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There’s not much that can be written that hasn’t been written or said somewhere over the past 12 hours about the really incredible run these Celtics have gone on. Let’s recap: this team had 24 wins last year, they didn’t get the first or second pick. If they had, who knows how good they would have been, but a team of Rondo/Durant/Pierce/Al Jefferson/Perkins just doesn’t quite have that same allure to it now. The Lakers made a nice step up this year too but all year the hype was about the team in green and it sure ended that way.

Chris and I will be back soon to put our wraps on this remarkable season and what there is looking forward. Back in November, the Celtics started the season with blowout win over blowout win over Washington and the rest of the league. Ahead in June, the Celtics end the season with a blwout win over the Lakers in Boston and how could you want it any other way? Although won’t it be weird to say 17-time champion?

Cheers!

Paul Pierce’s words after the game. Who would’ve thought? After the first quarter down 21 points (the largest first quarter deficit in NBA Finals history by the way - looks like teams are 1-0 when trailing by more than 20 points after one in the Finals). After the Celtics rallied and then got thrown down again at the half to be down by 18. After Perk got hurt and didn’t come back with a shoulder injury. After Sam Cassell came in the game. But the C’s did come back and it’s even more amazing than that Nets game because it’s the Finals (obviously) and it’s in LA. The C’s usually play better in LA than most road venues (Antoine Walker banking in a fall-away three for a win at the Lakers always sticks in my mind) but still.

Here’s what sticks out in my mind: that second quarter rally that was squashed was still huge. It showed that the Celts could come back in the game - they could roll off 12 straight and not be stymied to say a 6 point rally over 2 minutes like the Pistons often did. Late in the third quarter when Posey picked up his 5th foul and Tony Allen came in for only 2+ minutes, the Celtics went on a 12-2 run to finish the quarter. That was huge…no one will get this but it was Billy Fucillo huge (look online or ask your friends in upstate New York or Mexico). Allen didn’t score but he stepped right into Posey’s shoes and was a factor with a defensive rebound.

Rondo played less than 20 minutes in this game and down the stretch Ray Allen and sometimes Posey handled the ball. No Cassell either - House was in. Ray Allen/House/Posey/Pierce/Garnett - small lineup with tons of shooters. A lineup that Chris and I talked about extensively during the year as being a dynamic shooting lineup that spread the floor like none other and with 20 seconds left, Ray beats Vucacic and with everyone in the four corners and KG setting the screen, Allen just laid it in. Paul said right after the game they knew no one could help on defense because they’d be too far away. I love that lineup and it only took 24 playoff games to get it in for an extended stretch in a big moment (that I can remember).

Celtics finished with 11 turnovers - I don’t have it in front of me but I think they had nine in the first half and six in the first quarter. And the defense obviously worked after the first quarter, points wise, intensity wise and not-letting-Gasol dunk wise. Two off days and then maybe the clincher Sunday in LA. Oh also let it be known our loyal listener Adam from Wellesley has seen three wins and 0 losses in person for these finals and he’s going to be there for game five. Celticscast luck is on his side. He also pointed out via email the C’s were 16-21 when trailing by 8 or more in a game this year. Now they’re 17-21 and in my opinion that’s better than I would ever think - down nearly double digits and winning nearly half the time? Great game great finish and now onto the fifth game for hopefully the pinnacle of a great season.

Gotta love it. Very entertaining game - the subplots of Pierce going down and coming back. But the key as in almost any sport at a championship level was defense and (a little more basketball specific) rebounding.

Pierce/Posey and yes Ray Allen did a tremendous second half job on Kobe. He could not get to the rim - even when one of the two was guarding Kobe he couldn’t shake them most of the time and help was always there in the few instances the D was initially beat. Bryant to the tune of 9-26 shows that. In postgame, Kobe insisted he had lots of good looks. I’ll be happy to see him have those good looks for the second half.

Chris and I were pretty confident back in February when PJ and Cassell joined the fold that Brown would be the bigger acquisition. I know Cassell made some shots in the first half, but he still drives me crazy with those “I’ll take it up, dribble, dribble, then dribble then shoot” possessions that he still has. PJ was noticed by the announcing crew and found his way into the spotlight but again it wasn’t boxscore - it was intensity and being a part of moving the ball that worked for him.

