"It's One Love," Tony Allen after the Celtics won the 2008 NBA Finals

There are some moments in life that you never forget. I'm sure being a first-hand witness to Tony Allen's triumphant return to the TD Garden with the Memphis Grizzlies last night will be one of those precious memories I can take to my grave.

Haha for real though, it was an important game for both teams last night as the Grizzlies (40-32) scratch and claw (lame metaphor alert) for the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference. The Boston Celtics (50-20) came into the game half a game behind the Chicago Bulls for the top spot in the Eastern Conference so the 90-87 setback didn't help one bit for the Green.

It was a weird game with the TD Garden crowd usually sitting on its hands. It was capped off by Glen Davis (12 points, 5 rebounds) missing the tying 3-pointer. Marc Gasol (11 points, 11 rebounds) got the rebound and it looked over as he had two foul shots with under five seconds remaining. Surprisingly, he bricked both free throws and Boston got the rebound and called a timeout. Paul Pierce (22 points) had a chance at a 3-pointer but it bounced harmlessly off the rim.

Tony Allen (8 points, 7 rebounds) and ex-Celtic Leon Powe (13 points) were sparks in the starting lineup and off the bench respectively for the Grizzlies who had six players in double-figures. Zach Randolph took a break from going to strip clubs and rolling blunts to put in 13 points and grab eight rebounds while Sam Young and O.J. Mayo notched 11 points with Darrell Arthur adding 10 points.

The game featured some quintessential Tony Allen and Leon Powe moments. Allen airballed a 3-pointer and a floater while Powe quietly got to the basket at will and scored all those points in only 17 minutes of action.

Ray Allen had 14 points for the Celtics while Kevin Garnett and Jeff Green notched 10 points. Rajon Rondo had a very Rondoesque game with six points, seven steals, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

Memphis led 20-15 after one quarter but Boston rallied for a slim 45-44 advantage. The Celts won the third quarter (25-23) but the Grizzlies made the plays in the fourth (23-17) and overall seemed to play with more urgency which was curious since this was a vital game to the Celtics as well.

Memphis shot 44.6% to 42.0% for Boston. The Celtics hit four more 3-pointers (7-3) and nine more free throws (22-13). Thanks to seven more offensive rebounds (11-4), the Grizzlies had six more total rebounds (43-37). Rondo helped the Cs get seven more assists (24-17) but honestly there were times when Boston's unselfishness hurt them. Memphis had the only three blocks of the game and twice as many points in the paint (52-26).

Boston tries to get back on track tomorrow night as they host the Charlotte Bobcats, a team that's currently tied for ninth and looking up at the Indiana Pacers for the all-important eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.

We are all Witnesses (to LeBron's last gasp with the Cavaliers)

It is not hyperbole to say that last night changed the landscape of the NBA for the next decade.

The Celtics finished off LeBron James and the Cavs in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, 94-85 at the TD Garden. Boston won the series 4-2 and moves on to face Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals beginning Sunday afternoon.

They also ensured that LeBron will likely leave Cleveland when he becomes a free agent on July 1, which means their franchise will go straight down the tube. The Cavs had a press conference today to say that they'll stick with head coach Mike Brown but as bad as he is, what does it matter if LeBron is gone?

Rajon Rondo-the unofficial MVP of the series-had one more fine performance with 21 points, 12 assists, five steals and three rebounds.

The other revelation in the shockingly easy series win was Kevin Garnett. He saved his best game for last night with 22 points and 13 rebounds. He started the game 5-for-5 and also had a dunk as nobody on Cleveland could matchup with him.

For his final game in a Cavs uniform, LeBron had a triple-double: 27 points, 19 rebounds, 10 assists. If it's possible to have a quiet triple-double this was it; he also had nine turnovers.

Mo Williams finished with 22 points but the Celts held him to two points in the second half. Shaq scored 11 but he was Cleveland's only other player in double figures.

Paul Pierce and Rasheed Wallace had 13 points while Tony Allen scored 10, including a vicious dunk over Antawn Jamison.

The Magic haven't lost a playoff game yet, after sweeping the Bobcats and the Hawks. Overall, they've won 14 games in a row. Last season, Boston was up 3-2 on them in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season before choking and lost in seven games without Garnett.

It has all the makings of a great series and at this point, we're playing with house money and anything can happen. Nobody expected them to be here but if they can beat Orlando-the best team in the NBA-they're going to win it all.

Cavs: You just got Rondo'd

Remember that time Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo outplayed the two-time MVP LeBron James, in the Eastern Conference Semifinals?

This is most definitely real life and that was Rondo getting the MVP chants in the final moments of yesterday's season saving 97-87 win at the TD Garden in Game 4. The series is now tied at two with the pivotal Game 5 tomorrow night in Cleveland.

It might be ahead of schedule but Rondo is the franchise right now, not the Big Three. He had 29 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists yesterday, probably the best game of his four-year career which has quickly found the path to superstardom.

Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen added 18 points, which offset another ice cold game by Paul Pierce (9 points). Tony Allen also provided a huge lift off the bench with 15 points. The two biggest highlights in a game full of incredible plays was Rondo and Tony Allen finding each other for layups off behind the back feeds.

LeBron James (22 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 7 assists) couldn't do it all by himself as Cleveland's supporting cast looks more shaky with each passing game. Shaq was the second leading scorer with 17 points, which is all you need to know.

Antawn Jamison had 14 points but he's getting manhandled by KG down low, it's clear that he's a finesse player not built for this rough and tumble series. And Mo Williams scored 13 points but Rondo is literally running circles around him.

This was a game Boston had to have and their defense delivered. They held the Cavs to 40.3% from the floor and a pathetic 4 for 19 on 3-pointers. The Celts won all the hustle points with a 47-33 rebounding advantage, four more steals (10-6) and three more blocks (8-5).

Thanks to Rondo's brilliance, the C's outscored Cleveland 23-7 on fastbreak points and 50-40 in the paint.

It'll take a similarly inspired performance to take Game 5. Whoever wins that will likely win the series. All the pressure is back on the Cavs so the Celtics are in a great spot to pull off the upset.

The Celtics will not lose to a one-man team like the Heat

It was hard to believe but last night, the Miami Heat took a 14-point lead over the Boston Celtics early in the third quarter in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals at the TD Garden.

For a team that had been on cruise control all season, the Celts looked like complete frauds as they couldn't do anything against a pretty average team. Thankfully, Boston woke up and held Miami to 10 points in the fourth quarter as they won 85-76.

The lasting image was a bizarre scrum in front of the Heat bench with 40 seconds left in the game. Paul Pierce was lying on the sideline with a hurt shoulder and Quentin Richardson came over and started talking trash (which is all he's good for according to Brandy). Kevin Garnett didn't enjoy that so he started pushing and shoving everybody and he accidentally caught Richardson with an elbow.

When it was all sorted out (after what seemed like two hours), Garnett was ejected and Glen Davis, Richardson and Udonis Haslem all received technical fouls. KG should not be suspended for Game 2 but I wouldn't put it past the NBA to overreact.

Dwyane Wade scored a game-high 26 points with eight rebounds, six assists and seven turnovers but Richardson (15 points) was the only other Heat player in double figures.

Pierce led Boston with 16 points, Garnett added 15 points and nine rebounds while Rajon Rondo notched 10 points and 10 assists. Without question, the player of the game for the C's was Tony Allen.

Ray Allen (2 for 9, 8 points) did one of his patented disappearing acts but Tony Allen was great off the bench, playing 29 minutes as he contained Wade and helped coverup for Ray's no-show.

Davis played well, scoring eight points and grabbing eight rebounds. Other than a Pierce 3-pointer (Boston's only one of the game) off a sick feed from Rondo, Davis had the play of the game as he made an And-1 while he fell down.

Kendrick Perkins also scored eight points. Jermaine O'Neal had eight points and nine rebounds.

It was great to see Boston play lockdown defense, holding Miami to 15 points in the second quarter and 10 in the fourth quarter. The Heat had just 32 points in the second half.

Miami shot 39.7% from the floor to Boston's 44.3%. The Celts made 12 more free throws (22-10) and had five less turnovers (19-14). It wasn't pretty but it was a promising start for a team that nobody believes in anymore.

Game 2 is back at the Garden on Tuesday night.

Good to have you back on the Celtics bandwagon

With a healthier Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, the Boston Celtics look like a new team. As long as they can get the third seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, thus skipping the Cavs until the Eastern Conference Finals, I'm drinking the green and white Kool-Aid straight with no chaser.

Last night's 113-99 domination over the Denver Nuggets (47-25) at the TD Garden was evidence that you need to start paying attention to the C's (46-25) again.

Pierce (27 points, 7 rebounds) was named Eastern Conference player of the week for last week and it appears like after a poor season, by his standards, the Truth is coming back to his old self at just the right time.

Garnett (20 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists) will never be the guy of two years ago, let alone five or ten years ago, since he's logged so many NBA minutes but I'll never count out KG in my life.

Ray Allen added 16 points and Rajon Rondo had his second triple double of the season with 11 points, 11 rebounds and 15 assists.

The C's bench continues to do some nice things with Nate Robinson (8 points) and Michael Finley (7 points) already proving their worth. Tony Allen hadn't done anything in months but he looked great last night with 13 points as Pierce and Marquis Daniels got into early foul trouble.

As it stands right now, Denver is the number two seed in the Western Conference. However, with head coach George Karl receiving cancer treatments and the underlying fact that this team is full of Grade A clowns, who knows what to expect.

Carmelo Anthony (32 points) has had another monster season but does he make his teammates better? J.R. Smith had 21 points off the bench while Arron Afflalo (13 points) and Chauncey Billups (12 points) were the only other Nuggets in double figures.

Boston owned the boards (45-36) and led by Rondo they passed it beautifully (30-21 assists). They also limited themselves to 11 turnovers to Denver's 17.

