Before the game, no one felt that Pierce, Ray Allen and LeBron would all shoot sa poorly as they did in game one and they were partly right. Ray Allen and Paul Pierce bounced back with good games while LeBron played almost as poorly as he did in the first game. Pierce ended the game with 19 points on 7-13 shooting to go with 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. Pierce left the game with a finger injury in the first half but came back and seemed to be fine. Ray Allen struggled early but came out strong to start the third and finished with 16 points (4-10), 1 rebound, 3 assists and 2 steals. LeBron had 21 points but 9 of those came on the free throw line where he was 9-13. He shot 6-24 from the field and had 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 7 turnovers.

The Cavs got off to a fast start putting the Celtics down 12 in the first quarter. The Celtics made a run with Sam Cassell, PJ Brown, Leon Powe, James Posey and Ray Allen on the court. They cut the lead to 24-17 at the end of the first quarter. They took the lead on a Posey dunk in the second quarter and never looked back. They clamped down on defense in the second quarter and turned a 7 point deficit to start the quarter into an 8 point lead at the half. They began the third quarter on a 10-0 run before Ilgauskas finally hit a jumper. Ilguaskas kept them in the game hitting 9-12 shots for 19 points. The score at the end of 3 quarters was 70-51 in the Celtics favor.

Leon Powe, James Posey and Sam Cassell all brought great energy off the bench and were key to turning this game around. Powe finished with 11 points and 7 rebounds in 28 minutes. Posey did a little bit of everything as he scored 7 points, pulled down 6 rebounds, dished out 1 assists and made 3 very big steals. Rondo played only 22 minutes and once again, Doc played Sam in the 4th quarter. Rondo finished with 7 points, all from the free throw line, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals. Sam had 9 points and 4 assists in 25 minutes. The Celtics bench out scored the Cavs bench 34-17.

KG, who was so big in game 1, scored only 13 points in this game, but then again, he didn't need to score with 3 other players in double figures and the defense keeping the Cavs from scoring. KG concentrated more on defense and finding the open man. He pulled down 12 rebounds and dished out 4 assists. Ben Wallace left the game Perk had an off game and went scoreless in 20 minutes but still played good defense and pulled down 4 rebounds. He left the game in the first quarter after getting hit in the nose as it started to bleed again. Ben Wallace left the game in the first quarter with extreme dizziness and didn't return.

The Celtics were a bit sluggish to start the game and allowed the Cavs to shoot 55% in the first quarter. They then clamped down on defense and completely shut down the Cavs offense. The Cavs shot only 36% for the game while the Celtics shot 40%. The Celtics were also out rebounded in the first quarter but they ended up with a 45-39 edge for the game. The Celtics energy in this game was incredible. Even when they were up 20, the Celtics were still diving on the floor for loose balls and defending as though they were down 20. They moved the ball on offense and played great team defense. Now, the challenge is to get that first win on the road. I wouldn't bet on LeBron having 3 bad games in a row, especially at home, so the Celtics better bring that defensive energy and team mindset with them on Saturday.

This was a very strange game from start to finish. It was highlighted by 38 turnovers: 21 for the Celtics and 17 for the Cavs. The stars of the game, other than Kevin Garnett couldn't score and it was a defensive struggle on both sides. The Cavs shot 31% while the Celtics shot 43%. It was ugly, but it should answer the questions about whether the Celtics could win a close game.

With just 4 minutes gone by in the first, Pierce picked up his 2nd foul and went to the bench. He played very good defense on LeBron but never got on track offensively, shooting just 2-14 from the floor and finishing with 4 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 turnovers. Ray Allen also couldn't get on track as he went scoreless and took just 4 shots in 37 minutes and finished with 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 4 turnovers.

Rondo came out strong, scoring 8 of the first 12 points and assisting on the other 4. He out played Delonte as he did Mike Bibby in the previous series. Kevin Garnett was the player of the game as he scored 28 points to go with 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Perk once again was huge as he pulled down 12 rebounds to go with 7 points, 2 assists, 2 blocks and some excellent defense.

James Posey came in for Pierce when he went out with the 2 fouls and played excellent defense on LeBron. He came up very big at the end of the game on both ends of the court. With the Celtics up 74-72 and 21 seconds left. The Celtics had a foul to give and Posey was trying to catch LeBron to foul him but couldn't catch him as LeBron missed a layup. Posey grabbed the rebound and wrapped it up and was fouled. He hit two clutch free throws to seal the 76-72 victory as LeBron missed a 3 on the next possession and Rondo came away with the rebound and dribbled out the clock. Between Pierce and Posey, LeBron was held to just 12 points on 2-18 shooting but did pull down 9 rebounds, dish out 9 assists and turn the ball over 10 times.

As for the former Celtics, Delonte finished with 4 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, but couldn't stop Rondo and he shot just 2-10. Wally hit a couple of big three pointers but was just 5-14 and finished with 13 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists. Ilgauskas was the Cavs high scorer with 22 points to go with 12 rebounds. He also got away with a couple of hits on Perk's nose and kicking Sam when he was on the floor. Kudos to Perk for wrapping up Sam and keeping him from doing something stupid when he wanted to go after Ilgauskas after the kick. Sam got his offense going in the 4th and finished with 13 points and 2 rebounds. Rondo played just 30 minutes and it seemed that he sat on the bench a little too long in the 4th quarter.

Team defense was the story in this game. Ray and Pierce won't shoot this poorly in the next game, but then neither will LeBron. One concern after this game is that James Posey was shaken up quite a bit on one play and he was holding his side after the game. Hopefully he will be ok because the Celtics are going to need his defense in this series more than ever. Next game will be Thursday at 7:00PM.

