With Six and a half minutes left in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the Celtics still had it. Then I watched my team slowly give it away, with the inevitability of the loss smothering the excitement of every Celtics basket. Ray Allen's legs were done for the season, Kevin Garnett's minutes capability was surpassed, and Paul Pierce went into hero mode. I expected Kobe to hit the final shot, I expected Derek Fisher to hit the final shot, and I expected Pau Gasol to hit the final shot. But Ron Artest...? I would have given him that shot every time and I guarantee he misses that nine out of ten times. So what happened?
The Celtics, whose age was overblown all season, finally caught up with them. The Celtics truly left it all out on the floor in Los Angeles. And that;s why it hurt so much. We weren't supposed to win this game. Our center tore his knee apart in the previous game, we were on the road, we were too old, and the best player and coach were on the other team. And yet we were winning. Just like we had won every series previous to the Finals, we were winning. Lockdown defense and timely offense. Kobe had a bad game, in arguably the biggest game of his career. And yet we couldn't do it. As a fan, I have not been that emotionally attached to a game and team since the 2004 Red Sox shocked the Yankees. The 2004 Red Sox should not have come back from 3-0, the 2001 Patriots should not have beaten the St. Louis Rams in a not-so-neutral site, but they did. The Celtics shouldn't have beaten the Lakers, and they didn't. (Analysis of the Boston Sports Fan in the next Blog post)
So what now? Instead of being on top of the world, we have an offseason filled with as many questions as any team out there. Will Doc come back? Is Sheed retiring? Will the Celtics re-sign Ray Allen? Will Pierce opt out? Who can we get in the draft? What about our bench?
Doc: As much as I love Doc, and the difficulty I am having with thinking of a replacement for him, I think it may be time to go for him. I am under the opinion that the Celtics should not bring back the exact same team next year and hope for the best. The Celtics organization is too strong to take the chance to enter a rebuilding period again. With our money, you don't need to. Unfortunately, I think the power of Doc's voice in the locker room has grown monotonous. For the new coach, you need to make sure he can handle KG and Rondo. If you win those two over, he is golden.
Ray: I love Ray. He is an unbelievable spokesperson for the organization, and the NBA. He can still shoot despite what happened in the FInals. I am starting to believe however, that it may not be in the best interest of the team to re-sign him. A few scenarios though could change that: 1) If the Celtics draft a legitimate scorer that could play behind Ray and limit his minutes. I am tired of seeing Tony Allen, even with his great defense, wander around aimlessly when he plays offense. If the kid could preserve Ray throughout the season, contribute points off the bench, and learn from Ray on how to become a great offensive player, Ray would be a great sign. The same goes for if Ray signed for less money than some think he will receive, and the Celtics pick up a free agent who could contribute the same features.
Pierce: The only way I see Pierce opting out of his contract is if he does so to sign a multi-year contract with the Celtics that assures him retiring a Celtic. Pierce will not receive twenty one million from any other team. The Captain will stay, and I would be shocked if he left.
Draft: Because I am not a huge college basketball fan, I won't give specific names or recaps of players. The two things that the Celtics need are a legitimate big man, and a scorer. The big man must be at least 6'11 in my opinion, because he must be able to play next to Big Baby, who gives up a lot of size already. He must be able to start when Perk is out for the beginning of the season with his ravaged knee, so defense and rebounding will be a key. The scorer needs to either preserve Pierce or Ray, and needs to eventually take over for one of them. While this is a tall task, this draft class seems deep enough to do it.
Much Love Celts, and Good Luck
Jun 22, 2010
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