NBA Playoffs 2012: The Boston Celtics Have the Best 'Big 3' in the League

The story goes that when he first arrived in Boston, fresh off a blockbuster trade that shipped him from the Minnesota Timberwolves after 12 seasons, Kevin Garnett headed to the Celtics' practice facility early one morning.

Garnett had always made it a habit of getting to work first—it's one reason he'd been able to go from talented, raw high-schooler to polished NBA superstar.

But there was only one problem on that particular morning.

Well, if you could even call it a problem. Garnett wasn't the first Celtic at the practice facility. By the time the man known as "The Big Ticket" was laced up and ready to go, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen had already been out on the court hoisting jumpers and running through drills for an hour or so.

It made quite an impression on Garnett. Here were two superstars who shared his insatiable desire for self-betterment. He'd come to the right place.

It was that "Big 3," formulated before LeBron James had likely even pondered a move to Miami, that sent off seismic shifts throughout the NBA. That triumvirate showed just how powerful—how Avengers-like—a collection of top talent could be.

The Celtics didn't rampage their way to the 2008 NBA title, the franchise's first in 22 years, but some of their playoff games did leave a Hulk-sized impression on their opponents.

They have only made it to one finals in the three seasons since that first title—a seven-game showdown with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2010 that ultimately ended in defeat—but they are poised for yet another run at a championship this postseason.

Monday night's Brandon Bass-fueled romp over the Philadelphia 76ers at the TD Garden gave the Celtics a commanding 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. With Game 6 on Wednesday in Philly, you can bet Garnett and Co. will be raring to end the series then and there. No one ever knows what will come in the tricky crucible of an elimination game.

And quite frankly, no one ever wants to.

Game 5 was a perfect example of the Big 3's motivation this postseason, which has offered up an image of tunnel vision. With each of them slowly falling into that universal trash-masher of careers—age—there is a sense of finality pervading this current run.

Their stats may have dropped off somewhat, but their ability to impact a game remains evergreen.

In the 2007-08 regular season, Garnett, Pierce and Allen accounted for 55.8 points between them; in the shortened 66-game 2011-12 campaign, that number dipped to 49.4.

But to dismiss them as being "over the hill" would be a terrible mistake.

Take Allen in Game 5. The sharpshooter, who has that inimitable silky stroke that is the envy of anyone who's ever shot a basketball, scored just five points on two of seven shooting—according to ESPN, he's averaged just 9.0 points a game in his last 10 outings.

In an interesting reversal, it was Allen's defense, with which he took up the duty of stopper vacated by the injured Avery Bradley, that made the biggest impact.

The man often referred to as Jesus Shuttlesworth poured his energy—remember, he's 36 years old—into the defensive end, and it bolstered the Celtics for the night.

Then there's Garnett. The 6'11" forward had 20 points, 14 of which came in a raucous first half. It was it the sixth time this postseason Garnett had reached 20 in a game.

He's posted 19 points a game throughout the playoffs, and has shot the ball remarkably well out to the three-point line. That range has given the Celtics an added threat on the offense end, and helped open up space for Game 5 hero Bass, who took full advantage as he rampaged around the paint and mid-range area.

Finally, there's Pierce. Since entering the league in the lockout shortened 1998-99 season, the swingman has made a habit of scoring and scoring often, while often looking like he's doing so in slow motion.

It's the Tracy McGrady effect—Pierce never looks out of control, almost daring defenders to grow overconfident and reach, whereupon he punishes them with his deceptive blow-by.

Pierce has kept his postseason scoring on par with his regular season production, his 19.3 a near-spitting image of the 19.4 average he maintained through 61 games.

His 16 points in Game 5 was a bit of a dip after his explosions for 24 in Games 3 and 4 (he also had 12 rebounds in Game 3), but Pierce once again helped fill the stat sheet with four rebounds and three assists.

While a showdown with the Miami Heat in the conference finals would almost be too poetic—although the Heat would likely be without Chris Bosh, one of their own Big 3—first the Celtics must get past the Sixers, who've shown an ability to bounce back from losses throughout this series.

Boston, who after this season will have to decide what to do with the expiring contracts of Garnett and Allen, are approaching this run with a fitting sense of finality. This will likely be the last time the Big 3 play together, and wouldn't you know it, they want another championship before they go their respective ways.

They're not the same group we saw four years ago. They've adapted their games as they've aged, realizing that they can still be effective, albeit in different ways. They don't have to be the star every night, and they're fine with that.

One look at their play this postseason is testament enough to that.