Jason Richardson couldn’t miss, and Jameer Nelson stopped to shovel his scorching-hot teammate a pass. Richardson’s primary defender was lost behind a screen, and a three-pointer would have tied the back-and-forth game at 107-107.

Except the ball never found Richardson. Before it could, there was Kevin Garnett’s spaghetti strand arm, reaching in to poke the pass away and ultimately steal it. Garnett floated a pass to Ray Allen, who was fouled and made two free throws to seal Boston’s 109-106 win.

Have you seen a better-played NBA game this season? This was Rocky vs. Apollo Creed, two heavyweights duking it out, throwing haymaker after haymaker while somehow managing to stand on their feet for a full 15 rounds — or, in this case, 48 minutes. If you look at the stats and never watched the game, you would expect two abysmal defenses forgetting rotations left and right, leaving shooters wide open and dunkers underneath the basket unimpeded. But for the majority of the night, this was just two efficient offenses getting the better of stiff defensive units.

Look at the fourth quarter. Every play was an adventure. Hedo Turkoglu would drain a fadeaway three-pointer, then Ray Allen would come back and drill one from the corner. Jameer Nelson would come off a pick-and-roll to hit an elbow jumper, then Paul Pierce would step back, up fake, and drill an and-one. Every shot had an answer, every great play was followed by its equal or better.

Think this game meant something special? Check Dwight Howard and KG, jawing at each other the whole game. Check Jason Richardson, killing himself — quite futilely — to fight over screens. Check Ray Allen, throwing out three fingers in front of the Orlando Magic bench, after a late three-point make. Check Paul Pierce, wild’ing out after his late and one. Check Stan Van Gundy, telling his players they need a little extra in a game like this. Check Doc Rivers, uncharacteristically losing his shit after Ryan Anderson — yes, Ryan Anderson — went off.

The way Boston plays with KG, you wonder how they get by when he’s not around. We talk about his defense a lot, because he’s one of the league’s best defenders and has been for 15 years. But what about the offense? These Celtics just shot 60% against the NBA’s fourth-most efficient defense. They moved the ball so splendidly, so gorgeously, so beautifully, that I almost wept tears of joy.

One play in the fourth quarter exhibited both the Garnett effect and the Celtics’ pristine offense. Ray Allen caught a pass on the right wing, outside the three-point arc. Since Ray’s hit 19 million straight jump shots since the New Year began (or something like that), Ryan Anderson decided to jump at Ray while Jason Richardson chased him to catch up. Allen, not looking to force offense despite the flames jumping from his right hand, rifled a pass to KG at the free throw line. A defender ran to stop KG, but the Celtics had numbers because Ray drew two defenders. KG mustered all his unselfishness and great court vision in his wiry body, sending a pass to the open Glen Davis underneath the hoop. Davis would not make the layup, but his free throws were a result of the C’s rare collective unselfishness.

Though the C’s gave up 106 points, I have few complaints about their defensive output. Intensity was high and, for the most part, the execution wasn’t bad. My one major qualm was this: If you single-team Dwight Howard, that’s fine. He can score 33 points and haul in 13 rebounds, and you can live with that because his teammates don’t get open for three. But when you single-team Dwight Howard and his teammates still get loose from behind the arc, there’s something wrong. You allow one to take away the other. If Howard has 33, his teammates should be tossing bricks with hands waving in their faces. If his teammates make 11 threes and shoot 41% from the land of Antoine Walker, Howard shouldn’t find scoring so easy.

But my complaints, after this night, are slim and few. The Celtics just won one of the season’s most well-played games, and they did it in a way I couldn’t have scripted any better. Garnett looked completely healthy in his return. Ray Allen continues to shoot the ball like it’s a net-seeking missile. Rondo posted yet another double-double. Glen Davis returned to his bench role with grace. Shaq continued to display a pulse. And Paul Pierce continues to be The Mother-Fucking Truth.

In the Celtics’ locker room on Friday night, Nate Robinson asked Marquis Daniels, “Who we playing on Monday?”

Daniels told him they were playing Orlando, and Robinson, who shot 2-15 against Orlando on Christmas Day, responded, “Good. I owe them [dudes].” (Note: The word Robinson actually used was one I can’t ever say, and especially not on Martin Luther King Day.)

Robinson didn’t do his part. He shot 2-8, and took a couple shots that probably had Red Auerbach rolling over in his grave.

