Logo
The Ticker
3 days ago

(Video) Rajon Rondo Continues To Dominate In Postgame Interview

Rajon Rondo is a tremendous player, but he tends to have a little bit of an issue scoring the ball late in games. I won’t go as far as saying he is scared, but he does pass up shots and defer to teammates in crunch-time….well a lot. Last night though may have been his coming [...]

2
4 days ago

Video: Full Kevin Garnett Reaction After Game 1

Garnett followed up his season-best effort against Atlanta in Game 6 with a new season-high in points and another sensational double-double, as well 60 percent shooting (12-of-20) from the field. Over his past two contests, Garnett is averaging 28.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, two steals and four blocks a game. After the game, KG was candid [...]

2
4 days ago

The Enemies List: Philadelphia, Part II

Before every playoff series this season, we’re doing some rundowns on the opposing roster for each team. Now that the Hawks have been dispensed with, we’re onto the Sixers. Here’s Part II. Players are listed in alphabetical order. Andre Iguodala: There are five guys in the league who have a claim on the title of [...]

4
4 days ago

NBA: Hawks Should Have Had Free Throw on Last-Second Foul

Mike Fratello had it right: the NBA announced today that Al Horford should have been given a free throw on Marquis Daniels’s off-ball foul at the end of Thursday’s game. At the time, ref Eric Lewis ruled that Daniels’s foul had occurred after the throw-in, making him probably the only person in the arena who [...]

1
7 days ago

Game 6 Time Set For Thursday Night

Boston will face off with the Hawks on Thursday night at 8pm at TD Garden. The broadcast can be seen on TNT or CSN locally. There was a risk that it would be a 6pm tip for Boston-Atlanta, if the Nuggets failed to extend the series last night against the Lakers. That would have created [...]

3
8 days ago

Atlanta Shakes Up Starting Five For Game 5

Desperate times call for desperate measures and after a blowout in Game 4, Atlanta’s head coach Larry Drew is going to shake things up a bit and add some bulk to his starting five at each position. Kirk Hinrich and Jason Collins will head to the bench, while Marvin Williams will be inserted at small [...]

7
Browse Archives by:

Game 8/66: Pacers (4-2) @ Celtics (4-3) Open Thread

Indiana at Boston
7:30 P.M. ET
TD Garden
CSNNE

Offensive Efficiency:
Boston: 104.8 points/100 possessions (5th)
Indiana: 96.8 points/100 possessions (21st)

Defensive Efficiency:
Boston: 101.1 points allowed/100 possessions (18th)
Indiana: 96.7 points allowed/100 possessions (7th)

Key Injuries:  Boston: Mickael Pietrus (knee) is still out, probably until next week. Ray Allen appears to be back from his flu. Jermaine O’Neal is permanently day-to-day.
Indiana: Jeff Foster and Tyler Hansbrough are day-to-day.

Probable Indiana Starters: Darren Collison (PG), Paul George (SG), Danny Granger (SF), David Moorer West (PF), Roy Denzil Hibbert (C)

View From The Opposing Bench: Eight Points, Nine Seconds

THUMBNAIL
The Pacers figured more prominently than any other team in the Celtics’ offseason activities, even though the two teams didn’t actually exchange any players. First the Pacers expressed interest in a three-team deal with Boston and the Hornets that would bring Chris Paul to Boston, send Rondo to the tenth circle of Indiana, and bring Darren Collison and a few other guys to New Orleans. Indiana getting involved got Danny Ainge all fired up, and he actively tried to push this deal forward. Feelings were hurt. Would have been much better if the Pacers had just stayed out of it and let an idle offer of Rondo, Jeff Green, and JaTwaun Bradley die on the first phone call.

Then, instead of just letting other teams handle their business, the Pacers jumped in and signed David West out from under the Celtics, just because they were willing to offer him a much better deal and more playing time. How annoying is that? This must be about retribution for the time Paul Pierce stole that water.

Now the Celtics face the Pacers with with the goal of drinking the cool, refreshing water that is a home victory from the plastic bottle of determination (strong metaphor).

PREGAME ANALYSIS
The Celtics are catching the Pacers in a vulnerable spot: the guy who burns most of their usage (Granger) is playing horribly, and their new offensive weapon (West) appears to be still working his way back from mincing his ACL last season. Granger’s always been something of a double-edged sword for the Pacers; as a volume shooter, their success depends on him maintaining average efficiency levels, but lately he’s been taking shots from more valuable players on his own team. Also, aren’t all swords double-edged? Why do people say that?

The one guy who could bestow trouble on the Celtics is Roy Hibbert, who lately has been the team’s best scorer and rebounder at the Celtics’ weakest position. If Jermaine O’Neal can’t play, this game could be the first real test for Greg Stiemsma, the person who every Celtics storyline is somehow about now.

PREDICTION
Celtics 97, Pacers 93

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>