LeBron James throwing the talcum powder up into the air in his self-indulgent pre-game ritual. Paul Pierce coming back from back spasms to keep the lead in Green hands. Ray Allen drilling threes effortlessly to hold Miami back. Could you ask for anything more? The Celtics 88-80 win over the Miami Super-Heat last night was a priceless way to start the season.
Was there anything better than hearing the chants of "Overrated" showering down from the Bean Town crowd? They did seem overrated based on their play last night. Dwayne Wade seemed rusty, Chris Bosch proved he is just a role player compared to their "Big Two," and LeBron showed that he still can't carry a team, even if the team is full of superstars. The King's excuse? "I'm not accustomed to having that many threats out on the court at the same time." Yeah, that was the problem, you guys had too many good players to be any good. Sure, that makes sense. Wade finished with 13 points on a pathetic 4/16 night, Bosch had just 8, and the Heat's "Big Three" combined to cough up 15 of Miami's 17 turnovers. Haven't you guys been practicing since that WWF-esque entrance in Miami after "The Decision?"
The Celtics were a team that showed they clearly have been practicing. A true team in every sense of the word. Rajon Rondo was epic with 17 assists in the game, two more than Miami had AS A TEAM. It was great to see him dish the ball to Shaq a couple of times, and pretty awesome to see Shaq slam it down. Ray Allen may have been the ultimate highlight reel, though, dropping 20 points and going 5/8 from beyond the arc. Despite the C's leading by as much as 19, the Heat came storming back as the game closed out, and we really needed those bombs from Allen to keep them at an arm's distance. Pierce finished with 19, including an awesome play where he sliced and diced the Miami defense from half court for an easily lay up. KG finished with the lone double-double, getting 10 and 10, and was awesome on a steal and toss out to an all-alone Nate Robinson in the second. Glen Davis added 13 from the bench.
Just to add some more statistical flavor, Paul Pierce leads the team in PER (player efficiency rating, a measure of per minute production with the league average being 15) at 22.4. Pierce, Big Baby, Marquis Daniels, and Ray Allen all finished the first game with above average PERs. Another stat I find interesting is the USG% (usage percentage, which is an estimate of the percentage of team plays that used a particular player on the floor). After the opening game, Nate Robinson actually leads this mark at 38.4%, with Shaq number two at 30.7%. KG is tops among the obvious choices at 27.1%. I'll finally share the NBA Win Shares with you. We all kind of know what win shares are, and in the NBA we have a stat called WS/48, which shows an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player per 48 minutes played. The league average is approximately 0.1. After that first test, the Celtics have Pierce (0.358), Glen Davis (0.309), Allen (0.219), Daniels (0.208), and Rondo (0.142) all contributin to the win in an above average manner. It's a nice combination of benchies and starters that led us to our first W. I'll try and keep an eye on these and other fun stats as the NBA season goes on.
The C's and the Heat were the only Eastern Conference teams to throw down on opening night, so you obviously realize that our 1-0 record has us on top of the conference. In the West last night, Portland beat Phoenix, and LA beat Houston. 2010 finals repeat? I hope so. Our hated rivals, the Clip Show, tip off their "season" against the aforementioned Jail Blazers this evening. Tonight, the C's continue their journey to an 82-0 season against LeBron's old squad from Cleveland. The Cavs are kind of like the ex-girlfriend of the NBA this season, and I wouldn't be shocked to find out that some of the players have penned emo songs about their experience after "The Decision." Will the likes of Mo Williams, Antawn Jamison, Anderson Varejao, and JJ Hickson be able to stop my mighty Celtics, riding high off of the hugely important opening night win? Well, they might...but I doubt it.
Let's keep the NBA's ex-girlfriend feeling depressed by beating her down tonight in C-Town. Oh, and I hope you follow my analogy that the "she" is the Cavs, and "beating her down in C-Town" refers only to winning the game against said Cavs. I, in no way, am justifying domestic violence or violence of any kind. Now, let's bash her face in!
-- Sent from my Palm Prē
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