Here is a look at the Celtics 2nd round opponent, the Cleveland Cavaliers. This is a team that is much different from the very athletic Hawks. They are a team that leans heavily on their superstar but also have other talented players on the team. There is a subplot to this series in that two of the Cavaliers' starters were starting for the Celtics last season. Another player, Dwayne Jones, who comes off the bench is also is a former Celtic. Here is a look at the Cleveland Cavaliers and what we can expect from them.

Starters:

Point Guard Delonte West PPG 10.2 RPG 2.80 APG 5.0 EFF + 12.67

A left-handed guard with decent quickness and a soft perimeter touch, West is a classic combo guard He can be a potent long-range threat as well as being able to pull up and shoot from mid range. West is one of the best shot-blocking guards in basketball, ranking fourth among shooting guards in blocks per minute despite being shorter than most of his contemporaries. However, he's not really a good defensive player. The blocks often are desperation plays after a man has beaten him off the dribble, and at the shooting guard spot he's undersized. When he was with Boston last season, they gave up 3.0 points more per 48 minutes when he was on the court. Having played against Rondo in practice for a year, he knows Rondo's tendencies and vice versa. This should be a very good matchup between former teamates. PER 12.13

Shooting Guard Wally Szczerbiak PPG 10.8 RPG 1.80 APG 1.5 EFF + 7.67

When ankle and knee problems aren't swallowing up his career, Szczerbiak is one of the best shooters in the game. (Who can forget the "bone on bone" hoopla when he was a Celtic?) He seems to prefer the 15- to 17-foot range, but he's a fantastic spot-up shooter who is at 40.4 percent on 3-pointers for his career. Szczerbiak is also quite strong and can abuse smaller guards in the midpost with turnaround jumpers, or overpower them going toward the rim. Those chances get him to the line (where he hits 86.2 percent for his career) much more than most jump shooters. He doesn't get much done off the dribble, however, so defenders crowd him and try to take away the jumper. Szczerbiak is a willing help defender who takes charges, but one-on-one his lateral movement was never good. This should be an interesting matchup between Ray Allen and Wally as both are among the best shooters in the league and neither is known for blazing speed. It should definitely be an easier matchup for Ray than Joe Johnson was. PER 13.99

Small Forward LeBron James PPG 29.8 RPG 9.50 APG 7.7 EFF + 32.67

One reason James often ends up trying to make a heroic shot at the end of the clock is because there is so little going on up until that point. James tends to be far too methodical when attacking defenses, often waiting several seconds to read the defense before he attacks. That tends to bring the offense to a halt and makes it easier for help defenders to collapse on him. His habit of retreating when double-teamed on the pick-and-roll makes this problem worse. James is an amazingly good ball handler for his size, acting as the Cavs' de facto point guard and ranking 12th among small forwards in assist ratio. He's almost impossible to stop once he gets some momentum toward the basket and, though a streaky shooter, can get his shot off over anyone. James is also a devastating finisher in transition and Delonte should help him in pushing the tempo. Pierce has done a good job of playing LeBron in the past and this may be one of the best matchups in the league. PER 29.23

Power Forward Ben Wallace PPG 3.2 RPG 7.20 APG 1.3 EFF + 10.33 Wallace is not a threat on offense. Anything that isn't a dunk is pretty much a no-hoper, and even the dunks aren't a sure thing because the ball slips out of his small hands so often. He has never hit half his free throws in an NBA season and is at 41.7 percent for his career; some opponents have tried to take advantage of this weakness by fouling him intentionally. Among the league's 62 centers, Wallace ranked 60th in true shooting percentage. One thing Wallace can do is pass. Wallace had the second-best assist ratio at his position last season. He also had a low turnover ratio, which is pretty remarkable for a big man who rarely shoots -- most of these guys will have a high mark by virtue of setting illegal screens, but Wallace is almost never called for illegal picks. Although Wallace isn't a threat on offense, he is a very good defender and will make things difficult in the paint for the Celtics. I expect to see Perk matched up against Wallace more than KG since Perk and Wallace both like to play inside while Ilgauskas and KG would rather play farther from the basket. PER 11.98

Center Zydrunas Ilgauskas PPG 14.5 RPG 7.30 APG 1.5 EFF + 16.6

Ilgauskas is a very good shooter and can hit the inside shot as well as his favorite move which is a sweeping hook shot in the lane. Ilgauskas is also very dangerous on the offensive boards, where despite not much elevation, he has a knack for tipping the ball multiple times before either grabbing it or tipping it in. His height (7'3") makes him able to get a shot off over most defenders. Defensively, Ilgauskas has the size to be a factor around the basket, but struggles on defense when he is pulled farther from the basket. Teams try to attack him in screen-and-roll plays, where he struggles to help on the guard and still get back to his man. For that reason, Anderson Varejao often finished games in the middle instead of Ilgauskas. As stated above, I expect to see Ilgauskas matched up with KG much of the time. PER 18.76

Bench:

Anderson Varejao PPG 3.2 RPG 5.80 APG 1.0 EFF + 6.00

A high-energy player who is a good defende. Varejao can defend guards in the screen and roll but is tough enough to guard many centers and power forwards inside. He can be overpowered by bigger centers but otherwise holds his own. He is very good at drawing charges. He will sometimes be in the game at the end instead of Wallace due to his problems at the line. PER 12.02

