Captain's Thoughts: A Sad End to a Happy Era for Celtics

In what could be the last game of the Big Three Era in Boston, the Celtics fell to the Heat 101-88. It was likely the last time that Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen were all on the same floor on the same team in a meaningful game.

It was a brutally painful end to an enjoyable 5 seasons. So even though the ending wasn't a triumphant one, and there was no ride into the sunset with an 18th NBA Championship trophy in tow, I'd argue that as a whole the story of The Big Three was happy one.

In the Big Three Era, the Celtics won 5 divisional titles, 2 Eastern Conference titles, and an NBA Championship. They won 11 playoff series (they'd won 10 between the 1986 NBA Finals and the start of the Big Three Era). They had a .693 winning percentage and won 273 regular season games. They rekindled the rivalry with LA. They won rings for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. And they made sure that the number 34 would one day hang in the rafters of the Garden with the other Celtic greats.

More important than all that, the Big Three Era made the Celtics relevant again. Before, the C's were struggling on the court and were struggling for attention in a town that had Super Bowl and World Series winning teams. The Big Three Era returned the Celtics to prominence in this town. And nationally, Boston was once again a focal point of the Basketball world.

It's been a very special 5 years.

Now, let's talk about Game 7.

The Celtics and Heat were tied 73-73 going into the 4th. The Celtics led 82-81 with 8:00 left in the 4th. Then the Heat went on a rampage and the C's cooled off. They outscored the Celtics 20-6 from that point on. The Heat executed, the Celtics didn't.

The common explanation for this is that the Celtics "had nothing left in the tank." They simply ran out of gas. That may be. And it might be part of the reason Miami was able to pull away so quickly. I'm not quite sure that's the reason, though.

This Celtics team has been very streaky all season, especially with their shooting. Hot for 10 minutes, cold for 10 minutes. They've blown several leads (and built several leads) in the postseason because of this streakiness. They were cold at the end of the 4th last night, but it didn't look much different from previous cold stretches.

And give credit to the Heat for their execution. I hate that I have to do that, but they made the big shots in the 4th last night. They made the momentum swinging plays (example: late in the 2nd Celtics had a chance to go up by 9, Pietrus turned it over, then LeBron dunked to make it a 5 point game). They played better than the Celtics, especially in the clutch.

I'm not calling the Celtics a team of chokers. You can't be both a Choker and a Champion, and you can't be a Choker if you're also the underdog. But the Celtics could have won this series if they played just a little bit better. The effort was there, but not the execution.

Earlier in the series, the Celtics got cold at a key time and let another game get away from them. Game 2, remembered mostly for bad officiating, saw the Celtics up 5 points with 3:00 left in the 4th. And they couldn't hit a shot. Miami took a lead, then the Celtics had to miraculously tie it, hope for LeBron to choke (which he did), and go to OT. Which they eventually lost, thanks in part to the refs. But the C's had that game in their hands, and didn't execute.

And that's fine. The Bruins didn't execute against the Caps. The Patriots didn't execute against the Giants. It happens. I'm not trying to lead an anti-Celtic crusade here. I'm not trying to criticize them or call them losers. It just seems like every time the Celtics lose, there's always an explanation and it never includes the phrase "didn't play well enough to win." It's either the refs, or their age, or health, or injuries, or running out of gas.

It's okay to admit that these guys are human, and that it's tough to execute perfectly for 16 games and win an NBA Championship. If anything, I think it emphasizes how impressive their 2008 title was. The NBA Playoffs are a grind. Only a freak could play their absolute best in every single game.

Anyway, in 10 years we won't remember this game much. We'll remember the players, but not for their shooting percentages in the 4th quarter of this game. We'll remember them for what they did the 5 years they were here. They brought pride back to the Green and White, to the most storied franchise in the NBA, and to Boston.

-The Captain

Why Not?

Why not watch Rondo be a bitter prick until the end, and you know what he's right

Why Not?

Why not sit back and be proud that we actually have a retarded person as our mayor?

Honestly WTF? I know it's not really his job to know sports, but if you are from around here you know he can't fucking talk. How the hell does he keep getting elected? He is a retard. I know there are people who "don't like that word", but sit back and tell me another word that fits this guy.

Celtics Are More Talented Than We Thought

The narrative of the Heat/Celtics series has been that Miami are talented chokers and the Celtics are gritty finishers. I'm not going to argue against that. Miami does have talent. And there's no denying that the Celtics know how to win tough playoff games.

