Celtics Back on Track with 5 Game Winning Streak

The Boston Celtics are soaring back up through the NBA rankings after a five game winning streak that can be described as nothing short of “Simply Amazing”.

A week ago things were not looking good for our Celtics squad. They returned beat up from a bruising west coast road trip. They lost games they easily could have won!Their defense was lagging. Those following the team were getting frustrated.I wrote an article calling to rally true Celtics fans. Celtics nation and the team responded with an impressive overwhelming win over the Indiana Pacers in Boston!

However, this was only the start of something special as during the span of the next week…. The Celtics would string together an impressively hard fought five game winning streak!

This takeoff was marked with an exclamation point (!) last Friday night when the Celtics topped a well-improved Houston Rockets Team by a winning margin of 12 points!

Jared Sullinger: The Future

As the 21st overall pick in the NBA, Jared Sullinger, is proving himself every single game to be worthy of playing on such a team as the Boston Celtics. Tonight against the Rockets, he had fourteen points and eleven rebounds. He was 7 for 8 shooting the ball, and he earned his second consecutive double double. He is doing very well compared to the other rookies. He is fourth in rebounds per game with 5.7, first in fewest turnovers per game, sixth in field goal percentage, and third in games played.

Many have suggested that Doc throw him in the starting lineup at Power Forward, where Brandon Bass has been starting. While Bass hasn’t been as productive as one might hope, I don’t think it would be a good fit for Sullinger. As proven tonight, it helps to have a deep bench. Jared Sullinger is young and provides fresh legs off the bench which is something the Celtics need more than a stellar starting Power Forward. The bench carried the team tonight which was something they needed.

The Celtics are in good shape. They are playing very well defensively which is providing opportunities offensively. The young players are playing very well; players such as Lee, Sullinger, and Green. These players could be the future of the Celtics. As far as this year goes, if the team can continue to play well defensively, and get good quality minutes from the bench, then they have a good shot at going deep in the playoffs.

As always, feel free to follow me on twitter @athletesfoot34

Time For the True Celtics Fans to Step Up!

The Celtics are struggling through a four-game losing streak after impressively beating the Brooklyn Nets on Christmas Day on National TV!
Since then their defensive effort has been floundering resulting in double-digit losses to the Clippers, the Warriors, the Kings, and the Grizzlies.

In all of these games they gave up way too many points easily! The Celtics are known to be a tough team defensively so many are left wondering …”What happened?” and “should we forget about this year?”
The answer is No Way! Keep at it Celtics fans! If you remember last year there was a dismal west coast trip and the team finished one game short of the Finals. This is no time to hang your head Celtics’ fans! This is a time for us to root for our team and show them they have our support! So in short form… True fans need to step up!
On Friday January 4, 2012 the Indiana Pacers come into Boston to play! Longtime Celtics fans will remember current Indiana Pacers executive of the year….. Larry Bird otherwise known as The Legend.It will be difficult to beat any team that Larry Bird is involved in but the Celtics will have to do just that to get back above .500 and back into the playoff race!
The best part… truth be told is that there is a lot of time left in the season! Plenty of time for another playoff and title run. I’m sure this veteran-led team is well aware of that and know they don’t have much time left together as a core team. Furthermore, GM Danny Ainge is expected to make some trades/moves to bolster team defense! Paul Pierce, Rondo, Garnett are the remaining three from 2008 and have plenty of experience to bank on! Defensive-minded phenom

Avery Bradley is returning to the starting lineup.All these factors put together should put the Celtics in decent position to do well in the playoffs. First they have to buckle-down, play defense, and start gelling together. The Celtics don’t want more criticism they want our support. Time to step up, rally, and say Go Celtics Go!

Paul Pierce Showing He’s Still Got Game

Paul Pierce is sometime soon going to join Celtics lore as one of the greats in the
history of the franchise. Let’s hope he can add another championship to his legacy sure to include his jersey in the TD Garden rafters along greats such as Larry Bird, John Havlicek, Kevin McHale,Dennis Johnson,Bob Cousy, Robert Parish, and Bill Russell!