Devin Brown PPG 5.2 RPG 3.00 APG 1.2 EFF + 3.50

Brown is a 6-5 wingman who handles the ball fairly well for his size and does a little of everything but is not exceptional at anything. He's a decent outside shooter who doesn't shoot very well off the dribble. He can defend both the 2 and 3 spots. PER 11.35

Daniel Gibson PPG 11.8 RPG 1.80 APG 3.2 EFF + 10.67

Gibson is 6'2 and has a deadly outside shot that is able to spread the floor a bit for LeBron. He has decent athleticism and speed. He plays close to 30 minutes per game and so is a big part of the Cavs rotation. Defensively, Gibson seems to do better against bigger point guards, especially in the playoffs. He seemed to have a much easier time defending bigger points like Chauncey Billups and Jason Kidd than he did chasing around Tony Parker and so Rondo could give him a lot more trouble than Sam would. PER 11.77

Joe Smith PPG 5.5 RPG 4.80 APG 0.3 EFF + 7.00

Joe Smith was the #1 pick in the 1995 draft and has never lived up to expectations but has had a solid career. Smith has a reliable midrange jump shot that he likes to shoot from the elbow on pick-and-pop plays, and also has a jump hook shot he can use on the occasional post-up. Smith is very active on the boards and will get points off second shots if the Celtics don't box him out. Because Smith is thin, he can be pushed out of position by bigger players near the basket. He is a good weak side defender and will often step in to take a charge in spite of his size. PER 16.22

Damon Jones PPG 1.0 RPG 0.00 APG 0.3 EFF -0.33

Jones will look to spot up for outside shots to spread the floor but that is about the end of his abilities. He doesn't rebound or set up teammates and doesn't look to penetrate. He isn't a very good free throw shooter. He is a defensive liability in that he can't stay with quicker guards and can be pushed around by stronger guards.

PER 11.31

Sasha Pavlovic PPG 0.0 RPG 0.00 APG 0.0 EFF -1.00

Pavlovic is athletic and can defend both wing positions and is a good finisher in transition. He is a very good defender and the Cavs have used him as their stopper against high-scoring wings, similar to Posey's role on the Celtics. Pavlovic is a poor ball handler and so won't often try to take players off the dribble. PER 7.28

Dwayne Jones PPG 0.7 RPG 1.00 APG 0.0 EFF + 1.33

Jones is the third Cavalier who formerly played for the Celtics. He is a good rebounder and a good defender in the paint. He is very strong and can get position in the post for rebounds and put backs.

A fourth former Celtic is on the inactive list in Lance Allred who played for the Celtics summer league team this past summer.

The Celtics made a statement in this game as they won by 34 points, 99-65. The Hawks were never in this game as the Celtics bolted out to a 27-16 first quarter lead behind the superior play of Kendrick Perkins. He set the tone for the team right from the beginning, crashing the boards, blocking shots and playing lock down defense on anyone entering the paint. He had 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 blocks in the first quarter and finished the game with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks in just 26 minutes.

The Celtics didn't let up any in the second quarter and finished the half with a 44-26 lead. 26 points is the fewest allowed by a team in the playoffs. The refs in this game let the teams play rather than calling a foul on the Celtics every time down the floor. The free throws in this game were much more fairly distributed with the Celtics shooting 19 and the Hawks shooting 16. If the first 6 games were called this way, the Celtics would have won in 5 or 6 games at the most.

The Celtics continued where they left off in the second half and ran the lead up to 79-43 at the end of 3. Doc pulled the starters at the end of 3 and the bench held the lead until the end for a 99-65 final score. The fact that no starter played more than 32 minutes is good for Tuesday's game 1 versus Cleveland. The scoring was spread out with 5 players in double figures. Ray Allen was the only starter who didn't hit double figures as struggled from the field shooting 3-12 and finishing with 7 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. Pierce meant business right from the beginning and was the game's high scorer with 22 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. KG had a double double (18 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 block) and along with Perk, keyed the defense.

Rondo had a good game and finished with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal. He set the tone for the game. After a steal, he was ahead of everyone on a break and was grabbed around the neck and thrown to the ground by Marvin Williams. It looked as though he landed on his tail bone and could have been seriously injured. He stayed on the floor for a long time while the Celtics' nation collectively held it's breath. Williams was assessed a flagrant 2 and ejected. Ray Allen ran over after the foul and instead of picking a fight as some might have, he bent over to check on Rondo and there were no problems between the teams. Rondo got up eventually and calmly hit both free throws. He played well after the foul and so hopefully he is fine. What a tough kid.

Leon Powe once again played well and finished with 12 points and 4 rebounds. James Posey is showing why he was such an important factor in Miami's championship and why he will be key in this playoff run with 6 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks. PJ Brown played some very good defense and finished with 2 points, 1 rebound and 2 blocks in 13 minutes. Sam played just 7 minutes in this game but also provided some good defense with 2 points and 2 steals. Tony, Big Baby and Eddie House all played in the 4th quarter after the game was already decided.

The Celtics were dominant from start to finish. They out scored the Hawks 60 to 30 in the paint. They had 12 fast break points to just 2 for the Hawks. The Celtics shot 48% from the field while holding the Hawks to just 29%. The Celtics did a very good job of taking care of the ball with just 8 turnovers in this game.

As for the KG and ZaZa skirmish in game 4, I have to say KG got the last word. With just over 2 minutes to play in the 3rd, KG set a great pick and dropped Pachulia to the ground, allowing Rondo to run past. It was great. KG didn't take the bait this time when Pachulia came after him and just kept his arms across his chest. Doc wisely took KG out of the game at that point giving him that last play to savor as he prepares for the Cavs. Game 1 is Tuesday night at 8:00 PM ET.

