What the hell is going on?
The Celtics are up 3-2 and ESPN has every basketball analyst giving their two cents on how this happened. Well there’s several factors: the Heat have production from two players, the Celtics have amazing chemistry, and Rondo is playing out of his mind; but the most surprising contribution is from a player that has anchored this team since 2008. They go as he goes. To watch him, you’ll need a Big Ticket.
When the Celtics won it all in 2008, it was known worldwide that Kevin Garnett was the beastmachine that powered the C’s and anchored the D. In 2008, his playoff averages were 20.4 PPG 10.5 RPG 1.1 BPG 1.4 SPG. This year, KG has gone on a tear averaging 19.5 PPG 10.8 RPG 1.5 BPG 1.2 SPG. They say father time has gone undefeated, but Garnett won’t go down without a long and gruesome fight.
It’s been repeatedly said that KG is old, his bark is louder than his bite, and that after this year he should hang it up and the C’s should rebuild around Rondo. All of this may have been true heading into the postseason, but KG has proven that he’s still got a nasty bite; and that while he may be old, there’s still a youthful spring in his step.
Throughout the season, Doc and the Celtics have expressed the belief in one more deep run in the playoffs. The media ignored the Celts and focused more on the young guns of Oklahoma and the always entertaining saga of LeBron James. The only people who believed that Boston had a shot at even making it to the finals again was the team; even Bill Simmons doubted his home team. Garnett’s passion for the game is driving him to a new level and it doesn’t look sustainable for long periods of time, but it’s been enough to open the window for one last chance at a title.
This Celtics team is on a remarkable run and is one game away from reaching the final stage of the series. All they have to do is win the hardest game of any series-the closeout game. While Boston has the upper hand, nothing is a given and as Kevin Garnett would say, “Nothing is easy.” Boston fans should be pretty happy entering game six with KG playing like 2008 KG. As the old KG would say, “anything is possible!”