That was the first of a season-high six-game homestand and the Sacramento Kings come to the Garden tomorrow night for a game that should get pathetic ratings going up against the Sweet 16.

Celtics pick up must win over the NRA's favorite team

As they found themselves down 54-48 to the Wizards last night at halftime, the Celtics looked to end a three-game losing streak and more importantly, to prove that they're still relevant in the Eastern Conference (since they're behind Cleveland, Orlando and Atlanta) and the NBA.

Yes it is still before the All-Star break but the 2009-2010 season is more than halfway over and Boston is currently facing constant questions about the Big Three and the rest of the team, specifically is their window for a championship closed?

Ultimately the fact that the C's (30-16) won 99-88 at the Verizon Center will soon be forgotten by most except for the diehard fans unless its the start of a good stretch.

Six Celtics scored in double-figures, led by Kevin Garnett (19 points, 6 rebounds), Ray Allen (17 points) and Rajon Rondo (17 points, 12 assists). Paul Pierce had 12 points and eight rebounds but sat for the fourth quarter after hurting his foot at the end of the first half.

Rasheed Wallace scored 14 off the bench and Tony Allen added 10 points and six rebounds.

Between gunfights in the locker room, injuries and employing Flip Saunders (one of the biggest clowns in the NBA) as head coach, to say that the Wizards (16-31) are a mess is quite an understatement.

Amidst the rubble there is still talent, Caron Butler scored a team-high 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds with three steals. Now if we could just find a way to get him for Ray Allen. NBA oddity Earl Boykins scored 14 points off the bench while Mike Miller (13 points, 7 rebounds), Brendan Haywood (12 points) and Nick Young (10 points) also reached double-digits.

Boston started to tear away its recent malaise with a 26-24 third quarter but the championship team showed up for the fourth quarter as they smothered the Wizards, 25-10.

Washington star Antawn Jamison, who has been their best player all season, was held to 2-for-17 shooting.

Boston shot 54.8% while Washington shot 38.9%. The Celts shared the ball (24-15 assist advantage).

The Green come home for another very winnable game tomorrow night against the reeling Miami Heat. Dwyane Wade can always go off for 40+ points but the rest of his team is real boob soft.

Kobe and the Lakers steal one from the Celts

With a national audience tuning in on ABC, the Celtics had a chance with a full roster (other than Marquis Daniels-is he still alive?) to show the NBA that they're a dominant team.

Results were mixed as they played well at times (second and third quarter) and fell on their face at the start and in the end when it mattered most.

The Lakers (37-11) walked away with a 90-89 win at the TD Garden yesterday afternoon as Kobe Bryant (19 points, 8-of-20 shooting) hit a contested jumper with 7.3 seconds left to put LA up one and Boston (29-16) could only muster a fadeaway 3-pointer attempt by the buzzer from the ice cold Ray Allen (7 points, 2-of-10 shooting) that bounced harmlessly off the rim.

Kobe is a superstar and even during a bad performance, he still rises up when it matters most and hit the biggest shot of the game. Ray on the other hand, a possible Hall of Famer, is nonetheless rapidly losing his game (shooting) and yet the Celtics seemed to be blind to that fact.

Paul Pierce (15 points), Eddie House (9 points) or Kevin Garnett (10 points) should have taken that shot. Rajon Rondo (21 points, 12 assists, 5 rebounds) was another option since he can get to the basket and was having a great game.

One of the most frustrating parts of the NBA is the late-game reliance on 3-pointers and impossible shots. Why not take it to the basket and force the slimy refs to make a call?

Anyways this turned out to be a much more exciting game than it looked like it would be in the first quarter. The Lakers are at the tail end of a long road trip but you couldn't tell as they jumped out to a 30-19 lead. Andrew Bynum (19 points, 11 rebounds) was a beast inside.

Strangely enough, the Celtics received their biggest spark and stayed in the game based on the contributions from its most up and down player, Tony Allen. His roller coaster game was at its best as he scored 14 points, continually taking it to the hoop against LA's suspect defense.

Rondo also got going with nine points and eight assists in the second quarter alone as the Celts cruised to a 52-47 halftime lead.

Boston outscored LA 21-19 in the third quarter and looked like they had the win in hand after House drained a three to put the Celtics up 11 early in the fourth quarter. However, since its Christmas day win in Orlando, Boston has not been able to handle fourth quarter leads and yesterday was no different as Pau Gasol (11 points, 11 rebounds), Ron Artest (11 points) and the Lakers took the fourth 24-16.

Other than Kobe's clutch shot, a shaky offensive foul on Pierce with the Celts up one and with under a minute left was the second biggest play of the game. It was a weak call at a critical moment but you have to expect that in the NBA and furthermore, the Celtics didn't deserve to win since they crumbled in the fourth quarter.

After losing all three games to Orlando, Atlanta and Los Angeles, the Celts go to DC tonight for what is basically a must-win. The Wizards are bad and Boston needs some type of positive momentum to build on before the All-Star break.

