‘The Big Three’ help Celtics to the NBA Finals
Three years ago, Danny Ainge thought about the future of the Celtics and got them Kevin Garnette, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, despite being overly expensive. But it paid off as the team improved dramatically, ultimately reaching the NBA finals on two occasions in just 3 years. They were a bit aged at that time and there were thoughts of them retiring soon but tell that to the fans that saw the last Celtics match who will never believe this. Indeed, it seems as if the trio are demanding a couple of additional titles before their departure.
Even though Garnett isn’t the old ‘KG’ anymore, he is still the star in his team as he helped Boston to a 23-5 start in the season. It refreshed some old memories of ‘the Big Three’ amongst the fans and television audiences, assuring that they were still the best trio to have stepped onto an NBA pitch.
Surprisingly, the moments were short lived as the Boston Celtics went ahead of themselves. Karma had to punish them and soon they were levelled back to 27 each. Garnett suddenly started making mistakes that were inexcusable. Rasheed Wallace came to the aid but he couldn’t keep his hands on the ball unless he made a mess. The Boston bench in essence was full of white flags.
Their performance to this stage for the title couldn’t give reason why D-Wade and Miami Heat had faltered against them or how it was possible that LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers could go down facing them.
But they did! They after all were the ones who had blocked Wade and James. It was they who were halting Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard until now, they just needed to focus. It didn’t matter if the Magic were on a run or they were near to making history. They had done it before; they had the ability to do it again. So they decided to surpass the Magic’s in a sensational match of Game 6 in the Eastern Conference Finals by 96-84.
After the match, an overjoyed Ainge told the media, “For me, it wasn’t a question of whether we had the talent. The question was whether we were going to get healthy.” And indeed they did.
Doc River later said, “This starting five has never lost a series... Never”. They however knew that the journey would never be like the one in 2008 and they had to do something to ‘the Big Three’. Allen is the most aged amongst the trio at age 35 while Garnett is 34 and Pierce is 32.
Ainge explained his strategy in the match by saying, “That was the number one thing we discussed all year” and the answer was simple, -“Rest.”
Rivers explained that they weren’t going to win out the title like they did in 2008. They were going to do it face on now. Back in the 2007/08 season, Garnett clocked more than 35 minutes on the court. In this season, he comes back on the bench before 30. Same was the case with Allen and Pierce, who now have to take a rest at 30 minutes on average.
Pierce coerced the ideology by saying, “It wasn’t about us going out there and trying to win every game at the beginning,” and then added, “It was about being healthy.”
In the end, Pierce produced 31 points with 13 boards, Allen helped with 20 points and Garnett ended with 10 points while having 5 boards. All in all, that’s a collection of 61 points from them.
Playing with a back injury Rajon Rondo scored 14 points and had six assists. However, his substitute who was hardly used in the season might be the unsung hero in the story. Nate Robinson became the 11th hour Samaritan to give the Celtics the lead they needed.
He scored 13 points in less than 6 minutes to give the Celtics a 55-42 lead by halftime and that was all they needed till the end. They wait now for the Lakers or Suns to appear in the final race for the NBA title.
Two years back, Garnett was able to keep Kobe Bryant down but this time round, there is a whole new story with both teams. As they lead the journey with a team that has acquired 17 world titles, it is bound to be a trip to remember.
Ainge, who was part of the championship teams in 1984 and 1986 said, “There’s no question that winning another title would put them in a different category. A lot of guys have won one.”
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