The Boston Celtics met the Miami Heat for he second time in the early stage of the 2010-11 season, and were again successful beating the Heat for a second straight time. In doing so, Boston has made it abundantly clear that they are still the team to beat in the Easter Conference and Miami’s Big 3 is still no match for Boston’s Big 4.

The main difference I noticed during this game was something that cannot be measured by looking at the numbers: A complete sense of togetherness Boston possessed while the Heat appeared to have a larger display of separatists on the floor for most of the 48 minutes.

The continuity that the Boston Celtics had on display against the Heat was also highly disruptive of the Heat’s offensive intentions, often forcing Dwyane Wade into bad spots to the tune of  6 turnovers and 2-12 shooting from the field.

LeBron had another great game, speaking statistically, but it’s becoming more apparent to me that when his stats are Oscar-Robertson-like, Chris Bosh suffers as the victim, and it also hurts the overall team chemistry. If Miami can’t figure out how to get LeBron to defer to Bosh more and allow an inside out game to develop, the offensive attack is skewed in a way that allows great defensive teams like the Celtics to zero in, neutralize, and consequently negate all LeBron’s big numbers.

Conversely, the Celtics had no problem moving the ball around, and did not have to defer to any one in particular in order to get their offense going. Many ball fakes, wrap around passes, and kept the Heat guessing where the Celtics would strike from. This was a far more effective strategy to make the Heat work and get tired while playing defense, and benefited the shooting opportunities for Ray Allen. Allen had 35 points with seven 3 pointers.

Another good sign for Boston was the activity level of Kevin Garnett. He has already been off to a great start compared to last season, but if he continues his pace and form like tonight’s game, it is highly likely that his Celtics will be making the push for rings in June.

The Boston Celtics are on a serious roll right now. After destroying LeBron James’ Cavaliers while simultaneously ripping out the hearts of Cleveland fans, it is apparent after 2 games of the Easter Conference Finals that the Celtics are the team rising up and and on their way into the NBA Finals for the second time in 3 years.

If it ain't broke don't fix it.

Boston suffered during the playoffs last year as they were riddled by injuries. This year Boston wisely played it safe towards the end of the regular season, riding out some rough nights in order to rest the walking wounded. Pundits began questioning their ability, but the Celtics stuck to their plan and to their core players, only adding some reserves, and it is paying dividends in the post season.

The same cannot be said for the Orlando Magic. Orlando allowed Hedo Turkoglu to walk away while shipping out defensive sensation Courtney Lee and veterans Tony Battie, and Rafer Alston (The one player who actually could have led them to victory in my opinion. Dude was on fire, and led them to the Finals, only to lose his job to the coming off the injury Jameer Nelson. I still believe to this very day that Van Gundy should have been fired for that move.) for Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson.

The philosophical difference regarding roster moves can be best taken in while analyzing the result of game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Doc Rivers had his front court burn through fouls on Dwight Howard the same way Antoine Walker spends money: plentifully and not thinking about tomorrow. Although Howard was effective, Boston’s team defense held Orlando’s other starters not named Howard to a meager 30.9% from the field. The remaining Magic, bench included,  shot a total of 19-58, good for 32%. Yikes.

You will unquestionably lose to a team as defensively sound as Boston shooting a percentage like that. It is critical in order to hang with Boston that you maximize your points for possessions.

Meanwhile Boston shot 45% from the field as a team which will usually lead to victory when your team is great on defense. Even though Kevin Garnett didn’t shoot well, he played well defensively. He found ways, other than scoring, to have impact the game.

Not to discredit Orlando, but these shooting figures clearly indicate just how tough and together Boston is right now. They fought for rebounds while keeping Howard to single digits figures in rebounding. Howard can usually sneeze a double double, but he was beaten mightily on the glass during game 2.

Game 1, half-man. Game 2, half-invisible.

