Scared of a Little Thunder

Last night, the most athletic team in the NBA and my preseason pick to win the NBA finals knocked off the heavily favored San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, winning their fourth straight game to finish out the series 4-2 while storming back from an 18 point deficit.  The Oklahoma City Thunder combine a distinctive mix of incredible athleticism and basketball talent, led by superstar Kevin Durant, along with great coaching and sound strategy provided by coach Scott Brooks.  The Thunder look essentially unstoppable right now, and are poised to win their first championship since moving from Seattle.  While one can argue that they look very similar to the Miami Heat on paper, the Thunder are much more well-rounded, and I do not think that they can be stopped.

Durant has won three consecutive scoring titles, thus proving that he is in fact the best scorer in the NBA… however he is not the only reason that the Thunder are so dominant.  While they were largely dismissed because of their youth and inexperience, they have shown great maturity and growth while rapidly developing into a star-studded team with composure and maturity under Brooks.  While Durant’s scoring is off the charts (just under 28 PPG in the playoffs), OKC’s mentality focuses on team play and winning, and their chemistry is far better than that of Miami, who consistently show an inability to close out their close games and a lack of trust in their head coach.

Furthermore, OKC’s point guard tandem of Russell Westbrook, a young and explosive slashing scorer, and Derek Fisher, a veteran facilitator who knows just what it takes to win big games while essentially only scoring in dagger situations, takes much of the pressure off Durant.  Simultaneously, these other weapons enable Durant to frequently take over certain stretches of the game, since he is not the only guy who can put up points that opponents must worry about.  Lately, these stretches have been coming in the fourth quarter, and at age 23, Durant is showing that he has the ability to be one of the most clutch big time scorers that the NBA has seen.  You also cannot forget about James Harden, another big time scorer and the third member of their big three along with Durant and Westbrook, who took home the coveted Sixth Man of the year award, and has been chipping in over 17 points per game in the postseason coming off the bench.  

Lastly, OKC has a pair of monsters in the paint in Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka, arguably the best defensive front court which features an on-ball defender in Perkins who can body up with the best centers in the league, and an incredible help defender in Ibaka who led the league in blocks both in the regular season and in the playoffs.  They are not struggling to have a defensive paint presence, as opposed to Miami who has none at all.  Bad news for OKC’s opponents: Ibaka’s offense has been coming around as well, and as the Spurs found out in Game 4, he too has become a legitimate scoring threat.

The Thunder were largely overlooked going into the conference finals, and after ending the Spurs’ 20 game winning streak and winning four straight to finish out the series, they will enter the NBA Finals hungry for a championship.  They combine incredible athletic ability both in the paint and on the perimeter with great coaching under former and likely future coach of the year in Scott Brooks, and if the Celtics can close out their series against Miami, their own storied Big Three era will be in serious danger of falling one series short of their second championship. 

Still Think We Need Rasheed?

With a huge win fueled by the return of Kevin Garnett last night against the Orlando Magic, the Celtics asserted their position as the top team in the Eastern Conference, and reminded the panicking Celtics’ fans all over New England that when everyone on this team is healthy, they are in no need of any trades or acquisitions of washed up players like Rasheed Wallace in order for them to make a successful playoff run. In a game that was practically knotted from start to finish, the Celtics came out on top with 52 big points in the paint against Dwight Howard, another 13 assist night and double-double from Rajon Rondo, and 31 minutes of inspired play from a healthy Garnett as he dropped 19 points, led the defense to battle against a very versatile and dangerous Orlando offense, and got the game winning steal in the final seconds that sealed the victory for Boston. This game was proof that Garnett is the biggest difference maker for the Celtics, as they have not looked this organized or played this tough ever since they lost him to his calf injury. Now that Garnett has returned, the Celtics are back, and should continue asserting their dominance in the conference while they prepare for the return of the other starting big man, Kendrick Perkins.