As for the KG and ZaZa skirmish in game 4, I have to say KG got the last word. With just over 2 minutes to play in the 3rd, KG set a great pick and dropped Pachulia to the ground, allowing Rondo to run past. It was great. KG didn't take the bait this time when Pachulia came after him and just kept his arms across his chest. Doc wisely took KG out of the game at that point giving him that last play to savor as he prepares for the Cavs.

After a steal in game 7 of the Celtics-Hawks series, Rajon Rondo was ahead of everyone on a break and was grabbed around the neck and thrown to the ground by Marvin Williams. It looked as though he landed on his tail bone and could have been seriously injured. He stayed on the floor for a long time while the Celtics' nation collectively held it's breath. Williams was assessed a flagrant 2 and ejected. Ray Allen ran over after the foul and instead of picking a fight as some might have, he bent over to check on Rondo and there were no problems between the teams. Rondo got up eventually and calmly hit both free throws. He played well after the foul and so hopefully he is fine. What a tough kid.

I am pretty much speechless. The best defensive team in the league has completely forgotten how to play defense on the road. They allowed the Hawks to shoot 48% while only shooting 46% themselves. Once again they were out rebounded by the Hawks as they were in the other 2 losses in Atlanta. The in spite of good contributions from Posey and Powe off the bench, the Celtics' bench was out scored 26-19.

The refs again had a hand in this game as they called Paul Pierce for his 6th foul with 4:44 left in the 4th. It was a terrible call and Pierce let his frustration show by throwing his headband and drawing a technical for it. There were many other suspect calls in this game. The Hawks shot 47 free throws to only 25 for the Celtics although some of that differential was due to the fact that the Hawks continually drove to the basket while the Celtics once again settled for jumpers. But there were also quite a few bad calls that went against the Celtics.

The Celtics didn't seem to have much energy in the 4th quarter and allowed the Hawks to out score them 24-18 in the 4th quarter. Rondo played only 28 minutes tonight and I can't help but feel that that was a mistake. We are a better team with Rondo on the court. The Celtics game could be summarized by the final play where Rondo brought the ball down with 7.4 seconds left and with the Celtics down 3. Instead of setting up one of the 3 point shooters (House, Posey and Ray were all on the court), Rondo took the 3 himself and missed everything to seal the 103-100 victory for the Hawks.

The Celtics had 4 players in double figures as Pierce, KG, Ray, and Perkins all scored in double figures. The Hawks had 6 players in double figures. This was a replay of game 4. The Celtics had a 12 point lead at the end of 1 and allowed the Hawks to fight back into it to trail by only 1 at the half. Then the Celtics held a 3 point lead going into the 4th and then allowed the Hawks to out score them 24-18 in the fourth quarter. The Hawks got all the loose balls and simply played like they wanted it more.

So, we go back to Boston for game 7. It never should have come to this. The Cavs won tonight and will be getting a nice long rest while waiting for the Celtics to close out their series. Let's hope the Celtics once again can find their defense on their home court or we will be left with a lot of time to figure out what went wrong.

After reading comments from both Celtics fans and Hawks fans after game 5, I started wondering if we were watching the same game. It seems that fans of both teams thought that the refs were helping the other team.

First, here are some thoughts from Hawks fans:

We got fouled SO many times and didn't have it called...They have to foul us because we are so much more athletic than them.

Yeah. I remember a few BS charges as well as the laughable lane violation and moving screen.

That 2nd foul call on JJ was horrible. It was a 100% flop by Poe.

i think that 90% of the fouls called could have been called better by a mentally retarded beaver thats been on too much pcp

That was a horrible call indeed. Ill rarely say this but the calls have decidedly gone bostons way tonight

Yeah, as soon as it was announced that Joe Forte, and Dick Bavetta were two of the officials; I knew the calls were going to totally favor the Celtics. It's like David Stern specifically called the officials he could count on to officiate the game more one sided.

Honestly i think someone should investigate the shady refs and stern for that matter. i think its all apart of his diabolical plan to "Give" Boston the championship.

They definitely got all the calls from the refs tonight.

It definitely seems as though the game was called one way in favor of the Celtics. From reading these comments, it doesn't seem like the Celtics even got one foul called against them.

But then, here are some comments from Celtics fans:

The Celtics are capable of such a high level of basketball, that despite the best effort of the officials to give lowly Atlanta a boost, the Celtics still rolled over them.

The refs called a very tight game when the C's were on defense, and a very loose one when the Hawks were defending. Free throws accounted for 29.4% of Atlanta's point production.

I've come to the conclusion that NBA officials must have put a significant amount of money on the Atlanta Hawks.

Even in a Celtics' victory, the officiating was so excruciatingly bad that the game was hard to watch.

I'm tired of watching Rondo get knocked to the floor and Pierce get elbowed out of bounds on one side of the floor with no call, then seeing the Celtics get called for minimal contact on the other side of the floor.

I hate to keep picking on the Refs, but it has seemed that in these last 3 games they have been trying to get Boston to not be so intense and they feel the Hawks should get the benefit of the doubt.

That Phantom call on Pierce was nothing more than "I will show you who is in control" by the Refs. Also the Refs botched at least two Offensive calls and instead gave PP the Defensive fouls. I am really in favor of a fine for Refs who blow calls like those.

