As part of our coverage of the NBA Playoffs, yours truly was fortunate enough to take in Game 2 of the Celtics and Cavs last night from "Deep in the Q"...also known as Quicken Loans Arena. While many expected the old tired Celtics to roll over for the Cavs, Boston hit back last night with a dominant 104-86 win. Here now are my first-hand thoughts from being in the arena last night.
*Rajon Rondo is the best player on the Celtics...and it isn't even close.
-Rondo tied a Celtics record last night with 19 assists as he dominated every aspect of the game from start to finish. Sure, Rondo still has issues with questionable decision making and lack of confidence in his jump shot, but the scary thing is he still hasn't reached his ceiling as a player. The presence of the Big 3 helps, but Rondo is now the man on this team. If the Celtics want to win another title, Rondo will have to lead from the front. One thing's for sure, if Rondo continues to make strides in his game, he'll be a Top 10 player in the league for years to come.
*LeBron James may have played his worst playoff game last night.
-It wasn't so much the statistics that tell this story. The King still had 24/7/4, but it was his demeanor throughout the game that was troubling. He spent much of the first 3 quarters deferring to his teammates while again seeming to play with cautious concern over his elbow injury. Even his speech after receiving the MVP trophy seemed subdued as 20,000 plus waved their towels and screamed uncontrollably. If the Cavs have any hope of winning a title, LeBron has to get back to playing with the aggression and determination fans are used to seeing.
*That being said, the most important player for the Cavs is Mo Williams.
-Every Batman needs his Robin, and of all the pieces added around King James (Shaq, Anthony Parker, Antawn Jamison) the most important piece to the Cavs title formula is Mo Williams. Although his scoring burst helped rescue Game 1, Mo struggled mightily last night going 1/9 and scoring 4 points. More than that, he played like a defeated man as Rajon Rondo continued to rip him to shreds. Mo struggled last year against Orlando, and has to raise his game to avoid a repeat.
*The floating corpse on the court wasn't Rasheed Wallace, it was Shaq.
-This was my first experience seeing Shaq in person, and even from the upper deck, the man is a mountain. Funny that David Stern also seemed very short in person as well, but I digress. After his performance though, it might be time for Shaq to ride the pine. For all the talk of the age of the Celtics Big 3, the oldest looking player on the court was the Big Aristotle. His only move now is to back down his defender and dunk, he's lost all touch on his jump hook, and the Cavs would be much better off playing the more athletic J.J. Hickson, who scored 13 points in 19 minutes.
Meanwhile, the demise of Rasheed Wallace was greatly exaggerated. 'Sheed, perhaps responding to Doc Rivers calling him out in the media, scored 17 points and was the key to finally getting some contribution from the Boston 2nd unit. To show how bad 'Sheed has been, he scored 21 points in his previous 6 playoff games combined with the Celtics. He still has to improve defensively, but a little 'Sheed could go a long way if the Celtics want to advance.
*The people who want and deserve a title more than anyone are the Cavs fans.
-It's truly a sight to behold to see 20,000 people standing as one, waving rally towels, and blowing the decibel meter above 100 on a regular basis. Even as the Cavs were scuttling, their fans were with them every step of the way. I'd go as far to say the crowd was the biggest factor in cutting the Celtics 25 point lead to 10 in the final minutes. And even though there were cheesy prompts to elicit boos like Michigan and Yankees logos on the scoreboard, the Cavs fans were amazing, showing how much they want and need a championship.
*Other Random Crowd Notes:
-The second loudest individual cheer of the night...Bernie Kosar. It goes to show you the only thing that would mean more to Cleveland than a Cavs title is a Browns Super Bowl.
-In a sign of how far our educational system has fallen, the Cavs scoreboard has a helpful feature called "The Diff", which automatically gives the difference in score, ridding the need for fans to perform difficult 2nd grade math like subtraction.
-Once the game was in doubt though, it looked like a silent fire alarm had been pulled as fans gushed towards the exit. At least all those people were able to beat the 2,000 folks at the Indians/Blue Jays game to their cars.
*The Cavs should still win the series, but not due to a lack of effort from the Celtics.
-No player was more intense in everything they did last night than Kevin Garnett. From his steely determination in warmups, to his almost neurotic pacing during the Anthem and LeBron's MVP coronation, KG still has a competitive fire that burns more brightly than any other player. Add that to the poise of Ray Allen and the determination of Paul Pierce, and the Celtics won't be going away. But....the Cavs are still the more talented team, and if they awake from their slumber (and Mike Brown gives coaching a try) the Cavs should still pull this out in 7. Unfortunately for both of these teams, neither might be a match for the Orlando Magic when it's all said and done.
That's my take from being there, live at the Q. Make sure to keep up with our thoughts and analysis of the NBA and NHL playoffs. Don't forget to let us know what you think by posting a comment below or following us on Twitter @RSS_Sports. Until next time, it's bye for now.
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