Boston 101, Chicago 95

[recap] [box score]

Been a long time since I last updated -- after starting 0-2, Boston beat Washington twice, lost to Philly, and then beat Milwaukee in a rematch on Saturday night to even their record at 3-3. Tonight against the Bulls was probably the teams best performance of the young season, at least until the fourth quarter.

On a macro level, Doc Rivers seems to have settled on a starting lineup. After experimenting for a few games with Jared Sullinger as our starting four, Brandon Bass has been opening the game up front alongside Kevin Garnett the last two times out. As much as I was lobbying to play the kid with the first team, I agree with this move. Sullinger wasn't getting going with the first unit, and Bass was struggling to find his offense, as well. The other big change has been Jason Terry starting at two over Courtney Lee, which seems to have gotten Terry off the schneid after a slow start to the season. This one may not be permanent -- Terry has a long track record of success in the sixth man role, and while the Celtics might be able to get away with Terry and Rondo in the backcourt against Brandon Jennings/Monta Ellis and Nate Robinson/Rip Hamilton, some bigger guard pairings could make Lee's size and defense important to have in the starting lineup.

One thing everyone has been talking about since the preseason is how Boston wants to run more this year, and indeed, our pace is way above what we're used to. What's interesting about it is that the Celtics are not, at least to my eye, getting a ton of fast break points. What they are doing, however, is getting a lot of early offense. It's a smart move and a welcome change from the bogged down offensive sets we've seen in recent years. I've noticed that it's particularly beneficial to Bass, whose bread-and-butter shot is the mid-range jumper. Instead of beating the ball downcourt, Bass has been trailing the plays a bit as Rondo rushes upcourt. Bass' defender, meanwhile, has to worry about Rondo (a threat to get to the basket at any time) and isn't used to picking up power forwards above the free throw line, so he sets up down low and waits for Bass. All Bass has to do, then, is stop at whatever spot he's most comfortable and await the feed from Rondo for the wide-open jumper. Once teams start to pick Bass up earlier, you can expect to see more layups for Rondo, whose Inspector Gadget arms and crafty finishing have befuddled many a back-pedaling would-be shotblocker.

The Cs were pretty much in control of this one until the fourth quarter, when they went ice-cold from the floor (Kevin Garnett in particular). It also coincided with increased playing time for rookie point guard Marquis Teague and power forward Taj Gibson, who shored up a defense that was surprisingly vulnerable to penetration over the first three quarters given that they are coached by Tom Thibodeau. Ultimately, the Celtics sealed the game with a couple nifty screen-and-roll plays with Rondo and Garnett that led to KG alley-oop dunks (the play involves staggered ball screens on the side, with the first screener, a shooter, flaring to the three-point line and KG, the second screener, rolling to the bucket).

This is a busy week for Boston, which is about to embark on one of those grueling four-games-in-five-nights stretches. We host Utah on Wednesday before playing Brooklyn on Thursday (that one's a national TV game), then play Toronto and at Detroit on the weekend. Those latter two opponents are currently a combined 1-14, but the Jazz and Nets are the team's toughest games since the opener against the Heat. These upcoming games should be a good bellwether for how the team is coming together.

Toronto 86, Boston 74

[recap] [box score]

It would be shocking if it wasn't so easy to see coming: Grueling game the night before; a disappointing overtime loss to a hated rival; didn't get to the hotel 'til 3 a.m.; embarrassed the opponent by 36 last time they played. Throw in the usual spate of injuries -- no Jermaine O'Neal, Keyon Dooling, or Sasha Pavlovic, and a very limited Avery Bradley -- and it doesn't seem all that hard to explain.

The Celtics were just awful on Friday. Awful. A 12-point deficit doesn't look like much, but trust me, that's just an indication of how much Toronto struggles without Andrea Bargnani. The Celtics lost to the Lakers on Thursday because of stagnant, uninspired offense and poor defensive rebounding, and then went out and did the exact same thing against Toronto. At one point in the first quarter, Doc Rivers was so frustrated with the team's inability to run a play that he called a timeout while storming onto the floor cursing a blue streak -- six seconds after calling a timeout to set up a play. I have never, ever, seen an NBA coach do that to send a message to his team.

It was a college move. Indeed, if it had been a college game, it would have been one of those times where the coach grabs the walk-ons by the jersey and rushes them to scorers' table, lets the starters sit on their asses at the end of the bench for a few minutes, then puts them back in. The way that story usually ends is with the crowd and coaching staff reacting to the walk-ons coming off the floor as though they'd just sewn up a national championship, and the invigorated/scared starters blowing the other team off the court.

This isn't college, though. There are no walk-ons, and while Doc did put in Bradley in the hopes of getting a little defensive spark, it ultimately wasn't worth risking further injury to him. Boston finally woke up in the second half and had the lead down to seven or so, but couldn't get a couple key calls and stayed in a 2-3 zone just long enough to let Linas Kleiza lock up this game for the Raps from outside.

Word is that the players had a meeting after the game, not a finger-pointing session, but just a meeting to work stuff out. That's good, that's the way a veteran team like the Celtics should handle it.

Let's hope it translates to the court on Sunday when Derrick Rose and the big, bad
Chicago Bulls come to town. Chicago has been steamrolling people; they have the best record in the league. What's frightening about the Bull is that even without Rose, last year's MVP, they're nasty; he's missed all or parts of eight games with injuries this year, and they are 7-1 in those games. Not only are they 7-1, but it's a convincing 7-1: 95-84 at Charlotte; 90-67 at New Orleans; 108-87 at New Jersey; 114-75 at Cleveland; 95-89 vs. Charlotte; 118-97 vs. Phoenix; 78-64 vs. Washington. That's an average margin of victory of nearly 20 points in seven wins largely without their point guard and leader and the league's MVP. Ridiculous. Rose is having some back problems that have limited him or kept him out of the last three games, but knowing the guy, I expect him to play in Boston.

He was on the floor in mid-January in Boston when the Bulls beat the Celtics, jumping out to a 20-point lead before Boston battled back and nearly won it. Tune in to see if Boston will get its revenge Sunday at 3:30 Eastern on ABC.

Viewing Alert

Friday: Chicago at Boston, 8 p.m. Eastern, ESPN.