The refs seemed to call every touch foul on the Celtics while letting the Hawks hack, grab and shove with nothing callled. those two blocking fouls on pierce were horrible. He was clearly set and out of the circle. terrible job by the refs.

The refs did everything they could to help the Hawks win and the Celtics still blew them out. Just think if the refs had been fair. We woulda beat them by 40.

After reading these comments you would think that the refs didn't call a single foul on the Hawks while fouling out every Celtic.

I think the truth lies somewhere between these two views. Celtics fans watch the game through green colored glasses and the Hawks fans watch through red colored glasses. In truth, the refs are just bad. They make terrible calls and non calls on both teams. Celtics fans just seen the ones on the Celtics and Hawks fans just see the ones on the Hawks. But, in reality, they are blowing calls on both teams. There is one thing that can't be refuted, though, and that is the fact that in this series so far, the Hawks have taken 45 more free throws than the Celtics (155 to 110). The Celtics have also been called for 21 more personal fouls than the Hawks. While both sides saw the game called against them, and the refs are blowing calls on both sides, the numbers seem to back up the Celtics fans point of view.

The Celtics looked more like the team that won 66 games in the regular season in this game. They got back to the basics that made them the best team in basketball this season as they played team defense, moved the ball to find the open man and the bench came in and gave the team some valuable minutes. The Celtics had 6 players in double figures led by Leon Powe with 10 points and 7 rebounds (5 on the offensive end), James Posey with 6 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, and Sam Cassell who finished with 13 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist.

Paul Pierce had the best game of the series as he finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists and he was more aggressive taking the ball to the basket and more aggressive on defense. Perk spent much of the first half on the bench with foultrouble but played great defense in 22 minutes of play finishing with 2points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 block. Rondo had another solid game with 12 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists 1 steal and 1 block. Ray Allen hit some big three pointers in the fourth quarter and finished with 19 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists.

The game was once again very chippy with Horford being charged with a flagrant foul for grabbing KG around the neck and throwing him to the floor with 57 seconds left in the half. With 3:14 left in the third quarter, both KG and Joe Johnson were called for technicals for talking and getting a bit heated. In the fourth quarter the Hawks coach and Josh Smith were both called for technicals. There were several hard fouls on both sides with Ray raking Horford across the face on one foul. The refs did a good job of keeping it all in check, though.

The Celtics bench came up big tonight, outscoring the Hawks bench 35 - 14 with Leon Powe leading the way, filling in very well for Perk when he went out with 2 quick fouls. Doc didn't need to over play his starters with KG and Ray playing 37 minutes, Pierce playing 33 minutes and Rondo playing 31 minutes. The Celtics were hustling and diving for loose balls. Rondo lost some skin on his wrist diving for a loose ball at one point. The Celtics also showed their effort as they out-rebounded the Hawks 39-28 after being out-rebounded in both games in Atlanta. The Celtics did a great job of taking care of the ball with just 10 turnovers.

Most importantly, the Celtics defense was back. They doubled Johnson every time he touched the ball and they played great team defense, preventing the Hawks from running and getting easy baskets as they did in the previous two games. The Celtics shot 54% from the field while holding the Hawks to 41%. The Hawks went 25-29 from the line while the Celtics were 11-15 so once again, the Hawks got to the line almost twice as much as the Celtics.

The Wizards beat the Cavs in Cleveland forcing that series to a 6th game also which is good news for the Celtics. If the Cavs had closed out that series tonight they would have had a chance to rest up before the 2nd round started. The Celtics need to win in Atlanta on Friday so they can be the team getting some rest. All seems to be right in Celtics Land again.

I'm as nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs today. All season long, I was certain that the Celtics would come out and play tough team defense and that would at least lead to a chance to beat any team in the league. After watching the Celtics defense disintegrate and be nowhere to be found in the last two games, I just don't know which team will show up tonight. Will the Good Celtics show up? Can they pull together as a team and get back to playing team defense and shut down the Hawks? Or, will the Bad Celtics show up and allow the Hawks to get off any shot they want including getting to the hoop at will? I just don't know. But I hope that these Celtics can go back to the way they played all season and put an end to this nonsense. The Celtics are the better team and it is time they started to act like it.

The Celtics have now resorted to giving out tee shirts for tonight's game. I guess it is a case of if nothing else is working let's pump up the fans a bit more.

The Cavs and Wizards play again tonight with the Cavs having a chance to close out the series tonight. If they do, that means that they get a long rest before they play again because the Celtics will have at least one more game to play after tonight. Delonte has suddenly become the key to that series and the key to making Cleveland's attack work. I am really happy that Delonte landed in a good spot. I would love to have him come back to Boston, but I am pretty sure Cleveland is going to keep him.

I still have concerns about Doc as head coach. Coaching becomes so much more important in the playoffs as it becomes a chess match between coaches in making adjustments for the next game. So far, Doc seems to be playing checkers and not chess. Doc has never won a playoff series but he never had talent like he does this season. But he has the talent and we find ourselves tied with a team we should have swept. Ok, granted that the Hawks may have surprised us for game 3, but the adjustments should have been made and the team prepared to match them in game 4 and come away with that win and yet we didn't. You could say that the players settled for too many jumpers and didn't attack. The coach is supposed to call for those changes and ensure that his players implement them. The coach is supposed to change strategies if one isn't working. If they players aren't playing right. If they aren't playing team defense, it is up to the coach to get them to do it. We know what these players are capable of and yet they aren't doing it. I have to keep coming back to the coaches. I want to believe in Doc, I really do. But, I keep having these concerns and he hasn't allayed them yet.

