The Celtics problems in Atlanta were very well documented. The guys say it was due to not being able to reach that extra gear that they are able to find at home. On the one hand that's a great compliment to the fans in the Garden. On the other hand...the Celtics will have to win a road game at some point if the 17th banner is going to be hung in November. I'd be really, really surprised if the Celtics didn't go into the "Q", and take one of these two games. Actually, I'd be surprised if it didn't happen tomorrow night. The Celtics are the better team - cream rises just the same in the Cleve as it does in Boston (note: I've been to Cleveland, its not like this video).
I Drank all your Wine, and sold all your Gold
For those of us with the misfortune of watching the League Pass feed, rest easy knowing that you won't be subject to the "play by play" stylings of Fred McLeod and Austin Carr . These two are easily the worst in the league - imagine the homer-ism of Tommy except without knowledge of basketball. What bugs me most about McLeod, and the Cavs marketing team, is the bizarre nickname for the Cavaliers of "the Wine and Gold." I suppose that has some regal feel to tie back to the whole King James thing. To compete with this genius should we start calling the Celtics Kelly and White? The answer is no, because that's lame too. By the way, I think Gorman will be joining Grande on the radio Saturday night.
Suffocation
All week I've been absolutely crushed by allergies. I've never had it this bad in my life. I can't see and breathing is unfun - its all very frustrating. So Lebron and I have something in common this week. Both of us have been suffocating all week. While my troubles have to do with microscopic pieces of pollen, LBJ's are much more easily identifiable .
Pierce and Posey have been outstanding on Lebron individually and complemented by terrific help by the Celtics bigs (Perk in particular has been tremendous in the playoffs). However Posey in particular has visibly raised his game. This is totally a feel comment, I'm too lazy to find stats to back this up, but I'd say he's easily at least 20% better thus far in the playoffs.
O-V-E-R--R-A-T-E-D
Celtics fans shouted it out in the second half. The ESPN guys bristled at the thought. But you know what...it's true. Lebron is overrated. However my next sentence is that he's the second best player in the league (begrudgingly Kobe gets the nod for his defense). Lebron is overrated in the sense that he's treated as a Basketball Deity by the media at the young age of 23. Is he the best ever at that age? Absolutely. Is he already a hall of fame lock? No doubt. Would he be the top pick for just about any GM to start a franchise? Without question. He's the face of basketball in the Universe. But....he's won as many championships as I have. And at this point - he's still just a dude and not the GOAT. As we've seen in this series and in the finals, the great King James is very much fallible, however with the way he's treated by the national basketball media (ESPN and TNT) you would think he's God disguised as Lebron James.
While I don't see the point in rubbing it in the face of the best player on the floor, I think Celtics fans Thursday night did have a point.