But he and his team owed Orlando one, and, if you ask me, that debt’s been paid back. Mr. Garnett, it’s nice to have you back.

The Morning Walkthrough is a set of links to Boston Celtics articles throughout the internet, designed to get your day started the right way.

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “That late-January to early-February return that Perkins was talking about recently? He’s sounding – and looking – like a guy who may be given the green light to resume playing sooner than that. ‘I don’t know,’ Perkins said. ‘Since I got on the court, I think my (return) date probably got pushed up a bit.’ When asked if he was still looking to return next month, he said, ‘hopefully.’”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “But while he was more than a little angry with the officiating, the NBA’s refs may have Shaq to kick around a while longer. He said upon his arrival on the Celtics [team stats] that he’d be done when his two-year deal was up, but yesterday he opened the door to the future beyond that contract. ‘I’m on a team where I don’t have to do it all,’ Shaq said. ‘Everyone, especially around the city of Boston, knows my role. I’m not taking 28 shots anymore. I’ve missed 21⁄2 years’ worth of games, so even though I’ve played 18 years I’ve only played 16 years. My role is different. I’m not taking every shot. I’m playing limited minutes. So if I’m with this team and playing like this, I can probably play two or three more years. I have two years left, but I’ll know. And everybody else will know, too, because I’ll do a hell of a (expletive) press conference.’”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “And yet if you listen to the Celtics afterward, you would think they just lost to the Los Angeles Clippers and not a team that, when the season began, was on everyone’s short list as a title contender. ‘They can’t beat us,’ said Boston’s Glen Davis after Orlando, well, beat them. Davis clarified his words moments later by adding, ‘they came out and played better than us today, but if you are talking about a seven-game series, I don’t think they can beat us.’ … When you talked to Celtics players afterward, limiting Howard was not a surprise nor was it something they felt was overly impressive. ‘I have been playing Dwight since 2004, when I was playing against him in the AAU circuit,’ Davis said. ‘His game hasn’t really changed. It’s not like has a jump shot, or a new spin move. He has the same moves since high school. He has the same post moves.’ Kevin Garnett, a former league defensive player of the Year, didn’t see the C’s doing anything special against Howard, either. ‘I thought everybody who guarded him did a good job on him,’ Garnett said. ‘It is not like he has a ton of moves. He is either going to jump-hook you, spin-lob … he is very predictable.’”

Chris Mannix, Sports Illustrated – “There will be many factors that will influence Howard’s decision but none bigger than this: Winning. Yes, Orlando’s best chance to keep its franchise center in Magic blue is to win and emerge as the class of the Eastern Conference, outgunning Chicago, Miami and most importantly, Boston. The Magic understand this. It’s why GM Otis Smith detonated a pretty good team last week and put the fate of the franchise in Gilbert Arenas’s thrice surgically repaired left knee and Hedo Turkoglu’s slowly fading game. Maybe they were good enough to beat Chicago or Miami with the old group. But not Boston. They knew it after the Celtics wiped the floor with them in last season’s conference finals and became even more convinced of it after watching Boston boost its frontcourt depth with the additions of Shaquille O’Neal, Jermaine O’Neal and Semih Erdin. The Celtics, you see, will be as involved in Howard’s future as any prospective suitor. Not because Boston is a threat to sign Howard; but by beating up on the Magic over the next two postseasons, they could effectively punch his ticket out of town. It’s what makes every game against the Celtics important, every win a reason to exhale. Saturday’s 86-78 win wasn’t artistic but it looks a heck of a lot better than a loss.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “If you’ve paid any attention to Shaquille O’Neal since he joined the Boston Celtics, you know by now that he’s a pretty generous dude. That generosity will likely extend to writing a hefty check to the league office following comments he made after Boston’s 86-78 loss to Orlando on Christmas Day. O’Neal finished with two points in just under 13 minutes of action. After scoring his lone basket of the game, he fouled out just three seconds later. Needless to say, O’Neal had some choice words for the officiating. ‘I guess they came out to see number 26 today,’ O’Neal said. The only No. 26 on the floor Saturday was official Bob Delaney. ‘He (No. 26) was a great player out there today,’ O’Neal said.”

