I can't do my recap without first mentioning Bill Simmons' recent article on Doc Rivers and the Boston Celtics. It's just epic. You really have to put some time in to carry a fake conversation that far. Particularly one with that many people involved. I've been a Simmons fan now for roughly 7 years. And while I don't agree with everything he writes and couldn't possibly imagine following him if I were not from Massachusetts, I still appreciate what he brings to the table. Here's what I liked the most.
1. Simmons has made it clear that he does not believe Rivers is the right man for the job. There was his "Doc will be fired column" that didn't quite work out. And that wasn't his first "Doc Rivers is a bad coach" style post. Throughout this season Simmons has been cautiously optimistic with Rivers, never really trusting him. And that definitely spilled over after the Game 4 loss. I could debate the merits of Rivers as a coach all day. But it might be easier to say the following. When I clicked on the Mark Murphy's "Doc Rivers House hunting" article I immediately thought he might be looking for a new home. Will it be in Indiana where his son is allegedly transferring? Does his family want to leave Orlando? Of course the article was about Eddie House. And yet the idea that Rivers was looking for a house in the midst of a tight series against Cleveland was incredibly plausible to me. That can't be a good thing.
2. Simmons was right about the Sam Cassell/Eddie House/Rajon Rondo situation. House does have his flaws - defense on bigger point guards, brining the ball up and setting up others. But Cassell doesn't fix any of them. And Rondo has to be confident. You saw it in Game 5. Those 2 ice water in the veins, rainbow three pointers may have saved Boston's season. More on that in another post.
3. I'm not as down on KG as Simmons is. But even I can't deny that Garnett has more riding on this series than anyone.
4. I'm glad he discussed the C's lineup to start the 4th quarter in Game 4 - P.J. Brown, Cassell, Posey, Pierce, Glen Davis. It's been a few days and I'm still not over that. Bonus points because that unit gave the ball to Davis at the top of the key and ran the offense through him. That's just a terrible idea. Terrible.
5. I like Posey, you like Posey. We all like Posey. Well maybe not the Chicago fans. But he might be given a little too much credit here.
6. It is interesting that Tom Thibodeau got a lot of the credit in the regular season but very little of the blame of late. Simmons highlights that discrepancy in his own way.
- Bottom line. I read a lot of Celtics themed blogs. Some are popular. Others are critically acclaimed. But Simmons still has the strongest voice out there when it comes to the C's. That's it for now.