Boston Celtics: Basketball After All

And on the 149^th day of the NBA lockout, David Stern said, “Let there be basketball,” and there was basketball.  And it appears Mr. Stern will not be the grinch of this year's Christmas.

 I guess the only appropriate phrase I could come up with to describe my sentiments regarding this decision is “Better late than never!”  Following in the footsteps of the NFL and the MLB most recently, the NBA owners and the Players Association finally reached an agreement that will allow them to play basketball this season – the probability of which was becoming more and more grim as time progressed.

It was a difficult battle not only to follow, but also to choose a side, as both parties consisted of multi-millionaires squabbling over more multi-millions of dollars.  Needless to say, I think most fans are all glad that it’s over and done with (at least for the next ten years anyway).

I’m not sure where the change of heart originated, because all the reports leading up to this news had been incredibly pessimistic, and a potential deal seemed improbable.  Who knows? And, in the end, it doesn’t really matter and I don’t really care.  Just get back on the court and do what you get paid unthinkable amounts of money to do.

Perhaps Santa Clause is an NBA fan.  Maybe old St. Nick swooped in and provided that little bit of extra motivation and holiday cheer that allowed the deal to finally get done.  If that’s the case, his timing could not have been more impeccable. 

The NBA schedule is set to open on Christmas Day with three key matchups being featured.  Included in these spotlighted games is our beloved Boston Celtics.  They will be up against Carmello Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire and the rest of the New York Knicks to kick of their 2011-2012 campaign.

Because the two sides took so long to come to this agreement, the normal 82-game season has been reduced to 62 this year.  Despite the loss of these 16 games, this abbreviated schedule could actually end up helping the Celtics.  Composed mostly of aging veterans, the extended break and fewer games might allow for fresher legs throughout the course of the regular season.

Training camps and free agency don’t actually begin until December 9^th and this will be a very crucial time for the Celtics as they will potentially only have eight players in their roster to begin the new season, and that includes their two new rookies they drafted; E’twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson

The “Big 3,” while all another year older, are still very capable players, but the ability of the Celtics’ front office to surround them with talented role players will be essential if they hope to be successful in their championship aspirations before this team’s quickly-closing window finally slams shut. 

Rajon Rondo is at the epicenter of this team.  He is the glue that holds those fading championship hopes together.  His continuing development as one of the NBA’s best, young point guards will be imperative for this team moving forward.  Health, as it has been for the last three or four years, will also be a huge question mark heading into this season.

The potential loss of impending free agents Glen “Big Baby” Davis and Jeff Green will create immediate voids that will need to be filled quickly in order for the Celtics to achieve any type of continuity early on in the season. 

A capable backup to Rondo is a must along with a shooting guard to come in and spell Ray Allen.  The trade that shook up last year’s roster involving Kendric Perkins has left a gaping hole at the center position for the C’s and that will obviously be foremost in their priorities with the shortened season rapidly approaching.

All of those details will work themselves out in due time, though.  The important thing is that basketball is back!  And as this season of Thanksgiving has come to close, that is yet another thing Celtic fans can add to their list of things to be thankful for.

So in the spirit of this new deal, a new basketball season and the upcoming holiday season I’ll leave you with this nugget:  Now, Rondo!  Now, Pierce!  Now, Garnett and Allen!  On, Delonte!  On, Wafer!  On, Johnson and Moore!  To the top of the standings!  It’s time to play ball!  Now dash away!  Dash away!  Dash away all!

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Armchair Report | News

Armchair Report | News

The Patriots Stunned by Steelers

The New England Patriots have been nearly unbeatable coming off of a bye week under head coach Bill Belichick.  Their impressive 9-1 record under those circumstances combined with Tom Brady’s career dominance over the Pittsburgh Steelers all but assured a Patriots victory on Sunday.  However the Patriots defense had other plans.

A team that once established their identity playing hard-nosed, scrappy, stingy football on the defensive side has completely lost touch with that personality and has slowly deteriorated to become an embarrassing and pathetic semblance of that previously proud tradition.

The New England Patriots have the worst defense in the entire NFL.  Let that statement sink in for a minute.   Their incredibly rapid decline rivals that of the September effort displayed by their baseball counterparts, the Boston Red Sox.  While no reports have been published linking key defensive players to consuming large amounts of beer and fried chicken in the locker room while the offense is out on the field; that type of activity would at least provide some logical explanation for their absolutely abysmal performance.

In a week that saw the Patriots inexplicably waive Leigh Bodden and place rookie safety, Ras-I Dowling, on season-ending injury reserve, further depleting an already paper-thin secondary, the Steelers came into this game with one goal in mind: Throw the ball until Ben Roethlisberger’s arm falls off.  It didn’t.  But that wasn’t from lack of trying.  

Big Ben moved the ball up and down the field with ease, dodging the occasional Patriot pass rusher who actually penetrated Pittsburgh’s offensive line and eluding cornerbacks and safeties as if they were potential sexual assault charges (allegedly).  They didn’t just expose the Patriots anemic pass defense, they willingly exploited it.  Roethlisberger attempted 30 passes before halftime… By far the most in his entire career.  And it worked.  There were more holes in the Patriots’ defensive coverage than there were in Casey Anthony’s defense trial.

Another troubling trend is the Patriots offensive ineffectiveness.  Until the fourth quarter when Brady was forced to operate in the two-minute offense, they were unable to gain any sort of consistent flow and, by that time, it was too late.  Combine this performance with the week leading into the bye, in which the Patriots narrowly edged Dallas at home thanks to late-game touchdown drive by Brady, and the luster of this once explosive, dynamic offense is fading fast.

The Patriots were held under 30 points for consecutive weeks after 13 straight weeks of previously reaching that plateau.  Tom Brady threw for less than 200 yards for first time this season and for a second straight week the emphasis of the opposing team’s defense seemed to be placed on shutting down Wes Welker.  This is an alarming notion considering that through the first five games of the season, this seemed nearly impossible.  

If you’re looking for a silver lining in all of this, despite the glaring deficiencies found on this football team, they still have 5-2 record and are tied for the best record in the AFC.  However their schedule over the next four games will not allow them to achieve similar results unless they experience a dramatic turnaround in play on both sides of the ball.  The combined record of their next three opponents is 13-8 and the fourth game of that stretch is a trip down to Philadelphia to play an Eagles team that just dismantled the same Dallas team that New England had their hands full with.  

We knew before the start of the season that the defense was a huge question mark, but the offense was so good early on that they could just outscore teams.  Well doesn’t seem to be the case any longer, so where do the Patriots go from here?  It’s a question that I certainly don’t have the answer for and with the game plan and execution showcased this past week, it doesn’t look like Belichick and his coaching staff are very solution-oriented themselves.

A great regular season record is nice but, as we learned last year, that gets you absolutely nowhere and that is the exact destination this team is currently headed.