They talked. We listened. But did any of us believe them?
Did anyone really believe the Celtics who were 27-27 in their last 54 regular-season games would find some magic winning formula once the playoffs began?
Erik Spoelstra did. The Miami Heat coach saw trouble coming for his team.
“They understand the moment,’’ he said after his team’s 96-86 series-ending defeat last night. “They’ve had injuries. Everyone discounts that, but that’s a big part of an NBA season.
“With their starting lineup, they were 38-18. That seems like a pretty good record to me. They got healthy at the right time, and they’re a veteran team that’s well-coached, and they’re unselfish. They put aside personal agendas.’’
This was over in five, the first time the Celtics have won a seven-game series in that number of games in quite a while. And after excruciating and frightening seven-game first-round series the last two years, the Celtics have taken care of business in an orderly fashion, and can get proper rest before the next series begins Saturday in Cleveland.
“I’m not used to this,’’ said coach Doc Rivers. “I just know it’s nice to have a day off.’’
And five is exactly what it should have been. There were no arguments about Games 1 and 2, especially Game 2, a 29-point blowout. They could have lost Game 3 and they could have won Game 4. And there were just a few moments of suspense last night, since they trailed for just 3:38 of the first quarter.
They led at every checkpoint by at least 6, led by 21 (67-46) with 6:56 remaining in the third quarter, and had the ready answers when the Heat reduced the lead to 3 (73-70) early in the fourth.
It’s not going to be 2008 all over again. The old guys are even older, and the basic dynamics have changed. “Ubuntu’’ was then. What’s now is a nice, solid, veteran-oriented team quarterbacked by an unpredictable, mercurial point guard who is difficult to prepare for because there really is no way of knowing what he’s going to do — ever.
Last night, Rajon Rondoed his way to a 16-point, 8-rebound, 12-assist stat line. He announced himself to the Heat on the game’s first possession when he took Dwyane Wade to the hoop for a running hook, and he really never stopped creating problems for the visitors.
“He plays in another gear,’’ sighed Spoelstra. “He’s much quicker than most point guards, and when he gets to the postseason, he has yet another gear.
“He’s got toughness and big-time confidence, which some people think borders on cockiness. People call them the Big Three. I don’t know why they don’t call them the Big Four.’’
