ItsTheBlog™

Sure, sure, the Red Sox won the World Series, and the Patriots are 1 win away from a clean 16-0 sweep of the NFL's regular season.

But, how about them Celtics?

Just a year removed from absolute futility (2nd worst record in the NBA at 24-58), the Celtics are 23-3, and looking like they won't slow down.

The Big Three (Garnett, Allen, Pierce, in case you've been asleep for the last several months) tends to get off to a hot start, the bench generally sustains it in the 2nd quarter, and the "Boston Three Party" (as a recent ESPN commercial calls them) rips everyone apart in the 3rd quarter.

Then, they rest. 20 of the 23 wins have been by 10 or more, 10 of those have been by 20 or more. The Celtics aren't just winning' they're destroying opponents.

The balance is also quite impressive. Pierce leads the way with 20.7 ppg. Allen's not far behind with 19.4, and Garnett's hot on his tail at 18.9. Not bad, eh?

And the best part? The stars aren't bickering. None of this 'I'm not getting enough shots,' or 'X (read: Kobe) is stealing my points.' These guys genuinely want to win and it shows. They share the ball, and they get open looks. It works.

Boston's excited, and they should be. I've gone to 2 games this year, and they were both blowouts. The stars got to rest and clown around on the bench while the crowd was able to smile and enjoy themselves. The atmosphere in the TD Banknorth Garden is so much more focused on the game, yet relaxed, as compared to the past 3 years. Before, the crowd was intense, but they knew they had an awful team to root for.

Now, they get to enjoy the victories. I'm sure it will become much more intense in the spring and come playoff time, but for now, it's new excitement.

They've got a long way to go and plenty to prove. There will be blips in the road (as evidenced by the 87-85 loss to the Pistons last week), but, so far, I'm certainly impressed.

And all of Boston gets to smile as it slowly takes over the sports world.

Labels: basketball, Boston, Boston Celtics, Garnett, Kevdog, NBA, Pierce, Ray Allen, Red Sox

Who said that it was going to take time for the "Big Three" in Boston to gel?

I know it's only 4 games, but so far, so good, for the newest trio in Beantown. Boston moved to 4-0 last night with a victory over the Atlanta Hawks (2-3). That follows victories over the Washington Wizards (0-5), Toronto Raptors (3-3), and Denver Nuggets (3-3). So, I know what you're thinking. They are sooooooo good that they can beat all the teams that are .500 and below. Big deal.

Wrong. It hasn't been so much about just winning, but it's been how they've won those games.

77-38. Anyone know what that means? That was the score of the Celtics-Nuggets game at halftime on Wednesday. Halftime. Ridiculous.

23.8, 22.5, 21.5. How about these 3 numbers? Those are the points per game totals thru the first 4 of Garnett, Pierce, and Allen, respectively. How's that for consistency?

Pierce, Allen, Pierce, Garnett. These are the leading scorers in each game, respectively. What's that mean? They're sharing the wealth and the glory. More importantly, they're sharing period. These guys are old enough, experienced enough, and smart enough to know that it takes teamwork to win, and they are showing it.

20, 13, 13, 19. These are Garnett's rebound totals. What a beast. People are shooting, and they'll inevitably be missing, and who but the "Big Ticket" is there to snatch the board? To whoever disagreed with my MVP assessment, you're seeing KG make a good early push. The team is 4-0, and he's leading the way with 23.8 ppg and 16.3(!) rpg. Not enough touches to go around? I don't think so.

Is it too early to make any generalizations? Absolutely. Have they challenged some of the tougher teams in the league? Definitely not. Will there be blips in the road? Without a doubt. But, it's impressive, so far.

Labels: basketball, Boston, Boston Celtics, Kevdog, Kevin Garnett, NBA, Pierce, Ray Allen

It's a little strange, because some media outlets are reporting it as being "agreed to," while others aren't going so far. In any event, it appears that Kevin Garnett is finally being traded.

The Celtics have reportedly agreed to sending half their roster to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for one of the best big men in the league. So what does it mean?

