How Sweep It Is

Man, we've got at least until the weekend to reflect on the first round and look forward to the second round.  What are we going to do with all this time?  Maybe we should go to Tony Allen's barber or practice our photoshop skills for the offseason.  I suppose we could go back and watch all 214 of Blake Griffin's dunks.  Or maybe, in honor of the newly departed Carmelo we could go snitchin'.  Or better yet, maybe we should rent a car, drive down to South Beach and steal all the talcum powder in the city.

Or maybe we could just cover some of the same subjects over and over again.  Hey, that's what we do here!  Here are some passing thoughts to ...um, pass the time.

All I know is that the Celtics will be using the time to their full advantage. Old bones will get a chance to rest and recover (which in Ray Allen's case probably means taking just 1,000 jump shots instead of 1,200).  Little bumps and bruises will heal and big 280 lb. centers might get healthy enough to toss around some rag doll Heat centers.  But most of all, I'm downright giddy at the thought of Doc Rivers and his staff breaking down game film and figuring out 101 ways to frustrate LeBron, Dwyane, and company.

Speaking of which, call me crazy, but I think Chris Bosh might be dangerous in this next round.  I know, I know, if you are like me, when you think of what must be going through Bosh's head when he sees KG coming down the court, you can't help but chuckle.  Still, it isn't always a one-on-one scenario.  If the C's are focusing their efforts to contain LeBron and slow down (tire out) Wade, then there's less attention being given to the 3rd option.  That's fine when the third option is Anderson Varejao, but less appetizing when it is All Star power forward "Like A" Bosh.  Mini-prediction: he'll have a night or two of 25+ point games and (hopefully) a few games where he's held under 10.

On the flipside, and Sean Grande brought this up Sunday night on CSL (man, I reference that show a lot, can you tell I enjoy it?) the Heat will have to do something about Rajon Rondo because Mike Bibby and Mario Chalmers wouldn't be able to stop him if they were allowed to play together (6 on 5), never mind one at a time.  So does that mean we'll see LeBron switch over onto him (like Kobe)?  If so, doesn't that mean Paul Pierce has a field day?

I'm trying really hard not to worry about the bench, and the first half of game 4 did give me some relief.  Hopefully they've turned a corner and are feeling more comfortable playing together.  Oddly enough, they had their best game on the road, which is counterintuitive.  Usually role players shine at home. All I know is that Ray Allen, as great as he is, can't keep shooting 65% from 3 point land and the starters are going to need more help.

Hopefully we'll get Shaq back soon, which will (understatement alert) help a bit.  In the meantime though, I have to echo what Tom Bellinger said after game 4, Jermaine O'Neal might now be a bargain at the mid level exception.  Or at the very least, he's starting to give us at least the boost that Rasheed Wallace did last year at this time (without the annoying 3 pointers or technicals).  I remember learning a long time ago that he and Pierce were off-court friends (seems like half the league is) and wondering how they would look on the court together.  It took a while but it is nice to see Jermaine's work ethic finally pay off for him and for us.

At the end of the center rotation is Nenad Krstic, who was spry on Sunday but has still fallen into what I call the "Jeff Clark Zone" on his coach's depth chart.  You see, in high school I was tall enough and just talented enough that the coach had to use me.  I was also made a good amount of dumb mistakes and had only a vague notion of how to play defense.  As a result, as soon as I did anything mildly un-nerving to my coach he yanked me out of the game in favor of his more reliable options.  Not that I'm still bitter these 18 years later or anything.  Still, I feel like at some point Krstic is going to get on a roll and Doc will have to go back to him in the 2nd half one of these days.  If not, well, I feel ya bro.

That's all I've got for now.  In the meantime, Go Sixers!