Vince Carter’s atrocious shooting during game 2 devastated Orlando’s offense not unlike the depleted ozone layer is devastating our planet: 5-15 shooting, 16 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist. He did more harm than good, and jsut like the ozone, if something is not done about trying to reverse this soon, everyone wearing a Magic jerseyis in big trouble.

Carter did have 3 steals, but those were negated by the 3 turnovers. His poor performance was a major fallout from his solid performance in game 1 where he shot 50% from the field, scoring 23 points with 5 rebounds and 2 steals.

Wasn’t Carter supposed to be the messiah that pushed Orlando over the top in the Eastern Conference like a Sylvester Stallone semi-illegal arm wrestling move?

Is it safe to say Carter was pretty much owned by Orlando in game 2?

What the heck happened?

Has Boston figured out how to shut Carter down? If so, how does Orlando try to avoid being swept?

When Jameer Nelson is held to 4 assists, and Carter can muster up only 1, Orlando has to be missing those 5 assists and 5 rebounds a game Hedo Turkoglu averaged during the playoffs last year.

All hindsight aside, why would you tinker with a lineup that got you into the NBA Finals?

Somewhere out there in the world Hedo Turkoglu is recovering from a cold while partying in a nightclub, after watching these games, drinking expensive cocktails while thinking to himself that no matter how bad his year was, Orlando must know they were better off with him.

Turkoglu’s versatile game creates mismatches capable of poking holes in the strongest of defenses, and as a 6’10″ passer he allowed Orlando to more aptly explore these mismatches. He integrated well within their system, and helped Orlando by repeatedly stepping up during clutch moments, eventually leading the Magic to the NBA Finals last year.

Will Carter rise up to the occasion in Game 3 in Boston, or will he be owned once more?

The 2010 NBA All-Star starters were named live today on TNT at 7:00 PM EST.

There has been much discussion about issues with the voting, focusing specifically on Tracy McGrady, whom played in only 6 games, averaging 3 points a game this season. He is currently at home, exiled from the Rockets as they seek out a suitor for a trade.

Allen Iverson has also been a topic of massive debate. AI has played for two teams and conferences this season, and after failing in Memphis, foudn himself back in Philly, and is about to be named to his 11th all star game. He is averaging 14.8 points, 4.5 assists, and 3 rebounds a game. Those are hardly All-Star caliber stats for a 76ers team with a losing record of 13-28.

Iverson fails in comparison to the Easts best guard, Rajon Rondo, who is averaging 14 PPG, .527 FG%, 9.6 APG, 4.1 RPG, 2.5 SPG, on a team whose winning record is 27-13.

Here are the voting results for the starters:

• Carmelo Anthony (Forward)
• Tim Duncan (Forward)
• Amar’e Stoudemire (Center)
• Kobe Bryant (Guard)
• Steve Nash (Guard)

• Kevin Garnett (Forward)
• LeBron James (Forward)
• Dwight Howard (Center)
• Dwyane Wade (Guard)
• Allen Iverson (Guard)

It is very fortunate that the Western Conference’s Steve Nash leapfrogged Tracy McGrady, ousting him in the waning moments to overtake the starting guard position. It saved the league further embarrassment after Allen Iverson was voted in.

Here is a list of players notably deserving to start:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Chris Kaman

If not Chris Kaman, Tim Duncan should have been listed on the ballot at the center position. Both players are having substantially better years for their teams than Stoudemire. Kaman has been a beast this year, and has been leading the Clippers to respectability this season.

Kevin Durant

Durant is the reason to move Duncan to center. Durant as one of the starting forwards only makes sense. Durant is the league’s third leading scorer, and his team is in playoff contention this season after only winning 23 games total last year.

The fact that he is in Oklahoma obviously hurts his chances due to low national visibility, the only reason that logically explains, albeit unjustly, Durant’s exclusion from the Western Conference starting line up.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Rajon Rondo

Rondo has experienced some of the worst bias in fan voting I have ever witnessed. Rondo has been nothing less than the best Point Guard in the Eastern Conference all season long. He is member of one of  the best teams in the East. He averages 5 more assists per game shooting 10% better from the field than Iverson.