Josh Robbins, Orlando Sentinel – “Like I told the guys at the beginning of the season, we’ve got to be tough,’ Howard said. ‘Not just physically tough but mentally tough, especially against teams like Boston, who’s going to come at us from all different angles. They’re going to attack us mentally, they’re going to attack us physically and they’re going to try to punk us.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “The run was so long, Kevin Garnett felt like he had lost track of time at a craps table. ‘When you’ve been throwing the dice for this long, they’re going to bring the cooler over and sit him at your table, and he’s going to cool you off,’ the Celtics forward said, shaking his head. ‘We got the cooler today. Ah, we got the cooler today.’”

Rich Levine, CSNNE – “Even as recently as Wednesday night, Doc lamented how, despite all the wins, the Celtics weren’t improving. And as a result, neither were our expectations. It was the oddest feeling. The Celtics went a month without losing, but you couldn’t feel any better about their chances. There were games when they played great; games when they just played well enough to win; games when they didn’t even play well enough to win, but still managed to get the W. But regardless of how it happened, most of the time, those wins just left us feeling neutral. When we spoke of the streak, it was never, ‘Look out, NBA! The Celtics are on a rampage!’ It was ‘How the hell do they keep winning all these games?’ There was no rhyme or reason to how they were doing it. Sometimes the defense was great, but they also allowed more than 100 points in eight of 14. Sometimes the offense was clicking, but then it would disappear for long stretches. There were plenty of positives along the way. Of course, there were positives. And there certainly weren’t enough negatives to create any level of concern. But still, it was still strangely unsatisfying. You wanted to get feel better about it. But you just couldn’t. I guess that’s just life with the 2010-2011 Celtics.”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “It was one of the Magic’s cornerstones: Jameer Nelson, who scored 10 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter. Sprinting down the floor and pulling up not far from the Boston bench, he knocked down a 3-pointer with 1:19 left that staggered the Celtics. They’d never recover. ‘Jameer willed that game for them,’ said Rivers. ‘He’s got the biggest heart on the team. He’s just a warrior and he does it all the time. Give him the credit. I thought he was phenomenal. I thought he was on the floor and he just kept pushing that team. You could see it. That’s what he does. A lot of people miss that in him.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “That’s why, when veterans such as Garnett and Paul Pierce [stats] tell the O’Neals to take a long-term view, the newcomers listen. It obviously helps that Garnett, Pierce and Ray Allen have been healthy enough to carry the load. ‘Paul said the other day that it’s going to be scary in February,’ Shaq said. ‘We go to the bench and you’re going to see JO, Perk, Delonte (West), oh, my God. That’s the good thing about this organization — Ed (Lacerte, the trainer), B-Doo (Brian Doo, the strength and conditioning coach) have me working out twice a day. It’s a blessing in disguise.’ For this Celtics team, the oldest in the NBA, it’s also vital. ‘I don’t ever feel like I was rushed back any time I’ve been out,’ Allen said. ‘(But) I think Ed Lacerte is a trainer who, as much as we want guys out there, he’s not going to compromise guys’ health. As all trainers should, he has the hearts and the minds of the players in his best interests. The players have to be 100 percent on the floor. He knows what he’s dealing with, and he’s giving us the best opportunity and options to see if we can go through the rigors of a game. I think he truly cares, and in some organizations the trainer might be for the coach, or the trainer might be for the owner. But I’ve been on teams mostly where the trainers are for the players.’”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “The effects of seven weeks off were evident in Jermaine O’Neal’s return. He went 1 of 4 from the floor, but his biggest issue was timing, either not being ready for passes or bobbling them. ‘It looked and felt like it was my first game back in almost two months,’ O’Neal said. ‘Sometimes your mind is moving a little bit faster than your actual body. I left quite a few passes behind me that were very good passes. But you expect that. I’ve only had three practices, four practices. So I look forward to trying to build from it. It’s all about timing, it’s all about getting into the flow of things.’ O’Neal played just 10 minutes, and Rivers could sense O’Neal’s attitude dipping. ‘You could see he was kind of down,’ Rivers said.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “Yesterday’s 86-78 loss at the Magic stands as Exhibit A. The Celtics [team stats] are in a struggle to find their offensive flow without Rajon Rondo [stats]. That doesn’t change Doc Rivers’ plan for the point guard, who is recovering from a sprained left ankle. ‘Rondo is still going to be out until he’s 100 percent,’ said the Celtics coach, who a day earlier had said Rondo would probably miss more time than the two-week timeframe that had originally been set. ‘I’m not going to push him back. We’re not going to push anyone back.’ The Celtics’ current trouble, according to Rivers, goes deeper than Rondo’s absence. ‘It’s not just Rajon, and that’s the point you guys miss,’ Rivers said. ‘It’s Delonte (West) and Rajon. It’s more than just Rondo. We always thought we could lose one of those three guards. We knew it was going to be very difficult if we lost two of them.’”