But let's not sell the Celtics short. They have talent. They have some serious talent. How many Hall of Famers are on the Heat? How many are on the Celtics? How many Celtics players have nation-wide name recognition? We thought maybe the Celtics were too old, but they're proving that talent knows no age. At least not before 40.

Let's start with a guy who isn't old: Rajon Rondo. Fast, slick, great vision, decisive with the ball, able to drive to the hoop, and occasionally able to shoot well from the field. Rondo led the NBA with 11.7 assists per game. 1.0 more than Steve Nash, 2.8 more than Chris Paul. You can argue that he had so many assists because he was surrounded by talent. And that only furthers my contention that the Celtics are a very talented team.

The biggest criticism of Rondo is that he's not spectacular every single night. His inconsistency is sometimes baffling. But talented players are sometimes inconsistent. There's no arguing or doubting Rondo's abilities. He's a talented player.

Kevin Garnett might be healthier now than he's been the past three years. And when healthy, he is a game-changer. He looked sluggish at the start of the regular season, but he's quickened every month. His defense is better now, his shooting is better, he's making a difference in the middle of the court. He's averaging 19.9 points and 10.8 rebounds per game in this postseason. He's shooting 50% from the field. In this series, the Heat have shot 60% when Garnett is on the bench, 40.8% when he's on the floor. KG changes the shape of the game when he's playing. Tell me he's not talented.

Paul Pierce is clutch. And talented. Clutchness might be an intangible, but without talent it's meaningless. Clutchness is an ability to maximize the impact of talent in the most important moments of a game. Pierce also averaged 19.4 points per game in the regular season, not much off his 22.0 career average. And keep in mind that for a good chunk of his career, he was the Celtics ONLY scorer.

With KG, Rondo, and Allen around him, Pierce hasn't had to dominate games for the Celtics to win. But when Pierce was by himself, he was very impressive. That talent hasn't dissipated much. It simply doesn't need to be harnessed every single possession. He's got talent.

This is a talented team. LeBron is a perennial MVP candidate, and Wade is a superstar, but the Celtics have three sure Hall of Famers, and one of the most talented point guards in the league. Pierce and Rondo were both All-Stars in 2012. KG was one in 2011. Pierce, Rondo, and Garnett have combined for 27 All-Star appearances.

This is a talented team that we all dismissed. Remember the trade deadline? There was debate over breaking this team up, selling off the pieces to rebuild for the future. They believed in themselves and their talent. And now they're making believers out of all of us here as well as across the country.

-The Captain

82 Sixers, 75 Celtics

So I went to bed after my drunken stupor thinking I would wake up and let time heal and be less pissed, but no. Last night really pissed me the fuck off, real bad. I feel personally insulted with that dog shit effort they played last night and the deserve all the criticism in the world.

1st off, Rajon, what the fuck bro. I spend all day pumping your tires here as the best pg in the league, an yesterday deadspin came out with an article your one of the best shooters in the league at mid range jumpers, and you sleep walk through game 6. What the fuck man, that was a perfect game for you to have taken over and acted as if you had a 105 flu. 9 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists is not an acceptable stat line. I understand people can have bad games but fuck dude, you looked shitty on offense, your defense on Jrue Holliday was awful and played the worse game I have ever seen you play..... now that I got that out of the way, I can move on and let the healing begin.

RAY ALLEN! Speaking of awful, he has been such a liability on both sides of the ball, I would honestly play Keyon Dooling and Marquis Daniels over him. I don't care about his ankles being hurt, he is letting Lou Williams, Holliday, Iguodala score at will on him. On offense he's not a threat anymore, and don't give me the "spacing" excuse. He's played awful Doc needs to give him the 2nd hardest slap (1st goes to Rondo).

Kevin Garnett, c'mon dude, you have pretty numbers in 20-10 but all those points came when we were down 10. You call Philly fair weathered and then you didn't back it up. I expect more from you. You could see the team struggling, I wanted you to go all Jackie Moon on hte Sixers and pull a "everybody hit someone" moment. The leadership wasn't there at all. Needs to get slapped 3rd.

