By: Dan Podheiser, YawkeyTalkies Assistant Editor
In case you haven’t heard, the Boston Celtics have the greatest team ever assembled.
That is, if it were 2003.
In light of the Miami Heat signing three of the best players in the game this offseason, Celtics general manager Danny Ainge decided to go a different route. He signed the best players in the game – from seven years ago.
So let’s take a trip back to the 2002-03 season, shall we?
At center, we have Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq played just 67 games that year, but averaged 27.5 points, 11.1 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game. He was in the prime of a career that made him the most dominant center ever to play the game.
At forward, the C’s are rocking Kevin Garnett and Jermaine O’Neal.
KG, then a Minnesota Timberwolves superstar, was seventh in the league in scoring with 23 points per game, in addition to his 13.4 rebounds (second) .
O’Neal had a breakout season in 2002-03, his second year with the Indiana Pacers after coming over from Portland. O’Neal averaged 20.8 points and finished fourth in the NBA with 10.3 boards. His 178 blocks also ranked him fifth in the NBA.
As strong as the C’s are (or, [...]

By: Dan Massar, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
What’s up Doc?
That’s what Celtics fans wanted to know soon after the NBA Finals ended and attention turned to whether Doc Rivers would be on the bench in Boston next season.  That question was answered last week as Rivers announced he would be back coaching the Celtics next season.  All of Boston felt relief.
Then Paul Pierce opted out of the final year of his contract.  This wasn’t a huge surprise and there wasn’t much reason to be concerned that Pierce would leave Boston, but it was great news for Celtics fans when reports surfaced in the last few days that Pierce and the Celts had agreed on a 4 year deal in the $60 million range.
Two of the biggest questions regarding the Celtics offseason had been answered; Doc and Pierce are going to be at The Garden in 2010-2011.  Now two big questions remain for the Celtics.  The first is will Ray Allen be wearing green next season?  The chances seem good especially with both Doc and Pierce coming back.  Both men must think that there’s a good chance Allen is also coming back otherwise it may have been a more difficult decision for them [...]

By: Dan Massar, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Wow! What else can you say about Rajon Rondo’s performance in game 4 of the second round series between the Celtics and Cavaliers.  Rondo was magnificent, putting together an unbelievable triple double stat line of 29 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists.  He was the best player on the court and it wasn’t even close.  And that of course includes the reigning MVP of the league LeBron James.
What makes the performance even more impressive is that it not only came in the playoffs against a Cavs team that had the best record in the NBA, but it was essentially a must win game for the Celtics.  They could not afford to go down 3-1 in the series with game 5 in Cleveland.  The Celtics had to have game 4, and Rondo willed them to victory.  On a day when Paul Pierce scored only 7 points, Rondo more than carried the load offensively.
The Cavs cannot keep Rondo out of the paint.  They have no answer for the speedy point guard, and unless they find a better way to keep from getting into the lane, the Celtics have a great shot to pull of the upset in [...]

By: JessLander, YawkeyTalkies Editor
What do you do when you have a slumping player and need to get them motivated?
Threaten to trade them.
This might seem drastic, but in Boston, it seems to often work.
Back in January/February rumors circled about possibly trading Celtics’ Ray Allen who had been inconsistent all season. His age, along with the rest of his teammates, showed. But then right as the deadline was passing, Allen stepped it up. The deadline was on Feb 19 and for five straight games starting with February 18th, Allen had the high for points, averaging 23 points a game.
Despite denying that was the reason for an improvement in his play, the timing couldn’t seem like less of a coincidence. His numbers are up right around where they were last year and he’s second behind Paul Pierce for points. Especially now, Boston is glad we kept him, as he’s averaging 19 points a game in the playoffs.
Our newest example is good ole’ Mikey Lowell. The Red Sox have discussed trading Lowell since the end of the 2009 season. None of the trades went through, and Lowell humbly took his place on the bench. He’s been a great sport, stating that there’s nothing he [...]

By: Dan Massar, YaekryTalkies Staff Writer
It wasn’t a perfect trip, but the Celtics will take it.  Team Green went 3-1 on a west coast trip that came right out of the All Star Break.  For a team that has struggled since Christmas, it was a good way to get back on track.
The trip started with a victory over the Kings.  This seemed like the only sure victory on the trip, so it was a good way to get it going.  The Celts then traveled from Sacramento to LA for a battle with the Lakers.
The contest with the Lakers had a must win feel for the Celtics with Kobe Bryant sitting it out.  For a little while it looked like the game would have a familiar ending for the Celtics.  Get a decent lead heading into the 4th and then blow it at the end.  But the Celtics held on and won by 1.  It was a win they had to have and they got it.  Ray Allen led the way with 24 points as the Celtics improved to 2-0 on the trip.
While the win over the Lakers was certainly sweet, the best win of the trip came the next [...]

By: Phil Shore, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Boston fans thought the Patriots were the only team that couldn’t close out games.
The Celtics have lost five of their previous eight games dating back to January 28. Twice they lost to the Orlando Magic, who sit two games ahead of them in the Eastern Conference standings. They lost to the Atlanta Hawks (one and a half games ahead of Boston in the East), Los Angeles Lakers (Western Conference’s number one team), and a Chris Paul-less New Orleans Hornets.
Not only have they not beaten good competition, but in four of those losses they blew double digit leads in the second half.
They blew leads of 16 and 11 points against Orlando (the latter just one day after Orlando blew a 21-point lead to Washington), 11 points against the Lakers, and 12 points against the Hornets.
If you cannot close out games, then you cannot win. Period.
“One of the guys said, ‘We’re better than Orlando,’ and I said, ‘No, you’re not,’” Celtics Head Coach Doc Rivers said. “They knocked you out of the playoffs last year. Orlando’s better than us right now. Atlanta’s better than us right now. L.A. [Lakers are] better than us right now.”
What has happened [...]

By: Dan Massar, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
The All Star Break is almost here and no team in the NBA could use the break as much as the Celtics.  Injuries and a slump since Christmas are reason enough for Celtics fans to be thankful the break is finally here.  Boston has gone 9-13 since a win over the Orlando Magic on Christmas gave them a 23-5 record.  Instead of using that game as a springboard they have gone backwards.
Injuries have been a part of it as Kevin Garnett, Rasheed Wallace, Paul Pierce, Marquis Daniels, and Ray Allen have all missed games due to injury during this stretch.  But even when the team has had most of its main parts, they just haven’t been consistent.  The rock solid defense of the 2008 championship team hasn’t been there.  The Celtics also have been running out of gas at the end of games.  In recent games against some of the best teams in the league the Celtics have built up double digit leads only to see them slip away in the 4th Quarter.
So what’s the solution?  There have been trade rumors floating around.  The Celtics that have been put on the trading block seem to [...]