It's official Shaquille O'Neal is a member of the 2010-2011 Boston Celtics team.

Labels: Boston Celtics, Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, glen davis, Kevin Garnett, Lebron James, miami heat, Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Shaquille O'Neal

Who knows what the history books will say about the 2010 Boston Celtics. Who knows what late summer has in store for the 2010 Boston Red Sox. One thing we do know though is that this past weekend felt like the City of Champions was back. If just for one warm night in early April, Boston was abuzz with the glory of a city poised to do something special.

Labels: Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Cavaliers, Lebron James, New England Patriots, New York Yankees

Despite what this picture might suggest, this is not a blog JUST about Rasheed Wallace, although he will have a role to play in it.

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen

Last night the Boston Celtics lost their fifth game of the season, leaving them four games away from the 73-9 mark that Rasheed Wallace predicted at the beginning of the season. Doesn't look so likely right now Sheed does it?

The Celtics lost 98-97 to the Philadelphia 76ers in a game that they should've won. Who is to blame? Rasheed Wallace if you ask Frank Dell'Appa at boston.com who wrote this article about the Wallace's ejection from last nights game and he has a point.

OK, I know Rasheed has been a valuable asset the Celtics this season and will continue to be down the stretch, but this is exactly the thing that I was worried about when we signed him. He is a loose cannon and one that could go off at any time and hurt us in a tight spot.

In this case it was only a regular season game against the Sixers, but what if he gets tossed from an Eastern Conference Finals game against Lebron and the Cavs or Dwight Howard and the Magic? What then? Do we forgive and forget?

I don't like to be woah is me, but let's be real, he is who is. The Celtics are not the Patriots who took Corey Dillon and turned him into a model citizen or revived a struggling Randy Moss (until last weekend.) The Celtics are still the Celtics. They can't keep their point guard in check let alone a bad apple like Wallace.

I am not saying let's dump him, I am just saying that Doc needs to reign him in before he gets out of control. If he implodes at a crucial juncture in the season we could be S.O.L. and everyone knows this is probably our last shot at a 18th ring.

-Adam

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, corey dillon, Doc Rivers, Lebron James, New England Patriots, Randy Moss, Rasheed Wallace

Looks like there is a reason the Boston Celtics signed Glen "Big Baby" Davis and that reason was that Leon Powe was not going to return to the green and white. Today, Leon Powe and the Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to a two year deal for $1.77 million.

Read the story here.

As much as I love Leon Powe, I don't have any problem with this deal. Provided our team stays strong and injury free we are stacked on the bench after this off-season and Danny Ainge, in my humble opinion, made all of the right moves.

This move though, baffles me from the Cavs perspective. Why would you sign a guy that won't even be ready until the middle of the season, if that soon. He might be ready to come back then, but will likely not be at 100% until the playoffs, which I guess is where they are banking on him helping them.

Either way, if there was any question that the Boston Celtics, Orlando Magic and Cleveland Cavaliers are the head of the class in the East this year, those questions have been laid to rest.

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Glen David, Lebron James, Leon Powe, Orlando magic

Tonight is the start of the NBA Finals and I for one am excited about them. So, I am not as excited as I would be if the Celtics were making an appearance, but I think this is going to be one hell of a series and I hope Scotty Dukes is right when he picked Orlando way back at the beginning of the season.

So, here are the top seven reasons why Boston fans should be excited about the finals.

1.) Kobe Bryant: I, for one, am not his biggest fan, I don't think anyone that cheers on the Celtics could be his biggest fan, but, you have to give him his due. The man can be simply amazing and while he has proven time and time again that he is worthy of being mentioned among the greatest players to have ever played the game, a victory in the finals this year will set him above many. For that reason, I believe we will see a spectacular performance out of Kobe Bryant this series.

2.) Dwight Howard: The man is, simply put, a beast and the Lakers have NO ONE that can stop him. Pau Gasol is going to stop him? Andrew Bynum? PLEASE. Kendrick Perkins is one of the only people in the league that can make Dwight Howard work and even still Howard had some pretty impressive games against the Celtics. As dominating as I believe Kobe will be on the Lakers side of the ball, I think Superman will be for the Magic, making the impact of the two players even out.

