Sorry about the delay in the game one post, but it wasn't until very recently that I was able to pick my jaw back up off the floor after Thursday's game one 98-88 Celtics win in game one of this year's NBA Finals. As giddy as I am about the Celtics' win, I am equally terrified for the health of Paul Pierce's knee and Boston's future in this series.
First off, I have to say (and I don't even care what Phil Jackson thinks) that Paul Pierce is a warrior. The Truth showed true grit and desire on Thursday after suffering a nasty looking knee injury that had him writhing in pain and rendered him unable to walk off of the floor, only to return minutes later and lead the Celtics to victory. That was epic, though I must say nowhere close to Willis Reed's miracle ressurection for the New York Knicks in game seven of the 1970 NBA Finals. The effect of Pierce's return was similar, but you just can't compare his miraculous return to Reed's game seven heroics.
While I'd like to think that Pierce was able to come back and play because his leg wasn't actually hut that bad, I'm guessing that Pierce's adrenaline and excitement carried more weight on Thursday than his right leg did (a cotrizone shot also helped, I'm guessing). Despite his electric third quarter and the lock down defense he played on Kobe Bryant, I'm scared as hell for the Celtics in the coming months weeks of this year's Finals.
Pierce's knee is hurt. He hasn't had an MRI, and won't until the Finals are over. He must be hurting, otherwise they'd run the tests and say "all clear." By keeping themselves (and all of us) in the dark, they're able to plead ignorance and just let Pierce play so long as he says "go." I'm pessimistic about Pierce's prospects, and when you add in the injury to Kendrick Perkins, the Celtics chances of beating the Lakers have taken a significant dip.
Injuries aside, the Celtics did a lot of good things in the game one victory, as well as a share of not so good things that they can work on in subsequent games. First, the good: Overall, I thought that the Celtics' defensive effort was pretty good. Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and James Posey all deserve credit for plating great defense on Kobe Bryant and forcing him into so many difficult looks. Kobe seemed to start gunning and just chucking up shots for a good deal of the game which took the Lakers out of rhythm and stagnated their offense. Although the Celtics' defense worked this time against Kobe, I think that it's crucial for the Celtics to change up and throw some different defensive schemes against the Lakers. Phil Jackson will adjust, as will Kobe and the other Lakers, so it's important for the Celtics to adjust as well.
Additionally, the Celtics did a great job controlling the tempo and rotating on defense. It's true, Gasol got a few dunks and the Lakers did find and knock down some open shots, but the Celtics kept them from running and pushing the tempo for most of the game and forced the Lakers into some contested shots that didn't hit.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, the Celtics hit the glass hard on both ends of the floor. Although Boston shot only 42% from the field last night, they grabbed 10 offensive rebounds on Thursday and absolutely killed LA in second chance points. On the other end, the Celtics shut the Lakers out by grabbing every defensive rebounding and won the game by holding LA to one shot per possession. That stat is indicative of the Celtics' hard work on both ends and their superior hustle and energy. If Phil Jackson wants to beat the Celtics in this series, his squad has to match Boston's energy on the glass and rebound the ball with desire (I'm guessing that he'll mention it).
It's a good thing that Boston did so many things well on Thursday, because as well as they played in some areas of the game, they were equally horrible in others. For example, Kevin Garnett's fourth quarter and the shooting of James Posey. KG had a monster first half, but I felt that he lost his aggression down the stretch and settled for too many long jumpshots. Actually, most of those shots were good looks, but that's not the point. The Big Ticket was very successful in the paint and in the post during the first half of Thursday's win, so why abandon that aspect of the game and let up on a reeling Laker defense? Full disclosure: If half of his jumpers had fallen, I'd be singing the praises of Garnett's sweet jumper and his soft touch (I may be a hypocrite, but at least I self-actualize!). As for Posey, he seemed to be rushing a little, but I'm going to delude myself (and you) by recognizing his defensive effort and the taxing effect that can have on a player's offensive game.
I'd like to mention Sam Cassell here as well, though he could have easily been in the positive section of this post as well. E.T. hit some tough shots when he first entered the game and energized the Celtics during the second quarter when the Lakers were making a push, but ruined it all when he checked into the game after half time. Riding his momentum from the first half, Cassell let it fly in the fourth quarter and missed 3 of his four attempts. When the Celtics needed to control the ball and the clock and score on quality shots, Cassell was firing away instead of making the extra pass.
I fully expect the Lakers to come back hard (Pau Gasol will have a good game) in game two tomorrow, and I think that the Celtics will need to play even better than they did in game one in order to beat LA again. Though Thursday's win was spine tingling and convincing, the Lakers are not beat, not by a long shot. At least the Celtics still have plenty of room for improvement as well. This wasn't their best game either, and I fully expect to see another hard-fought, emotional contest tomorrow night as well.
Let us all hope that Paul Pierce and Kendrick Perkins can play in game two and beyond, they'll be needed.