At first glance, the last thing a struggling Celtics team needs right now is a tough home game against the class of the East, coached by a defensive wizard (Tom Thibodeau) who, as a former Doc Rivers assistant, is intimately familiar with what the team does. Boston's had trouble putting the ball in the basket as it is; it's going to be even harder against the Bulls.

Derrick Rose, last year's NBA MVP, missed Wednesday's game against the Wizards with a sprained toe, but I've read that the Bulls are optimistic he'll play against the Celtics. That's bad news for those fans whose sole concern is a Boston win or loss, but it's good news for basketball fans: Rose and Rajon R-ndo tend to bring out the best in each other -- remember their battles in that first-round playoff series in 2008-09, when Rose was a rookie? And Chicago, who can be a little boring to watch even with Rose on the court due to their pace, becomes positively excruciating with their best catalyst on the bench.

The key to the game, if I had to pick just one, will probably be rebounding. Boston has struggled on the glass this year and Chicago, with the energetic Joakim Noah, can definitely cause some problems in that regard. The Bulls also have a good-shooting power forward in Carlos Boozer, the kind of player the Celtics have struggled to guard in recent years (because he keeps Kevin Garnett occupied).

Here's to stopping the bleeding...

Houston 93, Boston 77

[recap] [box score]

I was watching the tournament, so I don't know what the hell is going on, either. From following the score, though, I can tell you that it was never really a game. For the first time all year, really, the Celtics got blown out.

Framed that way -- "for the first time all year, the Celtics got blown out" -- it doesn't seem that bad. But consider: We're 7-5 since we traded Kendrick Perkins; we've scored more than 87 points once in the last six games; we're on the verge of losing home-court advantage in the East; and we have to play in New Orleans Saturday night. We haven't been healthy, so I know it's not time to panic, but it's a little weird that we're playing worse as we're getting guys back. And I know that Shaq's still out, but Nenad Krstic hasn't been the problem -- or he hasn't been the problem that Shaq is capable of fixing.

On the bright side, the Bulls lost in overtime to Indiana Friday night, so we're technically still atop the East. Even that silver lining comes with a gray cloud, though; Derrick Rose nearly willed the Bulls to victory after coming back from a big deficit. That guy is terrifying right now.

Chicago 90, Boston 79

The Bulls were missing Joakim Noah. The Celtics were missing Kevin Garnett. The Cs missed Garnett a lot more.

[recap] [box score]

Despite the fact that Chicago was without its young starting center (who hasn't played since December 15 after undergoing thumb surgery), they outrebounded Boston 48-27 and blocked nine shots (including four each by Kurt Thomas and Taj Gibson). Carlos Boozer, the man Garnett would have been guarding, had 22 points on an efficient 9-for-15.

The Bulls' biggest offensive contribution came from point guard Derrick Rose, who scored 36 in part due to 19 trips to the free throw line (where he made 15 shots). Rose is big and quick and too much for any NBA point guard to handle. Without Garnett around for help, Rose wreaked havoc on the Celtics at the rim. Even when Garnett comes back, Chicago is going to be tough for Boston, because KG will have his hands full with Boozer. The return of an effective, if not completely healthy, Kendrick Perkins might be the biggest key to having less trouble with the Bulls in the future.

All in all, it was a pretty awful performance for the Celtics, which I'm willing to forgive against a good team on the second night of a home-road back-to-back. But the Cs are now in a dead, uh, heat with Miami for the best record in the East. With home dates this week against the Rockets, Kings, and Bobcats, it may be a good opportunity to get a little separation, as the Heat finish up a five-game road trip that began with an overtime win in Milwaukee Friday night with dates with Portland, the Clippers, Denver, and Chicago.

Boston 122, Toronto 102

Friday night was about as easy a win as you'll get in the NBA.

[recap] [box score]

The Celtics had a torrid first half, scoring 67 points, and appeared capable of scoring at will against the overmatched and depleted Raptors. Doc Rivers seemed to know it, too, pulling Rajon Rondo with Boston up 76-55 three minutes into the third quarter. The League Pass broadcast was the Toronto broadcast and their guys didn't seem to notice, but I worried that perhaps Rondo was hurt. Fortunately, it appeared that Doc was just hoping to get Rondo some rest (and perhaps boost the confidence of the struggling Nate Robinson, who came in for Rondo) -- Rondo returned later in the game. All in all, Glen Davis was the only started who played more than 30 minutes, a key statistic with the Celtics in the midst of a busy stretch and a game in Chicago on Saturday night.

The blowout gave some extended playing time to the bench. Rookie Luke Harangody took the most advantage, notching his first career double-double. Harangody actually got going in the first quarter and never really stopped on his way to 17 points and 11 rebounds.

Not too much to say, really. The defense could have been better -- the Raps made more than half their shots -- but the guys can be forgiven for letting up a little bit on that end in a blowout at this stage.

No "Next Lamb" posts for a bit as my computer usage is limited due to a hard drive crash, but briefly, the game on Saturday should be a good test. Boston has beaten the Bulls twice already this season, but the first win came with Carlos Boozer out of the Bulls lineup and the second was Boozer's second back from a preseason hand injury. He's averaged a 20/10 since returning December 1st, and will be a handful for Boston without Kevin Garnett. The Bulls will be hungry, too, having lost its last two games, to 10-26 New Jersey and 15-21 Philadelphia.

The Next Lamb: The Philadelphia 76ers

Game 27: Philadelphia (11-17) at Boston (22-4)

Wednesday, December 22

7:30 p.m.

TV: NBA League Pass

Last meeting: Boston 102, @Philadelphia 101 (12/9/2010)

I'm writing this just a couple of hours after Philadelphia went into Chicago and lost by 45 -- yeah, 45. Obviously, if that's the Philly team that shows up Wednesday night in Boston, than the Celtics don't have much to worry about.

But I wouldn't expect that. Philly -- despite Tuesday night's loss and despite a mediocre record -- had won eight of 11 before the debacle against the Bulls, looking to turn around a season that they started 3-13. One of the three losses during their recent strong stretch came against Boston, a game that the Celtics stole on their final possession with a wonderfully drawn-up play that resulted in a Kevin Garnett layup off an alley-oop from Rajon Rondo.