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “So if Shaq is going to stay the same, soak up fouls and give the bench a 300-pound cheerleader, then Perkins needs to come back faster than expected or Jermaine O’Neal can’t take several weeks to blend into the system. Yesterday was his eighth game and it’s difficult to determine whether Jermaine O’Neal can make a significant contribution. He wants to be more involved in the offense, but coach Doc Rivers made it clear in training camp that they don’t need O’Neal reliving his glory days. In 10 minutes against the Magic, he missed three shots and committed four fouls. Davis, indeed, is the Celtics’ most productive and reliable center and that’s a discouraging sign for Ainge and Rivers. The O’Neals have to respond with better defense, more rebounding, and savvier play. Shaquille O’Neal can’t stand there with his hands raised and chest bump an opponent driving to the basket and expect to draw a charge. And standing there with that “Who me?’’ look isn’t exactly reminiscent of the acting of Sir Laurence Olivier. Somehow, Shaquille has to swallow his pride and understand his importance to the depth of this team.”

Got a tip? An article you think should be included? Send an email to jayking@celticstown.com or hit me up on Twitter @CelticsTown.

On a day when Kendrick Perkins walked through some plays in practice (and even dunked a couple times, and might even be back by late January), I finally discuss the Orlando Magic’s trades.

Why didn’t I write about them before? For a couple reasons: 1) Life sometimes interferes even with the most dedicated bloggers, and 2) I needed some time to wrap my head around the thought of Malik Allen being a number one backup center.

Okay, on to the roster overhaul. First, I have no idea whether it will work. My guess would be that it doesn’t — mostly because, for it to work, Gilbert Arenas needs to return to ’06-’07 Agent Zero, and Hedo Turkoglu needs to revert to the walking mismatch who was Orlando’s go-to playmaker in their 2009 Finals run. To expect either of them to return to their former selves requires a leap of faith I’m not ready to make.

More likely, Jason Richardson will end up being Orlando’s most important acquisition from the trades. Which is fine… unless you’re actually trying to win an NBA championship, in which case you need at least one player who can create at the end of games. Richardson isn’t that guy, and neither is the Arenas we’ve seen since his return, and neither is the zombie living in Hedo’s body the past two seasons.

It’s clear Orlando made these moves to win an NBA championship now, and to entice Dwight Howard to stick around when his contract expires. But how much closer are they to a championship? They have SO many question marks in their lineup now.

How do Jameer Nelson and Gilbert Arenas fit in the same backcourt? Who becomes the playmaker come crunch time? Can this team stop anyone? Will Dwight Howard get into more foul trouble than ever before because his perimeter defenders act as a funnel straight to him? Is the trio of Ryan Anderson, Malik Allen and Daniel Orton REALLY Orlando’s only backcourt bench help? Is one ball going to be enough for this psychotic, half-crazy (entirely crazy?), shot-happy (no pun intended for Gilbert) crew? Does Hedo Turkoglu’s heart even still beat?

Okay, so the Magic probably aren’t done trading yet. I don’t see J.J. Redick sticking around (there isn’t really a spot for him anymore), so he’ll probably get swapped for some big man help. Even so, the perimeter questions still stand. All of them. Call me crazy, but I don’t see any of these new Magicians A) fitting in well with Stan Van Gundy’s style, B) stopping a soul, or C) taking over come crunch time. In their primes, yes. But these folks aren’t in their primes anymore. In their Magic opener, Hedo (shocking nobody in Toronto or Phoenix) still sucked, and Arenas came off the bench and shot 2-11 (also shocking nobody). Will they improve with time? I assume. But don’t expect any of these guys to be stars, in Orlando. And the Magic need at least one of them to be capable of star production.

(Side note: Malik Allen played 13 minutes in his first post-trade action, registering 0 points and 1 rebound. That next trade can’t come soon enough.)

In conclusion, I like the motives behind the trades, but not the trades themselves. Otis Smith knew his Magic, as they were constructed, weren’t going to win a championship. So he pulled the trigger, drastically changing a team that was only a step shy of a championship in the first place. More GMs should be built like that. The NBA should be about winning championships, and anything else should be uncivilized.

