All the hype around Miami, and they just can't get rolling. I'm sure they will, and I doubt they'll endure many more 1-3 stretches, and there's no way they'll remain the 3rd place team in the Southeast Division. But remember when KG and Ray Allen began their Celtics careers? The C's started 07-08 winning 29 of 32 games.
Because the Celtics were a team. The Big Three were mature, and all united with a single goal, and all working under Doc Rivers with a plan to achieve it. The Heat are still working things out. They don't have Doc Rivers. They don't have the leadership of Garnett or Pierce, or the freakish health of Ray Allen. They have Gatorade commercials and jersey sales.
The Celtics got maximum contributions from several sources last night. Ray Allen had a ridiculous night, hitting 7 of 9 three point attempts, finishing with 35. Pierce had 25, and Garnett added 16 plus 13 rebounds. Rondo had 16 assists (he's averaging 14.8). Shaq had 7 rebounds, Glen Davis had 9, and Nate Robinson scored 12 points.
The Celtics are, at the moment, a better team than the Heat. The Heat are younger, so have room to improve and to gel. The Celtics are older, so have room to get injured and fall apart. It's only November.
But, it's very clear that the Heat were grotesquely overhyped. On ESPN.com's NBA page, in between links to "Teams" and "Players," there's a link for the "Heat Index," an entire section of the site dedicated to the preseason #1 Miami Heat. ESPN is ball-washing a 5-4 team.
The 7-2 Celtics are in Memphis tomorrow night.
Photo Credit:
AP Photo
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