I watched that game, but didn't have time to record my thoughts afterwards in a blog post, so I'm left to try and dig anything out of my memory that I can. (I know it was less than two weeks ago, but I've got a lot of stuff moving in and out of my brain during final exams.) Offense wasn't Boston's problem in that game; the Cs shot nearly 56 percent against the Sixers -- who are actually second in the league in opponents' field goal percentage at 43.5 percent (but who surrendered like 64 percent shooting to the Bulls Tuesday). One area of concern, offensively, is that Rondo had one of his bigger offensive outputs that night (19 points, 14 assists) and while his ankle rehabilitation seems ahead of schedule, it's unlikely that he'll be available Wednesday night to carry any sort of offensive load. His absence should be offset somewhat by the presence of Shaquille O'Neal, who missed the Philly game but returned to the lineup on Sunday against the Pacers. Shaq should also help on the boards, where Philly held a 39-33 advantage, including a 15-5 edge on the offensive glass.

Defensively, Boston had real trouble defending the three-point arc in the previous matchup; Philly was nine for 19 from deep, with Jodie Meeks (4-for-4) and Louis Williams (4-for-5) doing most of the damage. Paul Pierce did a nice job on Andre Iguodala last time (though Iggy made a couple of very tough shots that almost won the game down the stretch), but Pierce's job is tougher now that he's taken over ballhandling duties with Rondo out of the lineup.

It's the second half of a back-to-back for the 76ers, but the starters didn't play as much as they usually would against Chicago because of the blowout -- so fatigue shouldn't be as much of a factor, even though the Celtics haven't played since Sunday afternoon. How the 76ers respond to such a dreadful performance is an interesting question. On the one hand, they could come out eager to prove themselves and erase the memory of the previous night's performance. On the other hand, less than 24 hours may not be enough time for a young team to regroup. I'm not sure how Philly will react, but if the Celtics can jump on the Sixers early and get the crowd into the game, it could be another early night for Philly's starters.

The Next Lamb: The Chicago Bulls

Game 19: Chicago (9-7) at Boston (14-4)

Friday, December 3

8 p.m. Eastern

TV: ESPN

Last meeting: @Boston 110, Chicago 105 (OT) (11/6/2010)

Last time we played Chicago, we blew a 16-point lead, sweated out a potential game-winning possession for the Bulls at the end of regulation, and then won in overtime.

The big difference between the Bulls team we'll see Friday night and the one we saw last month is that power forward Carlos Boozer, Chicago's big offseason acquisition from Utah, will be in the lineup. Boozer broke his hand before the season and returned to game action on Wednesday, logging five points in 22 minutes in a 107-78 throttling by Orlando. While Boozer is a good player, it's safe to assume he won't have found his groove by Friday, given that he's just now returning from injury and is playing with a new team. Moreover, Taj Gibson, who started in Boozer's absence, had a very strong game against Boston the first time around, so the Celtics might not be too upset to see Boozer back in the lineup. His return does give a boost to the bench (since Gibson has moved back to the second unit), which was pretty non-existent in the first meeting between the two teams.

Last time out, Boston held Derrick Rose and Luol Deng more or less in check -- each shot 8-for-19 from the field -- but gave up 26 points to center Joakim Noah. Jermaine O'Neal played that night and Shaquille O'Neal didn't, and the reverse will be true on Friday; JON's out, Shaq's in. What effect this will have on Noah's production, I'm not sure. I seem to recall Noah getting a fair number of points with his screwball jumper, and I doubt very much that Shaq is going to bother Noah 15 feet from the basket. Shaq's size, however, should be able to keep Noah off the boards a bit better than Jermaine could. (Odd stat of the day: Noah was held without a rebound in last night's loss to the Magic).

Chicago had been playing well before Wednesday night, and I wouldn't be surprised to see coach Tom Thibodeau pull Boozer early if he's ineffective, delaying Boozer's integration into the team by a game for a chance to beat the defending conference champions (and his old team) in their barn. Chicago always plays us tough, and Thibodeau knows a lot of what we do, so this should be a good game.

Boston 110, Chicago 105 (Overtime)

For the second consecutive game, the Boston Celtics were taken to overtime, at home, by a struggling, but up and coming, second-tier Eastern Conference foe.

[recap] [box score]

Fortunately, for the second consecutive game, Boston came away with a win, emerging victorious after excellent execution on both ends of the floor in the extra period. But this cannot become a pattern. It makes for a dramatic, entertaining regular season, to be sure. But if the goal is an NBA championship, then we can't have our stars playing 40 minutes per game every night.

Bullets:

• Boston once again botched a potential game-clinching possession at the end of the fourth quarter. This one could have cost the game; Rajon Rondo's errant pass to Ray Allen came with fewer than 24 seconds left on the game clock and the score tied, so the Bulls were able to hold for the game's last shot. Dodging bullets, we are.
• Rondo made up for it, of course, by knocking the ball away from Derrick Rose on that ensuing possession. I have no idea how Rondo gets away with reaching across his body to knock the ball away from his man without getting called for a foul, but that's at least the third time he's done it this year, so he must be doing something right.
• Marquis Daniels had a really good game. Daniels started the season looking like he could fill a "go-to " role offensively, to the extent such a role exists on the second team. He struggled in the intervening games, but came up big on Friday night, especially in the first half. On the nights he's been on, which is three of six so far, he's displayed a versatility that we didn't see last season. Of course, that leaves three of six nights that he hasn't been on, and that's why I don't yet totally feel comfortable when he has the ball. It's similar to what I went through with Tony Allen last year, only 100 times less intense.
• Glen Davis had what is a below-average game for him offensively this year. Mainly, he really had a hard time catching the ball. Great defense again, though.
• Kevin Garnett had a couple of big dunks in this one. This excites me, because it means his knee is feeling relatively good. In some ways, he seems more aggressive than he was before the injury. This is not a great week for a Celtics fan to be questioning KG's intensity, but one of the things about Garnett that has frustrated me is that he so often refuses to use his height and athleticism to overpower people. He has remarkable finesse for a man his size -- unprecedented finesse, in some respects -- and it's almost as though he feels obligated to use these substantial gifts. And as fun as it is to watch a seven-footer hit crazy turnarounds and throw the kinds of passes he throws, it can be frustrating to watch that same seven-footer lay the ball in from above the rim, rather than hammer it home. So this is a development I'm glad to see, in many respects.
• Give the young Bulls a lot of credit for coming all the way back from 16 down, especially given the circumstances -- on the road against the defending Eastern Conference champs on the second night of a back-to-back. Give special credit to Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, who responded to Boston's strategy of ignoring them on offense by draining jumper after jumper.
• And yet, Chicago must feel like it gave the game away. Twice in the fourth quarter, the Bulls turned the ball over an inbounds pass. And Boston sealed the game when Noah tried to lead a fast break late, rather than get the ball to a guard. Garnett caught Noah and knocked the ball away, and Boston put it away at the line.