The Celtics never let up last night, which is why they were able to overcome Orlando’s eleven three pointers and Howard’s 33 point 13 rebound night. All of Boston’s starters scored in double digits, and Big Baby Davis scored 15 points on 6-10 shooting off the bench. Davis is so much better for the C’s when he’s filling in for Shaq or Garnett instead of starting, and I was happy to see him balance the amount of jumpers he was taking with strong post-up moves and drives to the hoops. When he was starting in the nine games that Garnett sat out, his jump shot became the primary scoring option for the Celtics, which led to three losses that could have easily been avoided, as well as several sloppy wins. However, he is a different player when coming off the bench with Nate Robinson, and his energy and offensive ability can spark big runs against opposing second units instead of disrupting the flow of Boston’s offense when he is logging nearly 40 minutes per game as a starter. The Celtics played great last night with the return of KG, and will be a force to be reckoned with come playoff time as there is currently not a team in the NBA that Boston can’t beat in a seven game series. With Perk also coming back in early February, the Celtics have a ton of solid big men, and barring any major injuries, Sheed is definitely going to have to sit this one out.

The Roles of Rookies Semih and Luke

We are almost halfway through the Celtics’ regular season, and despite their 30-9 record which tops the Eastern Conference, it seems like a lot of Celtics fans out there are not happy with the current roster, which currently features a significant amount of minutes played from rookie big men Semih Erden and Luke Harangody. Boston’s first round pick Avery Bradley also still holds a spot on the 15 man active roster, despite being sent down to the D-League this week to play for the Maine Red Claws, not because he’s another hopeless case of first round pick gone bad, but because Doc Rivers wants the kid to get some reps and solid minutes doing what he does best… playing basketball. The Celtics have plenty of veteran guards right now, as well as a sharp-shooting Delonte West returning from his wrist injury in a couple of weeks, so Doc thinks Bradley will benefit more from solid minutes on the Red Claws than riding the bench all season for Boston. Also, Bradley and Harangody, the two “true” rookies, both seemed timid and uncomfortable on the court at first when playing against and alongside NBA stars. However, while Harangody has embraced his amplified role and now looks much more comfortable on the court than he did at the season’s start, Bradley still looked uncomfortable and intimidated on the court for the rare minutes he was given. Don’t completely forget about Avery during his D-League stint. He will be back, as the kid is an incredible athlete, can knock down threes, and throw down dunks like you wouldn’t believe. He may be the quickest guy on the C’s other than Rajon Rondo, and I am still looking forward to seeing the two explosive guards run all over opposing defenses together in the Celtics’ future.

As for Semih Erden, he has looked relatively comfortable from the start, and this can be attributed to his professional play in Turkey and the Euroleague before coming over to play for Boston. After these first 39 games of the season, I have to say that I am not only incredibly happy with the solid play and excellent record of the Celtics, but with their overall roster and development of their rookie players. If this team has managed to stay atop the Eastern Conference even without starting big men Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins, how good are they going to be once all the starters are healthy? Right now it appears that this team is already very good with Shaq starting and the two energetic rooks logging big minutes off the bench for the C’s, and when healthy, this team is only going to get better.

The Celtics do not need to add Rasheed Wallace or alter their roster in any significant way because other than Kevin Garnett, nobody brings more energy to the floor than Erden and Harangody. The two of them are always hustling, and Erden controls the paint, makes smart cuts, and contests every shot, while Harangody sets good picks, plays tight defense, boxes out, and can make his open jumpers. While both guys have a lot of room to improve, they show a lot of heart, hustle, and do all the little things that a coach really wants to see from his rookie players. An important thing to realize about these guys is that they are only getting all these minutes right now because of injuries to Boston’s starters, and they’re going to keep getting better and better with all this experience. And while I realize there are better ways to make a playoff run than with a team stocked with rookies (even though Bill Belichick could convince you otherwise) it is important not to forget that Erden and Harangody are only third-string big men for the C’s. Perkins and KG will return soon enough to the starting lineup, which will send Shaq and Big Baby Davis to the second unit, and then the Celtics will have not only a nearly unstoppable starting lineup, but a bench that can contend with opposing starters all around the league. As long as those guys recover successfully from injury and do not get reinjured, Erden and Harangody’s critics can relax because the rookies’ minutes will practically disappear down the stretch. The worst case scenario is foul trouble or injuries resulting in Erden or Harangody getting back on the court, and if given this opportunity, both of them would absolutely play hard and bring valuable energy to the floor that other guys on the team feed off of, such as Nate Robinson and Glen Davis. Right now this team may be scrappy, but with KG possibly coming back Monday night against Orlando, and Perkins still on the mend, the Eastern Conference leading Celtics will only keep getting better. These rookies play harder than just about everybody, and with each of them having the potential for a double-double every night, and the starting big men soon returning, I still am not feeling the need for Sheed, or any significant change to Boston’s solid roster.

