The Herald got it right from Rondo’s agent. According to his agent, Bill Duffy, the Celtics point guard has been named to the Eastern Conference All-star roster, presumably to replace Joe Johnson, the injured Atlanta Hawks guard. This would be Rondo’s third all-star appearance. Nice birthday present for RR, who probably should have been selected [...]
We apologize if your comments are being deleted (provided that they are not offensive). We are looking into why this is happening. We also want to apologize for the lack of a game thread for last night’s game. We had a premonition that the Celtics would play that poorly and thought if we pretended the [...]
I talked with Detroit star forward Greg Monroe prior to the Celtics-Pistons game on Wednesday night. Here is what the 2nd year big man out of Georgetown, who is averaging 16.4 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists per game had to say. 1. Just your 2nd year in the league, but playing so well, were you disappointed [...]
Readers! Last week’s responses to the 5-on-5 questions were really, really great. We had way more qualified answers than we were able to use. So we’re going to keep doing it! FOREVER. Here are this week’s questions: 1. Are you concerned about Rondo’s media boycott this week? 2. The trade deadline is less than a [...]
I talked with Chicago starting guard Ronnie Brewer prior to the Celtics-Bulls game on Sunday. Here is what the 6th year man out of Arkansas who is averaging 7.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists had to say. 1. You guys have a lot of the same players back from last year’s team which was [...]
I talked to Los Angeles back up big man Josh McRoberts prior to the Celtics-Lakers game Thursday night at the Garden. Here is what the former Duke Blue Devil, who is averaging 2.9 points and 3.8 rebounds in his first year in LA, had to say. 1. How have you guys been able to deal [...]
When you start writing at CelticsHub, after you pass an exhaustive security clearance, you’re given access to the site’s underground subterranean fortress, where the Game Recap Templates (GRT) are stored. There are 112 possible GRTs that encompass all possible outcomes of Celtics games and include the following:
1) Celtics eviscerate overmatched opponent with selfless passing and smothering defense.
27) Celtics eek out win against quality team with a combination of veteran poise and execution.
43) Celtics lose close game against quality team despite veteran poise and execution.
67) Celtics come out alarmingly unfocused, phone in large portion of game and lose.
68) Celtics come out alarmingly unfocused, phone in large portion of game and still win.
For a long time, it was unclear if this one was gonna end up as a #67 or a #68. The C’s have already served up a 67 to the Pistons this year. But after trailing for most of the game, and managing only 16 points in the third quarter, Boston clawed back to tie the game behind a Shaquille O’Neal-inspired 9-1 run in the fourth, and then out-executed and out-rebounded the smaller Pistons in the final two minutes to claim the victory. After a Rajon Rondo offensive rebound, and a timeout, master play-drawer-upper Doc Rivers sent his troops back out to the floor with this beauty (the second option was Paul Pierce on the flare):
But it wasn’t pretty and it wasn’t easy. Here’s a selection of critical post-game quotes from Shaq, who played terrific ball, diving all over the floor for loose balls and using his size advantage over the Pistons’ little big men to pick up 12 points and a season-high 12 rebounds in 25 minutes:
The whole team was flat.
We just got to continue to play harder. We got to learn to get up for every night.
We knew that we were out there messing around, not helping too much, not focused. It’s kind of hard getting up for teams like that. If you want to win the whole thing you have to get up for every game. We have to realize that teams are going to come in here and play above their heads and we have to be ready for that.
Shaq’s right about the Celtics’ need to tighten up this habit of easing into games against bad teams, but halfway through the regular season, they’ve held onto win these aesthetically-challenged games far more often than not. And it’s not like he was alone in the energy department. Pierce also brought it to the table tonight, with 22 points on 8-15 shooting, and a palpable sense of urgency in driving the ball to the hoop (and missing a couple of calls he deserved, I might add). Two other C’s bigs also had good nights: Glen Davis, who spent most of his time down in the post or rolling to the hoop and a returning Semih Erden, who was more aggressive than usual going for 6 and 4 in 17 minutes.
