A comfy conference lead. A welcome break in the schedule. A grind-it-out victory over one of the league's elite, a victory without your best player. Not a bad way to end a month of January that brought the Celtics back to earth. A little.
They still have yet to lose a game to a Western Conference team, a truly impressive mark even though they've yet to take on most of the iron of the conference. They have lost only once to a division rival, which seems impressive until you remember that the Knicks, Sixers, and the extremely disappointing Nets are in the division. Barring a catastrophe, they have all but sewn up their division, for what it's worth, but if January showed some chinks in the armor, then February has a chance to show a little more.
It was totally unrealistic to think the Celtics' otherworldly play in November and December would continue unabated. But we had become so accustomed to routs at home, victories on the road, wire-to-wire wins, dominating defense, that close wins over Houston and Memphis in early January were, well, almost shocking. Then came - horrors! - home losses to Charlotte, Washington, and Toronto. They were lucky to beat the Timberwolves - at home. Who foresaw that after what happened in the first two months?
So what did January tell us about the Celtics? It didn't tell us anything we really didn't know, other than to reveal that other teams are paying attention to the Celtics, unlike years past. But it also served as a reminder, as will February and March, that it is a long NBA season and that the oft-used cliché - a marathon, not a sprint - is dead-on. The recent injury to Kevin Garnett drives that home, albeit painfully to Celtics fans. No one wants to see a Garnett-less Celtics team for any sustained period of time, but we might not have a choice.
The Celtics lost five times in January, or almost twice as much as they did in the first two months, combined. But they also won 10 times, with wins at Detroit and at home over the Mavericks. Unlike the first two months of the year, however, there wasn't a single January home game that went uncontested; even the big win over Philly was a game well into the fourth quarter. All the easy wins in January came on the road.
This month poses the Celtics' first real road challenge: a game Tuesday against the getting-it-together Cavaliers and then five Western Conference games after the All-Star break, four of them against possible playoff teams. (Their December Western swing had only one game against a playoff team, the Lakers.) There also are home games against the Spurs, who haven't lost in Boston since Tim Duncan came into the league, the Cavaliers (the always-dangerous first game back after the Western swing), and the apparent burr-in-the-saddle Bobcats, who should be 2-0 against Boston.
Much has been made of the Celtics' schedule and, rightly or wrongly, it's been pretty hospitable so far. They played 43 games, more than half a season, before meeting either the Suns, Spurs, Mavericks, or Hornets. (And they will have played 52 before playing any of them on the road.) They got to play their two games against the Kings when both Kevin Martin and Mike Bibby were out and got Cleveland at home without LeBron. But other than to submit dates, the Celtics don't determine their opponents, so they get props for, as Jimy Williams liked to say, "playing the schedule."
But are they closer to the 26-3 tsunami of November-December or the 10-5 high tide of January? Probably the latter (although if you look at their games in April, they might run the table). The Celtics now have a body of work out there for other teams to strategize against. I always thought the Celtics would have more luck early, even with all the new faces, because there was nothing to prepare against if you were an opponent. Now, there is. That still might not help you stop Paul Pierce down low or drive on Garnett, but it's out there.
But November-December gave the Celtics a Secretariat-in-the-Belmont lead over the rest of the East, which makes it easier for Doc Rivers to manage time and bodies the rest of the way. The Celtics are not going to break the Bulls' record. They may not even become the best Celtics team in terms of wins and losses in a season. But they are going to make the playoffs, they are going to have the home court, and, for the first time in two decades, there is a sense of something special
in the spring.
Allen has a healthy attitude
Ray Allen said it has taken him almost half a season to finally feel like, well, Ray Allen.
When he arrived in Boston, he was, as you recall, coming off ankle surgery and confronting the twin necessities of taking care of his body and mixing in with his new team. Doc Rivers told him initially to worry about his body, proposing that Allen skip the second night of back-to-back games and rest during some practices.
"If I had still been in Seattle," Allen said, "that probably would have been the case. But once I got traded, I knew I needed to be out there and try to make the team better.
"So it was a matter of getting my body to a point where I could manage it and then build it from there, working my way back, trying to buy time. I was dealing with the ankle soreness early on and then came the latest with my shoulder, so it was tough to get over those things, get ready for games, get warmed up.
"I knew I could still play, but it was tough in terms of still being aggressive and helping the team. As far as my explosiveness, I just didn't have it."
Well, he's hoping all of that has passed. He'll get a nice breather this weekend, and unless he gets a commissioner's pick, he'll have a nice breather over All-Star weekend, which is probably the best thing for him. As he noted after Thursday's Dallas game, "I just want to be better in the second half of the season than I was in the first half."
One thing Allen can count on is not getting pushed by his coach.
"I told all of the guys that I wanted to do whatever I could to make sure they stayed healthy," said Rivers. "That wasn't just true for Ray, but for all of them."
Cost-cutting Grizzlies find themselves in a bear market
What are they thinking in Memphis? Apparently, they're thinking in dollars, because that's about the only thing that makes sense out of the somewhat shocking news that Pau Gasol was dealt to the Lakers for Kwame Brown, Javaris Crittenton, Aaron McKie, the rights to Marc Gasol, and two No. 1 draft picks.
This sure looks like a money-saver, pure and simple, as well as a statement from ownership that you can put a stamp on the 2007-08 season. (Although, as the old adage goes, "We were 13-33 with you, Pau, and we can be 13-33 without you, too.")
