Boston Celtics: What We've Learned Through the First Two Rounds

After disposing of the Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers, in long and painful fashion, the Celtics are on their way to the NBA Eastern Conference Finals for the third time in the Big Three era. There, they will match up with the Miami Heat's two-headed monster in Dwayne Wade and LeBron James. In the first two rounds leading up to the matchup with the Heat, we have learned a lot about this Celtics team, including things that will turn out to be very important going forward. 

Kevin Garnett Has Been the Best Big Man in These Playoffs

Generally, I am a very optimistic person. I love to be right, and I love for the best case scenario to work out, whether it be the team I like winning or a player I root for playing well. So essentially I put all my eggs in one basket and hope that in the end I will be both right and the team I like will win.

Nonetheless, though, I was rarely pessimistic at the All-Star break in regards to Kevin Garnett, and this is what I wrote about him:

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I'm not even going to bother talking about Garnett's inconsistency because that isn't the real issue. The real issue is much simpler: he's old. It's sad but it's true, Garnett's days are numbered and he is no longer the same player. He can't jump anymore and that is hindering his ability to finish down low. Nonetheless, he still is a great defender, the anchor of the defense and he can still knock down shots. But, the Kevin Garnett of 2008 isn't walking through that door anymore.

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Now I am seeing the benefits of being a pessimist because it has never felt so good to be horribly wrong. Garnett proved me and every other person who doubted him (which was a lot of people—really, I wasn't the only one) wrong.

As it turns out, the Kevin Garnett of 2008 is still walking through the door, and he is leading the Celtics to playoff wins with big games scoring and rebounding. So yeah, I was horribly wrong, but I'm happy about it. Now I'm going to predict that he can't keep it up against the Heat just so he can hopefully prove me wrong again. 

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Offense Is Hard to Come by for the Celtics

Watching the Celtics offense has been painful at times. It would seem as though the hoop is smaller in the playoffs with the trouble the Celtics have had putting the ball in. For the playoffs, the C's are averaging 88.1 points per game, which isn't as bad as it seems.

The offense has been extra hard to watch because the Celtics will have great stretches where they are unstoppable, but then other stretches where they couldn't shoot the ball into the ocean from Boston Harbor. If they want to beat the Heat, the Celtics are going to need to pick up their scoring, because as it is, it seems quite possible that Dwyane Wade and LeBron James could outscore the whole Celtics offense. 

Offense Is Also Hard to Come by for Opponents

If you like offense, don't watch the Celtics. Not only do the Celtics not score a lot, but they also make sure that their opponents don't either. For all of their struggles on offense, they have forced their opponents to struggle even more so offensively.

Throughout the playoffs, the Celtics held the Sixers and Hawks to just 83.9 points per game. And when you are only letting up around 84 points a game, winning becomes a lot easier, even if you have a bad offense. Defense will likely dominate the next series, too, and the Celtics will need to continue to be at their best defensively to shut down Wade and LeBron. 

Rondo Can Take over When He Wants/Needs to

Rajon Rondo is a frustrating player to watch because every time you watch him play, you just feel like he could explode for a triple-double. Obviously, he doesn't do that every game, though he does do it more often than any other player in the league.

But in these playoffs, he has shown that when the Celtics need him most, he is ready to change the game. The perfect example of this was at the end of Game 7 (in which he quietly recorded his ninth career playoff triple-double, one short of Larry Bird). The Celtics closer Paul Pierce fouled out, so Rondo decided to borrow the "C" on Pierce's jersey for the final four minutes of the game and see to it that the Celtics live to fight another day.

If the Celtics are to live through the next round, though, Rondo will need to dominate as best he can in every minute of every game. He certainly can do it; whether or not he will remains to be seen. 

Ray Allen Is a Shell of His Former Self

Bone spurs in the ankle sound absolutely terrible, and Ray Allen is no doubt a warrior for playing through them. At some point, though, regardless of how tough Allen is, it is clear that the injury is seriously detracting form his play. He is getting beat on the defensive end and can't get anything going towards the rim. What's worse, though, is that he is even missing open jump shots and free throws.

In the fourth quarter of Game 7, Allen hit a couple of big threes. Hopefully, he will be able to carry that momentum into the next round because the Celtics will certainly need his shooting against the Heat.