takes over at the wing, Johnson moves to the point. Up front, Tree (Love at First Bite) Rollins makes his first appearance in the Garden since he gnawed Danny Ainge's finger in a playoff brawl last April. Tree is averaging a league-leading 4.6 blocks a game. He took a stray elbow from Indiana's Steve Stipanovich Tuesday, but expects to play.
Dan Roundfield and Dominique Wilkins will flank Tree. The estimable Roundfield has 35 rebounds in his last two games and is averaging 17.3 points and nine rebounds overall. Wilkins is averaging 19.9 points and a whopping 4.1 offensive rebounds a game. He has scored in double figures in every game (something none of the Celtics can claim), and has hit for 20 or more in eight of 12 games.
11.26.2009
The Forgotten Ups and Downs of Early 07-08
It's difficult to dominate four quarters of basketball. Yet many Celtics fans remember the start of the 2007-08 as a period when the Celtics did just that game after game on their way to an 11-2 start. But as you'll see below, that just wasn't the case. Even though the Celtics blew out both Washington and Denver to start the season, they didn't dominate the opponent in the second half of either game. The Celtics beat Toronto in overtime of game 2, but the only reason the game went into OT was because the Raptors badly outscored the Celtics in the fourth quarter.
In game 5, the Celtics beat New Jersey by 11, but gave up 35 fourth quarter points. We also got dominated by Miami in the fourth quarter of game 8, almost losing that game down the stretch. Orlando kicked our tails in the first quarter of game 9, while the Lakers scored 58 points in quarters 3 and 4 of game 10. Finally, we were up and down against Cleveland, playing an uneven game until finally dropping the contest in OT.
I'm not saying Celtics are now playing as well as they did to start to the 07-08 season. I'm just saying that the 07-08 team played unevenly, too, and that any memories of complete dominance are inaccurate. I also think that a team comprised of veterans sees little to gain from trying to put away a game in the first half. It wastes a lot of energy, and often times doesn't accomplish the objective. It would be nice to see this team start to mesh and post some sizable blowouts. But the first real test will come between Nov 29 and Jan 20, when the team plays 16 of 22 games on the road. That's when we will start to see what this team is made of.
With any luck, we'll be playing some of our best basketball by the end of that stretch. At least I hope we are. Why? The next five games thereafter are against Portland and the Clippers at home, Orlando and Atlanta on the road, and then that other Los Angeles team at home.
In game 5, the Celtics beat New Jersey by 11, but gave up 35 fourth quarter points. We also got dominated by Miami in the fourth quarter of game 8, almost losing that game down the stretch. Orlando kicked our tails in the first quarter of game 9, while the Lakers scored 58 points in quarters 3 and 4 of game 10. Finally, we were up and down against Cleveland, playing an uneven game until finally dropping the contest in OT.
I'm not saying Celtics are now playing as well as they did to start to the 07-08 season. I'm just saying that the 07-08 team played unevenly, too, and that any memories of complete dominance are inaccurate. I also think that a team comprised of veterans sees little to gain from trying to put away a game in the first half. It wastes a lot of energy, and often times doesn't accomplish the objective. It would be nice to see this team start to mesh and post some sizable blowouts. But the first real test will come between Nov 29 and Jan 20, when the team plays 16 of 22 games on the road. That's when we will start to see what this team is made of.
With any luck, we'll be playing some of our best basketball by the end of that stretch. At least I hope we are. Why? The next five games thereafter are against Portland and the Clippers at home, Orlando and Atlanta on the road, and then that other Los Angeles team at home.
WAS (0-2) 18 18 21 26 83
BOS (1-0) 21 37 21 24 103
BOS (2-0) 23 15 28 12 20 98
TOR (2-1) 14 17 24 23 17 95
DEN (2-3) 22 16 28 27 93
BOS (3-0) 38 39 26 16 119
ATL (2-3) 19 22 20 22 83
BOS (4-0) 24 31 19 32 106
BOS (5-0) 26 33 28 25 112
NJN (4-2) 27 25 14 35 101
BOS (6-0) 26 26 24 25 101
IND (3-4) 24 19 22 21 86
NJN (4-4) 23 11 20 15 69
BOS (7-0) 17 19 26 29 91
MIA (1-8) 24 22 19 26 91
BOS (8-0) 24 28 24 16 92
BOS (8-1) 17 24 35 26 102
ORL (9-2) 28 30 25 21 104
GSW (3-7) 16 21 27 18 82
BOS (9-1) 25 25 31 24 105
LAL (7-5) 16 19 31 28 94
BOS (10-1) 25 28 31 23 107
BOS (11-1) 23 25 28 20 96
CHA (6-7) 23 30 22 20 95
BOS (11-2) 20 29 23 20 12 104
CLE (9-6) 26 20 28 18 17 109
Jabbar was No Russell
1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record: 9-5
11/24/1983
Item: Kareem Abdul-kabbar passes the 30,000-point mark.