I love the crowd - Boston doesn’t need ‘de-fense’ on the scoreboard every possession or noise meters constantly to have chants or loudness. Sure those things happen but not as much as in other NBA arenas. Lakers fans will be good as well - thank goodness it’s not San Antonio with 10 seconds of hip-hop, pop and drumbeats playing every time up the floor.

Shot of the game: Pierce’s (two) threes at the end of the third quarter. Momentum, 6 points, a lead, crowd intensity, a statement - these two had it all and they happened because the Celtics “RAN THE BALL!” Yes Tommy they ran and it worked twice…in a row. Awesome.

Check the site often thru the series - Chris has got interviews lined up for tomorrow and we’ll be back Saturday for our game 2 preview and game one thoughts via the audio platform.

Interesting article we’ll be discussing on the Young Guns tomorrow, mostly because of the superb sources used (especially the one seven paragraphs down).

Also, we discussed our all time Celtics and Lakers teams. First of all, it’s fairly incredible how good those teams would be. Second, I hate to say it, but when alls said and done, I really like the Lakers as the better all time franchise:

Lakers:

PG: Magic Johnson

SG: Jerry West

SF: Kobe Bryant

PF: Kareem Abdul Jabbar

C: Wilt Chamberlain

Bench: James Worthy, Elgin Baylor, Shaqullie O’Neal, George Mikan, Gail Goodrich

Coach: Phil Jackson

Celtics:

PG: Bob Cousy

SG: John Havlicek

SF: Larry Bird

PF: Bill Russell

C: Robert Parrish

Bench: Dave Cowens, Tommy Heinson, Kevin McHale, Bill Sharman, Bill Walton

Coach: Red Auerbach

Both teams are phenomenal, consider this, I left 6 guys off the Lakers team who are in the Hall of Fame and 10 Celtics (12 if you want to count Paul Pierce and KG). The all-time roster really reflects the franchises, the Celtics were the deeper team in the 50s and 60s, hence their dominance. The Lakers team wins, despite the fact that the C’s have more guys in Springfield. All you have to do is look at the sheer talent and athleticism at the top of that Lakers team. Three of the five best centers in history, the biggest mis-match at guard in history, the 2nd best scoring guard I’ve ever seen after Michael Jordan, and the guy on the NBA logo.

The Celtics have more Hall of Famers, but I’m hard pressed to say better talent because the Lakers guys are so good at the top of that list. The C’s also have more titles, but ask yourself this, if you’re a basketball fan…which team would you rather have been a fan of over the years? I’d have to say the Lakers, who never really went through a long period of being irrelevant as the C’s have done. Also, the Lakers, not the Celtics, were the first NBA dynasty in the early 50s.

Other franchises that put out pretty great all time teams include the Sixers (great line-up gets even better if you give them Wilt), Hawks (they can put 10 Hall of Famers on their all-time roster if you include St. Louis) and the Pistons (from Ft. Wayne to the Bad Boys).

New Celticscast tomorrow, but let’s hear your all-time teams for the C’s and/or Lakers, and if you think the best Celtics could beat the best Lakers in their prime, plus let us know what you think about the upcoming series…all those thoughts can be sent to hosts@celticscast.com.

Go C’s!

…is probably what you’re asking yourself right now.  Well, I’ll tell you.  Due to some personal issues on the part of your beloved hosts, we have been unable to produce a Celticscast for some time now.  We won’t go into what the issues were aside to say that everything is fine, and unfortunately, they couldn’t possibly have come at a worse time.

The good news is, we’re back, and better than ever.  During the Finals, we’ll be producing shows for each game, and I’ll be hitting you all up with some segments from the Young Guns as well.  Hope you’ve enjoyed this Celtics run as much as we have, and we look forward to finishing it out and bringing home banner 17!

54-54, 8:34 3rd qtr: Didn’t take long to tie this one up. Ray hit a jumper and the C’s really came out fired up. Rondo is really wreaking havoc on the defensive side, might not be doing much offensively but a bunch of steals (ok 2) and deflections.