Viewing Alert

Dallas comes to town, at 8 pm Eastern on TNT, as part of the network's MLK Day tripleheader (Phoenix and Memphis kick it off at 5:30 Eastern, and Dallas at Boston is followed by Orlando at the Lakers at 10:30 Eastern).

The Celtics will be attempting to bounce back from Thursday's disappointing 96-83 loss to the Bulls. I only watched part of the game, and that part was from a seat at the Wynn sportsbook. My attention thus divided between a blackjack table and the sportsbetting atmosphere, it's a bit hard to analyze the game. TNT's Doug Collins noted that the Celtics looked tired, and I had to agree with him. It was their fourth game in five days, and they were again without Rasheed Wallace and Kevin Garnett. Still, Doc had limited everyone's minutes the night before in the blowout over the Nets -- no one played more than Rondo's 29 -- and I had hoped that the team would be fresh against Chicago. But it certainly looked like that wasn't the case.

The Mavericks may be a little beat for Monday's contest, as they are coming off a 22-point loss to the Raptors in Toronto on Sunday. And speaking of Wallace, which I was earlier, he's supposedly going to play against the Mavs, which is a good thing, since the prospect of facing Dirk Nowitzki without either of our long, mobile power forwards isn't a pleasant one. KG, by the way, may play Friday against Portland.

Boston 106, Chicago 80

[recap] [box score]

We had seven guys in double figures. Rajon Rondo put up 16/7/14 with three steals. Brad Miller is a meanie.

That's all I have time for.

Boston 118, Chicago 90

Has Boston improved since the playoffs, or has Chicago regressed?

[recap] [box score]

That's a totally unfair question, and just a cute way of asking whether the Celtics are as good as the score suggests, or the Bulls are as bad as the score suggests. And the answer, as it invariably is in these situations, is: A bit of both.

A 28-point shredding of a team that had just soundly beaten San Antonio sure looks good, but there are a few things about that that are deceiving. The Bulls' victory over the Spurs wasn't as impressive as it looked, as the Spurs played poorly, no doubt tired from their opening night victory over New Orleans the night before. And Chicago came to Boston for the second leg of their own home-and-away back-to-back, the victory over the Spurs coming Thursday night. And Derrick Rose is battling an ankle injury that kept him out of the final seven preseason games and has coach Vinny Del Negro trying to limit him to around 30 minutes per game to start the year.

At the same time, boy, did the Celtics look good. After a so-so first quarter in which the Celtics found themselves in a bit of foul trouble, the bench gave us space to start the second quarter, and the starting unit hammered the coffin shut by early in the third.

When the Celtics shoot well and defend well -- and they did both against the Bulls -- they may be the most entertaining team in the league to watch, at least at home. Their momentum builds with every steal or long rebound off a missed jumper, and the team is off to the races: The ball quickly finds its way into Rajon Rondo's hands, and the big men run the floor, clearing space for Ray Allen and Paul Pierce to spot up behind the three-point line. Rondo's decision-making itsn't always impeccable, but he makes the right choice far more often than not, and tonight, that choice was to pitch it to the wing for the three. When Paul or Ray tees one up in this situation, you just know it's going in, and the crowd does too, its hum getting louder until erupting as ball meets net.

Other elite teams don't have the same combination the Celtics do. The Lakers certainly have the offensive firepower, but they don't defend as well and lack a Rondo-like distributor to push the ball up the floor; the Spurs prefer to play at a much slower pace; the Cavaliers' Lebron James adds an explosive, acrobatic element that the Cs don't have, but he doesn't have the supporting cast. Orlando comes closest, but Jameer Nelson doesn't have the same speed and knack for setting his teammates up that Rondo does.

This isn't to say that Boston is better than all these clubs, although they certainly have been the most impressive team so far in this very, very young season. And you don't win any championship rings by being the most entertaining team. But stretches like the one the Celtics went on from 11:14 to 6:50 of the third quarter are what make a long regular season worth watching night in and night out. In the course of extending a 15-point halftime lead to 27, Boston scored on eight of nine possessions, with Rondo assisting on all but one of the baskets (a three-pointer by Pierce on which he took one dribble to let a defender go by after receiving a pass from Rondo). Soon thereafter, I got a Gmail chat message from a friend who's a Lakers fan: "Your team is good."

Yes, it is. Maybe not quite as good as they look right now, but good.

Quick bullets:

• Rondo's statline: two points, eight boards, 16 assists. Nine of those dimes came in the third quarter. There's one other guy currently in the league who has influenced a game the degree that Rondo did tonight while only taking two shots, and he's third on the list of all-time assist leaders. (And his current team just smacked the Lakers at Staples).
• I get on Doc Rivers for not managing minutes, so to be equitable, I should praise him for limiting the time on the floor for Rondo (30 minutes), Ray (23), Pierce (31), Garnett (25), and Perkins (19).
• Ten points, ten boards, and two blocked shots in a second consecutive strong game from Shelden Williams. If he keeps this up, he just may command minutes even when Glen Davis returns from injury. Williams is more willing than Big Baby to do the kind of things power forwards are supposed to do.
• KG hasn't shaken all the rust off, but after missing one earlier in the game, he finally connected with Rondo for an alley-oop in the the third quarter. A welcome sight for those worried that Garnett's lost all of his explosiveness. He may never be the same he was pre-injury, but with every game, he's looking more and more agile.
• Lester Hudson made one of two free throws and hit a jumper late (which I missed, as I had flipped over to catch the end of Sacramento at New Orleans), but was stil too tentative on offense. I know he's trying to prove he can back up Rondo at point guard, but he's a scorer, and we aren't going to be able to evaluate him as one if he doesn't play like himself when he's on the court. On one typical sequence, Hudson rubbed his man off a high screen on the left wing and rather than take advantage of the open space by firing a jumper or going to the basket, he threw the ball to Marquis Daniels just a few feet away. This was a completely useless pass, as Daniels was just a few feet away and not particularly open, and he's not a dangerous outside shooter. There aren't many games for Hudson to show what he can do before he goes down to the D-League, and he needs to use these minutes more productively.
• However, Hudson looked better and more comfortable than J.R. Giddens, who still hasn't shown me that he belongs on an NBA court.