And I know I am not alone in my concerns. This was a recurring theme in Bill Simmons' chat yesterday. Here is a quote from his chat that I found interesting:

I'll say this: It took 72 hours to undo 84 games - they don't have a rotation anymore, every bench guy has lost his confidence except Posey, and everyone is looking for their own shot. What scares me is that they played hard in both games. By the way, I'm typing this chat with 2 broken hands - after Doc left Ray Allen on Joe Johnson for the entire fourth quarter, I sparred for 10 rounds with the wall next to my sofa.

If Doc can right the ship and get the Celtics back to playing like they played for the 84 games before their meltdown in Atlanta, I will give Doc the credit for doing a great job, but if they can't, you have to look at the coaching because you can't say he doesn't have the players to get it done any longer.

This off season may set a record for the number of head coaching hirings. Already there have been New York, Chicago, Charlotte and Miami with reports of Phoenix and Dallas soon to follow. With all these teams looking for coaches I don't see any way Tom Thibodeau doesn't land one of them. We need to get ready to face a formidable defense in one of our opponents next season. I give Thibodeau a lot of credit for how good this team is this season, but I don't know if he will make a great head coach as from all reports, he isn't a media kind of guy and isn't really a people person. He is great at game analysis and x's and o's but whether he can deal with the personalities of the players and the media remains to be seen. Doc excels in these areas and that is what makes Doc and Tom a great coaching duo. The have very complementary strengths.

I really have a problem with David Stern and his officials. In many games the refs clearly have an agenda or else they are so incompetent it isn't funny. In Violet Palmer's case the latter may be true, but most of the other refs can't miss that many calls in a game without trying to. In many cases they are right there and looking at the play and still don't make the call. Whether it comes from the league to influence the outcome of a game for some reason or whether it comes from the individual officials, there is something rotten in the state of the officiating. I was hoping that after the Tim Donaghy scandal that the league would tighten up and we would see them call the games more cleanly but no such hope. If anything, the officiating this season has been even worse over all. And the worst thing about it is that players, coaches and owners can't do a thing about it. If you question the refs, you are fined, suspended or otherwise disciplined. They are little Napoleons out there with no one to question their authority. There was a huge disparity in free throws in game 4. Some of that was because the Hawks were attacking the basket more than the Celtics, but there was a lot of contact that wasn't called when the Celtics did drive. Maybe that's why the Celtics stopped driving. They were getting mugged and weren't getting the calls anyway. Josh Smith should have fouled out if they called all of his fouls inside. In the meantime, on the other end, the Celtics were called for touch fouls and even phantom contact. Stern would be much better suited to get his own house in order with his officials instead of worrying about who is making what sign on the sidelines of a game. Otherwise, we haven't seen the last of the scandals involving the officials.

The Celtics dodged a huge bullet when the league announced yesterday that there would be no suspensions resulting from the game 4 skirmish. Losing both Perk and KG would have almost guaranteed a loss in game 5. All I could think of was how the league suspended Amare Stoudamire last season and that, in effect, gave the series to San Antonio. I love Perk. I love his work ethic. I love his attitude. I love his honesty. Here is Perk's reaction yesterday while waiting to hear if he would be suspended.

"If they look at the film they'll see that I was already up when the fight started," said the center, who is often up off his seat and straddling the sidelines. "To be honest, I wasn't thinking about that. It's hard to be thinking about something like that at the time. You're into the game, really.

"I didn't realize until I watched it on tape last night. Whatever happens happens. If I do get suspended, I believe that we can win the game."

"Right now I'm just really saying my prayers," he said. "I'm already mentally prepared for either one but I want to play. If I did the wrong thing I did the wrong thing. I just gotta man up and suffer the consequences."

On the other hand, here is KG's reaction:

"Suspended? For what?" he asked incredulously. "No, the ref grabbed me."

Game 5 tonight is the biggest game of the year for the Celtics. They have to get back to what got them here and come out strong and most importantly, play defense. I expect the crowd to be loud enough to rock the building to its foundation. And, I expect my Celtics to come out and play like we have come to expect them to. Here's to Ubuntu, rebounding and defense.

Atlanta Hawks (2-2) at Boston Celtics (2-2)

Postseason Game #5 – Home Game #3

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

8:30 PM ET

TNT, CSN HD

TD Banknorth Garden

Probable Starting Matchups

PG: Rajon Rondo vs Mike Bibby

SG: Joe Johnson vs Ray Allen

SF: Paul Pierce vs Marvin Williams

PF: Kevin Garnett vs Josh Smith

C: Kendrick Perkins vs Al Horford

Sixth Man: James Posey vs Josh Childress

Key Matchups

Ray Allen vs Joe Johnson

Joe Johnson almost single handedly beat the Celtics in game 4 scoring 22 of his 35 points in the 4th quarter. Look for the Celtics to double Johnson or put Posey or Tony Allen on him to try to slow him down. Ray needs to make him work harder on the defensive end to take a little more out of him on offense.

Kevin Garnett vs Josh Smith

In the 4th quarter of tame 4, the only two players to score were Joe Johnson and Josh Smith. Smith finished the game with 28 points. KG is going to have to apply more of what made him the defensive player of the year to slow down Smith who along with Johnson has been beating the Celtics in a two man attack.

Rajon Rondo vs Mike Bibby

The matchup of the point guards is still an important one. Rondo completely out played Bibby in the two games in Boston but in Atlanta, Bibby found his game again. Rondo will need to keep Bibby from hitting those open 3's and will also have to make him work on defense by taking the ball to the hoop.