68-64 Pistons, 2:47 3rd qtr.: Celtics 15-4 run immediately refuted by a 12-2 Pistons run…Rondo picked up a dumb technical so the teams are now even at a point apiece given away by T’s…The Celts are using far less time on the shot clock on each possession which can work to speed up the pace but can kill you if you give up a quick run - we’ve seen both this quarter. Allen made a few more shots but he still hasn’t knocked down a 3 and now has 5 fouls…

78-69 Pistons, End of 3rd qtr: Free throws are just killing the C’s now, Rondo with a face guard, then Garnett off the ball foul, Pierce with a turnover that leads to a foul all in the last 3 minutes of the quarter…it’s now Pistons up 25-22 in points off free throws…not a huge margin but to have the road team with more points from the line is usually not the case in a matchup like this…BIG 3 by Rasheed to end the third quarter to bring the lead back to nine, slowly building it back up after the Celtics had taken the lead…

86-79 Pistons, 6.55 4th qtr: Ray Allen just slammed the ball home to finish an impressive drive but here’s an unhappy rant. Too many times the Celtics are standing around - ESPECIALLY on the fast break situations. Where is everybody? I might have a partial reason: for the most part Detroit has had the ball longer in their possessions than the Celtics so Boston’s playing a whole lot of defense. In the playoffs especially, defense is where you should be expending most of your energy so when the Celtics come down and shoot in 5 seconds thats 20 seconds less that Detroit has to bear down on D. I think it’s working in the Pistons camp - combine that with Rodney Stuckey going crazy and you got the Pistons close to finishing it off with a run.

10:57 PM: Look who has the same birthday as me…none other than tonight’s announcer Mike Breen. Happy Birthday fellow man of the microphone.

86-81 Pistons, 5:55 to go: Hey hey PJ Brown knocking down a couple of jumpers - there we go. Interesting to see how much Doc sticks with him the rest of the way. I think Perk’s played a good game but how long do you ride the hot hand?

92-88 Pistons, 3:55 to go: Game is getting chaotic but matching bucket for bucket. Allen hit his first three in forever and followed it up with a 10 foot leaner. That’s big down the stretch…

 96-90 Pistons, 2:19 to go: The Celtics cannot guard the pick and roll and pass. The pick and pop with a third guy (usually a big guy) getting open for a 16 footer on the baseline. It’s working every time and McDyess and Rasheed have hit several big shots in the fourth quarter. Doc thinks Ray got fouled on the C’s last possession but he was trying to throw up a poor three point shot. C’s need several good defensive possessions now.

96-92 Pistons, 1:12 to go: Pistons took 45 seconds off the clock thanks to an offensive board by Rip Hamilton (ugh). Ray missed a eight foot leaner from the baseline, need defense now.

98-92 Pistons, 48 seconds to go: The C’s had Hamilton 35 feet away with 3 on the shotclock! But KG got beat and no one helped until Rip had a look and hits a huge bucket. It’s trouble time now and C’s will likely go into foul mode soon.

98-94 Pistons, 41 seconds to go: Pierce layup, no fouls.

98-94 Pistons, 20 seconds to go: timeout detroit, 3 seconds left on shot clock. I don’t know about that move not to foul. If Detroit misses the Celtics are going to need at least two scores in 20 seconds and have two timeouts. If they get a three it’ll make it a lot easier but most importantly they can’t allow the pistons to score and they just did…100-94. Now I definitely think they should’ve fouled….wide open layup off the in bounds will likely do it.

100-97 Pistons, 10 seconds left: Allen hits a tough 3 to keep the C’s alive, but it’s still amazing comeback time if it happens. They get Detroit to use its last timeout to avoid a 5 second violation. Nice.

101-97 Pistons, 9.8 left: Foul on the inbounds and Rasheed hits one. I think they should really look for a three - that’s the right choice and Celtics haven’t looked good in these playoff situations. If they make a two and detroit hits a two, celtics have no time to win this game or even tie.

