The Unvarnished Truth: Celtics Biggest Comeback Remembered By Dime Magazine

Dime Magazine...you complete me.

Okay, let me explain...

A couple of days ago, Dime Magazine posted a story about one of the greatest comebacks in NBA Playoff history that just so happened to be led by one of the greatest Celtics of all-time.

In case you've forgotten (I'll only forgive you if you were a newborn in 2002 or have some sort of illness that affects recollection), the 2002 Boston Celtics consisted of a motley crew that included one Antoine Devon Walker, Kenny Anderson, Walter McCarty, Rodney Rogers, Tony Delk, Vitaly Potapenko, Tony Battie, Coach Jim O'Brien and one young gun who would one day grow up to be the NBA's great purveyor of Truth.

The team was playing against the odds-on favorite to make the NBA Finals New Jersey Nets (seriously, don't laugh...and take your meds...) to a 1-1 series tie and our C's were in a world of hurt heading into the 4th quarter of Game 3. Co-Captain Walker appeared to be tearing a new one into 4th year phenom Paul Pierce as he sat pensively on the bench. I'll leave it at that and let the fine folks over at Dime Magazine tell you how it all went down from there. Then, once you've read it, come on back and watch the 4th quarter (posted below) so you can see it all happen just the way you imagined/remembered it.

I will just say this about the aforementioned game: it will forever live in my brain, seared into my consciousness as one of my sweetest memories. I can recall standing in the back of a bar on Bourbon Street in New Orleans (ahhhh, destination bachelor parties....), beers were being slung 2 for the price of 1 (let's just say that this place made a LOOOOT of money that day). A teeny-bikini contest was being judged up on stage at the front of the house, so you can just imagine where our combined 18 eyeballs (for the mathematically impaired, that's nine people -- or a whole bunch more with some seriously unfortunate stories) were glued for the next hour.

Wrong.

The Celtics were on...Game 3...down 20 heading into the 4th and we had the bouncer put the game on the flatscreens in the back. If you've read the above story by now or watched the video, you wouldn't be surprised to hear that the MC of the bikini contest broke off from calling the competition to remark, "apparently, we have a few people from Boston in the house!"

Pure Nirvana.

At least I THINK that was the name of the woman who won the bikini contest.

Kidding. I meant the game.

I will never be able to separate the New Orleans Experience from the transcendent joy that I felt that day watching the Celtics come roaring back to make history on the shoulders of the man who shall forever be known as "The Truth." Nor will I forget how I felt later on that night after many more 2 for 1's, a couple of Hurricanes and other assorted celebratory libations (I can, without reservation, say that it was decidedly less transcendent and leave it at that).

Thanks, Dime Magazine, for calling out such a special memory.

Here's hoping for a few more to come from 'ol #34 before the Hall calls.

THE BUZZ:

TONIGHT!

Boston Celtics vs. Atlanta Hawks
@ 8:00pm
Boston Garden, Boston, MA

Celtics Hawk Up 27-Point Lead, Lose In 2-OT: 111-123

Twenty-seven-point lead? Check.

Second triple-double for Rajon Rondo in as many nights? Check.

Winning the battle-of-the-benches by a country mile? Check.

Staying virtually even on the boards, shooting 100% at the line and outshooting your opponent from the field? Check, check and check.

Capitalizing on all of these advantages to come out of Atlanta with the win? Weeeeellllll....

On a night when all of these things did, in fact happen, the Celtics somehow found a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in a completely new way. Surprising just about everyone with their absolute dominance of the 24-18 Atlanta Hawks, who came out paper-flat to start the first half of the game, the Celtics ran out to a 27-point lead in the 2nd quarter and managed to hold off a small rally to enter the half up 19.

Jeff Green was a major factor (bet you didn't see THOSE words coming!) in this game scoring 17 points and netting 6 rebounds, and he was joined by a much-improved Courtney Lee with 16 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. With an additional 12 points from Jason Terry, the Celtics bench completely buried the Hawk's reserves by a count of 45 to 21.

It's almost becoming routine to talk about Rondo achieving yet another triple-double, but the fact is that Rondo's performance this year has been staggering. Recording his fifth 3-D of the season -- the most of any player League-wide -- Rondo has continued to stake his claim as the premier point guard in the game. Starter Kevin Garnett was exceptional with 24 points and 10 rebounds, 4 assists and a steal, and while Paul Pierce's epic shooting slump continued with The Captain shooting 4-13 for 12 points, he was able to reel in 6 rebounds and dish 4 assists.