The Situation should coach the Nets, it couldn't hurt

Well at least MTV's newest reality phenomenon, Jersey Shore is bringing the wonders of New Jersey to homes across the country. That has at least partially diverted attention away from the trainwreck, joke of a team that is the New Jersey Nets.

I don't know if I would call it a game, glorified scrimmage, summer league or preseason was more like it, but the Celts went down to the Izod Center last night and won 111-87.

If it wasn't over after the first quarter (38-22), it was time to call Vinny, Ronnie, Pauly D and the Situation at halftime (71-35) to see what they were up to since the Nets (3-35) were putting up less of a fight than your average Jersey boardwalk zoo creature.

Seven Celtics (27-10) scored 11+ points, led by Paul Pierce's game-high 24 points. Rajon Rondo had 11 points and 14 assists while Ray Allen scored 15, Kendrick Perkins had 12 points, eight rebounds and five blocks and even superscrub Brian Scalabrine notched 11 points. Scal started again since Rasheed Wallace is expected out for the week with a sore foot.

Glen Davis posted 13 points off the bench and Tony Allen (11 points) also made the most of his extended minutes.

The Nets (3-35) were led by Yi Jianlian's 19 points, Brook Lopez had 18 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks and Devin Harris scored 15.

As you could imagine, the numbers were almost as scary as J-Wow's skunk hair. The Celts shot 53.1% for the game (including 66% in the first quarter) to the Nets' 37.7%. The C's had 11 more rebounds (47-36), 17 more assists (30-13) and five more steals (9-4). The Nets actually made 14 more free throws (33-19) but that's about as memorable as Angelina's abbreviated stay in Seaside Heights.

Appropriately enough, the green and white bros get back at it tonight (right before two new episodes of Jersey Shore) back at home against the Bulls.

If Rondo ever learns how to shoot free throws, look out world

Following up their Christmas day win over the Magic (their best win of the season thus far), the Celtics laid a Paris Hilton size dump fittingly in Los Angeles last night.

With the game tied at 90, Rajon Rondo (20 points, 6 assists) had a chance to close it out with 1.5 seconds left when he got fouled by Baron Davis (24 points, 13 assists) but Rondo bricked both shots.

And what do you know, Davis took the ensuing inbounds pass and hit a fadeaway buzzer-beater as the Clippers (13-17) stole one, 92-90 at the Staples Center.

Boston (23-6) led by as much as ten points in the second half but without Paul Pierce for the next week, they are desperately missing their most clutch player.

Tony Allen started for Pierce and he submitted 10 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and four steals. We know Tony Allen too well to get very excited about these flashes since he'll probably get hurt tonight and miss the rest of the season but Tony has played out of his mind since he came back.

Ray Allen scored 13 and Kevin Garnett added 12 points and eight rebounds. Rasheed Wallace and Eddie House both notched eight points off the bench.

The Clippers are still as mediocre as you remember but they should be better with stars like Davis and the underrated Chris Kaman (27 points, 12 rebounds). Eric Gordon added 15 points in the win.

For some reason, the Celts looked like a tired team as they shot a pitiful 1 of 12 on 3-pointers. They'll look to bounce back tonight in Golden State against the allergic-to-defense Warriors.

You've Done It Again Red Bomber

For the second straight home game, the Boston Celtics failed to execute at the end against one of the Western Conference's elite teams and as a result they lost.

Yesterday afternoon it was the San Antonio Spurs (still as boring as you remember them), who claimed a 105-99 victory at the TD Banknorth Garden.

It all went to hell when Boston was down two (95-93) and had an inbounds pass on the sideline.
Ray Allen (18 points) tried to get the ball to Paul Pierce (19 points, 8 rebounds) but he lost the handle and it was intercepted by Manu Ginobli (19 points). Pierce fouled him, of the clear path variety, and after making four free throws, the outcome was sealed.

Tim Duncan led the Spurs (34-15) with 23 points, 15 rebounds and five assists but teammate Matt Bonner, a native of Portsmouth, NH was the star of the show as far as New England was concerned (it has to always be about us, damn it!). Bonner finished with 23 points, eight boards and two steals. He is only the second Granite State native to play in the NBA.

Roger Mason (11 points) was the other unlikely leading man as he hit a dagger 3-pointer out of nowhere to put the San Antonio up two.

For the Celtics (42-11), Kevin Garnett had his best game in a long time, checking in with 26 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Tony Allen scored 11 points off the bench, Kendrick Perkins added 10 points and seven boards while Rajon Rondo did his best Jason Kidd impression: six points, 16 assists, five rebounds.

An unsettling trend in recent weeks for the Celts has been their defense allowing 100+ points almost every time out. They'll need to tighten things up on the defensive end to knock off the top teams.

That was their last home game for over two weeks as they hit the road for an extended road trip (made longer by the All-Star break). The C's start in New Orleans on Wednesday night against the injury-depleted but talented Hornets.

