NBA Playoffs 2011: Kevin Garnett and the Boston Celtics Show Reliability

Maybe this Easter Sunday of basketball doesn't mean anything for the Heat or the Celtics. After all, the Knicks were missing Chauncey Billups and had a very underwhelming version of Amare Stoudemire. After all, the Heat fought back from an early 15 point deficit, showing some mental toughness to make a game of things. We could assume that it is simply a blip on the NBA Playoffs radar.
But the truth of the matter is, I think it might tell us more than you realize. The Celtics, led by Kevin Garnett jumped out to an 17 point halftime lead and kept their foot on the gas just enough to hold off a Knicks squad that cut that lead to four midway through the fourth quarter.

Miami on the other hand, gave up a pair of clutch 3's to Jrue Holiday and Lou Williams giving the Sixers a two point lead with eight seconds to go. LeBron James then had his attempted game tying shot blocked by Elton Brand (yes, the same Elton Brand that is a miserable contract for the 76ers) and ended up failing to close out a sweep of the 76ers. 

The Celtics (as usual) seem to have it all figured out. They played miserably in Games 1 and 2 against the Knicks but had Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett hit go ahead, game winning shots to squeak out the wins. Then the Celtics did what they do best. They traveled on the road, in front of a Madison Square Garden crowd that was hungry for playoff basketball and finished the job. 

On the other hand, Miami rolled into a Game 4 in Philly and left us craving an answer to our season long question. With the game on the line, who gets the ball, makes the play or takes the shot? With LeBron's shot getting blocked, we'll continue to ask ourselves that question. 

The Heat left us with questions. The Celtics, meanwhile, gave us the same old reliable answer.

Boston guard Ray Allen in full playoff hero form for win over New York

BOSTON – There has been frustration. There have been some quiet complaints and some lengthy explanations about the lack of movement in the offense. There was even the time in late March when Ray Allen, upset over having played 36 minutes in a loss to the Pacers and getting just eight field-goal attempts, walked out of the locker room without speaking to reporters after the game—a rare brush-off from one of pro sports’ most professional participants.
After a night like the one Allen had on Sunday here at TD Garden, though, it’s easy to push all that tumult and tension aside. That’s because Allen was in full playoff-hero form in Game 1 against the Knicks, scoring 24 points on 9-for-15 shooting and knocking down the game-winning 3-pointer with 11.6 seconds to play, helping the Celtics avoid an upset with an 87-85 win.
“I wasn’t worried about it, offensively,” Allen said. “We have so many great weapons out there on the floor. Here in the playoffs, I knew what my matchup was, defensively, I knew what I had to do to keep Carmelo (Anthony) from having a big night and (Amare) Stoudemire, too. Offensively, early, I had a couple of layups, a couple of shots at the hoop. But for the most part, I wasn’t worried about shooting the ball.”
That’s not to say that Allen hasn’t been worried about shooting—or not shooting, as it were—over the past month or so. He’s been a muffled marksman of late, an awkward position for the game’s all-time leading 3-point shooter. Game 1 marked Allen’s first 20-point outing since March 19, a span of 12 games. That’s the longest run of sub-20-point games he has had since 1999. Allen averaged 12.3 points over this stretch, and simply wasn’t getting many looks at the basket, averaging just 9.7 shots per game.
Allen has linked his struggles to the Celtics’ overall struggles, especially their sudden inability to move the ball. That was a problem again in Game 1, but Boston was able to fight through it.
“You guys have been asking me for a couple of weeks about shooting the ball,” Allen said. “But it’s rhythm. It’s all about rhythm, and [taking] your time. Here if I have a shot, Paul is out there, Kevin is out there, I try not to focus on that. There are plays to be made. Offensively, we are our own worst enemy when we don’t move the ball around. I am not going to fall into that hole of thinking I have got to shoot the ball. We have a lot of great scorers.”

But there’s no question that as the Celtics fell into a late-season swoon, especially on the offensive end, Allen’s inability to get his scoring going was the most glaring weakness. Boston was 18-4 in the regular season when Allen topped 20 points. Finding a way to get him back on track is a necessity for this team’s postseason success — especially when there is a big shot that needs making, as with Allen’s clinching 3-pointer.
“No, I wasn’t surprised at all,” Celtics big man Glen Davis said. “I’ve seen it a million times.”
The Celtics—and Allen—would not mind seeing it a million more.