Maybe the world isn’t ending.
Following a putrid stretch when the defending champions lost seven of nine, the Boston Celtics have regained much of their swagger with six consecutive wins by an average of 16 points per game. Thursday night, the Celtics venture to Orlando to play the hottest, and arguably best, team in the NBA. Regardless of the outcome, do Boston fans still have reason to worry about the chances of Green 18?
I’m not worried, but there’s reason for concern.
The days of the Celtics' gaudy 27-2 record seem like ages ago. The hopes of challenging the Chicago Bulls' 1995-96 record of 72-10 are over. Finito. What exactly happened? Is Boston’s high-octane mentality counterproductive? Did they run themselves so ragged in their 19-game winning streak that each member of the New Big 3’s tank is empty by January? The streak-ending, dinner-spoiling Christmas Day loss to the Lakers was understandable. The defeats at the hands of Cleveland and the Roy-less Blazers were even acceptable. But losses to Golden State, New York, Charlotte and Houston at home were nauseating.
The C's will play the Magic tonight on the second day of a back-to-back, and although Boston defeated Orlando 107-88 on Dec. 1, that was before the Magic went on the road and defeated all three Western Conference division leaders in a span of seven days, before they won 16 of 18, and before the Celtics showed the NBA they are not invincible.
Prior to the Celtics mini winning streak, they were playing an uninspired brand of basketball so unfamiliar, so unprecedented since Boston lost the Oden Sweepstakes, swung a trade for Ray Allen and convinced KG that Boston might not be worst place in the world to play. Fans were so distraught, callers were phoning in suggesting the Celtics' brass deal Rajon Rondo for Marcus Camby. Although predictable, and an absurd suggestion, it wasn’t unwarranted. Boston's bench has been so listless that management is reportedly considering acquiring Starbury and his tattooed head to in an attempt to breathe a diseased breath into its reserves. The organization and its fans alike are clamoring for the days when PJ Brown was averaging 12 minutes, two points and four rebounds points per game.
While there is obvious sarcasm in my tone, and the aforementioned proposal of a trade of Rondo ridiculous, the Green do need to do something about their bench. I will not pretend to know more about the Celtics than the Celtics do, but a lack of size is obvious to a layman. In Monday’s steamrolling of Phoenix, Boston was without the services of Kendrick Perkins due to injury. So who did they trot out to cover Shaquille O’Neal? Brian Scalabrine. Yes, the Celtics were up 30 at the half, and Shaquille O’Neal is half the player in skill he used to be, but when Boston’s so-called beloved red head is the backup plan to guard one of the top five centers in the history of the game, how well does that bode for the Celtics’ championship chances if Perkins injury lingers or he suffers from early foul trouble against the likes of Dwight Howard?
If the Celtics beat the Magic tonight, everyone can stay put on the bandwagon. If they avoid another stretch similar to that experienced in late December and early January, everyone can remain safely buckled en route to the playoffs. If they lose, well, Orlando is a great team with a phenomenal player. The Celtics will stay make the playoffs, after all. I won't be worried. Will you?
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