During the Celtics 103-91 victory Paul Pierce showed that he’s still got game! He scored a whopping 40 points on 13 of 16 shooting and going a perfect 6 for 6 from the free throw line!
Rajon Rondo chipped in an extra 20 points along with 8 assists while Jason Terry and Kevin Garnett had 15 and 12 respectively. Pierce scored his points as he has done many times in his career under pressure as the Celtics were playing poor defense and nearly blew a 20-point lead.

Cavaliers Head Coach Byron Scott admitted reluctantly after the game” There was nothing we could do with him(Pierce) tonight” Scott also referred to Pierce as a future Hall of Famer! I guess Byron Scott would know because he’ll probably be a future Hall of Famer himself! All in all it was an impressive Basketball display from a long-time seasoned veteran Paul Pierce. A rarity these days, as not only has the 35 year old Pierce had a long 10 years plus career but he has spent his entire playing career in one uniform, that of the Boston Celtics!!!!

The Celtics are still working on playing more consistently like this…for now they are hovering around .500 with a 13-12 record but are very much in the Atlantic Conference playoff race! They bounced back last week to win at home against a tough Philly team and then beat Dallas in a wild Texas double overtime shootout which they won 117-115. They lost to Houston in an emotional reunion with Kevin McHale and Kevin Garnett where the game was just a backstory to the meeting of the two greatest Kevins to play the game. A game in which McHale was dealing with some of the hardships of life with some help from his friend/protege’ KG! The week also saw losses to San Antonio and Chicago before Pierce put his own punctuation mark on this Celtics Season and the fact that they will be in it until the end! Go Celts Go!

The Truth Never Changes

Earlier in this season, some were speculating as to whether Paul Pierce was going to be able to produce like he had in years past. His numbers were mediocre at best it seemed. But Wednesday Paul Pierce came out and showed that he is still “The Truth.”

Wednesday the Celtics defeated the Cavaliers 103-91 with Paul Pierce being a +29 on the floor. Pierce scored 40 points that night going 6 for 7 from three point range, 13 for 16 from the floor, and a perfect 8 for 8 from the free throw line. He also added 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, and 1 block. To sum it all up, Pierce was stellar. His shooting percentage was off the charts after shooting 43% on the year leading up to this game. Pierce’s 40 points helped end the Celtics three game losing streak.

Overall, it was a great night for the Celtics, with Rondo scoring 20 points and dishing out 8 assists, and Jason Terry and Kevin Garnett combining for 27 points. If the Celtics want to keep moving on this road towards victory, this is what they need to be seeing. Their big men need to step up, Rondo needs to be on point, and Pierce needs to keep shooting well. If all these things can be accomplished, the Celtics just might be on their way to banner number eighteen.

Feel free to follow me on Twitter @athletesfoot34

Boston Celtics Weekly Predictions

The Celtics just cannot seem to build up any type of consistency right now, a troubling sign considering there are some much-improved teams in the Eastern Conference this season.

As of now Boston is 12-11 on the season, which is only good for third place in the Atlantic Division. They’re currently a game back of the Brooklyn Nets for second and 5.5 games back of the New York Knicks for the top spot.

The Celtics are in the middle of a tough road trip that’s seen them already play and lose to the Houston Rockets (101-89) and San Antonio Spurs (103-88).

On Tuesday night they will try and close out the trip on a positive note when they pay a visit to the Chicago Bulls. The NBA picks for this one will vary, but you know Boston will come out with a lot of energy to end this little slide they’re on.

Boston Celtics Weekly Preview

The Celtics are sitting at 11-9 on the season, putting them in fourth place in a very competitive Atlantic Division. It’s time to take a look at their upcoming opponents this week to see if they can build up some momentum.

With the New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers all playing sound basketball, the Celtics can no longer afford to slack off during the regular season, or they risk losing out on a playoff spot.

Boston has now alternated wins and losses over their last seven games heading into Wednesday’s home date with the Dallas Mavericks. The public may be all over the Celtics with their NBA picks for this matchup, but the Mavericks are performing at a reasonably high level even without Dirk Nowitzki on the court.

The schedule only gets tougher for the Celtics though, as they’ll play two road games over the week.