Boston Celtics

By Thomas Halzack Here are the pluses for the Celtics: 6) Nocioni fits a piece they are missing…a solid back up at small forward. 2) What other possibilities might be out there, say a solid defensive small forward, something the Celtics really could use?

By Thomas Halzack Rasheed Wallace, last season’s technical fouls co-leader has been added to the Celtics’ ‘library zone quiet’ team of introverts, led by Kendrick Perkins, Kevin Garnett, and even Paul Pierce. If the NBA’s own front-office people believe this, then how can fans simply dismiss it?

By Andrew Ungvari Bell can play both guard positions even though he's more of a shooting guard—just like Brown. The Lakers could always sweeten the deal by including a draft pick. Tony Battie Free Agents Read more Los Angeles Lakers news on BleacherReport.com

By Busta Bucket Reigning NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers got #1 overall votes from every blog, except for one. *Whistles* Move along... Doesn't matter who didn't vote them #1. *Whistles* The Boston Celtics grab the #2 spot, in a year that very well could be a rematch of the NBA Finals from just two seasons ago.

By Andrew Ungvari If Andrew Bynum gets hurt then Pau Gasol can play center with Odom moving into the starting power forward spot. If Kobe Bryant is out then Artest can play shooting guard and Odom can play small forward. Read more Los Angeles Lakers news on BleacherReport.com

By Hadarii Jones For Boston, it was a return to health for Kevin Garnett, the first win in Cleveland since 2004, and a very successful premier for the re-tooled Celtics. For Cleveland, it was a replay of the end of last season. Read more Los Angeles Lakers news on BleacherReport.com

By Thomas Halzack Mark Murphy reports in the Boston Herald: Not nearly as clever or tough as Posey, but Posey-light? Has the length Danny likes. I like him. What if he came to a strong team like Boston? Would Kobe or LeBron eat him up? Why? I'll roll with Danny on that.

By Graham Brunell Also seen at Celtics 17. Wow it's 7/02/09 and the Los Angeles Lakers have already been crowned champions!" Nor Cleveland, even though they just patched up As if you hadn't guessed yet, the six are (in no particular order): the Lakers, Magic, Celtics, Cavaliers, Spurs, and Nuggets.

By 3rdStone FromTheSun The Logo, Jerry West, had built a very good team (again) and then stole Kobe Bryant for garbage in a trade. Somehow, he got Bill Russell. He got Robert Parish and a draft pick, which turned out to be Kevin McHale, for nothing from Golden State.

By Matt Smith The New England Patriots and San Antonio Spurs with three titles a piece proved to be great and other teams were noteworthy (Steelers, Red Sox, Red Wings, Devils, Yankees and Pistons) but the Lakers stole the show in every way. The Los Angeles Lakers, “Team of the Decade”

By Sam Orme 1. Boston Celtics 2. Cleveland Cavaliers They were expecting to see the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, and while they would have had home court advantage, that still would have been a beast of a series. 3. Orlando Magic 4. Los Angeles Lakers 5. Chicago Bulls

By BabyTate For better or worse, we have the NBA in Los Angeles and Chicago and no longer in Fort Wayne and Rochester. Lucky us. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers: Voted the top player in the NBA this season. He is the Joe DiMaggio, Johnny Unitas, and Muhammad Ali of his time, all rolled into one.

Boston Globe If his jump shot continues to develop, can you imagine any team trying to stop the Celtics?! Paul Pierce can stretch the defense with his three-point shot, and also is great at driving to the hoop. Ray Allen can also stretch the defense with his killer ...

By Thomas Halzack So, his very public comments may get him more touches and maybe more shots, and more points. But doesn't it telegraph to Doc Rivers what to expect from Orlando in the next game? Perkins had handled Howard a lot in single coverage. The Celtics could change things up.

By Bill Cody All before they get to the finals against a Cleveland Cavaliers team that will likely coast through now that Kevin Garnett is out of the playoffs, and Orlando has shown itself to be the reincarnation of "Not Ready For Prime Time Players."

By Andrew Ungvari The Myth of the Dominant Point Guard Each of those teams also had either Jack Sikma, James Worthy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Robert Parish, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Bob McAdoo, Moses Malone, Julius Erving, Joe Dumars or Bill Laimbeer as well.

By Jake Lloyd Eastern Conference No. 1 Cleveland def. No. 8 Detroit (Five games) No. 3 Orlando def. No. 6 Philadelphia (Six games) Eastern Conference No. 1 Cleveland def. No. 4 Atlanta (Six games) No. 1 Los Angeles def. No. 4 Portland (Six games) Eastern Conference NBA Finals Los Angeles def. Cleveland (Six games)

By Marcel Mansour Eastern Conference: No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 8 Detroit Pistons - Cavs In 4 No. 2 Boston Celtics vs. No. 7 Chicago Bulls - Celtics In 5 No. 3 Orlando Magic vs. No. 6 Philadelphia 76ers - Magic In 5 No. 4 Atlanta Hawks vs. No. 5 Miami Heat - Hawks In 7 No. 1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 8 Utah Jazz - Lakers in 5

By Derek Chew Yet, the Hawks have two main flaws, one is the lack of size and the other is their bench. Solomon Jones, Zaza Pachulia, Acie Law et al are not going to be challenging for the sixth man of the year any time soon. Nor are Josh Smith and Al Horford going to give match-up problems to the Lakers or the Cel...