Remembering what life would be like without KG

It's easy to forget that the Celtics acquired KG a couple days after trading for Ray Allen two summers ago. There is a reason why people (myself included) weren't that excited about a team that only slightly upgraded by trading for Ray Allen. Garnett is a difference-maker as he proved last season in Boston's championship run.

The C's lose its defensive identity when Garnett (flu) is forced to miss a game like he did yesterday afternoon against his former team, the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Boston (40-9) did just enough for a 109-101 home win over the youthful Timberwolves (16-30) in a Super Bowl matinee. Oh by the way, it was the Green's 11th consecutive victory.

Still, it was a reality check of what life would have been like without KG; the Celts would be fighting for home court in the Eastern Conference and would not be title contenders.

Paul Pierce led Boston with a game-high 36 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Ray Allen added 22 points and Tony Allen scored 14 off the bench. In only his second career start, Glen Davis notched 12 points, six boards and three steals.

Kendrick Perkins scored eight points and grabbed 11 rebounds while Rajon Rondo had five points, eight assists and seven rebounds.

Minnesota was paced by its star, former Celtic Al Jefferson, who had 34 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks. It's a joke that he didn't make the All-Star team this season in the West.

Randy Foye added 21 points and nine assists while former Providence College star and Celtic Ryan Gomes notched 17 points and four steals. Sebastian Telfair, the other ex-Celtic, had 10 points and eight assists.

Boston jumped out a sizable lead after a 29-24 first quarter and 33-20 second quarter. The T-Wolves came back in the third (29-25) and fourth (28-22) but Pierce would not let his team choke away such a winnable game.

The Celts travel to Philly tomorrow night and Garnett's status is up in the air.

Eddie House will tell you when he's had enough

I don't think I've ever seen a shooter in the NBA as hot as Eddie House is right now.

He had a season-high 28 points last night, including a blistering 8-of-9 on 3-pointers as the Boston Celtics put away the Sacramento Kings, 119-100 at the Garden for its ninth straight win.

In three of his last four games, he's combined to shoot 22-of-31 on threes. He's making a late case to be included in the 3-point shootout at the All-Star Weekend in Phoenix.

The Celts (38-9) actually started out slowly as the Kings (10-37) hit 10 of its first 11 shots from the field. No problem though as Sacramento led 30-28 after the first and Boston came back with a 40-19 second quarter sparked by House's in the zone shooting.

The third quarter (29-24 Kings) and fourth, 27-22 Celtics were just semantics as the second quarter was enough to put away the NBA's second-worst team (I'm looking at you Wizards).

Besides House, the other revelation during the win streak has been the much-improved play of the Boston bench. Tony Allen returned last night and had 10 points, eight rebounds, three steals and three assists. Glen Davis also added 14 points.

Rajon Rondo also stated his case for a spot in Phoenix, in the All-Star game, by scoring 24 points and dishing out nine assists. Kevin Garnett had 14 points, eight boards and five assists while Ray Allen notched 12 points. Paul Pierce was held to eight points and eight assists.

John Salmons led the Kings with 22 points while impressive rookie Jason Thompson had a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Kevin Martin scored 18 points, Bobby Brown (the other one) had 13 points off the bench and Brad Miller posted 11 points in the loss.

For the game, the C's shot 55.0% to Sacramento's 44.0%. They also had seven more rebounds (40-33) and 12 more assists (30-18). Finally, the Celts had nine steals to the Kings' two.

Boston hits the road tomorrow night to face the struggling Detroit Pistons.

The Knicks' NBA Jam defense is not going to stop anybody

With 19 inches of snow accumulating over the past few days and a constant cycle of putting 10 layers on, shoveling and moving cars, we can be temporarily be forgiven by not really paying much attention to the Celtics.

That's not to say they don't deserve it, they certainly do but on a day when the Patriots had another vital late-season game and the Bruins also played at the exact same time as the C's, you can only flip the channel so much.

There is nothing left to say about the Celtics (26-2). They beat the Knicks (11-16), 124-105, last night at the Garden, winning their 18th game in a row. It matched the best streak in history (1981-1982; are you listening old-timers?) while also tying the NBA mark for best start through 28 games.

For the second time in six days, Rajon Rondo set a new career-high in points (26 points) with six rebounds, five assists and two steals. As the Comcast announcers say every game, Rondo truly improves each time out, it's incredible.

Boston's starting five (the best in the NBA) came to play as usual. Ray Allen scored 18 and Paul Pierce added 17 points. Kendrick Perkins had 12 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks while Kevin Garnett notched 12 points, eight assists and six rebounds.

Tony Allen (11 points, 5 assists) and Leon Powe (10 points, 5 rebounds) led the bench. Glen Davis missed the game after getting into a car accident on the Mass Pike on the way to the game. He suffered whiplash and a concussion but he should be fine.

Quentin Richardson led New York with a game-high 29 points. Nate Robinson added 23 points (including a sick putback dunk) and Chris Duhon (when did he get good?) scored 20 points and had 10 assists.