Keys to the Game

DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE!!!!! The major reason the Celtics lost games 3 and 4 is that they went away from playing the kind of defense that made them the best defensive team in the league during the regular season. The Celtics allowed the Hawks to shoot 48% in the two games in Atlanta and that just isn't acceptable. They need to control the pace instead of allowing the Hawks to do that and they can do that by clamping down on defense. They must get back to basics and play the smothering team defense that they have played all season. It is defense that will win this series and the championship.

Rebound As the old saying goes: "Offense sells tickets, defense wins games, rebounding wins championships." I think this is because the majority of rebounding is effort and desire and the team that wants it more and puts out more effort will get more rebounds and will win the game. The Celtics were out-rebounded in both games in Atlanta and they need to put out the effort on the boards to limit their second and third chance shots.

Free Throws The Celtics missed 8 free throws in game 4 and lost by only 5. Missing free throws is the result of a lack of focus. The Celtics need to regain their focus and when they do, they will hit more of their free throws. They can't afford to give away any points, especially from the free throw line.

Be Aggressive The Celtics have been settling for too many jumpers. They need to be more aggressive in taking the ball to the basket and either get the basket or draw the foul. They must also be more aggressive going after loose balls and rebounds. They have allowed the Hawks to be the more aggressive team, attacking the basket and going after loose balls etc. The Celtics must now become the aggressors and attack the basket.

Ball Movement The Celtics must get back to moving the ball and finding the open man instead of each player trying to run his own offense. They have taken too many quick shots and have gotten away from the team offense that has made them so successful all year.

X-Factor

BenchPlay Other than James Posey, the bench hasn't been getting it done in the last two games. In the first two games, the bench played very well and gave the team a boost when they came in as well as giving the starters a rest without giving up anything on the court. The bench must be more effective on both ends of the court.

Game Notes:

We all thought that Game 3 was a wake up call for the Celtics as they got beat by a team they had dominated for the first two games and that they were expected to sweep. Pierce was fired up after being taunted by Horford. KG was mad. Perk had his nose blooded. They should have come out with focus and put them away in game 4. But, they must have hit the snooze alarm because although there were spurts of the Celtics who won the first 2 games in the series, those spurts were brief.

The Celtics have allowed the Hawks to build confidence and they are not going to just lie down and let the Celtics beat them. But, the Celtics have beaten the top teams in the league all season with their defense and team play and if they can find their focus and get back to that stifling team defense and get back to ubuntu, they should be able to beat this Hawks team.

The Celtics are coming home and Doc has cautioned them not to expect everything to be ok just because they are home. They have to work to fix what went wrong in Atlanta. The Celtics must get back to playing the team defense that made them the best defensive team in the league. That defense was nowhere to be found in Atlanta. How does a team forget how to play the defense they played all season?

The Celtics also have to be more aggressive and take the ball to the hoop more and settle for jumpers less. They have to be more aggressive going after rebounds and loose balls. They need to get back to moving the ball to find the open man. And, they have to get their focus back. They let the Hawks take them completely out of their game and let the young Hawks frustrate them. It shouldn't be all that hard since they played that kind of ball for 84 games and played the crappy kind of ball for the last two. Hopefully all that learned behavior will come back to them and they will come out with the win. Time is running out and the Celtics must snap out of their fog and once again dominate this series or their season could be over way too early.

The Celtics started this game off strong as they got out to an 18-3 lead behind 6-7 shooting. But, then the shots stopped falling for them and the Hawks climbed back to take a 29-24 lead at the end of the first quarter as Pierce, KG and then Rondo all went to the bench with 2 fouls in the first quarter.

Leon Powe, James Posey, Ray Allen, Big Baby, and Sam Cassell started the second quarter. Pierce and KG soon came back in and with 4 minutes gone in the second quarter, KG caught Pachulia with an elbow as he was clearing space. Pachulia then got in KG's face and was shouting at him and then head butted him. To KG's credit, he didn't retaliate and kept his hands down to his side. However, Sam got into it with Joe Johnson and 4 technicals were called. KG got a technical for throwing the elbow and Sam, Johnson and Pachulia all got technicals for their part in the fight. The coaches moved quickly to keep their players on the bench but film showed that Perk and Marvin Williams both took one step onto the court before being pushed back. Whether the league takes action and suspends them will be decided later. After the fight, the Celtics kept it close and ended the quarter down 51-48.

The Celtics came out in the third quarter looking like the Celtics that won 66 games this season. They took the ball to the hoop and played team defense on the Hawks and outscored the Hawks 24-13 to take a 75-65 lead into the fourth quarter.

Everything that they did right in the third quarter, they suddenly did wrong in the fourth quarter. The Hawks chipped away at the Celtics lead and took an 81-79 lead with just over 5 to play in the game. The Hawks couldn't miss and the Celtics couldn't hit. The final score was Hawks 97 and Celtics 92

The officiating in this game was as bad as any I have seen all year and it was decidedly one sided. The Celtics shot 18 free throws while the Hawks shot 33 free throws. Some of that was because the Celtics continually settled for jumpers instead of attaching the rim, but most of it was because the refs were allowing a lot of contact from the Hawks while calling touch fouls on the Celtics. Even though the officiating was terrible, the Celtics cost themselves the game.

