What you missed while watching the Hangover 2 trailer….
Celtics 107, Spurs 97: The Celtics ultimately will go as Rajon Rondo goes. He’s been injured and slumping. He’s back, and if he is the Celtics are back with him.
You know the Celtics are going to defend well (they still need a stabilizing presence in the paint, but that’s an issue for another day and a couple rounds in to the playoffs). The question is the offense, and the offense runs through Rondo.
The Spurs defended by the book — lay off Rondo and make him beat you with a jumper. Except early in the first quarter Rondo hit two 16-foot jumpers. He shot the ball confidently all night and by the end Rondo was 6-of-9 on jump shots, which that opened up driving lanes. He took over in the third quarter during a 17-3 run that put Boston up for the rest of the night.
There are still questions about the paint. Boston got Jermaine O’Neal back but lost Nenad Krstic to injury. Maybe for a long time. Shaq is going to be back someday. But the Celtics reminded everybody that whatever happens with their big men they are capable of beating anybody.
Then there’s the slumping Spurs. San Antonio got all its big stars back — Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan all played — and they still lost lost. The Spurs defense was spotty (at best, the Celtics shot 54.8 percent and if they could have knocked down their threes this might have been a blowout).
The Spurs fell in love with the three, trying to shoot over the top of the Celtics defense, but they were just 8-of-29 from beyond the arc. Ginobili was back but looked like maybe he should have sat out another game, finishing with just nine points on 4-of-13 shooting (1-of-6 from deep).
You expect the Spurs to snap out of it, but the five straight losses are creating problems. According to ESPN, the last time the Spurs lost 5 in a row Duncan was still at Wake Forest (1996-97 season). The Lakers are now just 2.5 games back. Gregg Popovich might like to rest his stars headed into the playoffs, but now he’s going to have to use them more to hold on to that top seed. And to make sure they get their rhythm back.
Lakers 110, Mavericks 82: One game between these two veteran teams does not send a message. But combine this with a game back on March 12 when the Lakers went into Dallas and beat the Mavericks, where Los Angeles was in control of from the second quarter on, and you start to get one. You don’t want to read too much into regular season games, but a pattern has emerged.
These two teams will likely meet in the second round of the NBA playoffs and the Lakers have sent the message that the series may not last long. And this was about sending a message — Pau Gasol was in during the fourth quarter with the Lakers up more than 20. The Lakers held Dallas to 36.1 percent shooting, and Dirk Nowitzki with 27 points was the only Dallas starter in double figures.
Dallas, blown out of the game, tried to send a message by getting physical with fouls late — Jason Terry pushing Steve Blake to the ground (the Lakers Matt Barnes jumped in to defend his teammate and will get a suspension for his actions), some kind-hard fouls from Dirk Nowitzki, a play where Pau Gasol ends up sprawled on the floor. Seven technical were handed out. (And a partially-nude woman who rushed the Mavs bench was thrown out, just to make it all a little more surreal.)It’s a message sort of like a hockey team that sends a goon out to start a fight in the third period down four goals — we can’t beat you but we’ve still got fight.
Maybe so. But the second round playoff series between these two doesn’t look like much of a fight right now. Dallas just cannot match up with the Lakers front line, or Kobe.