David Lee put up 17 points and eight boards while Al Harrington scored 10.

Despite what the Celtics players and coaches said, this wasn't much of a game after the first quarter which the C's took 40-21. The Knicks outscored Boston, 37-26 in the second but the C's won the third (32-29) and fourth (26-18).

For the game, the Celts shot a season-high 65.8% which is nearly impossible. They actually missed ten free throws (14-24) but made up for it by getting more than double the amount of rebounds (47-23) for New York.

Those two records (franchise win streak and best 29-game start) can both be broken on Tuesday when the Sixers come to the Garden. With a win there, the Celts set up a monster game Christmas night in LA against the Lakers.

Sorry A.I., Rajon Rondo is the future

A few months back, when I purchased tickets to see the Detroit Pistons vs. the Boston Celtics at the Garden, I expected a tight early season meeting of the Eastern Conference's two best teams.

With that said, the result was surprising as the C's (11-2) absolutely dominated the Pistons (8-4) in a 98-80 romp last night.

Detroit started the game on a 13-2 run but as quick as you noticed that, the Celts were tying it up as the teams each had 21 in the first quarter.

Boston's bench was the key to the game as Tony Allen (13 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks), Eddie House (11 points) and Leon Powe (7 points, 7 rebounds) gave the C's energy and production in extended playing time.

As a result, Boston took a 49-40 lead into the break and never looked back as they led 77-57 going into the fourth.

The Big Three had collectively as bad a game as you'll ever see from them: Kevin Garnett (15 points), Ray Allen (12 points) and Paul Pierce (9 points) got to sit out the entire fourth quarter though which is vital since they play tonight and Sunday on the road.

In a game full of so many stars, one player that you might not expect, totally stood out above the rest: Rajon Rondo. I can't decide who is more appropriate named Mr. Jekell and Hyde, between Rondo or Tony Allen but it's clear that when Rondo is on, he's one of the great young stars in the NBA.

Rondo had a game-high 18 points, eight assists and three steals. Kendrick Perkins added 10 rebounds.

The Pistons never seemed into the game. Allen Iverson paced Detroit with the quietest 16 points I've ever seen. Rasheed Wallace (13 points) and Richard Hamilton (12 points) didn't leave any imprint on the game before retreating to the bench for good.

Jason Maxiell had 10 points for the Pistons.

It's way too early to say whether the Chauncey Billups for A.I. swap was a success for Detroit or not but as of now, the early returns are not looking good. Sure, the Pistons beat the Lakers last week but A.I. is not at the point in his career where he can lead a team (while Ba Ba Ba Billups still can as he's showing in Denver). Iverson's game has been reduced to driving the lane, jumping in the air then passing back out. He's not a total bum by any means but it barely resembles the sure bet Hall-of-Famer in his Sixers days.

The Celts shot 49.3% to Detroit's 42.6%. Boston had five more rebounds (42-37), five more assists (22-17), four more steals (12-8) and four less turnovers (16-12).

Tonight is KG's first official visit back to Minnesota. Last year, he was out with the abdominal injury so he couldn't play. He still garnered an awkward pre-game ceremony but this game should be much more enjoyable for Garnett and the Timberwolves' fans.

One Last Look Back at Banner 17

Where does the time go? It seems like only yesterday that the Celtics were embarassing the overrated Lakers in game 6 of the NBA Finals at the Garden and capturing their 17th NBA Championship.

Fast forward four and a half months to the Garden and the Celtics fittingly opened the 2008-2009 NBA season with the banner raising and ring ceremony.

From all reports and highlights, the presentation was top-notch. The viewers at home wouldn't have much idea of that though since for some reason TNT chose to show only small clips of it while also muting some of captain Paul Pierce's emotional address to the crowd.

Oh yeah, there was a game to be played too as King James and the Cavaliers were in the building. The teams memorably went seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals before Pierce outdueled James in the deciding game.

No surprise that the game lacked the excitement and buzz of the pre-game festivities. Even more predictable, the V.I.P. corporate suits at the game failed to make any noise. What is this, Fenway in the playoffs?

Anywho, the Celts (1-0) started out slowly but eventually wore down the Cavs (0-1) with team defense and clutch shooting from Pierce (game-high 27 points) to take a 90-85 win.

Much like in the Eastern Conference Finals and for all of his young career, James didn't get enough help from his mostly average teammates. James had 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Veteran center Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 15 points and eight rebounds while new point guard Mo Williams added 12 points.

Little has changed for the Cavs, they still rely on one player (James) more than any other team. It helps that he's one of the top two or three players in the league but I still doubt that they have the horses to win a title as currently constructed.

After really waking up late in the playoffs, Rajon Rondo continued his strong play with 14 points, six assists, five rebounds and three steals on opening night. Kevin Garnett was held to 11 points and six rebounds. The keys for Boston, outside of Pierce, were Tony Allen (11 points) and Leon Powe (13 points) who were great in big minutes off the bench.