3.) The Magic Remind Me of the 2001 New England Patriots: This is a young team, with a young leader. They have had a serious injury to one of their star players (Jameer Nelson) and now are playing with an acquired back-up in Rafer Alston. They have been, throughout the playoffs a severe underdog. Did anyone give them a chance against Cleveland? They have the ability to put up big numbers on the offensive side of the ball. AND they win close games, something the '01 Pats knew a little bit about.

4.) From Downtown: The firepower on both sides of the floor is undeniable. We have seen the Lakers light it up from downtown with the likes of Derek Fisher (who admittedly has had a rough playoffs) and of course the three point shooting barrage that is the Orlando Magic backcourt will be on display throughout this series.

5.) Kobe can't handle the pressure: The world is watching, waiting and in some cases rooting for Kobe to get his first ring without the Shaq Attack. In some respect, his career as one of the greatest will not be solidified until he has won without the big man. This I think, is an unfair assessment, but none the less, in order to be truly considered great in the mind of the basketball world and in his own mind, he needs to win on his "own." He cannot do that. Even the greats had a championship caliber team around them. Larry Bird had McHale and Parish. Magic Johnson had Worthy and Kareem. Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen. It's the old Batman and Robin scenario, the greats can't do it without help and Kobe just doesn't have the necessary help.

6.) Everyone Loves and Underdog: The Magic are the underdog of all underdogs in this series. Virtually every "analyst" is picking the Lakers to win. It's a foregone conclusion that Kobe will get his 4th ring and something seems eerily familiar with those predictions. Memory is short in this day and age. It was literally two weeks ago when the Cavs were undefeated going into the Orlando series. No one gave the Magic a chance to win, NO ONE!! It seemed like the series would be a walk in the park for King James, but little did he know royalty is no match for a super hero. The story is the same this time, the villain is just different.

7.) The Magic will Win: Kobe, Pau and all the rest of the Lakers will have to wait until next year. I am going with Scotty Dukes on this prediction and giving the finals to Orlando. Kobe doesn't have the kryptonite that will stop the big fella down low and they can double down on him all they want, but his hired guns behind the arc will make the Lakers pay all series long. Orlando in six.

adam@wickedpissadude.com

Labels: Boston Celtics, Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Los Angeles Lakers, Pau Gasol

Tonight King James and the Cavs roll into the Garden and you will hear everyone say, this could be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals...King James and his men versus The Captain...slow that train down one minute. This is NOT a preview. We will be sans Kevin Garnett and we are banged up generally all the way around. I wouldn't be surprised if Lebron puts a hurtin' on us tonight.

In fact, I might watch the game tonight with the sound down because the announcers inevitably will talk about how Lebron James is the greatest basketball player they have ever seen. While he is definitely up there with the greats, it doesn't have to be said on every broadcast. Give me a break!!

I will say this one thing about Lebron, I don't hate him or his talent, because he seems to be a genuine guy who is just a phenomenal basketball player. Unlike Kobe, who seems to be smug and think he is better than everybody, Lebron goes out and gets the job done, night in and night out with very little to say.

So tonight, I think there will be plenty of talk about the possibility that the C's and the Cavs will meet in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals and you know what, that may very well happen and this time the Celtics probably won't have home court advantage, so they'll have to win on the road. Tonight though, will NOT be a preview of that series. Tonight is just another game on the schedule as far as I am concerned...you know except for the opening ceremonies and the horns playing when King James enters the Garden. DOWN ON ONE KNEE SUBJECTS!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWNNNNN

adam@wickedpissadude.com

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Kevin Garnett, King James, Lebron James, Paul Pierce

If you've been wondering where the vaunted defense of the world champion Boston Celtics has gone, so have we. Even though they eked out a win against the NJ Nets last night 115-111, they gave up 111 POINTS!! That is very un-Celtic like.

And even Doc noticed it as the C's held two practices and a morning shootaround before the game dedicated to defense and yet the Celts still let Vince Carter go wild all over them with 34 and oh ya, they ALMOST LOST THE GAME!!

How have the C's been doing of late on the defensive side of the ball? Not so great. The C's have given up 99 or more points in four of their last six games. NOT GOOD!! This type of defense is not going to cut it when Lebron and company are on the floor and it is certainly not going to cut it in the playoffs.

Yes, you could point to the missing link of KG not being there to stop up the lane, but guess what, the C's could be without Kevin Garnett for more than just this stretch. I hate to say it, but one twisted ankle in game 1 of the opening series in the playoffs, the C's could struggle and all hell could break loose with an opening round loss. Don't yell at me, it COULD happen. I am of course hoping it doesn't.

