Recently in Boston Celtics Category

Whether you're getting ready to watch the NBA Finals tonight or still lamenting that Cleveland or Denver should really be there...Kevin Garnett is far ahead of this year's Finals and talking about next season. It's one thing to be confident. To be as good as KG has been, you have to be confident, arrogant even.

But when a big man comes off a huge knee surgery successfully, I don't know how good of an idea it is to go ahead and guarantee the 'ship for the Boston Celtics next season. And the next season. That's some definite confidence. Maybe I'm being too critical, maybe I'm not....but, really? Did he he see his team in the Playoffs this year? Yes, there was good. But oh boy, was there bad.

I think KG may need to slow his role, or maybe even just look at his team and what's going on in the Eastern Conference.

Goodness, it feels like the playoffs have been going on for months. Thirteen days to be exact. But wow, some of these series just kept going. In a perfect world, every series would have been a best-of-five, but the Bulls-Celtics series would be a best-of-seventeen. And I think we'd still be going into over-time every night.

The first round is ALMOST done, but we've already seen some things that have opened some eyes. The Rockets finally won a series! the 76ers have some kick to them. The Hornets are a disgrace to basketball, and quit on a good man. Byron Scott will be fired this summer because nobody on that team listens to him. Lebron is a beast. The Detroit Pistons are desolate (at least they have hockey). Tim Duncan lost his first ever first round series. Jerry Sloan might finally say goodbye to the NBA. Jason Kidd in Dallas worked out after-all. The Nuggets are scary. Brandon Roy is a top five guard in the NBA. Dwayne Wade is a G. So is Ray Allen. Oh, and Rondo was the first player to drop 19 assists and no turnovers since Norm Nixon...and they still lost. And the list goes on.

But let's take a look at some pretty interesting themes revolving the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

When he signed with Boston, we were all waiting. It may not have been the same thing, but we were all waiting. For something. Be it the selfish attitude and non-stop dribbling until there was nowhere else to go. Or the shoot first, shoot second, and pass if it's to the ref mentality. Or telling the media he was the best point guard in the league, and that he should be starting. Some of us were sure one of those would happen. Some of us waited for him to come into the game and dominate; showing the world he still had game, both scoring and passing. Some people thought he could fit in perfectly with the Celtics, and he would be come very, very valuable. Some people just waited for him to get cut.

Nothing happened. Some waited. Some forgot. Forgot about Stephon Marbury? After being in the spotlight for the first half of the season without even playing a game, and all of a sudden, he was potentially the forgotten soldier? Nobody was talking about him. Not good. Not bad. Marbury had become a quiet, abiding bench player. Not even a role player..a bench player.

But alas, the playoffs came, and Boston was struggling a little. But not all hope is lost for the defending champions, amid a little struggle. Being a part of one of the most entertaining first round playoff series in a long, long time...Stephon Marbury had a chance to make himself relevant again.

And just as quickly as it came...he let it go.

Yes, it's true. The Chicago-Boston first round series has been one of many revelations. We have seen how easily a Championship team can fall when missing it's best player. We have seen players, whom we thought were at one point irrelevant, step up and show their worth - on both teams. We have seen young players literally evolve into superstars overnight.

We have seen Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo ignite themselves into the top point guard discussion. Some are even saying this is the Chris Paul-Deron Williams match up on the Eastern Conference. Hmm...I think both of these point guards would show up on a do-or-die game at home. So maybe the discussion isn't precise, but it's close. These two are going to be good.

But with all the physical beating both teams are taking, and all the shoves that are being thrown..the question is, is this series fixed?

Some people in Boston think so.

Let me say this first, as to not spark any outlandish comments (Actually, I still probably will). I am not a Boston Celtics fan, largely in part because I am a Laker fan. That's already a given. But I am an addict of basketball and furthermore, a respect anybody that has a gift, regardless of who it is. Tim Duncan? Sure, he doesn't smile and has only showed emotion once in his entire NBA career, but his game is pure; I recognize that. Karl Malone? I didn't like him much either, but his jumpshot and post game were unstoppable, and will forever be remembered for that.

Paul Pierce...yeah, I don't know what to say. He can make a jumpshot, he can get to hole, but it sure isn't pretty. When you look at his career stats, he's a top guard in the league, averaging just over 22 points eleven year career, has a bunch of All-Star nods, and yes, that championship ring and that Bill Russell MVP of the NBA Finals Trophy.

Towards the end of the season, as Garnett was out due to injury, and Ray Allen took the rest of the year off, Pierce held it down. He was throwing himself into MVP talk because he was a man playing out of his mind. And that, I respected. A player putting the team on his own back and carrying him, that's what somebody like him is supposed to do. But then when you really think about that, isn't that what is expected of him? This is his team, and KG and Ray Ray came here to help him. He should've been doing it in the first place. And when you start the playoffs, already struggling a bit and being hit with a whole bunch of bad news (Garnett and Ainge's heart attack), you expect a leader to come out and shine.

And really...all I can think about was what he said last summer.

The Stephon Marbury vs. New York Knicks Saga went onf or far too long. It came to an official end just a few days ago, with him finally being bought out. However, Danny Ainge got the OK from David Stern and The New York Knicks to begin discussing contract negotiations with Steph in December, the NBA reports -- paving the path for Marbury to quickly join the Celtics team once he was officially waved. Marbury clears waivers Friday, and will likely sign as early as the morning. He may even be suited for the Celtics home game against Indiana Friday evening.

Ainge has admitted needing a quick ball handling guard to ease Rajon Rondo's point guard duties, and the Celtics will likely need Marbury for some type of energy boost since Kevin Garnett's injury. It'll be clear that Steph will be very motivated to do well, and may even be on his best behavior for the rest of the season. Ainge has described Marbury's enthusiasm as very upbeat and sacrificial of his role just as Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen were over a year ago when joining the Celtics.

And so it shall begin...

So yesterday when I said that the Lakers-Celtics rematch in Boston would bring the highest number of viewers this season, I didn't think it would mean the highest rating on TNT since Feb 2, 1996, a game between Jordan and Da Bulls against Magic Johnson's Lakers. The Bulls beat the Lakers that night, 99-84.

Last night's game brought a 2.7 viewer rating with 4.3 million viewers and was the most-watched regular season game since 1996 for TNT. It was also the highest-rating game on cable since Christmas of 2004 when ESPN televised a game between the Indiana Pacers and the Detroit Pistons, their first game against each other after the famous brawl between players and fans in 2003.

Lebron-Kobe on Sunday...national television? At this rate, this game will probably smash records this weekend...biggest nationally televised game in the last 10 years anybody?

The NBA is back.