$55,000: dry cleaning not included

Posted by Ted McEnroe June 24, 2008 at 2:33 pm

Our friends over at WEEI are noting that their auction of Doc Rivers’ Gatorade-soaked (and autographed) shirt netted $55,000 for the The Shamrock Foundation.  An anonymous bidder put up $35,000 for the shirt. The additional money came from a $10,000 donation from Gatorade and a second anonymous donor, who also called in to pledge $10,000.

In addition, the Celtics brass is offering another $35,000 donation if the bidder agrees to loan out the shirt to the Green for events during the season.

(A side auction of the shirt I spilled Pepsi on while watching Game 6 got no bidders. And I’ll have to pay for my own dry cleaning, apparently.)

Celtics math: Big 3 + Game 6 = 17

Posted by Mike Giardi June 18, 2008 at 11:38 am

108 games later. 82 wins. One title. Enough said.
Read more

And they said the Celtics had no chance

Posted by Randolph Charlotin June 18, 2008 at 9:44 am

The Lakers vs. The Celtics. The Rivalry renewed. Overwhelmingly experts picked the Lakers to win the championship. And who could blame them? Just compare all the elements and it’s easy to understand why LA won the popular vote.

Just look at what they did in the playoffs. The Lakers cruised through the tougher Western Conference, sweeping Denver, convincingly defeated Utah 4-2, then crushing the defending champions San Antonio 4-1 in the Western Conference Finals. The Celtics needed seven games to dispatch the lowly Atlanta Hawks and seven more to eliminate a one-man team in Cleveland.

Style points mattered as well. LA had the best offense during the playoffs. They averaged well over 100 points because they were the best passing team in the playoffs. Boston’s offense was inconsistent at best. They had to rely on their defense to bail them out in every round. Somehow they advanced two rounds with a slumping Ray Allen. Known for his impeccable jumper as a Milwaukee Buck and Seattle Supersonic, Allen slumped through the playoffs. Two good games at the end of the Detroit series didn’t make up for three bad rounds.

How can anyone not like LA in this series? They have the league MVP leading the team. Kobe Bryant is the best closer in the league. Check that, best player in the world! The guy is so good he gave himself a nickname of Black Mamba, one of the deadliest snakes on the planet. He can take over games and win practically all by himself. There’s only one ball between Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Allen. Sure they shared during the regular season. But they’ve been the man before. Will they compete for the chance to be the hero?

Not that Kobeis alone. The Lakers pulled off the crime of the season when they acquired Pau Gasol from Memphis. Without him, LA probably doesn’t reach the Finals. There’s also the young and energetic bench. The self-titled Bench Mob has been instrumental in the Lakers’ success during the playoffs. All Boston has to offer is a collection of unwanted veterans, a second-year point guard and a offensively challenged foul-prone center.

And the ringmaster of this team is the owner of nine championship rings. He is the one and only Zen Master, Big Chief Triangle, head coach Phil Jackson. He matches his mind against Doc Rivers who never won a playoff series until this year. I repeat: Nine Championships to zero series wins pre-2007.

Well opinions don’t win games. Past accomplishments don’t ensure future success. Three stars are greater than one supernova. Looks aren’t everything as no one can see the toughness learned through experience.

The Lakers were the trendy pick. But trends come and go. The Celtics were based on a less than glamorous foundation of defense and team play, tried and true practices that often lead to success.

A lot of opinions changed when the Celtics came back from a 24-point deficit to win game four and took a commanding 3-1 lead. The players knew that meant nothing. Four wins made all the opinions worthless and made the Boston Celtics champions.

And that’s a fact.

Sweet Seventeen

Posted by David Green June 18, 2008 at 5:00 am

Where do you start? How do you even begin to talk about the Celtics’ domination on the parquet Tuesday night?

It was total. Unrelenting. Humiliating. And for Celtic fans, it was the most impressive and enjoyable 48 minutes in a long, long time.

A magical second quarter broke the Lakers’ spirit, meaning Game 6 would not feature yet another huge Finals comeback. How good was the 2nd? Try 11 assists on 11 baskets. An 11-0 run courtesy of supersubs James Posey and Eddie House. A 9-0 run going into halftime that turned a 14-point lead into 23… a run that “buried the [Lakers] emotionally,” according to Phil Jackson. You know what? The Zen Master was right.

