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Posted by Sekou Smith
HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – If I’ve heard it once I’ve heard it 1,000 times the past few days.
“Don’t sleep on the Celtics!”
I won’t.
We won’t.
We’re done estimating the old men in the NBA’s Final Four, and yes the aged Celtics remain the most seasoned group in the conference finals on either side.
That seasoning, however, provides mettle and toughness that only the Los Angeles Lakers can begin to approach. And as we all know, it was this same Celtics team two years ago that took these Lakers to the woodshed.
But the Celtics we will see today are a much improved bunch from what we saw earlier this season, as the venerable Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe points out here:
Even so, that LeBron [James] still might have been good enough to defeat another playoff foe, and he definitely would have been good enough to defeat those 27-27 Celtics of January, February, March, and April. The ultimate issue in the Boston-Cleveland series was Boston, not Cleveland. The LeBron sideshow dominated all local and national attention. Had the opponent been the Rochester Royals, no one would have noticed. It was a LeBron Festival, 24/7.
Should anyone stop talking about where LeBron is heading for five seconds and decide to turn on his or her TV set at 3:30 EDT this afternoon, he or she will see a team wearing green uniforms that is playing high-level NBA basketball, a team that has renewed commitment to both defense and sharing the basketball, a team whose eight primary rotation players all have championship rings, and a team that has the extra motivation that comes when you are trying to prove millions of people wrong. No one picked them to go this far, and they know it.
The current Celtics team did not really exist all season. True, they had that 23-5 start, but that was without Glen Davis. Only now does Doc Rivers have the unit he needs to compete with the Cavs, Magic, Lakers, and Suns of the world.
The basic story line now centers on health. The situation is exactly what Rivers said all along it would be. If, he kept saying before and during many a lost evening this past winter, we ever get healthy, we will be OK.
There was also this gem from Ryan, summing up the playoffs and this series perfectly:
A regular-season record is the product of talent, yes, but it also reflects whom you play, when you play them (i.e. are you in the fourth game in six nights of a killer road trip?), who’s healthy, how difficult the team is to prepare for, and, without question, motivation. In the playoffs, motivation is self-evident.
Coaching and preparation can decide series. Teams can zero in on opponents’ vulnerabilities. In-game coaching decisions are magnified (did Doc kick poor Mike Brown’s butt or what?). It’s all totally different.
The Magic have won 27 out of 30, but the Celtics are ready for them. A month ago, we all thought the Celtics might lose in the first round, no matter whom they played. Now they’re playing Orlando for the Eastern Conference championship, and it’s going to be a fair fight.
We’re done with predictions around here.
We’re down to the best of the very best.
It’s time to get it on and the best team standing at the end is the undisputed beast of the East!
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Just want to shed some light on the comment that the boston celtics are the most ‘seasoned’ team remaining in the playoffs. This is some stats on Derek Fisher of the Lakers, “In the past decade, he ties Robert Horry for having played in the most NBA Playoff Games (149) and played the tenth most Playoff minutes (4,221). Fisher has the highest cumulative three-point percentage in NBA Finals history. He ranks third all time in NBA Finals three pointers made (41), one shy of Michael Jordan for second all-time behind Robert Horry. He has the second highest three point field goal percentage in NBA Finals history (46.1%), trailing only Ray Allen. ” He has played in 4 finals. Then there are guys like Luke Walton, Lamar and Pau.And I have not even started about kobe yet. This Celtics team have made 1 final appearance, 1! Cause the team is old don’t make them seasoned…
Here’s some stats for you jah rasta,
Your “seasoned” Lakers might remember a little game six… Hate all you want but a Garnett Celtic lineup has yet to lose a series. I don’t know who Garnett and crew have more fun shutting down… Kobe or Lebron?!? lol
Fisher has made so many three’s and has a high percentage because he’s always left open. Do you think jordan was left open?? don’t even get me started on luke walton.
I’m still waiting on Charles Barkley to retract what he said about the Celtics being washed up and predicting they’d be swept by Cleveland, any person who has watched this team since 2008 would know it is a much improved team despite having less wins against improved teams this season, everyone is going with orlando because of their wins in the 2009 playoffs against a shaqless cleveland and guarnetless boston which would have made a major differnce ; sorry to say i have no faith in orlando to win a championship this season,my loyalty stays with Kevin Guarnett on his new found team
KP
Loved the Doc Rivers quote at the end of the video:
“I was going to Orlando after the series anyway. Now ALL of us are going.”
before the playoffs started you were talking about how the Celtics are too old here http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2010/04/12/awards-season/ you say they have the worst case of “senioritis” now your hoopping on the bandwagon, come on Sekou
Celtics are good but Lakers are better period…
Nothing sweeter than a Celtics-Lakers Finals, with the Lakers going down in flames. That soft, mentally-fragile team is going lose home court first, then their dignity.
If the Celtics beat the Magic 3 times in last years playoffs without KG then this year the magic are in trouble. Being from New York i hated telling people that Boston was going to win it all by the 08 all star break but that defense was something. watching the C’s this year i have the problem. and the problem for orlando is that perkins and rasheed play good D on dwight but those two players also lead the league in technical fouls each year. if i was the coach i would push sheeds buttons and make sure he catches a double tech before he gets off the bench same principle with perk. That being said i dont want to see a sweep and then wait another week before the next nba game so dwight better forget about busting out another smile and makes sure he puts on his little red cape before stepping on the floor
The Celtics are proving again they are the most physical and mentally tough team…the Lakers will fall to the Celtics again too…mark my words….they’re soft!
the magics gonna win the series. they haven’t had a tough opponent in a long while. they might lose game 2 but will comeback in 3 and win the more games and then win the series.
Uh you guys do realize that the Suns and Lakers haven’t even played yet (as of 3:31 pacific time) and the Celtics won game 1 but it’s a seven game series, so should we really be counting the Suns and Magic out right now? Seriously, they still are the two hottest teams playing left. Yes, it would be great for another Celtics and Lakers final, but a lot can happen between now and the first week of June.
Here in Lo Angeles, we hope the Celtirelas will make it to the NBA finals (PLEASE BE THERE)!!
lakers are not losing we have are big man this year n kobe is on fire n thats why we will get the job done n lebron couldnt
Just think what if KG had not been injured last season Boston could have had a chance at 3 peat, now hes gonna be making up for last year. Thats why Boston will win.