Give me that, "Superman."

This post is by the newest member of team Celtics Town, Kyle O’Connor.  Welcome aboard, Kyle.

Entering Sunday afternoon’s showdown with the Magic, you couldn’t help but wonder how the Celtics would respond to the huge series victory versus King James and the Cavs.  The green answered that question early on at the Amway arena in Orlando, FL this afternoon by acting as the aggressor from the start versus a shell-shocked Magic squad.  The result was a 92-88 Celtics win in which the Celtics thoroughly dominated play for three and a half quarters.

It was prevalent from the start that Paul Pierce’s goal was to assert himself on the offensive and defensive end.  The defensive scheme versus Dwight Howard worked to perfection as they forced him into 3-10 shooting and only 13 points.  Tom Thibodeau and the green did exactly what the Atlanta Hawks failed to do in the previous round, running big bodies at Dwight Howard and forcing him to make plays away from the basket.  First it was Kendrick Perkins forcing Howard to do his running hooks from 10 feet out, then came Rasheed Wallace who put in 20 solid minutes and used as many fouls as possible on “Superman.”  The Celts’ plan worked to perfection and unless the Magic (and Stan “Ron Jeremy” Van Gundy) make some serious adjustments they could be in for a long series.  Howard is a player who thrives off of fast break opportunities and garbage points, and the Celts did a great job limiting both of those opportunities.

Pierce flexed his muscle by showing what he had failed to show in the Cleveland series, that he can be the aggressor.   No matter who was guarding The Truth, it didn’t matter, he was getting wherever he wanted to on the court.  Whether it was his mid range game or getting to the basket, nobody could stop him from doing whatever he wanted to on the court.

Pierce’s aggression and play will continue to be a key as the series goes on, particularly because Rajon Rondo seemed to have trouble with the Magic defense.  He had no issues getting past Nelson and getting to the hoop, but he can no longer just flip the ball up wherever he chooses because of the big 7 footer standing there waiting for him.  In game 2 Rondo needs to be more aggressive on his mid-range game in order to get that floater in the lane that he has become so accustomed to.  

Ray Allen ran the Orlando defense ragged by dropping in 25 points on 2-5 from behind the arc.  He needs to continue spreading the floor to open up opportunities for Rondo and Pierce to get to the rim versus the tough Orlando front court.  Rashard Lewis, who was the key to the series win last year, was non existent due to the great defense by Kevin Garnett.  One of the best 3 point shooters in the league, KG forced Lewis to put the ball on the floor every time he touched it.

There was the classic blip in concentration halfway through the 4th quarter that let the Magic cut the once 20 point lead down to a 2 point lead in the final minute.  This was obviously aided by a phantom back-court call (How the hell does Carter tip the ball to Reddick and not get called for back court on that??!), but that is no excuse.  The point is that the green dominated this game for all but about a 7 minute span in the 4th quarter.  

They have the personnel to match up with Howard, and I don’t trust any team whose go to guy is Vince Carter in the 4th quarter.  While Carter did have a good game with 23 points, he is still not the closer that Hedo Turkolu was during last year’s run.  If you have been watching this team all year, you kept waiting for that run where the green relinquish the lead, but it never came.  It never came because this Magic team does not have a player that can take over a game/series, a la Lebron James.  If they get behind, they need to slowly and methodically work the ball to get open 3′s and get Howard the ball to make runs.  

The Celtics match up better with Orlando than any team remaining in these playoffs, this is because they have the bodies to match up with Howard, and the length and speed on the wings to get out on shooters.  Game 2 is a must win for Orlando on Tuesday night, and if the Green play at the pace that they played today, they could be coming back to the Garden looking to put their foot on the throats of the Magic.

A couple quick thoughts..