And some day he will surpass Wilt Chamberlain's record of 31,419 points to become the NBA's leading scorer. He is certain to be hailed in Los Angeles as the greatest player ever. We in Boston will say, "I beg your pardon. It's about this guy who used to wear No. 6 . . . " It has now been 14 years since Bill Russell played his last game for the Celtics. Millions have grown up without having seen him play, unable to understand how a man with a lifetime scoring average of 15.1 points per game could be viewed by their elders as the starting point for all pivotman discussions.
The average basketball player today shoots better, runs better and jumps better than the player of 15 years ago. But this does not mean anything when the topic of discussion is Bill Russell, the first "modern" center. His calling cards were defense, rebounding and just plain winning. Be assured that Bill Russell would dominate rival centers today, just as he did in his prime. They don't want to hear about this down in Philadelphia, because they had Wilt Chamberlain.
His individual feats border on the incomprehensible. You will see Michael Gelber elected mayor of Boston before you will see another NBA player average 50.4 points a game for one season (1961-62), average more than 27 rebounds a game (which he did twice) or score 55 or more points in one game 72 times. The numbers favor Wilt in any discussion against anybody; we all know that. But Wilt Chamberlain was no Bill Russell; we all know that, too.
Don't misunderstand. There is a lot to be said for Kareem. He truly was a franchise when he broke in with the Milwaukee Bucks, lifting them from 27 victories in their first season (1968-69) to 56 in his rookie year, then to 66 and an NBA title in his second season. He personally kept the Bucks afloat in the 1974 finals against the Celtics. In case your memory needs refreshing, the Bucks lost Lucius Allen with a knee injury before the Celtics series began and had to make do for much of the final series without Jon McGlocklin, as well. Larry Costello's starting lineup was Kareem, Bob Dandridge, Curtis Perry, a 34-year-old Oscar Robertson and Mickey Davis. Yet this team took the Celtics to a seventh game and the reason was Kareem.
But it is impossible to equate so indifferent a rebounder and so spotty a competitor with Russell, or even with Chamberlain. History will also record that two shorter, fiercer, more passionate men were able to neutralize him in his prime. I am speaking of Willis Reed and Dave Cowens, each of whom was not only able to score on Kareem by staying outside, but who also defended him well and certainly beat him to the boards more than could have been expected.
Indeed, the big beef with Kareem has to be his rebounding. If the first rule of rebounding is simply to go after the ball, Kareem must be marked as a failure. He is 7-3, or whatever. He has marvelous coordination. He is no 97-pound weakling. But the results have always been lacking. He ought to be ashamed of his career rebound accomplishments. Not wanting to rebound doesn't make him a bad person, but it surely disqualifies him from any discussion involving Russell and Chamberlain.
Kareem's legacy will be the hook shot, which he has elevated to an art form. It is the most fearsome offensive weapon in the history of the sport, and the wonder of it all is that Kareem has obviously failed to serve as the role model for all young centers following in his wake. The hook should be the basic shot of every center, at every level, and yet more big men coming out in the '70s and early '80s appear to have been inspired by Elvin Hayes and his turnaround jumper (Exhibit A: Darryl Dawkins) than by Kareem and his hook.
So rank Kareem third, at best, on the all-time list of centers. Then we come to the matter of Bill Walton, whose best game was better than anybody's, Russell included. But that's a discussion for another day. I've got to go polish up my hook shot, not to mention my jump hook.
Record: 9-5
11/24/1983
Item: Kareem Abdul-kabbar passes the 30,000-point mark.
And some day he will surpass Wilt Chamberlain's record of 31,419 points to become the NBA's leading scorer. He is certain to be hailed in Los Angeles as the greatest player ever. We in Boston will say, "I beg your pardon. It's about this guy who used to wear No. 6 . . . " It has now been 14 years since Bill Russell played his last game for the Celtics. Millions have grown up without having seen him play, unable to understand how a man with a lifetime scoring average of 15.1 points per game could be viewed by their elders as the starting point for all pivotman discussions.
The average basketball player today shoots better, runs better and jumps better than the player of 15 years ago. But this does not mean anything when the topic of discussion is Bill Russell, the first "modern" center. His calling cards were defense, rebounding and just plain winning. Be assured that Bill Russell would dominate rival centers today, just as he did in his prime. They don't want to hear about this down in Philadelphia, because they had Wilt Chamberlain.
His individual feats border on the incomprehensible. You will see Michael Gelber elected mayor of Boston before you will see another NBA player average 50.4 points a game for one season (1961-62), average more than 27 rebounds a game (which he did twice) or score 55 or more points in one game 72 times. The numbers favor Wilt in any discussion against anybody; we all know that. But Wilt Chamberlain was no Bill Russell; we all know that, too.
