There didn't seem to be much energy in the building Sunday afternoon as the Boston Celtics built up an early lead and eventually held on for the 94-88 win over the Raptors. Toronto made a run in the final quarter thanks largely to the bench. The Celtics outlasted the Raptors as they built up a 20 point lead after three quarters thanks to the play of Ray Allen who scored 22 points through the first three quarters. But Allen seemed to save the best for last, hitting key shots late in the fourth while racking up 14 points in the final frame to put the game away. Allen finished with a season high 36 points.
Toronto will try to win in Boston on the back-to-back without Jose Calderon and Jermaine O'Neal who did not make the trip. Doc Rivers said that the Celtics would likely be without Kendrick Perkins also for the completion of the home-and-home set.
The only good thing about Toronto coming back to make it close in the fourth quarter, according to Celtics head coach Doc Rivers, is he might be able to keep his players' attention just a little bit for the rematch tonight in Boston. The pattern of not playing a full 48 minutes is not a unique problem in the NBA but it has been one that has plagued the Celtics recently. Yesterday's game at the ACC was no exception. The issue for Boston was one of doing things in reverse order. Of late, the Celtics have been cruising through the first portion of games and closing with furious finishes that have not always landed them in the win column.
Tony Allen was not with the team Sunday and his absence over the last four games with an injury to his right ankle has made it tougher on Paul Pierce. Without Allen, it is Pierce that has to handle more of the defensive load on the perimeter, logging more minutes against the opponents top wing player. Rivers has concerns with Pierce being worn down and his offense suffering because he is working so hard at the defensive end.
Going into Sunday's action, Rivers was impressed with the play of Andrea Bargnani. He says if people would "leave the kid alone" he would be fine. If you take Sunday's game out of the mix, even though he had 17 points, it was a tough day for the former number one overall pick as he only hit on 5 of 14 from the floor. However, to Rivers point in the six previous contests, Bargnani has been averaging 21.7 points per game and 6.2 rebounds while shooting 57.3% from the field and 63.3% from behind the arc.
Paul Pierce is a fan of the city of Toronto. The Finals MVP from a season ago has said that, in his book, Toronto is one of the top three cities in the league.
Here is a question for you. At some point, Will LeBron James surpass Kareen Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all time leading scorer? It was a chat I had with veteran Celtic back up point man Sam Cassell. The cagey vet who has three championship rings figures with LeBron coming into the league before his 19th birthday and scoring at his current clip for his entire career he may do it. It comes down to longevity. Abdul-Jabbar played until he was 42 years of age. The big question is, will LeBron play that long injury free - the somewhat introverted Abdul-Jabbar was into yoga and looking after his body at a young age - or will LeBron even have the incentive to keep playing for that period of time. Some of Cassell's teammates disagree and it makes for interesting locker room discussions. Guess we will just have to wait and see.
Doc Rivers was asked how much convincing he had to do to help get former Atlanta Braves right hander John Smoltz to sign with the Boston Red Sox. Not much according to Doc as he called it a no brainer for Smoltz to come to Boston. Rivers and Smoltz go back to their days in Atlanta when Doc played for the Hawks. The Celtics head man had high praise for Smoltz as a competitor as Rivers talked about Smoltz's grittiness. As friends, the two of them are also golf buddies. He laughed and said they talked and he offered Smoltz his apartment, to which Rivers let out a louder laugh clarifying the situation saying "I meant after the season. You make enough money, you don't have to live in an apartment with me."
The Charlotte Bobcats are taking on the role of Jenny Craig as they have been, and will continue to watch the scale when it comes to Sean May. Hey maybe he should try Nutrisystem or something. All kidding aside, it sounds like they are serious that he will only be part of the playing rotation when he loses weight.
Shaquille O'Neal has given himself another nickname. Now that "Shaq-tus" is starting to make free throws, having made 12 straight during January, he is having some fun and adding a new suffix to his name. Just call him Shaqovic.