The clusterfuck of Mickael Pietrus and Brandon Bass where were you guys last night. Bass puts up 27 and then 8? Doug Collins is a great coach, but his trap defense really shouldn't muffle you that much. Pietrus couldn't the broad side of a barn with his shot, he has been a complete disappointment this whole playoffs. I expected more from you than just a defensive guy. Instead of sitting on the 3 point line the whole game, why don't you do what Avery Bradley does and run the baseline and get some easy fucking points. fuck. Slapped 4th and 5th, then gets the backhand back for 6th and 7th. Also, with Avery Bradley out for the playoffs both you 2 assholes need to step up big time.

The only 2 people who deserve credit in this game is Paul Pierce and Ryan Hollins, both of them showed they gave a damn when they were out there. Pierce was getting everything he wanted, got to the line, hit his free throws and Ryan Hollins hustled.

The Celtics looked flat and shitty times infinity.

However, Game 7 is in Boston and hopefully Doc Rivers slaps them enough to realize the ramifications of losing a game in which the Sixers tried handing us with 11 fucking missed free throws means.

Gay.

101 Celtics, 85 Sixers

What a game, and not to toot my own horn I was only 3 points off my predicted score.

If you had to give 3 stars to this game for the Celtics it would go:
1. Rajon Rondo
2. Brandon Bass
3. Greg Stiemsma

Before BMack jumps down my throat for not having Bass let me explain why Rondo is the star of last game. Most of Bass' points were very easy and very manageable from Rajon Rondo's penetration and vision. Rajon was the reason the Celtics took off in the 3rd quarter and imposed his will. Rajon finished with 13 points and 14 assists and 2 steals.

Now onto Bass. He was a monster in this game and especially in the 3rd quarter. He finished with 27 points total but he had 18 in the 3rd. He outscored the Sixers in the 3rd. He had 5 dunks and hit that free throw jumper countless times. His aggressiveness on the offensive end was incredible.

The reason Greg Stiemsma is on here is because he and Rondo were the reason the game was within reach and only down 3 at halftime. It seemed like the Sixers were up 25, but Stiemsma did an incredible job keeping them in the game. He finished the game with 10 points on 5-5 shooting and 3 blocks.

This game was exactly the opposite of what the Celtics did in game 4. They started slow and finished and strong. It was a great win, and a must win. As much as Ray Allen has struggled offensively, you have to admire his job defensively. I think he did a great job and the fact his ankles are killing him and he's going all grit and balls is something to nod your cap too.

KG fought off a slow start to have a 20 point game.

Either way, a great win and so hopefully they close it in Philly. Especially since KG called all their fans Fairweather.

Also, I am pretty sick of Lavoy Allen, even though he had a -15 on the night, he always seems to be productive.

Celtics 107, 76ers 91

I thought the Celtics would win, but it would be close and low-scoring. As long as I got the first one right, I'm happy.

Paul Pierce isn't injured. He might be experiencing some pain, some wear and tear. But he's not injured. He scored 24 points, he drove to the hole all night (14 free throws) and hauled in 12 rebounds.

All the Celtics played more aggressively. It seemed like they didn't want to wait for the 4th quarter to win. They wanted to win in the 2nd and 3rd. And they did. Convincingly so.

Rondo was amazing. He took his shots, scoring 23. And he had 14 assists.

Garnett also had a big night. 13 rebounds and 27 points.

All the Celtics were physical. They ran all over the 76ers. They sped the game up. Before this series, the experts didn't think the Celtics could play a full court game against the 76ers and be successful. The C's proved that wrong last night.

The Celtics have Rondo. And Rondo can run all day. And by speeding up the pace of the game, the Celtics put the pressure on the 76ers to execute on every possession. You could almost hear the Celtics collectively saying "Try to keep up with us." The 76ers started making mistakes, turning the ball over, missing shots. It wasn't rampant, but it was enough to give the C's chances to add to their lead, and also add to the pressure.

The Celtics sprinted in the first three quarters, then walked through the 4th. But by then, they had a big enough lead that they didn't need to run anymore. So essentially, it was a 3 quarter game. The Celtics can run for 3 quarters. And after running, they're better at executing than the 76ers.

There are simply too many weapons on this team to lose a series to Philadelphia. The 76ers aren't equipped to stop Pierce, Garnett, and Rondo every night. Now Pierce has started his engine, KG is rolling, and Rondo is red hot. Which is more likely, that two of these guys are shut down, or that Lavoy Allen will score 10 and get 8 rebounds off the bench?