• Every single time Jameer Nelson brought this team close to making a monster run early in the second half, that was always answered by a hustle play from Glen Davis or Rasheed.
• Anyone else think that Marcin Gortat looks like he shouldv’e been in one of the Rocky movies at some point?
• Rasheed did a fantastic job getting in Dwight Howard’s head, this was evident by the double technicals the two took in the 2nd half.
• Matt Barnes has to have something bothering him.  I had heard before the game that he had some back spasms, but that was no the defensive effort I was expecting versus Pierce and Allen.
• Glen Davis did a monster job in using the rim multiple times to avoid Howard blocks.  He was like me trying to avoid traffic on 93 in the morning, but with a lot less yelling and obscene language (or maybe not).
• If the Celts can somehow come away with a game 2 win, do you think Josh Cohen from Orlando will back off his comments the the Magic are one of the greatest teams of all time? (What a dipshit that guy is, obviously from Florida.)

One quote from Ray Allen after the game was great:

“There were stretches in the season, we know each other so well now, where we were becoming less patient with each other,” Allen said. “We were getting on each other a little too much. We can take it, but we respected each other.

“When we started the playoffs, we said teams are going to hit us, they’re going to attack us. But when somebody scores on us, which they will, we go get the ball out and come back.”

Wait, T-Mac isnt playing for the Rockets tonight?

Just a brief preview for tonight, guys. By the time you read this, I’ll be on my way back home for Easter. (With a quick pit-stop to get my Hedo Turkoglu on, of course.  No, not partying.  Eating pizza.  At Joe’s Pizza in Northampton, MA. Their ‘za is beyond tasty. My mouth is watering now, just thinking about it.)

Since I’ll be on the road soon, I’m just going to give you three points about the game.

1. Celtics could really use a win - Two-game losing streak.  Cleveland next, on Sunday.  Playoffs coming soon.  Do I need to tell you how much Boston could use a win tonight against Houston?
2. Nate Robinson, where have you been? – Nate has scored three total points during his last three games, and hasn’t scored in double figures since March 12.  Wherever you’re hiding, Nate, Olly Olly Oxen Free.
3. Declining Rockets – The Rockets have lost five of their past six games, and now sit directly on the .500 marker.  Of the Houston Chronicle’s last two Rockets columns, one is titled “Adelman admits defensive decline,” and the other is “Rockets find themselves guilty of impatient offense.”  Not a lot is going right for the Rockets, and let’s hope the Celtics keep it that way.

I can remember watching Game Seven against the Orlando Magic last postseason.

I was still convinced of the Celtics’ invincibility. Kevin Garnett was out, and the mediocre Bulls had just finished forcing Boston to play seven brutally exciting games to finish Chicago off. But I still felt Boston would never lose. Read more »

Two teams that have had problems in January.  Two teams still searching for their best play.  Two teams that have been wildly inconsistent this season.

Nonetheless, tonight’s Boston Celtics-Orlando Magic showdown is must-see t.v. Read more »

The Celtics have gotten rid of their morning walkthrough, but that doesn’t mean we have to. Here are a few Celtics links, and maybe even an NBA link or two, to help wake you up and get you focused for the day.

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald - “In what was very likely the Celts’ last visit to the Meadowlands, the final snapshot was a surgical strike that kept New Jersey on the turnpike to the worst record in NBA history. The 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers [team stats] (9-73) are about to be taken off the hook. The Celts were ahead by 21 in the first quarter when a Nets writer turned to a Boston counterpart and said, ‘This is the point where you’re supposed to tap me on the shoulder and ask how they’ve been able to win three games.’”