NEXT GAME: vs. New Orleans on Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern. The game's on NBATV, which means it won't be available on any League Pass free preview.

Viewing Alert

Chicago comes to Boston tonight at 8 pm Eastern to renew last year's incredible first-round playoff series. You can see the game on ESPN.

These Bulls are different than the Bulls the Celtics saw in the playoffs, with the main difference that Ben Gordon has gone to Detroit and Luol Deng has returned from injury. While Chicago will miss Gordon's scoring, I think it's addition by subtraction for Chicago: His presence was stunting the growth of Derrick Rose, the second-year man out of Memphis who might just be the best point guard in the league in a few years.

Rose vs. Rondo was the marquee matchup in the playoffs, and it's the key matchup tonight. Rose is by his nature a pass-first point guard, but he's too good to be passive offensively, and now that Gordon's gone, the Bulls need him to assert himself on that end. Rondo will have his hands full, though it will help that Kevin Garnett is around; KG is one more man Rondo can funnel Rose to. Rose wasn't able to stop Rondo in the spring, so Rondo should be aggressive offensively to make Rose work and possibly get him into foul trouble.

Other things to watch:

• Garnett and the Celtics need to decide whether they want to let Tyrus Thomas shoot 15-footers, something he's more than willing to do. The team is best defensively when Garnett slumps off the opposing team's four, but Thomas showed in the playoffs last year and last night against San Antonio in Chicago's season opener that he can make that shot.
• Both Thomas and Joakim Noah like to go for spectacular blocked shots, so Celtics' weak-side players should be ready to crash the offensive glass.
• Back-to-backs don't get much tougher than vs. San Antonio and at Boston. Chicago's win last night looks impressive, but after watching and thinking about the game, I thought the Spurs looked flat (perhaps feeling the effects of their own back to back). The Bulls should be a good test, but also shouldn't be a match for us.

Chicago 128, Boston 127 (Triple Overtime)

Doc Rivers would be a heckuva basketball coach if he knew anything about basketball.

[box score] [recap]

For a guy who enjoyed a moderately successful 13-season NBA career as a point guard, Rivers' basketball instincts on the sideline often lead to some very curious decisions. He's been great in some respects with these Celtics, managing three star players, turning the defense over to assistant Tom Thibodeau. And he did many things right Thursday night, keeping Boston's head in the right place after Rajon Rondo whipped Kirk Hinrich into the scorers' table, pro-wrestling style, in the first quarter, and having the "we can win this if we want it" attitude even when the team fell behind 12 points with ten minutes to play. But when the team responded, proving him right, going on an 18-0 to take a 99-91 lead with 3:38 to go, he let them down.

Chicago cut it to 99-96 in the next 90 seconds, and that's when Rivers panicked. Reacting to a couple of good Chicago possessions, he inserted Tony Allen for Glen Davis to match up against Chicago's small lineup. It was a peculiar time for the move, since the Celtics were about to go on offense -- where the Davis/Salmons matchup favored them. Boston scored on that trip down the floor, but it was the next two possessions that killed them.

A Rondo-Tony-Ray Allen-Paul Pierce-Kendrick Perkins unit allows the opposition to devote two help defenders to stopping Pierce and Ray. With the Bulls giving those two no room, Boston's next two possessions ended in a contested layup and a very difficult runner by Tony at the end of the shot clock. Both missed. Chicago hit the shots they needed, and bingo -- overtime.

The NBA is all about matchups, it's true, and Davis-Salmons, as I said in my last post, favors Chicago. But in that situation, up five points with that little time on the clock, Boston has the advantage of not needing to play matchups. They were in the driver's seat. Another bucket or two seals the game, while Chicago needed to be almost perfect on both ends of the floor. That's the time to put the hammer down and put your best five out there.

Fast-forwarding, now, past a seemingly an endless string of big shots, to the end of the third overtime. Boston had the ball down one with less than a shot clock left, the beneficiaries of a shocking missed layup by Hinrich on the other end. Other relevant details include the fact that Pierce had fouled out, and that Ray Allen had, at the time, 51 points.

The play Rivers ended up calling was an isolation for Rondo at the top of the key. Rondo drove left on Derrick Rose and faked, only Rose didn't bite. Rondo went up for a difficult fallaway, which the much larger Rose blocked rather easily.

I can at least understand the rationale. Especially with Pierce watching from the bench, the Bulls would have surely run a second defender at Ray, willing to take their chances on a jumper from Stephon Marbury, Brian Scalabrine, Rondo, or even the uncharacteristically cold Eddie House. And Rondo has been to able to get to the rim against Rose throughout this series...

...with the exception of this game. While Rondo put up another gaudy stat line in a series during which he had been averaging a triple-double -- nine rebounds and 19 assists, with no turnovers -- he had been quiet scoring, with only eight points. Rondo has nights when he isn't aggressive, and on those nights, I don't think putting the ball in his hands is the right play. And by not running anything for Ray, there was no opportunity to make the Bulls blow a defensive assignment and let somebody slip a screen and roll to the basket. And, finally, Ray was video-game hot, hitting jumpers from all over the place no matter who was in his face. When Ray is going like that, anything he throws up has a good chance to go in.

Look, Boston could have done a million little things to win this game. Perkins left Brad Miller open for a three in regulation and an easy layup off an inbounds play in overtime (the first one). Pierce had a great look at the game-winner at the end of regulation and just missed it. Both Ray and House hit jumpers in overtime with a toe on the line, which my father has been telling me since I was old enough to listen is the worst shot in basketball. Pierce's turnover at 123-123 with 40 seconds left in triple OT was bad, and committing his sixth foul on the ensuing Joakim Noah dunk was worse. But Rivers' curious use of his bench and refusal to ride Ray has been a theme for the last two seasons, a theme easily recognized by any semi-serious fan of the team.

Whatever. This incredible series -- if not the best all-time, certainly the most entertaining -- goes back to Boston for Game 7, and I'll admit that for the first time, I'm afraid of the Bulls. I wasn't worried down 11 in the fourth quarter of Game 5 or down 12 in the fourth in game 6. But this series now has had seven extra periods, and Ray played 59 minutes in Game 6, Pierce 51. Chicago had to play those minutes too, of course, but they are younger, and deeper. And Game 7 is less than 48 hours away.

