The best Christmas for any basketball fan yesterday was the return of the NBA. The only thing that could have made it better for Boston was watching the C’s come out of New York with a win. Unfortunately, we all know how that played out. Losing to the Knicks, especially with their all-star elf Spike Lee jumping up and down courtside, is always tough to swallow. But not all was lost in New York for the Celts. I think it’s safe to thank Danny Ainge for holding on to Rondo, even if he didn’t mean to. Throughout the short preseason, we could see improvement in Rondo’s shot and overall play, but yesterday he made a statement.
His stats were amazing, with 31 points and 13 assists, while almost single handedly bringing the Celtics back into the game, but his aggressive manner and matured nature of play is what shone through the loss. With an aging team, Rondo is the key to the Celts this season. If he can continue to play like a first team all-star, the Celts are going to be alright this season. Not to mention having guys like Brandon Bass slip on a green and white uniform and make a statement of his own. He ended the day with 20 points and 11 rebounds, letting everyone know which team got the better deal in Orlando trade. Bass coming off the bench is going to prove to be a great addition to the Celtics squad, both offensively and defensively. Bring Pierce back and throw Mickael Pietrus into the mix, I think the C’s are going to be just fine.
Monthly Archives: December 2011
Tis’ the Season of Giving
UConn Freshman star Andre Drummond gave red-shirt freshman Michael Bradley the best gift ever this season. Since Drummond is using UConn basically as a stepping stone to his NBA career, he has decided to forego his scholarship, and remain on the team as a walk-on. He basically took the scholarship from Bradley because he is a much better player. However, Bradley does not have much to work with. He is an orphan who grew up with very little. People were constantly accusing Drummond of “taking a scholarship from an orphan”, but since they were trying to resolve this without the media, they both had to remain silent, and just accept the verbal abuse.
With Bradley sidelined with an injury for now, he can only sit and watch his team move up in the rankings. Drummond will most likely go this year in the draft, barring any injuries of course. He is 6-11 and can score and rebound better than most at his size. As soon as he gets stronger, he will be a force in the middle.
Weekend Recap
Contrary to popular belief, Christmas weekend was good in the Boston sports world. Sure it was tough seeing the C’s lose yesterday but you have to look at the bigger picture. We’ll start out Friday with the Bruins absolutely annihilating the Panthers at home 8-0. Brad Marchand capped the day off with his first career hat trick en route to stretching the B’s win streak to 6 games. At this point I think it’s safe to say the best team in Boston resides on the ice. How can you argue with a team that has won 20 of its last 23 games and gone from zero to hero in a span of two months? Then we can look at our AFC East champion Patriots. People forget that they’re one win away from clinching top seed in the AFC and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. It’s a bit sketchy watching them go down 17-0 to Miami at halftime, but they always find a way to win down the stretch. One more win against a struggling Buffalo team and the road to the Superbowl for the AFC goes through Foxboro. Christmas Day was a bit unsettling as we watched the Celts fall to the Knicks 106-104, as it always hurts to lose to New York in any sport. But not all was lost in this game. The C’s proved they could play ball. With Pierce out and Pietrus awaiting a physical, it was good to see a few Celtics step up. The loss was tough to handle, but more can be taken away from the game. I still feel good, if not better, about the C’s as they continue their season this week. Ideally it could have been better, but again it’s hard for Boston sports fans to complain today. Happy Monday!
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Patriots Seek Top Seed in the AFC
Tomorrow, our AFC East champs are set for a Christmas Eve matchup in Foxboro against the Miami Dolphins. AFC champions is a great start, but let’s be honest…it’s just a start and in fact, doesn’t mean a whole lot in the bigger picture. Winning out and securing the top seed in the AFC is what the Pats are looking to accomplish. This would set the stage for home field advantage throughout the playoffs, a much more advantageous accommodation than simply winning the division. Although the Pats are 6-2 on the road this year, they need to look past that and at what they could potentially face. Both the Steelers and the Ravens have proved their dominance at home, as opposed to their road schedules. The Steelers are 6-1 at home, 4-3 on the road, while the Ravens are 7-0 at home this year, and 3-4 on the road. The Pats need to come into the final two games of the regular season as if they’re fighting for a playoff spot. No longer does it mean putting in backups and giving Brady a rest. They need to take the Dolphins seriously, as the team has won 5 of their last 7 after a less than dismal start. If the Pats leave it all on the field tomorrow and again New Year’s Day against a struggling Buffalo, they should be well off on their journey to Super Bowl XLVI.
Jersey’s Newest Problem (as if they didn’t have enough)
Just when you think things may be turning around for the New Jersey Nets, one of their best players goes down. Brook Lopez is now sidelined with a broken foot, and will be out until at least February, probably even longer. This could be deadly to the Nets, who seemed to be the front runner in acquiring Dwight Howard from the Orlando Magic. Unless the Magic actually do hold out until after the all-star game that they are hosting to avoid an awkward return of a certain all-star, shortly after they have traded him. Lopez was the centerpiece of this trade, and hopefully they can still make it work, so he doesn’t go to that yellow and purple team in Los Angeles.
