Paul Pierce has been the man for the Boston Celtics as they’ve raced out to a 2-0 lead in the NBA finals against the heavily favored Lakers. He has been their leading scorer, most clutch player, crunch-time assassin, and now I must say, architect of one of the most dramatic moments in recent NBA final history.
After Game 1 was over and Pierce had converted those two huge three pointers that put the Celtics up for good, I was convinced that this series was over if Pierce really could not go on his injured knee. And after his dramatic exit and subsequent reentry, I was convinced that he was good for this game but done for the series. Being carried out by three teammates and then rolled out on a wheelchair made for some very exiting theatre. Returning with a a few minutes later and exciting the crowd into a wild frenzy was even better. He was both Willis Reed and Muhammad Ali, the valiant warrior coming back from injury, bouncing up and down on pure adrenaline, scoring key buckets. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
But realistically, how can a player fake this? The injury must have happened right? I saw Perkins hit him from behind, Pierce’s knee seemingly turning one way while his heel was clamped down by the huge Perkins. Surely there must have been what Pierce claimed; “I heard a pop.” Or could it have been faked for dramatic effect ? If so, this would definitely be one of the more ingenious ways of turning momentum ever contrived.
Now seriously speaking, the injury must have occurred but it was probably not worse than the initial trauma would have suggested. With of state of the art orthopaedic therapy and who knows what kind of medical cocktail administered, Pierce was able to waltz onto the court for Game 2 and play as if the injured never happened. How else to explain the monster game (41 minutes, 28 points, 6 assists) in which he was not only instrumental in building up Boston’s huge lead but also closed out the game after the Lakers had made it chillingly close at the end with a drive into the paint that got him two free throws.
Pierce has made this kind of miraculous recovery before. In 2000, after suffering multiple stab wounds just 6 weeks before the start of the season, he was able to recover in time to start and play the entire season.
Pierce’s knee is back, Powe is back in the rotation with a flourish (21 points in just 15 minutes), and Boston has just held server to be up 2-0. Add to that that Pierce is back home and I think he will continue to be a huge factor on both ends of the floor. More importantly, the Celtic mindset is correct. Kevin Garnett stated that “We haven’t done anything yet, we just won two games on our home court. We’re expected to do that.” Not that it will be easy of course. LA will make the adjustments needed to get their offense back on track. The officials will make the adjustments they always do and the Lakers should be able to win Game 3.
But with the big three finally all clicking on all cylinders at the same time and with Boston having learned how to win on the road, I look for Boston to win at least one of the 3 games in LA. They will then return to the “whatever it is called now” Garden with a commanding 3-2 lead. And I don’t see the Lakers winning two in a row in a place where the Celtics have been dominant.
After Game 1 was over and Pierce had converted those two huge three pointers that put the Celtics up for good, I was convinced that this series was over if Pierce really could not go on his injured knee. And after his dramatic exit and subsequent reentry, I was convinced that he was good for this game but done for the series. Being carried out by three teammates and then rolled out on a wheelchair made for some very exiting theatre. Returning with a a few minutes later and exciting the crowd into a wild frenzy was even better. He was both Willis Reed and Muhammad Ali, the valiant warrior coming back from injury, bouncing up and down on pure adrenaline, scoring key buckets. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
But realistically, how can a player fake this? The injury must have happened right? I saw Perkins hit him from behind, Pierce’s knee seemingly turning one way while his heel was clamped down by the huge Perkins. Surely there must have been what Pierce claimed; “I heard a pop.” Or could it have been faked for dramatic effect ? If so, this would definitely be one of the more ingenious ways of turning momentum ever contrived.
Now seriously speaking, the injury must have occurred but it was probably not worse than the initial trauma would have suggested. With of state of the art orthopaedic therapy and who knows what kind of medical cocktail administered, Pierce was able to waltz onto the court for Game 2 and play as if the injured never happened. How else to explain the monster game (41 minutes, 28 points, 6 assists) in which he was not only instrumental in building up Boston’s huge lead but also closed out the game after the Lakers had made it chillingly close at the end with a drive into the paint that got him two free throws.
Pierce has made this kind of miraculous recovery before. In 2000, after suffering multiple stab wounds just 6 weeks before the start of the season, he was able to recover in time to start and play the entire season.
Pierce’s knee is back, Powe is back in the rotation with a flourish (21 points in just 15 minutes), and Boston has just held server to be up 2-0. Add to that that Pierce is back home and I think he will continue to be a huge factor on both ends of the floor. More importantly, the Celtic mindset is correct. Kevin Garnett stated that “We haven’t done anything yet, we just won two games on our home court. We’re expected to do that.” Not that it will be easy of course. LA will make the adjustments needed to get their offense back on track. The officials will make the adjustments they always do and the Lakers should be able to win Game 3.
But with the big three finally all clicking on all cylinders at the same time and with Boston having learned how to win on the road, I look for Boston to win at least one of the 3 games in LA. They will then return to the “whatever it is called now” Garden with a commanding 3-2 lead. And I don’t see the Lakers winning two in a row in a place where the Celtics have been dominant.
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