And the pressure is on the defending champs, too, to close it out at home after having squandered some good opportunities to have put the Bulls away. The Celtics have doggedly defended their title, and they will need that pride to carry them through.

Game 7 tips at 8 p.m. Eastern on Saturday, on TNT.

Chicago 121, Boston 118 (Double Overtime)

That was a lot of fun.

[recap] [box score]

One of the nice things about having won a title last year is that the pressure is off, to a certain extent. I'm not insinuating that the Celtics are playing with less urgency than last year or that a second straight championship banner would be any less special than the first. But having that ring changes the perspective on this year. (There is, of course, another obvious reason why expectations are lower, but I pledged to be positive in these pages and not mention it.)

The upshot of this is that even in defeat, we as fans can enjoy an instant classic like Sunday's loss. Last year at this time, we were tied at 2-2 with Atlanta and so worried about the prospect of not even getting out of the first round that we couldn't appreciate the moxie with which the young Hawks were playing. This time around, it's easier to appreciate the way these Bulls haven't backed down from the defending champs.

There are similarities between the last season's Hawks and this season's Bulls: both teams are young; both have at least one player who seems to relish the role of heels (Atlanta's Zaza Pachulia and Chicago's Joakim Noah); both have crazy-athletic power forwards waiting to fulfill their potential (though Josh Smith is much further along in his development than Tyrus Thomas); and both have flammable shooting guards who are proving very difficult for Boston to check (Joe Johnson last year; Ben Gordon this year). Atlanta was much better defensively -- I can't emphasize enough how bad Chicago is on that end of the floor -- but Chicago has Derrick Rose, whose precocious play in Games 1 and 4 -- though upstaged throughout the series by the brilliance of his Boston counterpart (and RwH namesake) Rajon Rondo -- has really made this series a treat to watch.

Just because this series has been fun, however, does not prevent some things from irriating me, and here I return to a familiar theme: This team relies far too much on Paul Pierce in the fourth quarter.

Trailining 96-93 with 16 seconds left, Doc Rivers drew up a play for Ray Allen, just as he did in Game 2 with the score tied at 115. And Allen, just as he did in Game 2, calmly knocked down the crucial shot.

Allen is one of the top two or three best three-point shooters in the history of the NBA. Having spent the majority of his career as his team's number-one offensive option, he is accustomed to taking big shots. Doc clearly trusts him with the ball with the game -- and as evinced by the isolation play called for Allen in the closing moments of Game 4 of last year's Finals, the season -- on the line. Why, then, can't we call Allen's number when the situation is anything less than urgent? A basket with five minutes left counts for just as many points as a basket with five seconds left.

Instead of looking for Allen, and instead of letting Rondo penetrate and get to the rim like he did over the first three quarters, Boston, throughout the fourth quarter and the bulk of the two overtimes, instead went back to isolating Pierce at the foul line. Four things made this play particularly inadvisable in this situation:

1) As early as the first few minutes of the third quarter, Pierce looked out of gas. He did end up scoring 11 points in that period, but that probably served to tire him out even more. Pierce has logged a ton of minutes this year, and one explanation for his average -- by his standards -- play thus far in the playoffs is that he's just running fumes.

2) Pierce was cold. He finished 9-of-24. I'd call it going to the well one too many times, but the expression doesn't seem apt when you come up empty more often than not.

3) Pierce wasn't getting any calls. In a very oddly officiated game that saw the refs all but swallow the whistles for the two extra periods, the officials seemed loathe to send last year's Finals MVP to the line more than was absolutely necessary. Several Pierce drives resulted in no-calls that you'd expect a player of his caliber to get, playoffs be damned. When Pierce isn't getting to the line, he isn't as effective.

4) Kirk Hinrich really did a phenomenal job making life difficult for Pierce. The play is predicated on setting up a mismatch for Pierce, but the Bulls seemed to have no qualms about leaving the smaller Hinrich on an island against him, and Hinrich responded with some really gritty D.

This loss is frustrating, because much like Game 1, this one was squarely within Boston's reach. The Celtics could have completed the sweep already, and could be sitting at home awaiting the winner of the Philadelphia-Orlando series (which, with three last-second finishes in four games, is giving Chicago-Boston a run for its money as the most compelling series of this playoff season). At the same time, however, Boston could be down 3-1, having needed some late-game heroics to win Game 2.

It's now a best-of-three. The two teams have already treated us to everything we could possibly ask for, but let's see if they have anything left for an encore.

Game 5 is Tuesday at 7 p.m. Eastern on TNT.

Boston 118, Chicago 115

I'll admit, a little shamefully, that whiile I wasn't ready to give up, I was feeling pretty despondent at halftime of tonight's game.

[recap] [box score]

Boston was only down three, but consider what the Celtics had already lost: Kevin Garnett to a knee injury suffered before the playoffs; home court advantage in the series with Chicago in Game 1; Leon Powe to a knee injury early in the second quarter; and Rajon Rondo for the final five minutes of the first half, to an ankle injury that looked pretty bad. Ray Allen still hadn't broken out of his slump, Boston's already paper-thin front line had been reduced by one, and Rondo, the team's best offensive player through three halves of playoff basketball, wasn't sure to return.

But over the next 24 minutes, in stops and starts, the Celtics showed that if they weren't the same team that won the NBA title last year, they were still the defending champs -- defending champs that weren't going to go down without a fight. Allen caught fire, scoring 28 of his 30 points in the second half, including the game-winning three-pointer with two seconds left. Rondo gamely hobbled around on his bad wheel, a shadow of the player he was in the first quarter (when he helped send both Derrick Rose and Kirk Hinrich to the bench with foul trouble), finishing with 19 points, 12 rebounds, 16 assists, and five steals. Glen Davis and Kendrick Perkins contributed huge games of 26/9 and 16/12, respectively. And so, despite giving up 42 points to Ben Gordon and having 14 shots blocked on the other end, Boston pulled out a crucial victory.

Where the team goes from here is still up in the air. There's no word yet on Powe, but TNT reporter (and former RwH sports journalism professor) David Aldridge hinted from the sideline that it could be more than just a one-night thing. And while Rondo seemed to gain mobility as the second half wore on, that's not all that uncommon with ankle injuries. It's often easier to play on a sprained ankle the night you sprain it than it is a day or two later, when you've cooled down and it's had time to swell up.