Mike Fine, Patriot Ledger -”Kevin Garnett is out again, and now, so too is Rasheed Wallace. Marquis Daniels is on an extended recovery break and Glen Davis has already been there. The Celtics have been unable to find a rhythm, and you have to wonder if there are some parallels that trace to the 1986-87 season. ‘You certainly hope not, because that’s out of everybody’s hands,’ McHale said from his Minnesota home Wednesday. ‘That’s just a tough thing. It’s hard. One thing about the NBA is that if you’re lucky enough and blessed enough to have the talent to play in the NBA, playing basketball is really fun and enjoyable and actually fairly easy. But when you’re out there playing hurt, it’s hard, it’s drudgery, it’s not fun. It steals the fun from you so you hate to see a guy like Garnett, who loves to play, go through that. So I’m hoping they have good health, but that’s something that is kind of out of your control.’”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “He’s been absolutely great, and you can see now that they’re allowing him to work out, you’re seeing (Garnett’s intensity) creep back up a little more, which is good. You want him to want to play,” Rivers said. “I don’t think he’s been more down in his life than he was sitting on the bench during the playoffs last year, and I think he would do anything to not ever be in that position again.’ And as for the overall state of his team, which improved to 27-10 — only two games off the pace they were on at this point a year ago — this was Rivers’ State of the Celtics’ sermon: ‘I love our team. I’d love to see ‘em. I don’t think we’ve had our team intact one game yet this year, our main nine, eight guys, so I’m looking forward to actually seeing that group, and I think we will eventually,’ Rivers said. ‘I’m hoping after the All-Star break we’re whole. I like our team as it is now. Obviously if you can improve it, you will. But I like our chemistry, I like our mindset, who we are as a group, and when you get that you want to hold onto it.’”

A. Sherrod Blakely – “Boston made 10 of its first 11 shots and barely slowed up from there, building a 36-point lead during its highest-scoring first half of the season and cruising to its 11th straight victory over the Nets (3-35). Yi Jianlian scored 19 points and Brook Lopez had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Nets, who lost their sixth straight and were as far away from the Celtics on the court as they are in the standings.”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “Limited action for the top of the rotation meant extended minutes for little-used reserves like J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker. Both second-year players showcased their athleticism, while registering six points apiece. Walker, who played six minutes after logging just six minutes all year, posterized Nets center Josh Boone with an emphatic one-handed jam, then assisted on a pair of Giddens buckets. ‘Big time,’ Ray Allen said when asked how much the Celtics needed an easy win. ‘Just seeing the young guys coming in and playing and be able to run up and down the floor. It continues to make them — or allow them — to work harder if they’re not getting a lot of minutes. And then getting a lot of rest for the starters.’”

Julian Garcia, NY Daily News – “Someone was bound to snap. And while Devin Harris may not have broken anything or singled out a teammate at halftime of Wednesday night’s game against the Celtics, it could be a good sign that the Nets’ de facto captain finally ripped into the team during one of its most dreadful performances yet. Maybe the Nets needed to hear it from their usually understated leader during an embarrassing 111-87 loss to the shorthanded Celtics. Maybe his message will finally wake the Nets up from a season-long slumber that has resulted in a 3-35 record.”

Marc Spears, Yahoo! Sports – “The biggest struggles among the Magic’s core players have come in adjusting to playing with [Vince] Carter. Though Carter is averaging a team-high 17.4 points, he’s also shooting a team-worst 39.2 percent. The Magic also have won five of the six games in which he hasn’t played. Carter, Van Gundy said, has ‘made a lot of bad decisions in terms of shot selection.’ Struggling to find his All-Star form in Orlando, Vince Carter is shooting a team-worst 39.2 percent this season. ‘He’s predetermined of what he’s doing offensively,’ Van Gundy said. ‘Vince is thinking too much. He’s very conscientious. He wants to fit in, make the right play. I think he’s thinking ahead of time, like, ‘I’m not being aggressive enough, I have to drive at this time. If I’m going under the screen, I got to shoot it or I got to get Dwight a shot,’ instead of just making plays and trusting his instincts.’ Lewis and Howard miss playing with Turkoglu, who often looked to get them the ball and was patient enough to let his own offense come in the flow of the game.”

Have a link I might want to look at? Send it my way by email (jayking@celticstown.com) or Twitter.