By Walter Simonsen Entering the January 25th game at the Staples Center, the Los Angeles Lakers were holding the best record in the National Basketball Association.   Today's game was about superiority in the toughest conference in all of basketball.

By Chase Sagum It's obvious now that the Celtics miss Forward James Posey. Kobe Bryant had a much easier time scoring and getting into the lane against Ray Allen and Tony Allen. That Celtics defense did not feel nearly as dominant as it did last season. Also, the Lakers showed an obvious advantage inside wit...

By Frank Gasper At the moment, the main talk in the NBA is LAKERS OR CELTICS? In my opinion, the Celtics are better at the moment. Who knows? Maybe in 1 week I could change my mind. The reason I think the Celtics are better is because you have Rondo, R. Allen Pierce, Garnett and Kendrick Perkins as your starting fi...

By Jeff Little This time last year, no one expected the young Los Angeles Lakers to make a run to the NBA Finals with all of their offseason turmoil. The thought then was that the Lakers would be the sixth seed in the playoffs at best. A motto for this Lakers team could easily be NBA Finals or bust.

By Thomas Halzack 1 NBA starters' plus/minus Boston Starters +3514 Next best: Phoenix +2313 Other top stats for the NBA Champion Celtics No. 3 Assists spread Boston: 22.4, opp: 18.8 (+3.6) No. 4 Rebounds spread Celtics: 42, opp: 38.9 (+3.1) Celtic fans? Just “D”-lighted.

By Andrew Ungvari What the Lakers did this off-season As far as free agents the Lakers added to the team, the only name you can certainly make the case for being on the opening night roster is forward/center Josh Powell. What the Lakers didn’t do this off-season

Boston Globe  CA - Jun 21, 2008 by Mike DiMauro (Scribe) The Boston Celtics were honored during the pre-game activities at the Boston Red Sox home game last night against the St. Louis ... Celtics to be honored at Fenway Park NECN Recap: Boston vs. St. Louis Kansas City Star

By Andrew Ungvari With Game 1 of the NBA Finals in the books, I thought it was time for an NBA Finals edition of my News, Notes and Observations. 2. The Celtics own the third quarter. 3. The Lakers are encouraging Rondo and Cassell to score. 10. Draft Pick Carousel

Wall Street Journal  CA - Jun 6, 2008 Celtics boasts KG, enough said there. Besides him, they also have Ray Allen, a smooth-talking, smooth-shooting class act and Paul Pierce who has never ... Rondo aces final exam Eagle Tribune Thursday: NBA Finals New York Post

Nobody outside of Detroit really thought that the aging Pistons were going to be able to beat the star-studded Boston Celtics. Nobody outside of San Antonio ... NBA Championship Finals: Odds favor Lakers over Celtics Online Gambling Paper Sky News - Boston Herald

Red Sox, Celtics Give Boston One Of the Greatest Weeks Ever  CA - In one of the best game sevens of recent memory in the NBA playoffs, the Boston Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals with an exciting 97-92 win ... Lester leaves no doubt Boston Herald

 CA - Finally even Isiah Thomas couldn’t get past Bird, McHale and Paris until Dumars joined him to beat the Celtics and Lakers in the 88-89 season. ... Rockets fond of playing from ahead Houston Chronicle NBA Roundup Rockets Overpower Jazz to Stay Alive in Series New York Times

By Joe Willett Instead they decided to build around Kobe, adding Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. The Atlanta Hawks spent the last 50 or so years as the NBA bottom-feeders.  After acquiring Mike Bibby, the Atlanta Hawks are tied for the 8th spot in the East and look they could finally make the playoffs.

By Thomas Halzack Both Allen and Pierce are crafty shot makers and can pass adeptly. But Ray Allen and Paul Pierce have opened eyes with their defensive efforts. Even offensive player Eddie House can be seen running up court to get to his man quickly. He knows he will watching from the bench if he doesn't. Kendric...

By Thomas Halzack A year ago, the Celtics were in turmoil.)  Celtics were getting lessons every game, too.)  The Celtic dreams are just beginning.)  Doc Rivers and Paul Pierce wanted to change their dancing partners, too. They also couldn't tolerate the lifestyle.

Best of 2007: Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics Bust Out in Boston  CA - Danny Ainge made all the right moves this offseason, and the new-look team is off to a 22-3 start, best in the NBA. Kevin Garnett has won over fans with ... Best of 2007: Papelbon's Pup Chews on History Bleacher Report

By Thomas Halzack Let me first state that I believe in the "new-look" Boston Celtics. The last time I looked, basketball was a team game. Are Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce going to trust their mates enough to make this a real team? Are they really going to trust each other?