Losing Powe would be a blow to an already thin frontline, but losing Rondo would be the death knell. He's been the team's best player in the first two games of the series, by a fairly wide margin.

A few tactical notes:

-Boston did a much better job of containing Rose tonight on the pick and roll. Rose is a bit easier to stop on this play than he will be a bit later in his career, for two reasons: 1) he'll probably develop a more consistent jumper; and 2) he's still kind of a reluctant scorer, which he'll presumably grow out of. He's not quite as bad as Rondo was his first couple of years, but he still wants to defer to his teammates. So the man hedging the pick and roll needn't necessarily "sell out" the way he might against a player who looks for his own shot. A quick show is often enough to spook Rose into picking up his dribble, or slow down just long enough for his defender to recover. The day will come when this won't work. Hopefully that day is sometime after this series.

-Fourteen blocked shots for Chicago, and 21 offensive rebounds for Boston. These statistics are related. The Bulls' young bigs, Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas, are so eager to register the highlight-reel rejection that they vacate their posts recklessly. Any shot they don't get has a great chance of being rebounded by Celtics on the weak side.

-Allen had a very tough time guarding Gordon, evoking memories of similar struggles checking Joe Johnson during last year's first-round series with Atlanta. While Gordon is a terrifyingly streaky shooter, in the mold of Vinnie "The Microwave" Johnson, his heating up isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's better, I think, than having Rose play the way he did in Game 1, for the simple reason that Gordon has never met a shot he didn't like, and no matter how hot he is, he can't hit everything. The shot he made to tie the game at 115 came over Allen and Davis, who had committed to the double and left a man open. It was a very tough shot, one Gordon should get all the credit for making, but it's also one I don't think Boston minds him taking.

-Tonight marked the second time in as many games that Bulls had the ball with under three seconds left needing a basket to either tie or win and didn't have a timeout to advance the ball to halfcourt. Rookie head coach Vinny Del Negro has come a long way in his first season on the bench, but in the NBA, unlike college, timeouts have a practical purpose other than resting players or drawing up plays. I'd be surprised if he gets caught without one in his back pocket again.

Game 3 is Thursday at 8 p.m. Eastern on TNT.

Chicago 105, Boston 103 (Overtime)

Between his drive past Sasha Vujacic to cap the incredible Game 4 comeback and his seven three-pointers in the Finals clincher a few nights later, it's easy to forget what Ray Allen's postseason legacy last year might have been.

[recap] [box score]

After a decent series against Atlanta, Allen shot 20-for-61 in seven games against Cleveland. Had Paul Pierce not pulled the Celtics through with 41 points in his duel with LeBron James in Game 7 of that series, there might not have been any title, and the talk heading into this postseason would have focused on Allen looking to atone for his dismal shooting last May.

With Kevin Garnett probably out for the entirety of the postseason, Boston simply cannot afford a similarly prolonged slump during these playoffs. If the Celtics want to make it out of even the first round against Chicago, then Allen can't put up anything close to the 1-for-12 he had this afternoon. Allen's shots weren't even close today.

In fact, the only one of his eleven misses that looked good today was the last one, an 18-foot fadeaway from the right baseline that was just a touch long. It would have sent the game into double overtime, and you have to wonder about the play drawn up by the Celtics coaching staff. Inbounding underneath the basket with less than four seconds left, option one was Leon Powe cutting to the basket, and option two was Allen coming off a screen. There was no option three, as far as I could tell. Kendrick Perkins was the safety release, for Rajon Rondo inbounding the ball, and Pierce -- Paul Pierce! -- basically just stood at the top of the key.

The decision to leave Pierce completely out of the play -- he wasn't a "decoy" because in order to be a decoy, you need to at least make the defense respond to you -- is all the more puzzling considering that over the last eight minutes or so of game time, Boston apparently decided that the only way they were winning this game was on Pierce's back, despite Pierce being relatively cold from the field. Without Garnett, defenses can key on Pierce more, and Boston is going to have to get comfortable going to other sources of offense.

Heck, Chicago did it. After rookie point guard Derrick Rose dazzled for much of the game and sharpshooter Ben Gordon awoke for the fourth quarter, it was Tyrus Thomas who ultimately provided the biggest baskets. Thomas hit three jumpers of at least 14 feet in the overtime, missing a fourth that would have put the game away with about ten seconds left.

The Celtics had options besides Pierce, even with Allen struggling. Rondo was nearly as good as Rose all afternoon, and even Kendrick Perkins was 7-for-11, overpowering Joakim Noah inside. Is it easy to call Perk's number down the stretch? Does his name easily come to mind as the guy to get the ball to? No and no. But Boston is not long for these playoffs if Pierce has to win every game on his own.

Despite all of this, Boston had a real shot to win this game, if any one of a number of little things had gone their way:

-After Rondo put Boston up by one with 22 seconds left, Boston forced Gordon into an incredibly difficult shot. Rondo had a bead on the loose ball rebound, but couldn't corral it, and Chicago eventually scored on the possession. Coming up with that ball -- on a play that reminded me of Pierce's diving recovery and timeout against Cleveland in the closing seconds of Game 7 last year -- would have put Boston in a commanding position.

-On the next trip down, Pierce dribbled right off of a screen and went up for the game-winner from about 17 feet, only to have Noah clobber him, an incredibly silly and aggressive foul at that stage. Pierce drained the first free throw to tie it, but got unlucky on the second, the ball going in and out. There were 2.6 seconds left and the Bulls had no timeouts remaining and therefore couldn't have advanced the ball to midcourt. A make would have almost certainly equaled victory.

-After Glen Davis put Boston up two to start the overtime, Gordon came up well short on a jumper, and Perkins fired a long pass to Allen breaking toward the basket. Instead of a layup or at least a trip to the free throw line, Allen lost the ball out of bounds. There was plenty of time left, but a two-possession lead in overtime is huge, both psychologically and on the scoreboard.

-Thomas hit a jumper after that turnover, and then Rose picked up his fifth foul on the next Boston possession. After a Pierce miss and a John Salmons bucket that gave Chicago the lead, Pierce ran a pick-and-roll with Rondo, leaving Rose matched up with Pierce. Pierce worked his way into the lane and pumpfaked, getting Rose in the air. This is a classic Pierce move, and all he needed to do was go up for the shot, leaning in ever so slightly, and Rose would have clobbered him, his sixth and disqualifying foul. Instead, Pierce passed to Perkins. Perk made the layup, but it might have been a different outcome if Rose had had to sit. Rose didn't go crazy in the last few minutes, but Thomas was able to get open for his jumpers in large part because the Celtics' defense was so focused on Rose.

