So why the perception that the Celtics have no bench?
The Celtics traded five guys for Kevin Garnett. After the trade, they literally had no bench.
Literally.
The only guys they had under contract were the immortal Leon Powe, an injured Tony Allen, Brian “Garbage Time” Scalabrine, and a couple of second-round draft picks.
Predictably, the “experts” seized on depth as the reason the Celtics wouldn’t win the Eastern Conference. Funny thing happened, though—while everyone was talking about their thin roster, the Celtics signed Scot Pollard, Eddie House, and James Posey.
Then Tony Allen got healthy and Glen “Big Baby” Davis ended up being a much better player than expected.
Those five guys formed what has turned into a pretty decent bench.
As a matter of fact, you’d be hard pressed to find another team, Pistons included, with a more productive second unir.
But the perception, for some reason, hasn’t changed.
Who wins tonight’s game?
Keeping in mind that I accurately called the Pistons’ win in Boston back in December (just pulled a muscle patting myself on the back), my prediction for tonight’s game is a Celtics win.
I think, as they’ve done with their other three losses, the C's learn from their mistakes, make the appropriate corrections, and get their revenge.
Does this mean anything outside of a regular-season victory?
To the Pistons, no.
They don’t need this game any more than they need any other regular-season game. They have nothing to prove. They're good, and they know it.
To the Celtics, yes.
They need to prove that they can beat the other best team in the East.
Forget convincing you and me—they need to convince themselves.
No team has ever started 28-3 and not won an NBA championship. But in the East, the road to the NBA finals goes through Detroit.
I'm SeanMC.
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