The Bobcats Got Shaq-Attacked

When I said the Celtics were going to have to dig deep to pull out a win tonight, I was expecting a lot of hustling, tough play, and clutch performances from guys like Semih Erden, Luke Harangody, and Marquis Daniels. However, with Semih's nagging groin injury and early foul trouble due to some ambiguous fouls called by the referees, Shaquille O'Neal wound up logging a season high 35 minutes on the court and promptly punished the Bobcats' weak interior defense with 23 points. Shaq also grabbed 5 rebounds in the game, as well as a season high 5 blocks. Kwame Brown and the Bobcats had no answer for O'Neal's size, as Rondo penetrated all game long and was always looking to find Shaq down low for an easy bucket or alley-oop. Rondo played extremely well on offense, as he not only worked his usual dribble, drive, and dish moves, but made some key jump shots as well. Rajon finished the game with 18 points and 13 assists.

The Celtics played tough defense and pulled out a 99-94 point victory despite getting outrebounded 42-29. Boston's field goal percentage and eight three point shots made up for the lost rebounds, while Rondo and Shaq led them to an offensive attack that also featured 19 points each from Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Luckily the banged up Celtics have a couple days off before they square off on Monday against Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. We'll all be holding our breath for the good news that KG will return for the game, but if not, Shaq is going to have to come up big again and stay out of foul trouble against his Howard, his younger nemesis. Hopefully Semih's groin will be feeling a little better by then so he can get back on the court with the energy he usually brings to the floor, and help the Celtics to continue playing tight constricting defense with frequent offensive onslaughts led by Pierce, Allen, and Rondo. Also, despite their off game tonight, I still believe the Celtics' bench is one of the most dangerous in the NBA, and luckily there is almost always somebody there to pick up the slack for the Celtics spark them to a win. Tonight, Shaq came up big for them, and was playing more like a 28 year old than a 38 year old. With KG, Perk, and Delonte West all on the way back from injury, this Celtics team is only going to keep getting better.

The Big Men in Boston

Jermaine O'Neal is having serious trouble with his knee, and his season and career could potentially be coming to an anticlimactic ending if he needs to get surgery. While I hate to see yet another veteran on the Celtics having injury issues, I have got to say that this seems somewhat convenient with KG and Perkins both close to returning. If all of Boston's big men are healthy other than Jermaine, they have a very solid core with Garnett, Big Baby, and Harangody at the four spot, and Perkins, Shaq, and Semih Erden at the five. And after last night's game, I continue to rave about Erden because he brings a ton of energy to the paint which is exactly what the C's have needed ever since Garnett got hurt, and he makes the Celtics' second unit play better since guys like Davis, Nate Robinson, and Harangody feed off the energy. Erden's 10 points and 9 rebounds last night were big for Boston, and fans may now start to realize that the rookie from Turkey is a very capable backup to Shaq.

The Celtics played extremely well in their rout of the Kings, as Pierce dropped 25 points, Ray Allen was 4/5 from deep, Rondo had a double-double, and Boston's bench manhandled Sacramento's weak defense as Erden, Wafer, Robinson, and Daniels all scored in double digits. With Semih filling in for J.O., the Celtics finally managed to get through a game without Garnett without getting outrebounded. I understand that Erden can absolutely improve on his handles and scoring ability, but his energy and ability to control the paint comes up huge for the Celtics and is unmatched by anyone on the team other than KG. It just seems like good things happen when he's on the floor, like when they last faced the Charolotte Bobcats in December, and Erden was in the starting lineup and led the Celtics with a +34 plus/minus rating. With the trio of centers mentioned before, I think it is clear that the Celtics have a very solid roster, and do not need to make any desperate changes to it that would result in trading away valuable players, or signing an assumedly washed up Rasheed Wallace. The Kings are young and are not a very good overall team, but the Celtics played very well last night nonetheless, and things can only get better for them with starters Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins still on the mend. Look for the Celtics to keep playing with energy tomorrow night when they take on the Bobcats in Boston, especially if KG finally does make his return. If he doesn't, then look for guys like Erden and Nate to energize the team as Semih tries to keep proving that until Perk is back in the starting lineup, he is ready to be the backup center in Boston.