Not so fast

The predominantly jump-shooting Cavaliers began finding a rhythm. Daniel Gibson, relegated to a bench player the last two years, knocked down a pair of 3-pointers. And finally, the Celtics lost their composure and eventually the game, 95-87, in front of a sellout crowd of 20,562 eager to see the Cavaliers move on without James.

It wasn’t that the Cavaliers were that good, rather the Celtics were outworked, outhustled, and then began barking at officials. The meltdown began with 8:32 left. Nate Robinson drove to the basket against Ryan Hollins and was called for a technical for kneeing Hollins in the groin.

Shaquille O’Neal claimed he tried to explain to referee Bob Delaney what Robinson did, and ended up becoming the first Celtic to get hit with a “respect for the game’’ technical. Gibson hit both free throws, and Antawn Jamison followed with consecutive buckets against a disheveled defense for an 82-79 Cleveland lead with 7:42 remaining.

Later, Kevin Garnett knocked the ball away from Gibson with one second left on the 24-second clock and the Cavaliers leading, 86-84. In a play that capped the Celtics’ collapse, Anthony Parker caught an inbounds pass, pivoted, dribbled, and released a shot, all in one second according to the clock operator. He drained a 3-pointer for an 89-84 lead.

“That was the longest second in NBA history,’’ said Celtics coach Doc Rivers. “Somebody didn’t push that button quick enough.’’

Said Ray Allen: “I just assumed the horn was going to go off.’’

The Celtics were done after that. They missed open shots. They couldn’t make an entry pass. Their frustration mounted. Afterward, the Celtics realized they had been burned by their own delusions of grandeur. They took a team minus its franchise player lightly, and the same exaggerated self-opinion that plagued them last season against lesser teams returned.