Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

Game 3
Celtics @ Sixers
7:00 PM EDT
TNT
Wells Fargo Center

Offensive Efficiency:
Boston: 94.0 points per 100 possessions (11th)
Philadelphia: 95.6 points per 100 possessions (10th)

Defensive Efficiency:
Boston: 90.4 points allowed per 100 possessions (1st)
Philadelphia: 91.7 points allowed per 100 possessions (3rd)

Probable Sixers Starters: Jrue Holiday (PG), Evan Turner (SG), Andre Iguodala (SF), Elton Brand (PF), Spencer Hawes (C)

View From The Opposing Bench: Philadunkia

THUMBNAIL

All eyes on number 5.

And as well they should be.  Kevin Garnett is been pretty much the single reason the Celtics have won playoff games.  He’s dominating all facets of the game right now.  Scoring, rebounding, defending the post, pick and roll- you name it.  It seems oddly fitting that the man responsible for the Celtics success in the post season is the same man who everyone will remember for losing Game 2.

Wait, I should clarify: …is the man everyone will *misremember* for losing Game 2.

There are plenty of reasons why the Celtics lost Game 2 and chief among them was not Kevin Garnett’s moving screen.  The Celtics turned the ball over 17 times and were outrebounded 47-36.  It’s hard to win when either scenario occurs.  The problem with the C’s is that they’ve been able to see a level of success despite their shortcomings.  Shortcomings that have been year-long struggles and are unlikely to get solved within a playoff series.

The Celtics will have to continue to win despite their failings, something that can only happen if the desire is there.  Game 2 started out with very little playoff intensity and the closer the score remained the bigger the complacency got.  Players are obviously injured so when I say complacency, I’m not strictly monitoring how fast someone is running.  I looking for players to make the correct plays.  Players not turning the ball over.  Players not settling for bucket trading. Players being ready to extend the game at all costs if behind.

After Game 2, I asked Doc Rivers if the C’s were prepared to foul after Ray Allen made the three with 3 seconds left.  His answer was logical but not inspiring:

No, they had probably given up. But I don’t think that’s a big deal, to be honest. It’s three seconds left. With no time-outs. It was a Hail Mary, basically, by Ray and he made it. So I hope you’re not going to make that an issue tonight. There’s other issues we can make.

Sure. The Celtics were longshots at the point. No one, not even them, expected Allen to make that three. But the question becomes, why take it at all? Why not just dribble out the clock and move on?

The issue I want to make isn’t about those last three seconds. The issue I want to make is about desire. The Celtics are a better team than Philadelphia and they need to show it starting tonight.

I think they will.

PREDICTION

Celtics 92, Sixers 83

Is it time to reverse Paul Pierce’s and Ray Allen’s roles on offense? Because Pierce is so limited with his sprained MCL, he may be best camped at the arc rather than trying to attack the rim or fighting through double teams (interesting that Philly was still running two guys at him). At times, Pierce looked fluid in game two, moving well up and down the court, and even laterally on defense. But many times, he wasn’t able to engage the in play the way we’re used to.

What Pierce can still do is nail the three-ball if he can find space. Even if his percentages drop as a result of his knee injury, as a defender you can’t leave him alone at the arc. So, perhaps he should spread the floor on the weakside and the C’s should put Ray Allen into more pick and roll actions. Allen shot 7-14 last night and looks more like his old weaponized self. He can’t get himself free without help but maybe running Brandon Bass over there to set a pick will open up things for both of them. That’s an organic set for Boston, as the second option off a busted double-baseline screen is usually Allen creating off a ball screen. And then Pierce can sit on the weak side, rest his leg and wait for open threes. He might even have more luck attacking the basket if he’s facing a defender who’s closing hard to the perimeter.

I’m a little mystified at the criticism some are directing at Pierce. He has a habit of taking plays off even when he’s locked in but I think we’re lucky he’s on the floor at all. If he’s taking plays off, I have to think it’s because he’s limited in what he can do. Doc Rivers seems disinclined to rest him any, so this might be the Pierce we see the rest of the playoffs because this injury appears to need a long stretch of time off and that’s not coming until the Celtics are eliminated or champions.