Just take a look at the Atlanta Hawks. As presently constructed, they have zero shot of winning a championship or even coming close. But they just signed Joe Johnson for $120 million, apparently so they can continue their string of first- and second-round playoff runs for the foreseeable future. It’s like when the Celtics traded away Joe Johnson so they could rent Tony Delk and Rodney Rodgers. Sure, the trade helped them reach the Eastern Conference Finals, but I promise: no matter what happened, a lineup of Kenny Anderson, Paul Pierce, Tony Delk, Antoine Walker and Tony Battie was never taking down the Shaq-Kobe Los Angeles Lakers. What’s better — reaching the Eastern Conference Finals or keeping your most promising rookie since Paul Pierce? What’s more important — reaching a low ceiling, or trying to make that ceiling a little higher?

Back to the Magic, I admire the stones Otis Smith displayed while trying to shake things up. But the overhaul seems a lot more like Steve Kerr’s failed Shaq experiment in Phoenix, rather than the Rasheed Wallace trade that spurred Detroit to the 2004 title. Trading for big names doesn’t always equate to success, and I have a feeling Otis Smith will soon kick himself that he didn’t spend more time trying to acquire Carmelo Anthony.

Basically, the Magic traded two old, over-the-hill big names (and Marcin Gortat) for two old, over-the-hill big names (and Jason Richardson). They changed, indeed.

But are they any closer to the elusive NBA championship? I think not.

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.

Doc's got a point.

Gary Washburn, Boston Globe – “But it seems Perkins realized that the playoffs provided a clean slate, and he has reverted to his old complaining ways. He will never get the advantages of his Orlando counterpart and he has to accept that. Perkins has 22 fouls in the series. Howard has 16. ‘You know, Kendrick has to be allowed to play, and he has to be allowed to be physical,’ Rivers said. ‘It’s amazing how this has gone so far. Kendrick’s in foul trouble, and he’s not the most physical player on the floor. Dwight Howard is clearly the most physical player on the floor. You know, we keep telling Perkins he has to be physical as hell, and he says, ‘Yeah, but I end up in foul trouble.’ We are really concerned about that. And I’m just going to try to get Perk to be Perk and play and not be concerned with techs, not be concerned with fouls, and just go out and play. But that’s very difficult to do.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “Rivers doesn’t like the idea that Perkins now must put a stopper on his emotions to avoid No. 7. ‘He does realize that, and he created the problem with his emotional overloads,’ Rivers said. ‘But if you’re a physical player, you’re going to be the guy who gets the call in most of those situations. He has to clean up his emotions. He’s an emotional kid and a physical kid. It’s just amazing now with all of these double techs that are getting called.’”

Steve Ashburner, NBA.com – “The Boston Celtics had the ball, the crowd, the court, 16 seconds left in a tie Game 4, a timeout if they wanted it, flow and spontaneity if they didn’t and a commanding 3-0 lead over the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference championship series.Look at them now. The court Friday night will be theirs, the crowd too. But the mood at TD Garden for Game 5 will be heavier, dread lurking in the Celtics fans’ side mirrors. The opportunity to sweep in Boston will be replaced by the pressure not to go back to Orlando. It’s not 16 seconds anymore but four quarters, and then maybe four quarters after that, against a younger and healthier team that has the flow and the momentum on its side now. The Celtics can no longer impress in this series, they can only survive, because they’re still stuck on 3, the Magic suddenly have 2 and everything — Game 7, The Finals, a trophy presentation — is on the verge of shifting down to Florida. It really is a wonder that the Larry O’Brien Trophy isn’t made of papier-mache and championship rings aren’t the kind slipped around cigars, because this business of chasing titles so often is a fragile proposition. A team’s best-laid plan turns out to be written on tissue, all that it knows to be true suddenly pivots on a dime. A few days ago, the Celtics were about to do to the Magic what the Magic had done to the Bobcats and the Hawks. Now it’s the Magic doing the doing and the Celtics getting done to, only more so — because no NBA team ever has come back to win a best-of-seven series after dropping the first three. Yet people are starting to believe.”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “Five games into this series, and the difference-makers remain the men at the point. When Boston stormed out to a 3-zip lead, Rondo was clearly the better player. And now that the Magic have staved off playoff elimination to win the last two games, Nelson’s play has outshined that of Rondo. So for all the story lines and subplots this series has already provided, all indications are that this pivotal Game Six matchup will be decided by which point guard has the better game. For both Rondo and Nelson, stellar play isn’t limited to points and assists. More than anything else, each has to establish the tempo that their respective team can thrive in.”