-Rose eventually did foul out, on Boston's last possession. He got whistled for grabbing Rondo on a nifty misdirection play that Doc drew up. Chicago had one to give (Pierce would later drive and have it knocked out of bounds, leading to the Allen miss on the inbounds play), but Rose wasn't trying to give it, it was kind of a ticky-tack call, and Rondo had an open layup. Would have rather had the bucket there.

Anyway, Monday at 7 p.m. Eastern on TNT becomes a must-win. Objectives: Find a way to slow Rose; get Ray going; and play Powe more and Davis less (wishful thinking).

Boston 100, Philadelphia 98

[recap] [box score]

Last time I posted, I gave a couple of reasons why I'd rather play Chicago than Philadelphia in the first round of the playoffs: Philly's playoff experience, and Chicago's lack of defense. Watching tonight's win over the Sixers, I thought of three more:

1. I hate the Sixers. Reggie Evans is one of my two or three least favorite NBA players, and rookie Marreese Speights seems to be following in his footsteps as a first-rate punk. Throw in Philadelphia sports fans, as a group the most obnoxious of any city, and there's not a whole lot to like. Any loss to them is liable to ruin my evening.

2. I want to watch Derrick Rose. I'm in law school, and final exams are coming up, and I only have time to watch the Celtics' playoff games, at least until exams are over. Watching Rose over a best-of-seven series would be great. But I'm not going to get that chance, at least not this year, because...

3. ...Chicago can't beat Orlando in a playoff series. Philly can, but Chicago can't. Although Orlando doesn't scare me too much, it'd be nice to not have to worry about them.

I probably won't get my wish, however, because tonight's win means that Chicago only has to beat Toronto Wednesday night in order to get the #6 seed. (A Philly loss at Cleveland would similarly do the trick).

On the other hand, I shouldn't be too disappointed, because the Celtics just beat the Sixers despite not having Kevin Garnett or Ray Allen. The only active member of the so-called Big Three, Paul Pierce, certainly led this victory, with 31 points in 31 minutes, but he didn't do it on his own. He got plenty of help, including ten points and four rebounds from Leon Powe in his return after missing 12 games with an injury. Tony Allen took over for Ray Allen and scored 18 points, and Glen Davis continued a recent stretch of big statistical games.

Final game of the regular season in Wednesday night, against Washington.

Cleveland A Lot, Boston A Little

I didn't even bother watching Sunday's bloodbath in Cleveland. A great final round of the Masters was underway, and with the score 31-9 after the first period, I couldn't justify it. The skirmish between Ray Allen and Anderson Varejao was of mild interest (and which will cost Allen one game), and it sounded like Cleveland did some flexing that wasn't unnoticed on the Boston bench. At any rate, it's not something I'm too worried about.

I'm still worried about Kevin Garnett, with the news that he won't play tonight vs. Philadelphia or Wednesday vs. Washington. The way his return has been aborted and then continually pushed back just makes me feel uneasy.

Speaking of tonight's game in Philly, the result could have serious implications for who Boston plays in the first round. The Sixers are currently a half-game back of Chicago for sixth place, meaning they'd face Boston if the playoffs started today. Should the Sixers and Bulls end up with the same record, however, Philadelphia has the tiebreaker by virture of a slightly better conference record (the teams split four matchups during the regular season). A Philly win tonight means they control their own destiny on Wednesday at Cleveland (the Cavs have already clinched homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs); a loss and Chicago can claim the #6 seed (and a first-round playoff series with the banged-up Orlando Magic).

As I've previously mentioned, I'd rather play Chicago in a first round series. The Sixers have some recent playoff experience and actually play a little defense, two things that don't describe the Bulls. I'm not saying that we should or will go out and try to lose, but keeping the starters' minutes down at the expense of a loss tonight wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.

Boston 96, Chicago 80

Not much to say about this one, as the Celtics put forth an impressive defensive effort in improving to 2-0. Chicago shot 29.8% from the field for the game. 'Nuff said.

[recap] [boxscore]

That being the case, I'll make a couple quick macro points, say something about the Bulls, and check out perhaps a little more briefly than usual. Or not.

-Tony Allen is my least favorite Celtic, in large part because I just don't think he understands the game of basketball very well. Tonight's exhibit: The chucking he did with the game well in hand. I think he took shots on three straight possessions at one point, with the crowd screaming to get the ball to Brian Scalabrine and with Gabe Pruitt and Patrick O'Bryant in the game. Tony is already a part of the rotation; he doesn't need to show his scoring ability (not that he did tonight, anyway, going 1-for-8). Get the other guys involved. Even Pruitt, who is trying to show that he deserves a spot in the rotation, deferred to Scal. I'm not saying that we desperately need to get Scalabrine a bucket, but Tony should know to play unselfishly with the bomb squad in the game.

-ESPN announcers Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy made a huge deal of how into the game Boston's starters were in the last few minutes. I didn't really understand that; watching the scrubs close out a win is one of the most enjoyable parts of being a star. And they shouldn't have been surprised, either; the Cs stars did it all last year, too. And because it will give me an excuse to post my favorite YouTube link (which I've posted here before, and which I'll surely post again), they did it this preseason, as well (check the bench).

-O'Bryant needs to work his way into the rotation, or we need to find someone else to play backup center. I like Powe, and I like Glen Davis, but those guys are both undersized fours. Playing one of them at five with the other at four is just too small. And I hope that the Scalabrine-Powe-Davis frontcourt that Doc put out in the second quarter was some sort of Halloween trick-or-treat stunt.

-I realize that it's only two games into his coaching career, but have no idea what Vinnie Del Negro is doing. Three of his four best players are guards, and yet only one of them is starting. Meanwhile, he's starting two power forwards (Tyrus Thomas and Drew Gooden), and at one point in tonight's game, subbed them both out for two centers (Joakim Noah and Aaron Gray) who are limited offensively. Del Negro may not yet know what his best lineup is -- Jackson was saying it's the three-guard lineup, which I don't think Chicago has even played yet this year -- but of all the possible combos, he's played some of the worst.