***

Bass is a mess right now. The Celtics got him a number of great early looks and after a surge that had everyone thinking this would be his breakout game, the misses piled up and he finished 5-15 in 24 short minutes. Sometimes it seems like Bass is short arming his jumpers but that might just be me looking for a technical explanation for a problem that’s born of something else. These misses aren’t a function of having Josh Smith draped all over him. They’re shots he buried during the regular season. Bass has range to about 17-18 feet. As long as he’s squared up, feet set and he’s not shooting off the dribble, he hits those shots. The most frustrating thing for the Celtics is Bass is one of their few healthy players and they’re desperate for scoring right now. Bass is coming up small right when the Celtics need him to elevate his game.

***

Rajon Rondo is all over the performance map. On the offensive side, he’s been everything from dominant to sloppy to a passenger during the first eight games of the playoffs. And his defense has had some serious polarity problems. For a game or two (particularly the closeout game against Atlanta) he was expending more defensive energy than he has in weeks (months?). He was delivering on his rep as a great perimeter defender. In other games, he’s let guys race right around him. All of which is to say that he’s been himself. In fact, if you’d only seen him play the last three weeks, you’d know  as much about him as if you’d seen him for the last five years. His game seems too loose to me, especially on the turnover front, but with Allen and Pierce and Avery Bradley limited, he’s carrying a lot of weight right now. Speaking of which…

***

Are the Celtics going to ride Kevin Garnett into the ground? He’s been incredible in the playoffs, a level above his excellent second-half performance and worlds away from the KG we saw before the all-star break. Last night aside, he’s even lived up to all that preseason talk about being more assertive on offense. Garnett could make an argument to being one of the two or three best players in the playoffs on any team. He’s up to 37.4 minutes a game (after 31.1 during the regular season) and, along with Rondo, he’s carrying the team on offense (53% FG, 19.5 PPG). But we may be entering a danger zone for diminishing returns. These are much harder minutes than he played during the regular season. If we know anything about KG, it’s that this offensive output isn’t sustainable, even if the rebounding numbers are. If the C’s go back to KG in the post in game three, and the Sixers double, who’s going to hit the open shots and reduce the burden on him? Who’s going to step up when the C’s need a basket? It can’t be KG all the way through the playoffs. Can it?

***

Second last thing. The 76ers were awfully lucky to win game two (one of the single least enjoyable, least watchable games of the whole year – and not just for the outcome). Without those crazy shots by Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen down the stretch, the C’s walk off with a 2-0 series lead and the Sixers leave thinking their best efforts aren’t enough. The C’s could easily go into Philly and take two straight, which may prove a necessity to get everyone a little down time before the next round.

***

Last thing. Good luck to Larry Bird and his Pacers tonight. Let’s hope that series goes long and deep and gets more physical. We want both these teams to wear each other out.

Game 2
Sixers @ Celtics
7:00 PM EST
TNT
TD Garden

Offensive Efficiency:
Boston: 95.4 points per 100 possessions (11th)
Philadelphia: 96.6 points per 100 possessions (10th)

Defensive Efficiency:
Boston: 90.6 points allowed per 100 possessions (1st)
Philadelphia: 92.8 points allowed per 100 possessions (4th)

Probable Sixers Starters: Jrue Holiday (PG), Evan Turner (SG), Andre Iguodala (SF), Elton Brand (PF), Spencer Hawes (C)

View From The Opposing Bench: Philadunkia

Thumbnail: On Saturday night, Boston gave Philadelphia a swift kick in the gut. Tonight we’ll see if what follows is a devastating uppercut knocking them down to the mat, or a gentlemanly step back to their own corner to the opponent recover. The Sixers appear to be a team in strategic disarray. Elton Brand believes getting the ball out of Kevin Garnett’s hands should be the primary defensive focus, while Doug Collins seems to think the best path for his team to travel is down the one they’re currently on, betting that Garnett will tire down as the series goes deeper and deeper.

As I wrote in my recap yesterday morning, the Sixers gave the Celtics their best effort in Game 1 and still lost. Boston expended a ton of effort in the second half to surge back and win the game, and they were rewarded with a relaxing Mother’s Day, void of all basketball-related activity. This team is battling aches and pains to significant players who’re deep in their careers, and with a proverbial banana peel underneath every other step, it’s more important now than ever before that they not only win four games, but lose none until they meet their next, more dangerous opponent in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Prediction: Celtics 83, Sixers 79

Twitter: @ShakyAnkles