In fact, it was refreshing to see the C’s pull down 14 offensive rebounds. That’s exactly what they should be doing when they, perhaps the biggest team in the league on the frontline, come up against a Pistons team that has all its size in the backcourt and wing positions. There are potential costs on transition defense, but the recurrent problems in that area lately seem borne of effort, not tactics. Anyone disagree?
A number of other noteworthy items from this one, starting with the big news:
NO SURGERY FOR O’NEAL
Danny Ainge indicated that the decision was made at halftime that Jermaine O’Neal would avoid surgery and instead spend the next four weeks strengthening the muscles supporting his injured knee. Said Ainge of the decision: “The surgery that we were considering, by the way, was just a cleaning out. There’s not ligament or cartilage damage that was going to be prepared, it was a cleaning out process. We decided against that, we’ll take the next four weeks to do nothing, but work to build up his glutes and quads, with the sole purpose of that. So he’ll be rehabbing to build strength in his leg to get ready for the end of the season.”
Ainge also noted O’Neal hasn’t been able to get into appropriate basketball shape, although his comments, phrased as they were, are more targeted at the injuries that have kept J.O. out during the season, rather than how fit he was coming into training camp.
WITHER RONDO?
Compare Rondo’s great games this year to his lesser ones and you see a player on the court with two entirely different mindsets. The great Rondo attacks and harasses the defense the full length of the floor. He pushes the ball, even after made baskets and is constantly probing the opposition’s halfcourt defense for a passing lane or a cutter. On defense, the great Rondo fights through picks, plays great man-to-man defense and is judicious in his gambling for steals. The great Rondo takes a back seat to no point guard. The great Rondo dominatesentire games. But the lesser Rondo? The one we saw tonight? He can take multiple possessions off on defense, and seemingly sleepwalk his way through halfcourt sets, even while racking up 8 assists. He’s not necessarily bad, mind you, but comes off like a decent cover of a great song, one that reminds you that you’d rather hear the original. It’s hardly a crisis in a mid-January game against the Pistons, but part of the leap that Rondo’s made this year is/was around consistency game-to-game. We’ve seen a few more down games lately, and perhaps they’re representative of no more than a mild case of mid-season-itis.
KG SKIPS A BEAT
Kevin Garnett had an off-game shooting tonight and just looked generally out of sorts, but he didn’t attribute it to anything physical in his second game back from the strained calf. “I’m good, I was a little anxious tonight,” said Garnett. “One thing about rhythm is, its almost like, for you all that can dance, and for you all that cannot, it’s like being at the party, and the record skips, and you got to get back on beat. So you know the record skipped a bit, but I’m at the party, I just got to find that groove again. For ya’ll of you who can’t dance, don’t take it personal.”
‘QUIS SPRAINS ANKLE
Marquis Daniels missed most of the game after spraining his ankle. As we noted earlier in the evening, Daniels is indicating he will play the C’s next game on Friday. Still, it’s quite the yin-yang thing going on with the C’s this year. Anytime somebody recovers, someone gets hurt. Let’s hope this pattern doesn’t continue.
PISTONS ERRATUM
Greg Monroe looks like he’s rounding into form as the season progresses. He hit all five of his shots, for 13 points and 9 rebounds and more than anything, gives Detroit some desperately-needed size and production upfront. Joe Dumars would be wise to trade him for an overpaid wing while he still can still get minimal value for him. Okay, that wasn’t so nice.
Rip Hamilton took a DNP-CD. Sad to watch how his final time with Detroit is playing out, in a haze of recriminations between team and player, allegations of quitting, and constant trade talk. Hamilton, like Ray Allen, is so nice to watch curling off a pick and putting down a mid-range jumpshot. Feels like he could produce if they could just get him to another team. Alas then, for that icky contract.
So, that’s it for tonight. The Celtics finish the first half of the 2010-11 season at 32-9, and start the second half Friday when old pal Al Jefferson comes to town with his Utah Jazz.
And oh yeah… the last item on the GRT list?
Number #112?
112) Celtics crush Lakers in game seven for championship #18.
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