103-97 Pistons, Final: Garnett misses the three and the Celtics were looking for it which is good but KG isn’t the guy to shoot it.

The key as it usually is was the defense today. The rebounding was there, C’s had a few more turnovers, free throws were fairly even. Detroit just had a ton of wide open looks while the Celtics passing took a big turn downwards compared to game one. Now the C’s need a win on the road to do it - strangely I’m confident they can do it (although I was uberconfident at Atlanta and look what happened). Two days to adjust…

Let’s do it folks.

2-0 Pistons, 1 minute in: Good point by announcing crew on Pistons’ first offensive possession that Rondo should’ve gone and taken Perk’s spot who was guarding Billups on a switch…then a great first defensive possession by Detroit

14-10 Celtics, 4:16 1st qtr.: Lots to notice: Rondo with a great rebound skying on the low block but then gave it away…the good thing: very next possession he works a pick and pop with Garnett and realizes the switch and gets KG a rather uncontested jumper (with a point guard on him)…Rasheed’s got a technincal already and Billups has drawn 2 fouls already (one Rondo, one Perk- both things to watch the rest of the game…Hamilton gets 2 free thows on a brutal foul call on Ray Alllen…Rondo still balking on taking open jumpers…signs of a track meet at the 5 minute mark but the Pistons are so composed they slow it down every time…great blocks by Perk and Pierce and a good defensive start.

14-14, 2:15 1st qtr.: With Rondo so inconsistent/unconfident in taking jump shots, getting Eddie House into the game would be a great idea.

16-16, 1:45 1st qtr: Right on cue, House comes in and fouls Billups shooting a 3 (doh!). Um did I say put him in? Can I just delete that last post? No way for Tommy to argue that call either…

20-18 Celtics, End of 1: OK it’s Pierce (7 pts.) vs. Billups (6 pts.) so far. The numbers may not show that obviously but the ball is running thru these two guys. KG’s had his chances and made a couple nasty jumpers…Rasheed’s doing very little, Rip made a few buckets and McDyess knocked one down. Tight, low-scoring and a pretty slow pace. That’s what to expect right?

23-20 Pistons, 8:41 2nd qtr: Ray Allen’s got three fouls after a brutally late call by the officials. This second quarter is reminding me of a college game - specifically the ones that I watch all the time, a smaller outsized outgunned team trying to pull off the upset. Doc started the bench along with Pierce so it was one playmaker and a bunch of guys who work off of his game (like a lower-level college team) against the Pistons. The Celtics had tons of chances (3 offensive boards on one possession) but can’t score. They’re “running the offense” (a term you only hear from Jay Bilas) but it’s not working while Detroit looks confident in what they’re doing. Once Garnett is back in the dynamic will change again but that 3:30 did not help the C’s momentum.

31-27 Pistons, 5:55 2nd qtr: McDyess has got ten and a free throw coming after a late call foul on Big Baby…with Posey in the drive and kick offense is flowng a little better, but boy nobody except for Houes and Posey (and Garnett from 20 feet) are shooting right off the catch…Detroit’s offense is looking pretty smooth right now and that killer from their first regular season matchup Lindsey Hunter is again doing the damage (3 mins, 2-2 FG, 5 pts, 1 assist, 1 steal, 0 turnovers).

40-37 Pistons, 2:33 2nd qtr: Garnett continues to be awesome, he’s got 12 - Pierce has 13. I’m concerned that the C’s are mostly going with 1 on 1 offense. In fact they’ve only got 5 assists on 12 field goals - a much lower rate than game 1 when the C’s had dimes on 13 of their first 15 buckets…Stat update: Rebounds Boston 20, Detroit 10, Turnovers Boston 9, Detroit 4, FG%: Detroit 45%, Boston 40%, points on free throws: Pistons 14, Celtics 10…hang in there guys.

50-43 Pistons at the half: Detroit’s offense couldn’t be stopped for the most part in that second quarter. Doc tried Tony Allen for the first time in forever and he looked real rusty getting caught in the air on jump fakes a bunch and also missing two free throws..Pistons shooting 52% which the Celtics almost never allow at home…See ya in the second half.