The second half was a glorified victory lap for this team that brought glory back to Causeway Street after a 22-year hiatus that seemed decades longer. While L.A. couldn’t get anything going, the C’s got everything going. The Celtics had a Finals record 18 steals, including 6 from Rajon Rondo, whose pestering, aggressive defense set the tone early. The rebounding edge was 48-29 — including a 14-2 edge on the offensive glass, as L.A. couldn’t grab a single offensive rebound until the 4th quarter.

You could marvel at the stats of this one for ages. The 39-point margin of victory was the largest for a clincher in Finals history, and just a couple of points shy of the worst beating in any Finals contest. Ray Allen’s 7 threes tied another Finals record. (By the way, can anyone remember all the concern about Ray Ray’s struggles early in the playoffs? Yeah, didn’t think so.)

By the way, do you want to talk about home-court advantage? The Jungle earned its nickname in this series, especially compared to the disinterested crowd that sauntered into the Staples Center. I was there for Game 3, and I was embarassed by the atmosphere. The crowd made more noise when Hugh Hefner was shown on the Jumbotron than when some guy named Earvin Johnson made an appearance. On Tuesday, the place was rockin’ from the opening introductions, and it never let up until the last piece of confetti finally touched down on the parquet. The official attendance was 18,624 but it felt like thousands more.

The scene in the locker room afterwards was one of total jubilation. I’ll admit it; my job has many perks, but nothing I’ve experienced to this point compares with being in the middle of the madness Tuesday night. Even now, as I’m watching the trophy presentation on the ESPN replay at 4:49 a.m., I’m still at a loss for words. While it felt amazing to watch the Sox and Patriots spray champagne after their championships, the sting of having champagne and beer sprayed in your eyes as it’s happening is a much better experience.

Now it’s time for yet another parade in Titletown. I’m guessing a few people might call out sick on Thursday to watch the Celtics roll through the city on the Duck Boats that Doc took the new Big 3 on way back at the start of the year. Doc told them that’s how Boston celebrates champions… now they’ll get to see exactly what it’s like.

Collins: Lakers still breathing…barely

Posted by Chris Collins June 16, 2008 at 1:49 am

The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Boston Celtics 103-98 Sunday, forcing the series back to Boston for a crucial Game 6. NECN’s Chris Collins says that it was Paul Pierce’s heroics that kept the Celtics in the game, but the absence of Kendrick Perkins that hurt them.

Collins recaps Game 5 from the Staples Center and previews the homecoming in Boston.

Collins: It’s all about bouncing back

Posted by Chris Collins June 12, 2008 at 5:52 pm

NECN’s Chris Collins says tonight is all about bouncing back for the Celtics. They will have to do that with an injured Rajon Rondo, who says he is ready to go, but will obviously not be 100 percent. Collins previews game 4.

Heady time for the Celtics

Posted by Ted McEnroe June 9, 2008 at 12:45 pm

Pretty heady time for the Boston Celtics. They lead their series in the NBA finals with the LA Lakers 2 games to none, but there was a big complaint after the game from Laker coach Phil Jackson, who was disgusted with the disparity in foul calls. Celtics shoot 38, Lakers get  a 10. Leon Pow or Poe as Jackson corrected himself after messing up Leon’s name with more free throws. One player than the in the entire Laker group had as a team. Paul was very aggressive. He deserved those foul calls. On the hand, the Lakers weren’t aggressive at all, and that goes right on down to Kobe Bryant who surprisingly has not yet attacked a basket. You have to give the Celtics deense credit. Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, James Cosy and even the bigs for sliding over and life difficult for Kobe. They continue this in those 2 wins, they might come in L.A, and then they wrap this thing up before having it come back to Boston for. listen

Powered by Jott

Concerns Going Into Game 2

Posted by Mike Giardi June 8, 2008 at 4:01 pm

I am mere minutes away from departing Team NECN headquarters to make my way to the Garden for tonight’s Game 2 of the NBA’s Finals between your Boston Celtics and the L.A. Lakers. As I’ve mentioned in each of the past couple days, the first concern here is Paul Pierce’s right knee strain. I guess we should all feel better about his health considering PP and Sam Cassell had what was described as a spirited game of 1-on-1 at the C’s shootaround this morning/afternoon. I’ll be real interested to see his lateral movement/quickness on cuts and defensively. I also will be watching very carefully to see how Pierce explodes to the basket.