The best defensive team in the league simply didn't play defense. They allowed the Hawks to shoot 48% while shooting just 41% themselves. They constantly settled for jumpers even though the jumpers weren't falling. They didn't attack the basket and weren't aggressive going after rebounds, allowing the Hawks to out rebound them for the second game in a row. I have to feel that much of this loss has to be on the coaches. Doc should have demanded that they stop shooting jumpers and take the ball to the hoop. Doc's rotations and substitutions are also somewhat questionable.

The Celtics now go home for game 5 tied at 2 games apiece in a series that they were expected to, and should have swept. They need to do some soul searching and get back to the basics that made them such a dominant team all season. In the two games in Atlanta, they were playing timidly and weren't the aggressors. They need to get back to playing team defense and being more aggressive. If they don't figure out what went wrong in these last two games and make the adjustments to correct it, the dream season that we have had so far could very easily become a nightmare.

According to the Boston Herald:

This just in from the NBA office:

Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce and Washington Wizards guard DeShawn Stevenson have each been fined $25,000 for making menacing gestures during games played this weekend, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President Basketball Operations.

The incident involving Pierce occurred in the fourth period of the Celtics' 102-93 Game 3 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on April 26. The incident involving Stevenson occurred in the first period of the Wizards' 100-97 Game 4 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on April 27.

So, they fined Pierce for making a menacing gesture. Haven't seen where they fined Horford for taunting that led to the gesture from Pierce. So, now we have Perk getting a tech for looking and Pierce getting fined for gesturing. But, Smith can body slam Pierce and not even get a technical for it. And, Horford can wag his finger in Pierce's face and who knows what he said and nothing is done. Not to mention that the Hawks can disable the shot clocks in a move that clearly favored the home team and that is ok, too. The NBA... where amazing happens.

After watching the Spurs get totally beat down by the Suns in their game 4, I don't feel so bad about the Celtics loss to the Hawks. The Spurs were just totally outplayed in that game. But then again, the Hawks can't be considered in the Suns category. Every team can let down and get beat by a team that isn't as good, but how they respond in the next game will be the key.

I really think the shot clock situation in Atlanta affected the Celtics more than it affected the Hawks. The game was tied at the half. The Celtics usually come out strong in the 3rd quarter but, without he shot clock, they seemed disoriented and out of sync. The Celtics tend to take most of their shots as the shot clock winds down after moving the ball and looking for the open man and the best shot so not knowing how much time was on the shot clock affected their timing and shot selection. The Hawks tend to take most of their shots before 15 seconds on the shot clock so it didn't bother them not to have the shot clock. Add to that the fact that the PA guy who was counting down the seconds seemed to use 2 different watches to time the teams. The Celtics were down 10 at the end of the third quarter without the shot clock. Then, when the shot clock mysteriously reappeared in the 4th quarter, the Celtics went on a run. It reminded me of some of the things that Red used to do in the old Garden to gain an advantage from turning off the hot water to the vistors' locker room to turning the heat on in their locker room in the summer and off in the winter.

I always cringe when I see Violet Palmer officiating one of the Celtics games. I have no idea how she got to work the playoff games because she really is one of the worst refs in the league. When I see her I know that we will have trouble because she will call phantom fouls and ignore the real fouls. It has nothing to do with her gender but everything to do with her incompetence.

I think Doc made a mistake in game 3 by not playing Leon more. Perk had gotten hit in the nose and looked a bit dazed and only played 18 minutes. Leon only played 6 minutes and Doc went with Big Baby more. Big Baby is a good rebounder and brings a lot of energy to the game, but he isn't an enforcer and doesn't bring the toughness to the interior defense that Perk and Leon bring. Without that interior force to play along with KG, it opened the middle for a lot of dunks and layups.

It was great to see Delonte hit the game winner for the Cavs in their game 4 to put the Cavs up 3-1. I really still like Delonte and am happy to see him doing well. I can imagine that if the Celtics play the Cavs in round 2, a Rondo - Delonte matchup will be interesting since they played against each other for a year in practice. I would love to see Delonte come back to Boston some time in the future. He is a great kid with a lot of personality. He and Big Baby would get along great as the class clowns. But, if we do play the Cavs in the next round, Delonte becomes the enemy, for that series, anyway.

There has been a lot of speculation about the sign that Pierce made to Horford in game 3. Pierce had gone for a steal and ended up on the floor. Horford went past and got to the hoop for a dunk. On his way back on defense he stopped to taunt and talk some trash to Pierce as he still sat on the floor. A time out was called and Pierce got up with a very fierce look on his face and started walking toward the Hawks bench before Scal came out to herd him back to the Celtics bench. While he was walking, Pierce flashed a sign that has been cause for much speculation among Hawks fans and Celtics fans alike.

Many people feel that Pierce is flashing a Piru gang sign. Others say that he was holding up 3 fingers to signify that it was just the 3rd game. I have also seen the explanation that he was holding up a zero as in the Hawks have zero chance to win the series. I guess it depends on whether you are willing to give Pierce the benefit of the doubt as to which theory you believe. I prefer to think he was saying that it was just the 3rd game or that he would have to win 3 more games.

Posted on the site is also a photo of JoseCalderon making a similar gesture with both hands and I would hazard a guess that he is making this sign after having made a 3 pointer. Although Pierce was also shooting daggers with his eyes, I really don't see him flashing a gang symbol at Horford. I would say that it is much ado about nothing.

The Celtics flew to Atlanta and apparently left their defense in Boston. There was no sight of the league's best defense in this game as the Celtics allowed the Hawks to shoot 47% for the game and 56% from beyond the arc. Apparently the Celtics left their effort in Boston also as they allowed the Hawks to out-rebound them 43-35. The effort and focus just weren't there for the Celtics in