Rich Levine, CSNNE – “‘Clearly the 3-point shot, we need to take away,’ he said. ‘What we showed them today (on film), some of the ones they got out of their offense, off the pick-n-roll stuff . . . they’ll get a couple of those. But the ones they got off of offensive rebounds, and loose balls and effort plays, 50/50 plays, those have to be taken away. I thought Orlando played harder last night, I thought they were the aggressor last night and I thought they attacked us the entire game. That is something that we can do. That is not a game plan. When we win, we do that, and we didn’t do that as well as Orlando last night. Especially on the glass. They mauled us on the glass last night.’ The leader of Orlando’s three-point attack, along with Nelson, has been Redick. Rivers said they expected Redick to be a factor in the series, but didn’t expect him to be as great as he has been. Through five games in the Eastern Conference Finals, Redick is averaging 12 points, and three three-pointers a game. ‘We didn’t know he was going to be Pistol Pete [Maravich] . . . but we did expect him to be a great player, Rivers said. “JJ Redick has hurt us all year in the regular season. That was one of things we talked about heading into the series, that JJ Redick has been very, very important. Everyone’s talking about Dwight Howard and Jameer but I think Redick has been their most consistent player in this series.’”

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “‘It was a very emotional locker room,’ Rivers said. ‘Guys were upset at a lot of stuff. Guys are worried about each other. Guys are injured and sitting in there looking like a M*A*S*H unit at one point. You saw all the trainers and the doctors, and I’m trying to talk, and everybody’s got ice.’ The Celtics were able to re cover yesterday. They caught a break, learning that they will have Perkins available tonight, as one of his two Game 5 technical fouls was rescinded by the league. Still, the technicals were a disappointment to Rivers, who thought neither justified and who knows that with Perkins sitting on six postseason technicals (one shy of a suspension), he’ll be walking on eggshells. ‘Obviously, I’m happy about it,’ Rivers said. ‘I’m a little disappointed that both technicals weren’t rescinded. I thought they both should have been and I’m very surprised that they were not. But I’ll take the one and hopefully we can keep working on it. Unfortunately, we can’t get those calls back. It clearly affected us in Game 5 not having Perk out on the floor.’”

Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald – “Rush ejected Kendrick Perkins from the game just before halftime with his second technical foul and was part of a crew (with Tom Washington and Joe Crawford) that got Heinsohn’s blood boiling. ‘The officiating in that game was incompetent,’ he said. ‘Somebody as incompetent as Eddie F. Rush should not be officiating in these games. Pick the eight best guys and have the same crew on every game in a series. That way they’ll get used to what’s going on. Ed F. Rush is incompetent, and so is Tom Washington. What were these guys doing refereeing a game as important as this?’”

Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe – “Enough about the zebras. Let’s go back to the numbers. There have been zero 3-0 comebacks in NBA history. Zero. And that covers 93 series since 1947. The Celtics have never come close. They have gone ahead, 3-0, and swept. They have gone ahead, 3-0, lost Game 4, then won the series. But they have never been forced to play a Game 6 after taking a 3-0 lead. Which is another reason we are nervous. And we are already fast-forwarding with our panic. What if they lose tonight? Can they be expected to win a Game 7 on the road after losing three straight? Are the young legs of the Magic running ahead of the old bones of Boston now that the teams are playing games every other day? Are the Celtics healthy? Where’s KG? What happened to Rondo? Can they win without Big Baby? Can they win with Rasheed Wallace and his creaky back? Have they morphed into the team that went 27-27 over the last 54 games, losing all those double-digit leads? Worst of all . . . Are the Celtics (gulp) choking? No. Keep your heads. The Celtics failed to close this out in Game 4 at home. They were predictably beaten at Amway Arena in Game 5. But now they are home. And they are better. And they will end this tonight. Or they have a Sunday date with history and humiliation.”

Brian Schmitz, Orlando Sentinel – “Van Gundy isn’t so certain that momentum has shifted, but agrees that the pressure has returned to the Celtics’ side. ‘I don’t know if you can say have momentum when you’re down 3-2, going to their place,’ Van Gundy said. ‘I still look at it like we’re climbing a huge mountain. But we are playing better.….Yeah, now it’s a series. I think when you’re rolling and you’re just playing with no pressure and no worries, it’s certainly a different game.’ The Magic have a shot now at returning to give Amway Arena a proper send-off. In 1995, the Magic beat the Indiana Pacers in a Game 7 in Orlando and played host to the first two games of the NBA Finals. ‘It’s just all about believing and really realizing that we can do this one game at a time,’ point guard Jameer Nelson said.”

Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston – “Marquis Daniels, who still looked shellshocked in the Boston locker room after Game 5, is behind Davis in his recovery. ‘Marquis is not doing as well as Baby, I can tell you that,’ said Rivers. ‘Right now, I’m not too sure if he’ll be ready. I would actually say he will not be ready, but that will be a game-time decision as well.’”
Perry A. Farrell, Detroit Free Press – “Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy paid former Piston Rasheed Wallace a compliment Wednesday night after the Magic rolled over the injury-depleted Boston Celtics [team stats], 113-92. ‘I’ll tell you what, Rasheed Wallace – I mean I’m trying to say this the right way – I hate the guy,’ Van Gundy was quoted as saying after Wallace scored 21 points in a losing cause. ‘It’s like he never has a bad game against a team I coach, you know. So incredible. He’s playing extremely well.’”

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

Boston took another small step toward disaster with a bizarre 113-92 loss that featured five technical fouls, two concussions, and Rasheed Wallace as the Celtics’ leading scorer.

Here’s how it happened:

The first quarter was one Dr. James Naismith would be proud of;  the ball was moving, the players’ energy was palpable, and if you closed your eyes, you could hear the squeaking of shoes–the sound of basketball played the right way.

Ray Allen opened up the game’s scoring with a three-pointer, which would soon be followed by three more threes–one from Paul Pierce and one each from Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis. Lewis who has battled the flu, finally produced, scoring 14 points and grabbing 7 rebounds in just 24 minutes.

The Orlando Magic felt right at home in Amway Arena–sinking nine first half threes and  shooting 13–25 on threes for the game. Meanwhile, Clarke Kent (Dwight Howard) had two thunder dunks in the first quarter, then immediately emerged from the phone booth as Superman.

In the second quarter, Orlando continued to play with high intensity and execute well, while Boston looked tired, old, and sluggish. Boston continuously walked the ball up the court into stagnant offensive sets, but, on the other end, Orlando was pushing the pace, moving with and without the ball and attacking gaps in the Celtics defense. Howard, who had 5 blocks in the first half, made sure any gaps in the Magic defense were quickly clogged by his incredibly long arms.

Halfway through the second quarter a three-point barrage–led by two J.J. Redick threes–extended the Magic lead to double-digits. Despite playing poorly on both ends, Boston somehow found a way to keep the game close until halftime, when the score was 57-49, Magic.

But it was the last two minutes of the half, not the three-point barrage, that had the biggest impact on the outcome of the game.

With 2:15 left in the half, Kendrick Perkins and Marcin Gortat were called for offsetting technical fouls. Perkins was trying to help Paul Pierce off the floor after a hard foul, when his hand slipped off Pierce’s and his elbow inadvertently bumped into Gortat. Gortat, thinking Perkins had just elbowed him, quickly poked the ball out of hands before the referees stunned everyone–fans, players, announcers– by calling double-technicals.

Then, with just 36.1 seconds left in the first half, Perkins received his second technical foul, earning him an early trip to the locker room. Perkins’ second technical foul came after he was called for a bogus reach-in foul on Dwight Howard. Perkins looked incredulously at the referee before turning his back and venting his frustrations to no one in particular.

Unfortunately, the ref kept a close eye on Perkins and when he jumped up animatedly, he was whistled for his second technical. With the two technical fouls, Perkins now has seven for the post-season, which will earn him a one-game suspension if the technicals are upheld. Each technical or flagrant foul is reviewed by the league office, and it seems likely that one–if not both– of Perkins’ technical fouls will be rescinded.

In spite of Perkins’ ejection, Boston played Orlando to a stand-still in the third quarter behind the strong play of reserves Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis. Wallace finished the game with 21 points, while Davis finished it with a concussion and a missing tooth. Davis and Wallace manned the defensive interior, while guard Rajon Rondo handled the offense, scoring 10 third-quarter points.

At the end of the third-quarter, however, as little-used backup Nate Robinson blocked Howard’s shot, Davis took an elbow to the face from Howard and suffered a concussion. Davis was down on the ground for a few seconds, then tried to rise to his feet. Davis’ legs wobbled like a dizzy drunk and he caromed off balance before being held up first by referee Joe Crawford and then–when that became too much for Crawford– by Wallace.