So how in the name of Big Bird could the Celtics lose this one? Two words: Ashton Kutcher Kyle Korver.

Korver had a career night, scoring a season high 27 points mostly from a Hawk-record 8 second-half 3-pointers. He was backed up by five other teammates, who scored in double figures including Al Horford (24 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals); Jeff Teague (23 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds 3 steals); Josh Smith (17 points,14 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 blocks); Devin Harris with 14; and Ivan Johnson with 11 points.

Oh, and the Celtics' 21 turnovers (6 from Rondo and 5 from Pierce) to the Hawks' 12 didn't help matters much.

Once again...the Celtics showed flashes of what could be, followed -- unfortunately -- by player and fan alike left dreaming about what might have been.

Broken record here, folks, but consistency is the issue and discipline is the only way that these C's are going to get the job done. I still believe it can and will happen -- I just hope that it's before they lock up the race for the 9th spot in the Playoffs.

Heat on Sunday. The Return of Ray-Ray. Impeccable timing.  Yay.

Box Score

Tale Of The Tape

Celtics Comeback Roasts Hawks: Boston Wins Again -- 89-81

 

Oh, My.

What can you say about this game that would do it justice?

To sum it up in one word: Relentless.

That's what the Celtics were. Not that you would have believed it had you turned the television off somewhere in the first half where the Celtics found themselves down by 19 points having reverted to their favorite group impression of the zombies from The Walking Dead.

They were getting beaten in all facets of the game and looked to be headed for a return to the double-digit embarrassment that they had so recently and almost willingly accepted in every city during their last road trip. After a tremendous wire-to-wire defensive effort last night against the Indiana Pacers that saw the Green finally flip the tables on an opponent, scoring a double-digit blowout-of-a-win of their own (yes, Geno was taken out of mothballs, even if an ejected Kevin Garnett could only watch him from the locker room), many people wondered whether the C's had turned a corner of sorts.

Apparently, they had. Sort of. For six quarters, anyway (hey, give 'em a break...this was the second night of a back-to-back!).

Reportedly, the Boys From Boston began to bicker in the face of what was shaping up to be another crushing defeat before Captain Paul Pierce stepped up and did what leaders do...he led. As told by the man himself, Pierce calmly but forcefully suggested that his teammates begin to focus their frustrations on the men across the court and start listening to the sage direction that was being provided by their Coach.

What happened next -- and I realize that I might be giddily tripping back onto that Highway of Hyperbole once again, but -- well, it was like something straight out of Hoosiers, or Glory Road or even Teen Wolf.

The Celtics went on a bruising physical run setting the Hawks back on their heels with The Truth leading the charge. P-Double poured in 17 of his 26 points in the second quarter -- outscoring the entire Atlanta team in the process -- behind a suffocating defensive effort from which the Hawks would never recover their collective breath. His 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal provided the punctuation mark that backed up the strong words he had for his teammates.

That team, by the way, was a scratching, clawing defensive whirlwind that spun circles around the hapless, helpless Hawks on offense as well. Rajon Rondo notched his second 3-D (triple-double for the acronymically challenged) with 14 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists and three steals while Kevin Garnett -- mirroring Rondo in points for the second straight night -- scored 14, too, along with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and a block. Brandon Bass, starting for the second night in a row, scored 10 points on 5-6 shooting. Avery Bradley once again shunned the stat sheet with intangibles as he drove the Celtics defensive engine like a train conductor with loose brakes. Rising rookie Jared Sullinger wrestled in 9 boards with 8 points, 2 assists and 1 block to make his presence felt.

Louis Williams was a thorn early and often in the side of the Celtics with 28 for the game, but if you want to know the details about which other Hawks the Celtics spotted for the lead in the first half, check the stats at the bottom. This here blog is all about the C's tonight!

Though I, against my own judgment, decided to try and put into words the thrill that was this game, I've come up with a much better way to illustrate the point:

Imagine that the Celtics are a burger that you've been hearing so much about. It's rumored to be the best of all the burgers...one that can crush all other burgers that it comes up against if there were a burger competition with a big trophy at the end of the challenge. You finally get a chance to taste that burger and all expectations have been realized. This, my friends, is what it would sound like if set to music...

Tale Of The Tape

Box Score