As much as I would hate a Deron Williams-Dwight Howard duo in the Atlantic Division with the Celtics, I would rather see them win it than see the Lakers tie Boston’s record of 17 championships, and I hate Ron Artest, Pau Gasol, and dislike greatly Kobe Bryant (hate is a strong word for a player of his caliber… reminds me of rapist version of Derek Jeter).
Barkley to Remain a Trojan
University of Southern California Quarterback Matt Barkley has decided to forego the NFL draft and complete his senior year next season. He would have most likely been a top 10 pick and had the potential to make millions next year for whichever team needed a quarterback after Andrew Luck gets chosen. I can go along with this decision for the sole fact that I respect his chase for a national championship after being royally screwed the last two seasons because of Reggie Bush and others taking bribes.
Hopefully Barkley can go through his final season the same way he did this season—on top. He threw for 3,528 yards, 39 touchdowns, and only 7 interceptions. If he keeps up with this pace, he could go down as the best quarterback in the elite school’s history. The Trojans (insert condom reference here) will most likely be pre-ranked in the top 3 teams next season, and he will almost certainly be the front-runner for the Heisman (even though their pick doesn’t always win.. See Andrew Luck)
Mayweather’s Jail Sentence
In case you all haven’t checked out Sportscenter the last day or so, Floyd Mayweather Jr. was sentenced to a whopping 90 days in jail (which will likely be reduced) for a “case stemmed from a hair-pulling, punching and arm-twisting argument with his ex-girlfriend Josie Harris while two of their children watched in September 2010.” Not sure how arm-twisting works into this equation, but can we take a second and ask how one of the best boxers of all time got into a punching match with his wife (in front of his kids) and only got 90 days? His hands have to be lethal weapons, so there must be a bit more to this story if he only received this kind of sentence. Besides the fact that this is a terrible incident, and one of many on Floyd’s rap-sheet, this could have a serious impact on the legendary – but unlikely to happen – fight between Manny P and Mayweather. If Mayweather is jailed for 90 days, this would cut into his mandatory 8-week training time he takes before a fight. If this undisclosed opponent (set to battle Floyd on May 5th of next year) is in fact Manny Pacquiao, you better believe that Mayweather will want to take some significant time to train. Regardless, Mayweather’s actions may have jeopardized the most important fights of his career, and potentially the most anticipated bouts since Ali and Frazier.
Celtics Look Ahead
Well the Celt’s preseason has come and gone in a blink of an eye, as it should considering they only mustered up two games. It was great to see them win at the garden last night, but the game served a higher purpose. With 13 guaranteed contracts and the likelihood they’ll only carry 14 players out of camp, the C’s only have one roster spot open for the likes of Greg Stiemsma, Gilbert Brown, Jamal Sampson, and Michael Sweetney. In my opinion, and based on how much he played and how he performed, Stiemsma’s going to be the man left standing. He put in 7 points off the bench last night, but ran the floor and showed how he could be a defensive presence for the Celts. None of the others really stood out in either preseason game, besides Sweetney for obvious reasons. It was like Danny called Vince Wilfork to come play. In the six minutes he played, the crowd erupted at the garden each time he merely touched the ball. When he scored his first and only bucket, on a failed dunk attempt, the garden lit up like it was Game 7 vs. the Lakers, circa 2008. I kind of felt bad for the guy but such is life.
With the season opener only three days away, many question how strong the Celtics will be. There’s been a lot of doubt in everyone’s mind as to how they’ll perform. It may not be as promising as past years, but I have faith. My pick for this year is E’Twaun Moore. Mark my word, this kid’s going to do big things. His quickness, vision, shooting, and ability to play to the people around him are going to come in handy this year, especially with the veteran presence the Celts have. I think we’re going to see good things come out of Moore this year. I’m excited to see him and the rest of the team in action come Christmas. Should be a good game.
Wes, Meet Twitter
With the lack of Tebow heroics this weekend, NFL chatter had to look elsewhere for news during the week. In fact, it can be found right here in Boston, as top news early this week has been Wes Welker’s arrival to Twitter (@WesWelker). The Pat’s stud got a true taste for the Twitter craze right off the bat, seeing his followers rise up to 80,000+ in a couple days. Using this to connect with his fans, Welker revealed he would be at Whole Foods in Bellingham doing an appearance for the energy bar he endorses. Little did he know all 80,000 would show up. Little bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point. The line was out the door and the busy athlete wasn’t able to make time for everyone, as he needed to continue prepping for the game against Miami Christmas Eve. One follower even tweeted her complaint about the appearance at Wes, to which he responded.
What a guy. How could you not love him? Play maker on the field, gentleman off. But seriously, you have to love the camaraderie the Pats have. Ocho, who notoriously abuses Twitter, and even Gronk have been going back and forth with Welker over Twitter. I’m telling ya, the thing is taking over. If you don’t have one you’re missing out! For the full article check out CSNNE.com’s post.