All this panic could be resolved if Doc can rally the team and get them to play some defense. Maybe they need their rallying cry from KG...ANYTHING IS POSSIBLLLLLLLLLLLLLLE!!!

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett, Lebron James, New Jersey Nets, Paul Pierce

Let the questions begin. Can the Celtics win banner #17 without winning a road game? Maybe they can, but I am not sure I'd be super excited about it if they had to do it. Today's game 7 against the Cavs sure was exciting, but it wasn't good for my blood pressure. The Celtics finished off the pesky Cavs with a stellar performance from Paul Pierce.

Pierce finished the game with 41 points, but stats alone cannot explain the game he played. He was a monster on the defensive end and his emotion lifted his teamates to another level. You only have to look at the Larry Bird-esque play that Eddie House made diving for a loose ball and flipping it to Posey for a missed lay-up and a foul. This was obviously a game the Celts had to have to live another day and Pierce made sure that happened.

Labels: Detroit Pistons, Kevin Garnett, Lebron James, P.J. Brown, Paul Pierce

So maybe I was a bit quick to pull the trigger on panic. At the end of the 3rd quarter, the C's are up 72-63. Nice solid lead and Pierce with arguably the best dunk in the history of the NBA playoffs. Ok, maybe I am overshooting it, but if ESPN is going to say that about King James, I figure I could get away with saying it about Pierce. Check back for the game wrap-up...you know, at the end of the game.

- Adam

Labels: King James, Lebron James, NBA, Paul Pierce, Playoffs

I was wondering why during Monday night's C's/Cavs game, Lebron James was yelling at a fan and here is why. Aparently his MOM sits courtside and tried to intervene when King James was fouled hard. She literally got in the face of Pierce and KG and Lebron started screaming back at her. I love this...LOVE THIS!!! This just proves what we've thought all along, Lebron is a mama's boy!!! Check out the video.



- Adam

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, KG, Lebron James, Lebron James' Mom, Paul Pierece

Speechless...

- Adam

Labels: Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Lebron James

The Celts are on the road tonight for game 3 of the 2nd round of the Eastern Conference playoffs and we all know what happened last time they went on the road in the playoffs, the fell asleep. Literally they fell asleep and almost got beaten by the Atlanta Hawks, yes THE ATLANTA HAWKS.

But my friends, you and I both know that the Celtics are not playing the Atlanta Hawks, they are playing King James (yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwnnnnnnnnn) and the Cleveland Cavaliers. This doesn't just scare me, I just peed a little bit in my pants. I know I know, we shut them down in the Bean, but are we really going to be able to do it in the Cleve? I don't really know.

I had a conversation with one of my friends this afternoon and he started telling me that it is possible for the Celtics to win it all and never win a road game. Hahaha...this is exactly what I would expect a Boston fan to say about this. It's an optimistic thing to say, but it's also got a tinge of pessimism too. Like we're optimistic that we're going to win it, but pessimistic that it's going to take 28 games to do it.

I am writing tonight to tell you that we will win a road game. We will win more then one road game on our way to banner #17. I think Cleveland will win tonight and we will take Game #4. There I said it.

Now I am off to put on my ratty old LB tshirt and cross my nuts and hope we win tonight!!

GO CELTS!!!

-Adam

Labels: Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Easter Conference, King James, Larry Bird, Lebron James, NBA, Playooffs, Regan

I am keeping my fingers crossed that the big 3 have a monstah game tonight because with King James coming off of his worst performance in his playoff history, he is sure to rebound in a big way. That is unless Paul and Ray shut him down, which is a good possibility.

For the record, King James? What kind of nickname is that? It's exhausting. To be honest if we weren't playing the Cav's I would have nothing bad to say about him, so I won't bash on him just to bash on him, but please King James is so presumptious it makes me sick.

So do the Celtics win tonight? I hope so. I think they need to win all four at home. My vote is, let's go undefeated at home so we can win in front of our home town crowd. I mean let's be real, the Sox haven't won either of their two series in Boston, the Pats obviously haven't...here's our chance. Let's win one at home so Red can RIP!!!

GO CELTICS!!!

Labels: Boston, Celtics, King James, Lebron James, Red Auerbach