When people testify in court, they're asked if they'll swear to tell the Paul Pierce, the whole Paul Pierce, and nothing but the Paul Pierce. Because he's the motherfucking truth.

I love plays on words. And puns. I wish I could bring Big Pun back.

Game 4 Friday night in Philly.

-The Captain

92 Celtics, 91 Sixers

If I were the Sixers or one of their fans, I would feel very uncomfortable with how this series is going to be. On Saturday night they had a perfect opportunity to steal homecourt and game 1, but in typical Sixers fashion they found a way to blow it.

Kevin Garnett was a monster, 29 points on 12-20 shooting, 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks. This may have topped game 6 against the Hawks. KG has been incredible so far and just so good on both sides of the ball. In the 4th quarter he was all over the place, he was chasing down guys, he was hitting shots, just the best KG we may have ever seen in Boston.

Now to Rajon Rondo who had one of the best post game interviews of all time. I love how he's a dick and just owns David Aldridge right there. He finished the game with 13 points, 12 rebounds and 17 assists. He was just a beast in the 4th quarter. Of his 12 rebounds, 5 of them were offensive (to lead the team) nobody else had more than 2. Rajon absolutely killed the Sixers with his jumpers in the 4th quarter, but, his best play of the game won't show up in the offensive stat book it was his foul with 3 seconds on Jrue Holliday sending him to the line when the Celtics were up 3. For some reason Doug Collins didn't call a timeout, and Rajon had the IQ to foul Jrue as he was dribbling up the court.

The final play was also a work of art, Doc had Rajon catch a perfect pass from Paul Pierce in the back court and then run the clock out. Evan Turner just couldn't catch up to Rondo, end of game.

The Celtics didn't shoot to great tonight 2-18 from beyond the arc, but a win is a win.

101 Celtics, 79 Hawks

It's weird because this is the performance I would expect in game 3, not in game 4. In game 3 they needed overtime to defeat the Hawks without Josh Smith and Al Horford, in game 4 they absolutely rolled the Hawks from start to finish with Josh Smith and Al Horford back in the line up.

It was a great game, and I would take a win like last night over an OT win anyday. Other than a small scare with Paul Pierce's knee (which he says is fine) the Celtics played pretty flawlessly. Speaking of Pierce, he was incredible in 17 minutes of play Pierce had 24 points on 10-13 shooting, just on fire. Rajon Rondo once again played like a man possessed and absolutely torched Jeff Teague and in 35 minutes he had 20 points 8-11 shooting, 16 assists, 3 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 turnover. Incredible. Brandon Bass, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Keyon Dooling all scored in double figures.

This game was great not only because it put the Celtics in a position to take the series next game, but it was huge that our starters had a chance to rest. Next game is on Tuesday in the ATL.

Classy Move By Rondo

Rivers said that Rondo individually thanked his teammates for getting the win without him after Tuesday's game.

"I was really happy, going onto the bus, Rondo was standing outside the bus door waiting for every teammate to shake their hand and said, 'thank you,'" Rivers recalled.

Added Rivers: "It was really cool to see him do that. I mean, he waited there for each guy and just shook their hand and said, 'thank you.' You could tell he was really emotional about it. It was really nice (WEEI)."

I know it's a small thing, but I think this is really cool. Rondo can kind of be a dick. I don't mind him being a dick to other players on other teams, but the Celtics need him to be either leader. He doesn't need to be the #1 leader this year, as Pierce showed he can still do it, but it's coming and I think this is a good first step. It sounds like something Kobe would do.

What Rondo did was stupid. I don't think the biggest Rondo fan could deny that, and he is very lucky it didn't end up hurting them. I think he knows that, and I think going out and thanking them individually was his way of apologizing. It's a small step for Rondo, but it's a good first step to growing up. It took Paul Pierce a long time to grow up, hopefully this is Rondo's way of making that transition.

Captain's Thoughts: Rajon Rondo

We knew it was coming. At least most of us did. Some Celtics' fans were hopeful it wouldn't.

I love Rondo. He has his haters here in Boston and I find them to be simpleminded. Trading a good point guard because he can't hit free throws? Or trading him because he's not the absolute best at his position (and not acquiring the absolute best to replace him)? It doesn't make any sense.

Rondo's haters are having a field day with this incident. "This is what I was talking about." His haters will also see his value tonight as the Celtics try to win a pivotal Game 2 without him.