Don't misunderstand. There is a lot to be said for Kareem. He truly was a franchise when he broke in with the Milwaukee Bucks, lifting them from 27 victories in their first season (1968-69) to 56 in his rookie year, then to 66 and an NBA title in his second season. He personally kept the Bucks afloat in the 1974 finals against the Celtics. In case your memory needs refreshing, the Bucks lost Lucius Allen with a knee injury before the Celtics series began and had to make do for much of the final series without Jon McGlocklin, as well. Larry Costello's starting lineup was Kareem, Bob Dandridge, Curtis Perry, a 34-year-old Oscar Robertson and Mickey Davis. Yet this team took the Celtics to a seventh game and the reason was Kareem.
But it is impossible to equate so indifferent a rebounder and so spotty a competitor with Russell, or even with Chamberlain. History will also record that two shorter, fiercer, more passionate men were able to neutralize him in his prime. I am speaking of Willis Reed and Dave Cowens, each of whom was not only able to score on Kareem by staying outside, but who also defended him well and certainly beat him to the boards more than could have been expected.
Indeed, the big beef with Kareem has to be his rebounding. If the first rule of rebounding is simply to go after the ball, Kareem must be marked as a failure. He is 7-3, or whatever. He has marvelous coordination. He is no 97-pound weakling. But the results have always been lacking. He ought to be ashamed of his career rebound accomplishments. Not wanting to rebound doesn't make him a bad person, but it surely disqualifies him from any discussion involving Russell and Chamberlain.
Kareem's legacy will be the hook shot, which he has elevated to an art form. It is the most fearsome offensive weapon in the history of the sport, and the wonder of it all is that Kareem has obviously failed to serve as the role model for all young centers following in his wake. The hook should be the basic shot of every center, at every level, and yet more big men coming out in the '70s and early '80s appear to have been inspired by Elvin Hayes and his turnaround jumper (Exhibit A: Darryl Dawkins) than by Kareem and his hook.
So rank Kareem third, at best, on the all-time list of centers. Then we come to the matter of Bill Walton, whose best game was better than anybody's, Russell included. But that's a discussion for another day. I've got to go polish up my hook shot, not to mention my jump hook.
11.25.2009
11-4: Celtics 113, Sixers 110
76ers 110, Celtics 113
7:30 PM ET, November 25, 2009
TD Garden
Boston, MA
| PHILADELPHIA 76ERS | ||||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| Jrue Holiday, G | 33 | 4-13 | 0-3 | 2-4 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | -8 | 10 | |||
| Andre Iguodala, SG | 46 | 8-18 | 2-4 | 7-8 | 2 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | -7 | 25 | |||
| Jason Smith, PF | 23 | 3-4 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | -17 | 8 | |||
| Thaddeus Young, F | 40 | 7-16 | 1-1 | 2-4 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | -9 | 17 | |||
| Samuel Dalembert, C | 26 | 2-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -6 | 4 | |||
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| Primoz Brezec, C | 8 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | +16 | 0 | |||
| Royal Ivey, PG | 5 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +6 | 3 | |||
| Lou Williams, G | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Marreese Speights, PF | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Elton Brand, PF | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Jason Kapono, SF | 29 | 8-11 | 4-6 | 0-2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | +2 | 20 | |||
| Rodney Carney, SF | 8 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 2-2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +6 | 5 | |||
| Willie Green, SG | 13 | 5-7 | 2-2 | 6-6 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | +6 | 18 | |||
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | |||||
| 39-82 | 13-20 | 19-26 | 12 | 39 | 26 | 4 | 2 | 13 | 30 | 110 | ||||||
| 47.6% | 65.0% | 73.1% | ||||||||||||||
Fast break points: 23 Team TO ( points off ): 13 (17) +/- denotes team's net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||||
| BOSTON CELTICS | ||||||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| Ray Allen, SG | 32 | 6-14 | 1-6 | 5-5 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -5 | 18 | |||
| Paul Pierce, SF | 43 | 10-15 | 3-7 | 4-4 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | +10 | 27 | |||
| Rajon Rondo, PG | 37 | 5-9 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 | +10 | 10 | |||
| Kevin Garnett, PF | 30 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 9-12 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +1 | 19 | |||
| Kendrick Perkins, C | 23 | 4-7 | 0-0 | 4-6 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | +9 | 12 | |||
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | +/- | PTS | |||
| J.R. Giddens, SG | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Lester Hudson, G | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | |||
| Tony Allen, SG | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Shelden Williams, PF | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6 | 1 | |||
| Glen Davis, PF | Has not entered game | |||||||||||||||
| Rasheed Wallace, FC | 21 | 2-7 | 2-6 | 2-4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | +1 | 8 | |||
| Brian Scalabrine, PF | 2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | |||
| Marquis Daniels, SG | 21 | 2-7 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | -3 | 5 | |||
| Eddie House, PG | 22 | 4-9 | 1-5 | 4-4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +7 | 13 | |||
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | |||||
| 38-78 | 7-27 | 30-39 | 11 | 37 | 23 | 6 | 3 | 12 | 22 | 113 | ||||||
| 48.7% | 25.9% | 76.9% | ||||||||||||||
Fast break points: 19 Team TO ( points off ): 12 (12) +/- denotes team's net points while the player is on the court. | ||||||||||||||||
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