My 2nd area of concern..the health of one Kendrick Perkins. He wasn’t allowed to do jack squat this morning, and high ankle sprains are never good. Perk didn’t put up any kind of numbers Thursday night, but he did a good job defensively before getting hurt. Pau Gasol didn’t get an offensive board until midway through the 4th quarter. Is it any coincidence that Perk was out of the game at that point? I think not. If he can’t go, or can’t play for very long, that puts an extra burden on P.J. Brown and company. I’m not sure they can handle those kind of minutes.

Lastly, and simply, I wonder about Kobe. The C’s defense may not have gotten enough credit for how they played in Game 1, but Kobe is an assasin. I don’t think there’s any way he doesn’t bounce back in this game, big time. Now does he do it at the expense of his teammates, or can he still manage to go off and get everyone else involved?

Enjoy the game.

Can C’s Win with a Subpar Pierce?

Posted by Mike Giardi June 7, 2008 at 9:06 pm

Okay, so Paul Pierce says he’ll play in tomorrow’s Game 2. Surprised? As Pierce said in the aftermath of Thursday night’s win, and I’m paraphrasing, “there are only two weeks left. We’ll deal with the knee when the season is over.” That’s exactly what you would expect from a star player playing in his first NBA Finals. Its also what you’d expect from a player just three wins away from his first NBA title, and the first for this storied franchise in 21 years. But what can Pierce provide?

The C’s captain says the swelling in his right knee subsiding, but - as of this afternoon - he couldn’t bend it completely. Give Pierce 24 hours or more for treatment and the hope is that he’ll be a reasonable facsimile of himself Sunday. Let’s face it, the C’s need that. They need Pierce to be a force at both ends. And yes, he may be just as important defensively as he is offensively. The work he did on Kobe, especially in the 4th Quarter (after the injury), was impressive. Goes to show you just how much PP has bought into this defense wins championship thing (where have I heard that before?).

If Pierce’s mobility is severely compromised, that’s one less body to run at the Lakers star. That will make a difference, without question. Kobe’s too good for it not to. Plus, you just don’t expect another 9-for-26 from Michael Jordan’s possible heir, do you? I know I sure as heck don’t.

At the other end, you saw what Pierce did to Vladimir Radmonovic. I mean, that guy may be long, as the ESPN hoop heads love to say, but he was also out of his league Thursday. 5 fouls in 17 minutes. We spent all this time wondering how the C’s would cover Kobe, but how do the Lakers deal with Pierce? Again, the task becomes easier if a vital part of the “Big 3″ isn’t quite right. But I’m done wondering. You and I and the rest of the basketball watching world will see tomorrow and then, and only then, will we know just what kind of impact the injury has on Pierce and on this series.

Mo Money

Posted by Mike Giardi June 7, 2008 at 9:58 am

It has been as subject that has been worn out for months now, but the NFL and its players union really need a way to figure out how to cap these rookie salaries. Take the Raiders, for example. They draft Darren McFadden, the Arkansas running back, 4th overall. Six weeks later, a player who’s never touched the ball once in an NFL game, gets a 60-million dollar deal over six seasons. This, for a player who’s not considered durable enough to be a 25-carry per game guy!

If McFadden stinks on wheat, and never does a single thing in the league, his guaranteed dollars are anywhere between 19 and 26 million, depending on who you believe. That’s so out-of-whack with what the veterans are getting paid, I can see why the owners want out of the CBA. Of course, they signed off on the deal a few seasons ago, so I guess they asked for it. But regardless of how we got here, its something that needs to be changed, for the benefit of the league, and for the benefit of proven 5 and 6-year vets who don’t deserve to be making chump change as compared to some fresh-faced rookie.

Anyway, on to the local stuff. We will have more on Celtics star Paul Pierce’s knee later today, so be sure and check us out during at least one of the 10 or so sportscasts we’ll have this afternoon and evening. And of course, do check out Sports Late Night, our signature show. We’ll break out a newcomer as a guest, Scott Souza, who’s as smart a writer as there is covering the C’s.

Next Page »