The Celtics seven game series with the Hawks was a beneficial experience for the Celtics. A team that had never played with each other in the playoffs was able to see what they were really made of. The Hawks, granted they are an extremely young and inexperienced team, pushed the Celtics to their limit. But the Celtics responded admirably by absolutely pounding the Hawks in a decisive game seven, ending any hope at all that their team would win.
The seven game series enables the Celtics to obtain some playoff experience playing together. While the home and away Celtics appeared to be completely different teams, the team will learn from their three losses. They can now put an emotional feeling to the statement "win or go home." The Celtics understood that if they lost game seven, that their incredible season would be meaningless.
In the city of Boston, where winning has become the norm, nothing less than a championship will be acceptable. But this team has all of the pieces necessary to raise the seventeenth banner. Led by Kevin Garnett's contagious intensity, Ray Allen's poise and smooth moves, and Paul Pierce's desire to finally win a championship for Boston, the Big Three will make its way through Cleveland and ultimately win an NBA championship.
Watch out LeBron James, the Celtics are coming.