Rondo has helped his team overcome injuries to Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett and continue to win to the tune of a 27-13 record.

Aren’t All-Stars supposed to be star players on winning teams? Out of fairness to any other player starting this years All-Star game, Iverson is the only player on team with a losing record.

Ironically, the 76ers have as many wins as Boston has losses: 13. One would hope that fact alone should make voters rethink whom they vote for.

]]> http://protectthepaint.com/2010/01/21/2010-all-star-starters-announced-on-tnt/feed/ 0 http://protectthepaint.com/2010/01/08/boston-celtics-vs-atlanta-hawks-nba-game-of-the-week/ http://protectthepaint.com/2010/01/08/boston-celtics-vs-atlanta-hawks-nba-game-of-the-week/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:56:04 +0000 Adam Sedie http://protectthepaint.com/?p=3534

The Boston Celtics (25-8) head into Philips Arena to face off with the Atlanta Hawks (22-12) tonight at 8:00 PM EST. The game will be broadcast live on the ESPN television network,  and can also be caught on ESPN360.com.

Tonight’s match up pits two Eastern Conference rival forces head to head for what looks to be a tight battle. Boston had beaten  the Hawks 9 straight times on their home floor until  the Hawks beat Boston 97-86 November 13.

Eastern Conference rivals clash tongight on ESPN. (Credit: picapp.com)

Atlanta had been faltering of late and snapped a 4-game losing streak after purging their woes against the New Jersey Nets, 119-89. The Hawks now face a real challenge against Boston, and if they can build on their momentum after “clearing their slate” against the Nets, they should be able to compete in this potential playoff series atmosphere game.

The Keys for Boston to win will be based on the performances of Rasheed Wallace and Bostons reserves stepping up to make solid contributions. With Garnett and Marquis Daniels listed as out, and Paul Pierce, Kendrick Perkins, Rajon Rondo, and Eddie House all listed as day-to-day, the depleted and beat up Celtics will be in dire need of their bench to step up.

Can Joe Johnson take Atlanta over the top? (Credit: picapp.com)

Atlanta ‘s roster has no one listed with any significant injuries. Look for Atlanta to push the pace and keep applying a fast pace game on the Celtics. With Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford running and gunning, a depleted and exhausted Celtics team wil have to dig deep in order to compete by the time the 4^th quarter rolls around.

Look out for Josh Smith and Al Horford using their agility and athleticism in the paint tonight to get Rasheed into foul trouble early. A few tick tack foul calls might also send Rasheed into the technical foul zone. All of these events wil factor into Atlanta’s favor.

This game will represent a mid-season litmus  test of where these teams rank against each other. If Atlanta hits on all cylinders, it is hard to imagine Boston smothering all of the Hawks offensive weapons sans Kevin Garnett.

Prior to the new year, we were lucky enough to have one of our Protect the Paint correspondents embedded in Shanghai, China. Her duty was to aim her camera at all things NBA, and snap away. Also, to give us a report on the NBA influence that is quite popular and spreading faster than a wildfire throughout the world’s largest country.

The NBA is the taking over China. Simply put, basketball is the number one sport of the nation. You cannot travel very far without turning a corner and seeing one of several NBA players, or a mix of Adidas sponsored athletes in a montage together, plastered to gigantic billboards.

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Also, our new correspondent Sergey Ustinov informed me that one NBA game airs on Shanghai’s television networks daily. I have an issue with this because in the United States you must either live in a NBA local market or watch whatever TNT or ESPN decides to air nationally. Without purchasing the NBA League Pass or the Broadband package, you are at the mercy of local cable networks.

Li Ning, the Chinese domestic athletic apparel brand, has billboards of its NBA Players who they sponsor and provide signature gear for. Inside a local Li Ning store, we were lucky enough to find a display of Baron Davis of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Baron Davis has his own shoe display? China must not discriminate!

