Boston Celtics in 0-2 Hole Against the Miami Heat: Time to Panic?

The Boston Celtics have dug themselves into a hole the size of The Big Dig thus far in the series against the Miami Heat, falling into an 0-2 series deficit. Clearly, this isn't the ideal position for the Celtics to be in at this point, but is it time to panic?

Or even worse, is it time to give up hope on this team?

It is easy to count the Celtics out at this point. Going by the numbers, it seems nearly impossible for the Celtics to win the series. The team that leads a best-of-seven series 2-0 goes on to win that series 94.1 percent of the time.

The Heat are 5-0 when leading 2-0. And the Celtics are 1-7 when down 0-2 in a playoff series.

Only once before has a Celtics team come back from down 0-2 in a series. However, this comeback—one of the finest moments in Celtics history—has gained more relevance after Celtics legend, and member of that comeback team, John Havlicek paid a visit to the Celtics practice facility to offer some inspiration.

The comeback occurred in the 1969 NBA Finals against the rival Lakers. An aging Celtics roster with legends Bill Russell and Sam Jones on their last legs sought to go out on top, while the Lakers looked to finally beat the rival Celtics.

In an attempt to do this, they acquired the most sought-after player in the league at that time, Wilt Chamberlain, to create a formidable trio of Wilt, Jerry West and Elgin Baylor. The Lakers, who had home-court advantage, jumped out to a 2-0 advantage.

Sound familiar? (If you really want more similarities, the Celtics beat the Knicks in the previous series to advance to face the Lakers.)

When the series returned to Boston, they won Game 3, 111-105, and Game 4, 89-88. After falling in Game 5, they won Game 6 to set up Game 7. All the Celtics needed to do was win one road game to take the NBA Finals.

And in one of the greatest games in NBA history, the 1969 Boston Celtics won the one road game needed to win the series 108-106 off of Don Nelson's clinching jumper (bounced off the back rim, bounced high into the air and went in) in one of the greatest moments in sports.

(This also created one of the biggest, "In hindsight maybe that was a bad idea" moments in NBA history when Lakers owner Jack Cooke ordered thousands of balloons that read "World Champion Lakers" and hung them from the rafters in anticipation of a Laker victory. Cooke also placed flyers in every seat that read, "When, not if, the Lakers win the title, balloons will be released from the rafters, the USC marching band will play 'Happy Days Are Here Again' and broadcaster Chick Hearn will interview Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, and Wilt Chamberlain in that order.")

A bit cocky if you ask me. And needless to say, it didn't sit well with the Celtics. Bill Russell said, "It may be a better show to watch them take those balloons down one at a time." And they did.

I'm not saying that this team is destined to do as well as the 1969 Celtics in coming back from an 0-2 deficit to win a series. All I am saying is this: It can and has been done before, and under similar circumstances.

I'm sure the visit by Havlicek and the stories he told of that series boosted the Celtics' confidence. I know it boosted mine.

Look at it this way: If the Celtics can take care of business at home, then the series would be tied 2-2. If you remember, the inferior Hawks and Cavs were able to win both games at home after an 0-2 deficit to the 2008 Celtics. They both went on to lose the series, but they proved the initial 2-0 lead to be worthless after winning both Games 3 and 4 at home.

The Celtics have never faced an 0-2 deficit in their new "big three" era, so it is hard to know how they will respond. But this is a veteran team that knows how to win, so my best guess is that they will not go down without a fight.

And they shouldn't, because this is far from over. The Garden is a tough place to play for opponents and if—with help from the home crowd—the Celtics can win at home, then it's a new series.

All considered, it won't be easy for the Celtics to win this series. The odds are against them. And this is some adversity that this Celtics team has never faced.

Sure, the 1969 team was able to do it. But Bill Russell isn't walking through the tunnel, Sam Jones isn't walking through the tunnel and while he may have provided some inspiration, John Havlicek will be unable to help on the court.

But I can tell you who will be walking through that tunnel: Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo, Shaquille O'Neal, Jermaine O'Neal, Glen Davis, Jeff Green and Delonte West.

All they need to do is win the two upcoming home games and it is a new series. And as the great Rudy Tomjanovich once said, "Don't ever underestimate the heart of a champion!"

And with that in mind, it is not yet time to panic and definitely not time to give up hope in this team.