Then go with big-time relief performances from Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis, who combined for 15 points and 14 rebounds. Take those away and it would have been a far less joyous plane ride back to Boston.
Next consider an enormous boost provided by Nate Robinson, who scored 7 absolutely energizing points at a time when Rondo was completely exhausted. Take that six-minute outburst away and it would have been a far less joyous plane ride back to Boston.
Then imagine that Rondo had missed the bus, or decided to take in the Dodgers-Braves game. It would have been a far less joyous plane ride back to Boston.
But it was a happy bunch of Celtics who left LA with the desired split in the first two games of the series. The team — that’s T-E-A-M — had a lot to be proud of, starting with a collective defensive effort that limited the Lakers to 41 percent shooting and continued with a sound offensive approach that resulted in the dazzling total of 28 assists on their 36 baskets. Teams with that type of assist/basket ratio seldom lose.
This was, above all, a recognizable NBA game, as opposed to the eyesore opener. The reason was simple: referees Ken Mauer, Monty McCutchen, and Mike Callahan refereed the game they saw, as opposed to the game they wished to impose on everyone. Yes, people on both sides wound up in foul trouble, and each side felt aggrieved. Boston at one point had four frontcourt players with four fouls apiece. The Lakers moaned because Kobe Bryant wound up with five fouls and Ron Artest fouled out.
But the fact is the officials allowed the game to evolve into proper basketball. Derek Fisher had two quick fouls guarding Allen because he was manhandling him to a ludicrous degree. There was a direct connection between that and Allen’s ability to get off to a great start on a night when he was in a frightening shooting rhythm.
Ray was, as they say, in the zone during the first half. “Our team could see it, and you could see they were doing everything they could to find him,’’ said Doc Rivers.
