Boston Celtics: Why Big Three Will Collapse in 2012 Playoffs

If I were to tell you during the middle of the season, that the Boston Celtics and the Big Three would be contending for the third seed in the Eastern Conference, you would presumably laugh—and rightfully so. It is actually true now, but I will tell you why the Big Three will implode during possibly the final run at a championship together.

At the beginning of the year, every Boston Celtics fan had the same worry they did at the front of the 2010-11 season—whether or not will the Big Three survive the grueling season and be ready in the playoffs.

Thanks to a shortened season, it seems the Big Three have lasted long enough to reach the road to glory. The only problem is, the playoffs will produce the number of games it has taken in the past to wear down the experienced team. I say "experienced" to give them the benefit of the doubt, but let's face it—they are just getting old.

Rajon Rondo has acted as a human defibrillator for his aging teammates, putting them in almost perfect positions to score and look much younger than they are, showcasing their talents. Alongside him, Avery Bradley has emerged as a legitimate talent who can help this team offensively at times.

Kevin Garnett, since playing some time at the center position, has started to look as if he were 28 again. His shot has been spot on, he is leaping at the boards ferociously and his defensive intensity is at a much higher level.

Wait a minute, this team is starting to sound pretty good. Why will they collapse in the playoffs?

The obvious reason is age. In the past two seasons, this has been the time of year that we see the Big Three start to deteriorate.

Normally, coach Doc Rivers has tended to rest his aging players—despite what it will do to any chances of advancing up a seed or two. This year, however, the Big Three have played significant minutes in the quest for the third seed. In fact, both Ray Allen and Paul Pierce have averaged more minutes per game in the month of April than the young Rondo. That seems backwards, doesn't it?

Another glaring issue, is the Celtics' lack of depth. With Jermaine O'Neal spending more time with doctors than his team, and losing Jeff Green for the season, the Big Three will not have the privilege of resting much during the tough playoff schedule. Not if the Celtics expect to compete, that is.

This issue will create chaos within the later rounds of the playoffs if the Celtics go that far. Younger teams like the Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers can light up the scoreboard—which leads me to my next point.

The resume of the Boston Celtics this year, especially during this magnificent stretch to end the season, has been the strength of their defense. Ranking third in the NBA, the defense has been anchored by Garnett. If the elder legs of the Big Three are worn after advancing past the first round, the defense will feel the repercussions immensely—enabling teams like Miami and Chicago to score almost at will.

Since winning the championship in the 2008 season, we saw the aging Big Three make another run to the finals only to fall to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2009-10 finals. Then the aging happened—the basis of my argument as to why the Celtics' Big Three will collapse.

The year following, Boston finished with the third seed in the Eastern Conference, behind only Miami and Chicago. Very familiar to the current standing and possible playoff seeding. Actually, almost exactly.

After defeating an under-performing New York Knicks team in the first round of the 2010-11 playoffs, Boston had the task of facing off with the young and talented Miami team with newly-acquired LeBron James and Chris Bosh.

In five games against Miami, LeBron or Dwyane Wade had at least 30 points in all but one game—only pointing out the ability to score on a worn down Big Three. If the Celtics capture the third seed, this will more than likely be the same matchup in the second round. With another year of aging, and a lack of depth, even worse results should be expected.

With every year of aging since uniting in 2008, the Big Three have shown a trend of performing worse and worse during the playoffs. Patterns are rarely broken, and age never reverses. After working harder and longer at the end of this season, the Big Three are destined to collapse—despite their late-season turn around.