I like Rondo, but he deserved this suspension. You can't touch an official. Period.

I love the arguments some Celtics' fans are making, about the poor quality of the officiating, and how that instigated Rondo's actions. That's just dumb. And what Rondo did was inexcusable, no matter how bad the refs were.

And shouldn't he and we be accustomed to seeing bad refs? Is this his and our first taste of NBA basketball?

Rondo acted like a child. The NBA hands out automatic suspensions for intentional contact with an official. There is little grey area here. Little room for debate. It sucks, but Celtics' fans really have no grounds for complaint.

-The Captain

David Stern: "Rondo Obviously Bumped Him" (UPDATED)

NBA commissioner David Stern, appearing on an ESPN Radio show Monday morning, implied the league won't buy Rajon Rondo's explanation that he did not intentionally make contact with referee Marc Davis during Sunday's game in Atlanta. Rondo appears headed for a suspension of at least one game.

"I don't want to pre-judge on what the recommendation is going to be," Stern told Colin Cowherd. "But as a fan, he obviously bumped him. And you know what happens with respect to that (WEEI)."

We all know Rondo bumped him, and we all know what happens when you bump a ref. You can say it was a bad call, you can say the refs were terrible that whole game (they were), but you can't touch a ref in any sport. Rondo will not be playing in Game 2, and now you have to question if he will be playing in Game 3.

I think it's stupid that Stern is ever talking about this before a decision has come out. I think that is irresponsible. The bottom line is Rondo did a stupid thing, and it's going to really hurt the Celtics. Hopefully it's just one game, because I don't see the Celtics winning without him.

My honest opinion is that Rondo gets two games. I really hope I am wrong, but it isn't Rondo's first time, and with Stern already shooting off his mouth I just don't see this going well. We should hear later today, and I'll update this post when it is announced.

***UPDATE***

Rondo has been suspended 1 game, which I think is probably the best outcome we could've hoped for.

Rondo Wins Assist Title

Not only did Rajon lead the league in assists and not only did his 15 last night push his streak to 24 games his 11.7 a game was the most the NBA has seen since John Stockton had 12.3 in 1994-95.

Rajon beat out Steve Nash who averaged 10.7 came in second. Last year Nash beat out Rondo 11.4 to 11.2 assists per game.

This just goes out and shows how good this kid is to add to his wall of accomplishments in his young career. He has been through a lot during his short career in Boston whether it being here during the 24 win season, to the big 3 era, and now he is the man going past the Big 3 era. Many people wanted to trade him this year and he made everyone eat their words with his excellent MVP like type of play.

I can't wait for the playoffs to see the Celtics and Rondo to take care of business.

Rajon Rondo is NOT ONLY the Best PG in the League, But.....

Should be seriously considered for LEAGUE MVP.

I know that I am the biggest Rajon Rondo fan and I may be a little too obsessed with the PG, however, he has gone on more than just a fuck you tour to BMack, Coobs and all of the haters out there (I think they all have apologized and admitted their faults) that wanted him gone. On this Celtics run Rajon has thrown his hat into the MVP ring. The Celtics have gone 18 and 7 since the all-star break and have gone from an 8 seed to now on the heels of a 3 seed. He also has 18 straight games of 10+ assists, which is extremely impressive.

He is the engine that makes this Celtics team go (other than Doc) and has rejuvenated KG, Ray, and Paul Pierce's seasons. He gives Brandon Bass every opportunity for open jumpers, and a lot of Avery Bradley's (who we all thought was a bust) recent success offensively can be attributed to being able to run with Rondo. The Celtics have been streaking and a lot of it can be given credit to Rondo.

Let's go to the numbers now. Rondo for the season is averaging 12 points, 11 assists and 5 rebounds a game. So if we combine points and assists at it's minimum he has a direct impact for 34 points a game and that doesn't include 3's in that. Post All Star break he has averaged about 10 points and 13 assists a game (so 36 points minimum a game) , isn't that what we praise Kevin Durant and LeBron James for? If you take LeBron's points+ assists per game it's 38 points he's directly effecting, but the Heat also have been floundering recently, while the Celtics have put the foot on the gas.

NBA.com has just included him in the top 10 MVP watch, but if this team keeps progressing and surging, I don't see how Rondo can't be the MVP of the league.

Also I never saw this commercial and it's awesome how much he hates the Lakers: