Ok, first of all, I did NOT expect my first article on here to not be about the Chicago Bulls. In fact, I expected them to come this far. But injuries have broken my expectations yet again. So here is my unbiased preview of two teams that are big rivals with the Bulls, who are facing each other in the Eastern Finals. What is that saying? The enemy of the enemy is my friend? Yes. That’s it.
The Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat meet once again in the NBA Playoffs. Last year, Miami was on top of Boston in the semis. This year, more importantly, tonight, they will continue their quest for a spot in the NBA Finals.
This season, the Celtics took a 3-1 series from Miami. Here’s a preview of the 2012 NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
Even though Chris Bosh has been sidelined with a lower abdominal strain, teammates Dwyane Wade and LeBron James have been averaging about 53 ppg in the postseason. The Celtics are the league’s best defensive team at this point. I think overall this will be a best-of-seven series. Offense vs. Defense.
Expect Miami to continue their half court game. They run the ball and run right through, the Celtics’ defense has to keep up if they have any chance.
Boston’s defense did take a low blow, with a season ending should injury to Avery Bradley. Will Ray Allen be the one to stop Wade’s 33 ppg and 62 percent shooting (the last three games)? Miami is more of a perimeter shooting team with a lot of pump fakes involved. If the Celtics can stand their ground and stay in the zone where they can slow down Miami, then they are halfway to their goal.
Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen will be big keys to this series. With Rondo against Mario Chalmers, I expect Rondo to run circles around Chalmers and participate on the defensive end. Allen has been ice cold, making just three of his previous 19 three-point attempts. His consistent shooting is what keeps this offense alive. As for KG, if he can keep leading this team, pushing them mentally and playing all over the floor offensively and defensively, Boston will make this a SERIES to talk about. He’s been averaging 19.2 ppg and 10.8 rpg.
“His leadership is the most important thing for the Celtics, but he’s shooting the ball as well as anybody from the outside. Garnett is one of the toughest guys to ever play this game. He’s one guy who never quits.” – Wade on Garnett’s role on the Celtics
The Celtics will need to find a way to score if Allen’s inconsistency continues. Rondo, Paul Pierce, and Garnett may be the solution. But in order to really win the series, they need to take care of the ball and they need to stop Miami from scoring in transition.
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