In retrospect, I was probably hedging my bets like any true Red Sox/Cubs/Cleveland/Jazz/Mariners/etc. fan would (old habits die hard) so I could avoid the disappointment of the inevitable loss and let down, but that only partially accounts for my bad pick yesterday afternoon. The truth is that while I knew both teams were very, very close and that the game likely would be as well, I leaned towards Cleveland because it's infinitely more pleasant for me to eat my own words when the Celtics win (I'm totally torpedoing myself here). I'd also like to excuse myself on account of the fact that the majority of the media out there thought LeBron and the Cavs would win, but then I'd probably have to commit seppuku on the spot. I'm a bit disappointed in myself for falling into such an easy trap and not realizing that the Celtics would protect their house and rise to the occasion, but I've learned my lesson and will sprint to the bench the next time my sub comes in... or something like that.
But enough apologizing for myself, let's talk about the game! First of all, the defense against LeBron James and therefore the Cavaliers as a whole was spectacular from start to finish. The Celtics were physical, aggressive and energetic for the first time in a week, hounding LeBron wherever he went. Rotations were crisp, help always seemed to be on time, and aside from some extremely hot shooting by Mo Williams (I still have a sinking feeling that this guy will KILL the Celtics at least once in the playoffs), the Celtics did a great job of disrupting Cleveland's offense. The Cavs did shoot a respectable 45% from the field and 50% from behind the three-point line, but any time you force LeBron freaking James into 5-15 shooting and almost as many turnovers (4) as assists (5) or rebounds (6), then you deserve some recognition.
The defense last night was good, but the offense was what carried the Celtics to victory. Against a defense that rivals the Celtics in most categories, the Celtics shot 54% from the field and compiled 31 assists on 45 field goals. Most impressively, the Celtics took great care of the basketball last night, coughing the ball up only eight times for a paltry nine points for the Cavaliers. While Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo deserve the bulk of the credit for taking care of the ball and running the Celtics' offense (19 assists and only three turnovers combined), Stephon Marbury deserves a nod of approval for his role in shoring up the Celtics' biggest weakness this year. Although he's still knocking off the rust from his year-long hiatus, Marbury did a great job during his time on the floor, dishing out three assists in 16 minutes while only turning the ball over once. While those aren't eye popping stats to say the least (especially when you throw in the 1-5 shooting to go with it), Marbury played well within the offensive system and has already improved the ball movement of the Celtics' second unit. A lot of what I saw Marbury do didn't appear in the box score after the game, however one noticeable area of improvement did show up in the form of a "0" in Eddie House's line under turnovers. I'm trying not to get excited too soon, but I can't help but feel like Marbury could be (strangely enough) just what the doctor ordered for the Boston Celtics this year.
Oh yeah, and then there was Leon Powe. Once again making his case for the put-me-in-coach award this year, Powe came up huge last night off of the bench, exploding for 20 points on 9-11 shooting, 11 rebounds and one huge block on Mo Williams down the stretch. The undersized power forward from Cal punished the Cavaliers for relentlessly trapping Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and the other perimeter players for the Celtics, finishing strong around the hoop time after time and always appearing in the best spot for his teammates to find him. In perhaps his best game since last June's NBA Finals where Powe exploded in similar fashion, Leon proved to be invaluable last night and contributed as much as anyone did to Boston's victory.
To say that Leon Powe made the most of his opportunities would be an epic understatement. After Glen Davis was ejected for a flagrant foul on Anderson Varejao in the second quarter (which, by the way, was a hard foul but not worth an ejection. At least it shouldn't be if Zydrunas Ilgauskas is allowed to keep playing after he instigated a scuffle after the play by bumping Davis into the crowd of photographers underneath the hoop). This made the Celtics razor thin at power forward, as Boston was already playing without Kevin Garnett and Brian Scalabrine (I'll let you guys debate who of those two is more important to the team, har har). But Powe stepped up in a big way, playing his heart out for 26 minutes (his season average is 16 per game, by the way). Though Leon surely wouldn't have been as productive without his teammates creating opportunities for him, Powe deserves more adulation and respect than he'll get for doing his job flawlessly and helping his team to victory (on a related note, why the hell doesn't he start when KG is out or get more minutes off the bench all the time?).
I said yesterday afternoon that this game would have atmosphere and intensity, but ultimately would be only one of 82, mattering as much as a Tuesday night game against the Grizzlies. Although I said that before the Celtics won, I'm still sticking to that sentiment despite the rest of the sports media hyping this game as a huge statement win for the Boston Celtics. I know, I know, everything counts in a playoff race this tight, but getting too high or too low on any one game is a recipe for let-downs and stumbles down the stretch of this season. Sure, the Celtics have put the onus back on the Cavaliers to play harder down the stretch and to defend their home court when these two teams meet again on a Sunday afternoon five weeks from now, but realistically, Cleveland was already going to do that. Now they just have that much more motivation to focus and maintain their intensity throughout the rest of their regular season games. Is this what the Celtics really want?
Don't get me wrong, it was great to see Boston come out with some serious championship swag and put Cleveland in their place on national TV, but winning this game doesn't mean that the Celtics will beat the Cavaliers in May. There's still a long way to go between now and then, and Boston will have to work just as hard if not harder than Cleveland to emerge victorious once again. While it was reassuring to see the Celtics contain LeBron without James Posey, anybody who follows the NBA even a little bit knows that he and the Cavaliers will be back bigger and better the next time these two clubs meet. That's the bad news, but fortunately, the Celtics have more room to improve at this point than Cleveland does. If (and keep in mind, this is a big IF) Kevin Garnett can come back to full strength and Stephon Marbury continues to improve and play within his role in the Celtics' offense, then Boston could be well on his way to another championship.
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