Without either Davis or Perkins–the two primary Dwight Howard defenders–Boston quietly fell apart in the fourth quarter. A desperation  small-ball lineup of Rondo, Robinson, Wallace, Pierce, and Ray Allen did nothing to change Boston’s fortune as the game turned sour with about 9 minutes left in the fourth.

Reserve forward Marquis Daniels also received a concussion when he drove into a double-team, and bumped his head into the oncoming chest of Gortat.

Rajon Rondo finished with 19 points and 6 assists, but was not probing the defense in his typical, breathtaking fashion. Paul Pierce finished with 18 points, 16 of them coming in the first half.

Jameer Nelson led Orlando with 24 points, followed by Howard, who finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks. J.J. Redick had another productive game with 14 points off the bench, and two key three-pointers in the second quarter surge.

Orlando out-rebounded Boston 43 to 26, including  10 offensive rebounds.

Boston now leads Orlando just 3-2, with Game 6 coming up Friday on ESPN at 8:30 ET.

Tonight could be the Magic's last game in Amway Arena.

Playoff Rule #5: The hardest game is the elimination game.

In Game 4, Monday at the TD Garden, Boston fell in overtime 96-92, failing to sweep the slumping Orlando Magic.

Tonight, on the road, at Amway Arena, in Orlando, FL, up three games to one, Boston will take another shot at knocking off the now emboldened Orlando Magic.

To win, Boston must match the energy and focus that Orlando played with in Game 4.  Boston came out soft in game 4, expecting an easy win, and they never quite recovered from the rocky start. Tonight,  Boston must start well in order to silence the Orlando crowd. The Magic fans should be out in full force, hyped and ready to cheer, considering that this could be the last Magic game the Amway Arena ever hosts. Next season, Orlando will be moving into a bigger and better stadium.

Strategically, Boston’s primary focus must be on limiting the effectiveness of the Magic pick-and-roll game. The Jameer Nelson- Dwight Howard combination had a field day in game 4 on the pick-and-roll: Nelson exploded for 23 points and 9 assists, while Dwight Howard added 32 points and 16 rebounds. Howard also had a series-high seven dunks in Game 4. In games 1-3 combined, Howard totaled just 5 dunks.

In order to stop the pick-and-roll offense of the Orlando Magic, Rajon Rondo, who suffered from muscle spasms in Game 4, and Kendrick Perkins, who is battling wrist and knee injuries, must return to form. Rajon Rondo struggled to stay in front of Nelson, and had just 9 points and 8 assists, while Perkins had just 3 points and 4 rebounds in 27 minutes. During most of the crunch-time minutes, Perkins was sitting on the bench, while Glen Davis played. Davis rotates and takes charges well defensively, but he doesn’t have the size to match up with Howard.

Limiting turnovers will be another key to the game. Boston is averaging 14 tpg– with just 9 turnovers in game 3–and, on the road, protecting the ball is paramount. If Boston can limit its turnovers–like it did in the game 3 blowout– then the offense should have little trouble scoring, as it has all series.

Paul Pierce has lead the Celtics scoring attack with 21.8 ppg. Look for Pierce to continue to score the ball because Vince Carter and Matt Barnes of the Orlando Magic have been unable to slow down Pierce thus far. For the Orlando Magic, Howard and Nelson have been the most effective, but reserve guard J.J. Redick has been the most reliable for coach Stan Van Gundy.

You can say he’s their most consistent player in this series,” Doc Rivers said. “He’s been phenomenal against us. We keep losing sight of him.”

Redick hit 3-5 three-pointers in game 4 and scored 10 straight points for the Magic during the middle of the fourth quarter. Redick finished the game with 12 points.

For the aging, injury-plagued Boston Celtics, the quick turnaround from Game 4 could be an issue. Boston and Orlando are playing their third game in six days, after having almost a week off in between game 1 and game 2, and between game 2 and game 3.

Notebook: Rajon Rondo was limited by muscle spasms in Game 4, but told reporters he is feeling better tonight…Rashard Lewis has been battling a stomach virus all series long, and will take intravenous fluids before Game 5…Magic coach Stan Van Gundy expects J.J. Redick to continue to contribute and play big minutes…Celtics assistant coach Tom Thibodeau will likely be offered the head coaching job for the New Orleans Hornets sometime soon.