The Starting Five

Short but neat. How will the Celtics deal with the Magic spreading the floor?

The most recent seminal moment in Magic franchise history was the demolition of the Philadelphia 76ers without Dwight Howard in Game 6.

Three players stood out: Rashard Lewis, Rafer Alston and J.J. Redick. There was fire in their eyes and they all matured just a little more in the span of a game.

Dwight Howard is a freak of nature. There are very few players in league history that can combine his size, strength and athleticism…especially at his age. He mos def needs a Shaq streak in him, but obviously there is time. I just want  to see that gear we all want to see. Before Game 6, AG and I spoke with a couple of radio journalists from ESPN about Howard and what it would take for him to become that dude.

I didn’t think it was out of the ordinary for him to have a 40/30 game…mainly because of the absence of comparable big men. It’s my opinion that’s why Howard catches so much wreck. He is literally a boy (in age people, see the difference) playing amongst men. Straight Gulliver.

The world could be his.

I saw a right switch go off in the three aforementioned players that surely sparked a rock lust they now want to taste twice as much.

I also learned that Van Gundy’s system works as long as there is constant communication and the core players take advantage of mismatches on the perimeter. The right side pick and roll leads to Rashard Lewis being able to comfortably get into his offensive rhythm on the other side from the top of the key all the way into the low post. He’s more of a versatile player both athletically and mentally than he gives off, so Boston is gonna have problems if he stamps his game on the game.

Ray Allen and Paul Pierce will have to play out of their mind to offset Boston’s inability to physically match up with Howard. Yeah Big Baby will attempt to take Dwight outside, but will his shot be consistent enough is the question. Kendrick Perkins is the x factor. Pierce will dribble dive to the rim as usual, but will Perkins challenge himself to bang with Dwight?

Stephon Marbury also adds an interesting dynamic to this series. I thought Andre Miller would have the size and strength advantage over Skip, but the Sixers didn’t seem to exploit the match up as much as they should have. I see Stephon stepping his game up in light of Alston’s success in the first round. This is what they got him for.

New York has it’s pride…

Is his boy KG gonna be chill with wearing a suit instead of waving ML’s towel?

On the coaching end, this has been the most challenging year for Doc Rivers (obviously in a season where he’s not lacking for talent as in year’s past). He has two coaches on the floor with another (Rondo) a coach in training. Boston has the experience edge being defending champions obviously, but this series will be a test of will and toughness on Rivers. Howard is gonna foul out everyone form Tommy Heinsohn to Cedric Maxwell, so the interest lies in how he handles the rotation in critical moments.

We will see if Paul Pierce and Ray Allen are true exceptional talents when the competition level steps up quite a notch. This is where they both want to be…even without KG. Will they continue to be the offensive forces they need to be to survive and move on?

All that jazz about the last series taking a toll on the Celtics is bs. Don’t fall for that trash. You are talking a team with Jesus and the Truth at the reigns. Don’t get it twisted, these two leaders will have the locker room ready and the young general Rajon Rondo will be lock stock rough and tough, both on and off the floor delegating commands as well.

Paul Pierce will not get all those buckets he’s got in the past with Dwight Howard guarding the rim with more than a Top Flight Security of the World Craig flashlight.

Scalabrine and Pietrus will do their usual stuff from outside and Anthony Johnson will imprint himself on the series, but the key to the is number 11. If Turk can hit his shots with the cowbells of Sacramento ringing in his ear, then the Magic will move on to presumably face the Cavaliers. Like I said in the Sixers/Magic preview, the length Orlando possesses is just too much for some teams to handle in a close game. Lewis and Turk will have a decided physical advantage when looking for their respective shots…and they will get them.

Howard learned a thing or two watching a close out game from the hotel. The Magic left with a little Broad Street Bully in them.

Orlando grew up against the Sixers. Magic in Six.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 at 1:14 am and is filed under Blogroll. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.