Brown's deal is up at the end of the season, so he should be toast (although GM Chris Wallace was a big Kwame fan when Brown was coming out of high school in 2001). The Grizzlies could be some $15 million-$18 million under the cap next summer if they allow Brown to peace, which would seem to make the most sense. Crittenton is a point guard on the rookie scale, so he is short money. And the Grizzlies already have two young point guards (which is why they saved a little more money in buying out Damon Stoudamire).
As for the Lakers, kudos to the oft-beleaguered Mitch Kupchak. He procured a potential 20-10 guy without surrendering anyone of consequence, as Brown was only recently playing because of Andrew Bynum's injury and Crittenton was a rookie.
Gasol's Spanish buddies in Toronto, Jorge Garbajosa and Jose Calderon, were thrilled for their countryman.
"For sure he's going to enjoy Los Angeles, it's a great city and he's a great player," Garbajosa said. "And in the past in Memphis, sometimes he didn't agree with the team. It was not a winning team."
Added Calderon, "It's an unbelievable trade for him. Right now, I think they can win the championship. Or contend."
While Memphis saves $45 million or so, the Lakers will continue to be luxury-tax payers, which, one could argue, is the cost of doing business in Los Angeles. But you have to think Kobe Bryant is ordering the Cristal after this one. Dare we say it - a Celtics-Lakers final in June?
Etc.
In need of a new Jason?
After watching Jason Terry Thursday night, you had to believe the first call out of the 214 area code Friday morning was from the Mavericks to the Nets, trying to somehow get the Jason Kidd deal going/rekindled. True, the Mavericks were without Devin Harris and Jerry Stackhouse and, as coach Avery Johnson noted at the shootaround, "We like our team and we're moving forward with our team. We feel when we have our 10-man rotation - which we got a snapshot of when everybody was healthy - we think we can be pretty good." He may be right. But with a veteran core, you'd have to think Kidd would be a difference-maker in the next year or two. Johnson shot down the Kidd rumors Thursday, so expect a deal any day now.
A Maine focus in D-League
Two of the top movers and shakers of the NBA's D-League were in Portland, Maine, Thursday and got the red lobster treatment from the city's top officials, who hope to land a D-League franchise. The proposed team is being financed by Bill Ryan (of TD Banknorth fame) and his son, and hopes to be up and running for the 2009-10 season, with a link to the Celtics. Still to be determined is where the team will play, but the group's application has been in for months and all signs look promising. The NBA is looking to get some D-League franchises in the East for its Eastern teams, which would certainly help the Celtics, whose current D-League affiliate is in neighboring Orem, Utah. Other possibilities in the East for D-League teams include Harlem, Youngstown (Ohio), Trenton, and possibly a site outside Toronto for the Raptors. The Portland group, which also has K.C. Jones as a consultant, hopes to get the official imprimatur this spring.
Grudge rematch
Folks in Athens are already circling July 16 on their calendars. That's the date of the Brazil-Greece game in next summer's Olympic qualifying tournament, which will produce the final three teams for the 2008 Olympic field. Why the Brazil game? Well, in a prelim to last summer's World Championships, Brazilian Anderson Varejao elbowed Greece's Nikos Zisis in the cheek, forcing Zisis to miss the Worlds and have surgery. (The Greeks still responded pretty well without Zisis, beating the US and taking the silver in Japan.) Zisis, a 6-foot-5-inch guard, is playing for CSKA Russia this season. Varejao is on the sidelines for the Cavaliers after spraining his ankle last week.
Travelin' men
A couple of numbing road trips are under way for two of the elite in the Western Conference. For the Spurs, it's the annual January-February excursion to allow the rodeo to set up shop at the AT&T Center. (Who knew rodeos lasted longer than the Olympics?) Starting with last Monday's game in Utah, the Spurs are playing nine straight roadies, finishing up Feb. 13 in Cleveland, their final game before the All-Star break. San Antonio has used this trip in the past to get its act together; in 2003, San Antonio went 9-0 on the trip, and it has never had a losing record on the trip since it began in earnest in 2002. Another team on a long trip is the Lakers, who have played two games of a nine-game Eastern swing that also finishes up Feb. 13. For the Lakers, eight of the nine games are against Eastern Conference teams (they started 1-1, with a loss at Detroit and a win in Toronto). For the Spurs, the final six games of their odyssey are against Eastern Conference teams, including a Feb. 10 visit to TD Banknorth Garden. One benefit for the Spurs: They got to spend some time at home following Thursday night's win in Phoenix, which made them 1-2 on the trip (and Tony Parker is ailing). Their Eastern part begins Tuesday night in Indiana and includes stops in Washington, New York, Toronto, and Cleveland.
Can't do it without him
Making yet another (involuntary) pitch for MVP honors, LeBron James sat out Thursday night's West Coast finale against Seattle with a right ankle sprain after leading the Cavs to close wins over the Lakers and Trail Blazers. Of course, the Cavs lost to the Sonics, who, after losing 14 straight, turned around and beat the two NBA finalists from 2007. The Cavaliers are 0-6 in games James has missed this season, one of them the Dec. 2 game in Boston. The Cavs hosted the Clippers last night and are off until Tuesday's visit from the Celtics.
Peter May can be reached at p_may@globe.com; material from personal interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.