James Posey is the only notable missing part from last season's championship team. Without question, the C's hope Tony Allen can fill Posey's role, with some help from rookies J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker. Nobody thinks Tony Allen is the player that Posey is but if he can regain his pre-knee injury form, Boston will be in good shape.

Cleveland was up 28-22 and 50-43 as the Celts' shooting started out uglier than Craig Sager's typical clown suit.

In the third quarter, Boston took over with a 24-13 frame followed by a 23-22 fourth. It wasn't a work of art but it was a win on a night filled with distractions.

Neither team could shoot from the outside (the Cavs were 3 of 14 while the Celts were 3 of 15). Cleveland had five more rebounds (41-36) but five more turnovers (21-16).

Let me get this out of the way early in the season: the Boston Celtics are the team to beat. As I said, they return everything but Posey and they have the championship experience that the Big Three famously lacked. Rondo and Kendrick Perkins will only continue to get better. The chemistry of the team is apparent in every game.

The Pistons and Sixers (with Elton Brand) will be up there with the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference but it's the Celtics' to lose. In the West, everyone is picking the Hornets and Lakers (who have a healthy Andrew Bynum) to be the two best teams.

Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls come to the Garden Friday night (Halloween).

comings and goings of an NBA Champion

As I learned in 2002 after the Patriots won the Super Bowl-the first local team to win a championship when I wasn't wearing diapers-no matter how much you want a team to keep exactly the same personnel, it ain't happening partner.

When you do a franchise in Madden or season in any other video game, there's some shuffling in your roster automatically so what makes you think that professional athletes (and their agents) with oversized egos will settle for a hometown discount?

Sometimes you can see the writing on the wall (re: Pedro Martinez, Derek Lowe), other times you wish a certain player didn't depending on who you talk to, either bang Manny's wife or underaged girls (re: Orlando Cabrera) while others simply chase a dollar sign (re: Deion Branch and Ty Law).

With this firmly implanted in your mind, it should come as no surprise that the 2008-2009 Celtics will look a little different. Going into the off-season, the two most important potential free agents were James Posey and Eddie House, in that order of relevance.

Predictably, the Celts front office wouldn't budge past a three-year offer to Posey and the veteran, two-time champion choose to get a four-year deal in New Orleans.

Posey has to look out for himself and his family foremost and I am too old to begrudge him that. He wanted more security and the challenge of helping another team that is on the cusp of really making some noise in the Western Conference. Makes sense to me.

Yesterday, the C's resigned House and Tony Allen to two-year deals. I'm happy for House, who has seemingly been on every team in the NBA short of the Oklahoma City Thunder (stupid name, huh?). As for Allen, ugh. The only time Tony Allen showed any potential was during the Celtics' awful year two seasons ago. He was playing the best basketball of his life and he blew out his knee, trying to make a dunk after a foul had been called. I can't think of a better way to sum up Tony Allen.

Management is sticking by him, for some reason, but who knows what to expect from him? Especially if he's in a packed Chicago nightclub. How'd that trial end up by the way? Must have missed that one. I hope I'm wrong but I don't think Tony Allen will ever do anything notable in the NBA from here on out. He's athletic enough and a solid defender so he'll probably always be cashing a check for the next 6-8 years but that's about it.

Losing Posey is the bigger issue, the guy was one of the keys to the great regular season and championship. He stepped his game up in the biggest contests. During the season, in 24.6 minutes a game he averaged 7.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and .97 steals while shooting 38% on threes and 80% from the line.

He is the definition of a winner. In the 2008 Finals, he scored 8.7 points a game, grabbed 3.8 rebounds and 1.33 steals. Most memorably, he was a huge part of the Game 4 comeback as he had 18 points. He was what the Lakers lacked, a tough, physical player that was willing to get dirty and dive on the floor.

Thanks Posey, good luck with the Hornets.

The Other Allen Lifts Up his Brother from Another Mother

Ray Allen scored two points (0 for 9 from the floor with two late free throws) and Rajon Rondo had six turnovers and shot 2 for 9. Still, the Celtics outlasted the Memphis Grizzlies, 100-96 in Boston last night.

The Celtics (28-3) won their eight straight, they haven't lost since that epic game against the Pistons on December 19.

With Ray having one of the worst games of his career, Tony Allen (no relation that we know of), stepped up and had another stellar game with 20 points and three steals. Paul Pierce (23 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists) and Kevin Garnett (23 points, 5 boards, 5 assists) also showed why they're sure-fire All-Stars come February.

You have to give Memphis (9-23) plenty of credit, they've had a terrible season thus far but they came into the Garden and weren't intimidated by the NBA's best team. Rudy Gay led the Grizzlies with 21 points, five rebounds and three assists while Juan Carlos Navarro (20 points), Mike Miller (16 points, 8 rebounds), Pau Gasol (12 points, 8 boards) and rookie point guard Mike Conley (10 points) also stood out in the loss.

