- ‘Baby’ delivers the Celtics late: The Celtics set up nearly every option possible in a half-court set on their final possession against the Orlando Magic last night. And with four guards – Ray Allen, Eddie House, Paul Pierce, and Rajon Rondo – eager to take the deciding shot, the ball ended up with Glen Davis, who lofted a 21-foot jumper just before the buzzer to give the Celtics a 95-94 win. [Globe]
- Imposing man, even bigger shot: It’s the one you shoot in the driveway every day when you are a kid. The shot you always take in the mind games of youth. You feather your way into the corner while the imaginary clock winds down. You count down . . . three . . . two . . . one as you take the pass from out top. [Globe]
- Trust runs in the family: Who else but Big Baby should have been the star of the game on Mother’s Day? “I told our guys before the game – we talked about Mother’s Day, actually,” coach Doc Rivers said before Glen “Big Baby” Davis hit the deciding jumper in a 95-94 win over Orlando last night. “And we were talking about emotions, looking at the qualities of Mother’s Day. What did she give you? And it was usually determination, heart, discipline. You don’t talk about any other things and I told them that was what we needed. I thought we really dug deep.” [Globe]
- Celtics go Big for win: Doc Rivers predicted it. There would be a night when both sides brought their respective “A” games – a night reminiscent of that brutal, eviscerating first-round series against Chicago. The Celtics coach ran onto the floor last night, bent over and slapped the hardwood with his right hand to proclaim Glen Davis’ 20-foot buzzer-beating game-winner good. He probably had no idea of how accurate that prediction would be. [Herald]
- Big moment by Big Baby: Everyone dreams of taking the final shot in the final second, but not everyone really wants to do it. Truth be told, most guys want the ball in their hands as time is running out about as much as they want to sit next to someone with swine flu on a three-hour plane flight. [Herald]
- No Magic formula for Glen Davis: The Orlando Magic didn’t go into last night’s decisive play paying a lot of attention to Glen Davis. Instead, they were more concerned with sharpshooters such as Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Eddie House. Big Baby made them pay. [Herald]
- Bad shooting night dooms Orlando Magic: The Orlando Magic lost on Sunday night because they couldn’t put the ball in the basket. And it wasn’t because of poor ball movement (59 percent of their field goals were assisted), careless offense (only eight turnovers) or a lack of attacking the hoop (28 free-throw attempts, compared to 27 for Boston). Really, that’s what made this loss so frustrating. The Magic weren’t playing poorly. They were missing open shots. [OMD]
Archive for the ‘Roundup’ Category
The Morning “Big Baby” Links
May 11th, 2009Sunday Morning Links
May 10th, 2009Next Morning Notes: Perk Gone for Game 4?
May 9th, 2009Chris Sheridan predicts a suspension for Perk in today’s Daily Dime (hat tip: CelticsBlog), and in a poll on ESPN.com, 71 percent of respondents think Perk should be suspended. Here’s the clip, with slow mo replays starting around the :49 second mark. I stand by what I wrote last night: Perk should not be suspended. Calling this an “elbow” is a bit simplistic. It’s a forearm/elbow combination, and it has nowhere near the malicious wind-up/preparation of Howard’s (a player I like, Magic fans, so settle down) elbow to Sam Dalembert. That was a true elbow.
And if you don’t think Pietrus flopped a bit here to help make his case, well, then I don’t know what to tell you.
Here are the relevant Perk quotes:
Stu Jackson, via Sheridan: “Certainly, in this case had he made contact in the head area, we’d be evaluating it on a different level.”
Sheridan’s prediction based on Jackson’s remarks: So if Stu sticks with his own precedents, it’s going to be bad news for a Boston front line already undermanned and undersized, because Perkins, the C’s starting center, is going to be watching Sunday’s Game 4 from somewhere other than the Amway Arena.
Sheridan has a point, but I think the precedent is more complicated than “elbow to head” = suspension. Again, see Matt Moore’s take on HP.
Perk’s take, also via Sheridan: “I was just trying to fight through a screen…It wasn’t like I was trying to hurt him or elbow him in his mouth or nothing like that. I was just trying to fight through the screen and ended up hitting him.”
And here’s Pietrus, playing the victim of a heinous basketball crime: “I was just trying to set a regular pick. I didn’t even try to set it hard. I just came in and then, boom. I was surprised, but that’s what he does — physicality. I’m glad the referees seen it and caught it.”
More quotes and notes from a disastrous Game 3, after the jump. As always, check Third Quarter Collapse, Orlando Magic Daily, The Puns, CB and Red’s for all sorts of bloggy analysis. » More: Next Morning Notes: Perk Gone for Game 4?
T.G.I.F. Morning Links!
May 8th, 2009Celtics guard draws ire when hot: Foes find pest in House: Just call him Eddie the Irritant. Where Ray Allen will destroy a team by calmly and silently burying deep jumpers, and Rajon Rondo [stats] by fearlessly throwing his body into the fray, House is the Celtics [team stats] player most likely to tick off the other team with his shooting and talking, which often occur simultaneously. Earlier this season you could have asked the Knicks, whose reserves wanted to jump the trash-talking guard, en masse, after he buried a shot from his favorite spot on the floor – in front of the opponent’s bench. [BostonHerald.com]
Thursday “Morning” Links
May 7th, 2009Celts carve up Magic from inside out: Kevin Garnett just sat there, impeccably dressed as always, once again removed from the biggest games of the year. Minus their best player, the Celtics did the logical thing: They took away Orlando’s best player. Last night, Dwight Howard might as well have been wearing a jacket and tie, too. [Boston.com]
Looking like their old selves: Order was restored to the hardwood universe last night when Eddie House and the Celtics demolished the Orlando Magic, 112-94, in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series. The highlight of the night at the Garden? House draining a succession of ridiculous long-range missiles? Rajon Rondo splitting the paint and throwing down a dunk in the second-half rout? Not for me. My favorite part of this evening came during a timeout late in the first quarter when the Jumbotron flashed the images of former Celtics in attendance while “Glory Days” spilled out of the sound system. [Boston.com]
Eddie House a party for Celtics: Sub leads spirited effort to get even: The difference, according to Doc Rivers, isn’t in the adjustments. It’s in the quality of execution. Last night it was apparent in the way that Kendrick Perkins and Glen Davis made Dwight Howard’s life in the paint uncomfortable, and Rashard Lewis was crowded into missing the big shots he made in Game 1. [BostonHerald.com]
Good point by Ray Allen: Individual effort not what matters: For most of last night the Big Three was reduced to the Lonely One. Fortunately for the Celtics, Lonely came up Big. With Kevin Garnett in street clothes and Paul Pierce in enough foul trouble that he would play just 16 minutes, it fell to Ray Allen to remind the young whippersnappers from Orlando who the Boston Celtics really are. [BostonHerald.com]
Wow… Just Wow: The challenge in blogging about sports is that sometimes you have to try to describe the indescribable. You are forced to put words to something that leaves you speechless. That’s where I’m at with Rajon Rondo at this point. I don’t know what else to say about him that doesn’t sound like a cliche. [CelticsBlog.com]
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