Well, for starters, with their trio of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett, the Celtics vault up the Eastern Conference. The problem? They literally have nothing else. Rajon Rondo is their 4th best player. That's right, unless you live in Boston, or play intense fantasy basketball, you haven't heard of him. He'll run the point with the trio at the 2, 3, and 4. Kendrick Perkins will perhaps play down low.

Fortunately, that trio can score about 70+ points per game and the Celtics won't need much else. Barring injury and assuming some cohesion, we could be seeing something special.

On the other hand, we've seen All-star experiments such as this go terribly wrong (see 2004 LA Lakers with Kobe, Shaq, Malone, Payton). That said, terribly wrong meant a trip to the NBA Finals, which the Celtics faithful would love, win or lose after so many years of futility.

The trade isn't final yet, so it's hard to say too much at the moment. But, if it goes through, I'll be glad to be in Boston this coming winter, and watch the trio in action live. Pierce can be the point man and score at will from the inside and out, Garnett can own the boards and the post, while Allen can rest his legs and sit on the outside and drain the 3 all day. If only these 3 never had to sit on the bench.

I like it. Way to go Danny Ainge. It only took some awful years for you to make some good moves, assuming it all happens.

Labels: basketball, Boston Celtics, Garnett, Kevdog, Lakers, NBA, Pierce, Ray Allen

No, this article isn't about another incident that occurred during Kobe's time in Colorado. This is about Kobe's future. Kobe Bryant will demand a trade. No question about that. The interesting thing about Kobe Bryant is that he is the only player in the NBA to have a no-trade clause in his contract. This means that Kobe cannot be traded without his permission. Essentially, Kobe has become France on the UN Security Council--Kobe has the power to singlehandedly veto any trade if he fills it is not in his best interest. So, the only way a trade will be carried out is with Kobe's assent.

The first question then becomes, what does Kobe want? Well, Kobe will want to play in a large market. He's used to that in Los Angeles. It's going to have to be a big market which immediately reduces the chances that he'll end up in a small city. Additionally, Kobe will want to play on a team with talent. Remember, because Kobe has the power to veto a trade, he can choose not to go through with the trade if the team he is going to is giving up too much.

The second question is what do the Lakers want? The Lakers will want to ideally send Kobe to the Eastern Conference (so he doesn't end up hurting them too much) and will want to gut that team of all its talent. The problem with trading a player like Kobe Bryant is that there is no equal out there in terms of talent. A one-for-one deal wouldn't work because the Lakers will always be on the losing end of that deal. So, the Lakers will inevitably end up gutting a team of its talent. But the problem here is that the Lakers will not trade Kobe if they do not get enough back in return. However, if the Lakers end up getting too much back in return, Kobe will veto the trade.

Herein lies the Catch 22 (or 24 in this case). So, unless a third team is added into the tryst, the chances of a trade are nill. Chad Ford over at ESPN outlines two trade scenarios involving three teams regarding Kobe.

His first scenario has the Bulls sending Gordon, Tyrus Thomas, and P.J. Brown to Washington and the No. 9 pick to LA. The Lakers send Bryant to Chicago. And the Wizards send Arenas and Etan Thomas to LA.

Granted Arenas is no Bryant, but as my fantasy basketball team can attest, Arenas is an up and coming star with lots of potential. Arenas would do wonders for any team, especially when the Lakers lose much of the Kobe problem. If I were a Laker fan, I would have much to be excited about with Thomas and Arenas coming to LA.

The second scenario is the exact same except for the substitution of the Boston Celtics and Pierce.

I think the possibility of the second trade happening might be considered too good for Boston and not enough for the Lakers. Pierce is an excellent player, but I really don't feel he has the same amount of untapped potential that Arenas would give the Lakers.

And both of these scenarios are mere fantasy if Chicago isn't a big enough market for Kobe. But, if it was big enough for MJ, isn't it big enough for KB?

Labels: Arenas, Boston Celtics, Bryant, Kobe, Los Angeles Lakers, Pierce, threesome, Washington Wizards