That is correct, no typo here, Baron Davis has his own signature shoe and promotional displays inside Li Ning stores. When a Los Angeles Clipper can be featured in a display you know the NBA is impregnating China.

Jose Calderon of the Toronto Raptors also has his own signature. It is ironic he is endorsed by the Chinese company after the Men’s Spanish Basketball team took that infamous racist photo prior to the 2008 Summer Olympics. It seems apparent that the rest of the world has a sense of humor, and can take a joke.

The Chinese obviously can take a joke, and endorsed Calderon.

Shaq remains a modern enigma in China, and dominates the Li Ning brand in local athletic apparel stores. His shoes might be found in discount stores like Ross Dress for Less here stateside, but in China his shoes can be found in display cases along with other various apparel hyping up the the “Big Diesel.”

Shaq might be able to fit his big toe in this pair of his signature shoes.

Deeper analysis of the Li Ning brand, when you study it long enough, you will begin to notice some striking familiarities, with their logo and their mission statement, to the Nike and Adidas brands.

The Li Ning logo looks quite similar to the Nike Swoosh if it were reversed and made more square in design.

Can you see the reversed Nike swoosh and blatant rip off of Adidas' campaign?

The statement “Anything is Possible” is quite possibly the most similar slogan to “Impossible is Nothing” that Adidas has ran in campaigns with its endorsing athletes.

Compared to any other major American sport, the NBA is taking China by storm with a gigantic disparity. It is easier to find a basketball outdoor court with constant full-court games there than it is here. The Kobes, Dwights, LeBrons, etc, are all well known and beloved by the basketball fans in China. The game has a presence and is not slowing anytime soon.

]]> http://protectthepaint.com/2010/01/07/nba-players-nike-and-adidas-taking-over-shanghai%e4%b8%8a%e6%b5%b7-china-%e4%b8%ad%e5%9b%bd/feed/ 0 http://protectthepaint.com/2009/12/30/boston-celtics-vs-phoenix-suns-nba-game-of-the-week/ http://protectthepaint.com/2009/12/30/boston-celtics-vs-phoenix-suns-nba-game-of-the-week/#comments Wed, 30 Dec 2009 18:48:52 +0000 Adam Sedie http://protectthepaint.com/?p=3467

The Boston Celtics have a lot on the line tonight. They play Phoenix tonight staring a potential 3-game losing streak in the face. The game can be viewed  live on NBATV at 9:00 PM EST.

Can Garnett slow Amar'e down tonight? (Credit: picapp.com)

Phoenix is reeling with confidence after crushing the Los Angeles Lakers118-103 on Monday night. Steve Nash and the Suns have been on fire at home, boasting a 12-2 home record this year. Amar’e Stoudamire is playing like the Amar’e of old, putting up 20 and 10 over the month of December.

It has already been discussed how Boston is hurting without Paul Pierce. The Celtics have dropped off dramatically without Pierce in the line up, and have lost to the likes of the Clippers and the Warriors.

Not a good sign before heading down to Phoenix for tonight’s game.

Can Kevin Garnett or Ray Allen step it up against the Suns and push Boston over the top? Rajon Rondo has been a monster, but without a huge game from Garnett or Allen, it seems like Boston cannot put together a win.

What this game should come down to tonight is which teams second unit performs best. Boston managed to squeeze out 15 points from their bench versus the Warriors. Phoenix’s bench scored a total of 52 points against the Lakers. Jared Dudley led the way with 19 points and 7 rebounds. This disparity in bench scoring favors the Suns.

How can your bench only score 15 points against Golden State? The Warriors are not taught to play defense. The Celtics will be facing the top scoring team in the league tonight. The Warriors are the second highest. You do the math.

Steve Nash disassembled the Lakers on Monday. (Credit:picapp.com)

Can Boston avoid a third straight road loss?

Will Rajon Rondo be able to slow down or aggravate Steve Nash’s game?

Can the Celtics second unit compete with the Suns?

Can Boston compete without Paul Pierce?

These seem to be the most pertinent questions heading into tonight’s game, and it will be a battle worth catching from the moment the ball tips off.

This past week we have seen Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva join Detroit.

Ron Artest took a pay cut and is hoping to get his first ring playing for the world champion Lakers.

Hedo Turkoglu reneged on a Portland offer, selecting the Raptors instead.

Rasheed Wallace is now alongside Kevin Garnett in Boston.

Trevor Ariza maxed out his contract value and is Houston-bound.

And Finally, Jason Kidd is staying in Dallas instead of going to New York.

The free agent signings become official today, the first day that players are allowed to ink their verbal agreements. There are more deals to come involving free agents, and it is going to be interesting to see where everyone ends up.

We here at Protect the Paint will list some of the rumors/moves involving the available free agents.

REMAINING FREE AGENTS

Lamar Odom

Odom might be hugging members of the Blazers soon. (Credit: daylife.com)

Lamar Odom doesn’t seem to be thinking repeat. Instead he and his agent want to be shown the money in the neighborhood of $10 million per season. Odom appears to be going the Trevor Ariza route, cashing in elsewhere now that he has the ring. He sacrificed his stats to win and now wants to sign with a team that could offer him a starting position and big bucks. Should have a different address in 2009-10. The Blazers are reportedly interested. Championship experience on an up and coming squad never hurts.

Andre Miller

Looks like Miller is heading to Portland. Gives the Blazers the floor general they lacked last season and gives Miller a chance to win. Good match all the way around.

Brandon Bass

Bass would make a mistake going to Detroit. (Credit: ocregister.com)

Bass could be staying in Dallas, heading to Orlando, or possibly ending up in Detroit. It makes absolutely no sense for him to sign with the Pistons. With rumors circulating of Carlos Boozer being shipped there for Rip Hamilton, and Charlie Villanueva signing a 5-year deal, he would essentially be the third option at power forward. The Magic need help up front. Orlando would be a good fit.

Antonio McDyess

McDyess could get a ring if he heads to San Antonio. (Credit: ugplay.com)

McDyess is leaning towards San Antonio in the most recent rumor involving the veteran which would provide more depth in the Spurs front court. He’s a solid shooter and depenable on the glass averaging 9.6 ppg and 9.8 rpg last year for the Pistons. The Spurs would have a solid 1-2 post punch with McDyess and Tim Duncan giving them the size to contend with the Lakers huge frontline.

Marcin Gortat

Marcin Gortat is going to get paid big bucks this summer. (Credit: mlive.com)

Most likely headed to Dallas. We’ll see how he responds to more minutes and more responsibility. This is a huge loss for Orlando who now have lost the majority of their front line not named Dwight Howard–Tony Battie via the Vince Carter deal, Hedo Turkoglu to free agency, and Gortat. The Magic better hope Ryan Anderson is as good as Pat Williams thinks he will be.

Grant Hill

Hill should go to a contender rather than a pretender. (Credit: offsideswithfletcher.com)

There are rumors of Hill heading to the the Knicks. Finally healthy, his game resurfaced playing with Phoenix. He appeared in all 82 games for the Suns last season. It’s unfortunate that he would want to make the move to New York, especially when he could most likely ink himself onto another team with better chances of winning a title. Seems like he and fellow 1994 co-ROY Jason Kidd have more in common then we thought: Take the money, not the chance for a championship ring.

Channing Frye

Frye could play minutes that matter for the Cavs. (Credit: nike.com)

Frye is very interested in signing with Cleveland. The guy has been marred with the “wrong place, wrong time” syndrome during his career. He was buried behind David Lee in New York and then behind LaMarcus Aldridge in Portland. If Cleveland loses Anderson Varajao, Frye will have an immediate chance for big minutes at power forward for the Cavs. This is a good opportunity for both sides. Frye has showed he has a lot of game and could be a late bloomer if given the chance.