James Posey (9 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals) continued to improve his candidacy for sixth man of the year while Eddie House had eight valuable points.

It wasn't a very memorable game but Boston did enough to win and you have to think they might have been looking ahead a little bit to tonight when they face the Pistons in Detroit. The two teams are clearly the class of the Eastern Conference and probably two of the top three teams (Spurs being the other) in the league at the moment. Detroit is on fire having won 11 in a row including last night over Toronto.

Doc Rivers sat Pierce, Allen and Garnett in the fourth quarter but had to put them back in as Memphis cut it down to four late in the game.

Tonight should be another classic after Detroit took round one in Boston. The Celtics will need more production from their bench tonight (something that was invisible in the first meeting) while also somehow trying to find a way to slow down Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton. That's obviously easier said than done.

No surprise, Ray Allen proves to be the most expendable of the big three

With Ray Allen out (to rest his ankle), the Celts still rolled over the Bucks last night at the Garden, 104-82. With the win, Boston ties the franchise best start of 12-0 at home (duplicated by the '84-'85 squad) and now has a chance to set the mark on Wednesday when they take on the Pistons (finally another good team!).

This game followed the Celtics (19-2) recent pattern of letting an inferior opponent hang around in the first half before stepping on their throat's in the third quarter and burying them by the fourth quarter.

The C's led 46-44 at the half. In Ray Allen's place, Tony Allen (no relation) started and played his best game of the young season. Tony had 11 points, four steals, three rebounds and two assists. His crowning achievement of the night was holding Bucks star Michael Redd to just seven points. At the end of the half, the play of the game was provided by Allen, Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett. Allen stole the ball from Mo Williams and then raced up court in a three-on-one with Rondo on one side and KG trailing. Allen passed to Rondo, who passed it back to him before leaving it for KG, who slammed it home with authority.

In the third quarter, Boston outscored the Bucks (9-13) 32-15. With Redd totally neutralized, nobody else on Milwaukee stepped up on the offensive end. Williams led the team with 14 points.

For the Celts, Paul Pierce played great (32 points) and Rondo (17 points, 8 assists) was excellent after going scoreless against the Kings. Garnett had an efficient 15 points, seven boards, four assists and two steals. Kendrick Perkins was back but pretty invisible (4 points, 5 boards). Eddie House notched nine points and Leon Powe and Gabe Pruitt both had seven in very limited minutes.

Once again, Boston dominated at the free-throw line, shooting 26 of 30 while the Bucks were 10 of 13. The Celtics had 13 turnovers and the Bucks had 20.

Boston travels to Toronto for a matinee against the Raptors (the third time already the teams have met) tomorrow. Ray Allen is expected back but there's no rush as Boston proved they can certainly win without him. Ray has been a good addition chemistry-wise but so far his game has been a little suspect. He's a great shooter but we haven't seen that side of him yet. There's plenty of time left for him to find his game and get back to full health.

Boston off to its Best Start in 35 years

Only seven games into the 2007 NBA Season, two things are becoming abundantly clear: 1) the Celtics are very good and 2) the Eastern Conference once again is by and large garbage. The Celtics improved to 7-0 with a grimy 91-69 win over the Nets last night at the Garden. Its the Celtics best start in 35 years (they started 10-0 in the '72-'73 season) and the franchise's best start was 14-0 in '57-'58.

Common sense held that last night (the second night of a back-to-back) would be sloppy and the Nets would be a good team to face since they have a real lack of depth and scoring punch now that Vince Carter is out with a sprained ankle. The Nets led 23-17 after one quarter but you had a feeling that wouldn't last for long. The C's held them to 11 points in the second quarter and Paul Pierce hit a last-second jumper to put Boston up two heading into the break.

The second half was all about defense for the Celtics as they only gave up 35 points total. For the home team, six players found double-figures including all five starters. This was especially impressive since offensive spark plug Eddie House was out with a sprained ankle from the Pacers game. Kevin Garnett led the way with 16 points and 8 rebounds while Pierce (15 points), Ray Allen (14 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, 4 steals), Rajon Rondo (13 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds) and Kendrick Perkins (10 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocks) all had solid games.

The story of the game was Tony Allen, who had 13 points in 24 minutes. He received a lot of House's minutes and played well. He's still recovering from a horrific knee injury last season (which happened just when he was playing the best basketball of his life) so he wears a huge knee brace. His main strength is that he's a great defender so if he can consistently contribute on the offensive side, the Celtics will be in great shape.

Boston shot 46.5% as a team and they forced 20 Nets turnovers (including 14 steals). The Nets shot a pitiful 33.3% as a team. They are pretty limited without Carter. Jason Kidd played well (19 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists) and Richard Jefferson had 21 points but they have a bunch of bums taking up roster space.

The Celtics host struggling Miami (1-7) on Friday. Dwyane Wade came back last night for the Heat but they still lost to the Sonics, who had been winless. Shaq is only a shell of his former self and the Heat are light years away from the team that won the NBA Championship two seasons ago.