13 colleagues on ESPN surprisingly predict the C's to win the East

[Mike-Dub]

2nd by who else but LeBron James... I'm sorry I meant to say the Cavs.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=OffseasonPredictions09-EastChamps

Boston Celtics (13 votes)

Rajon Rondo emerged, for much of the playoffs, as Boston's best player. So what does that mean for a team formerly known as the Big Three?

Here are three ways to see it:

1. The cup-runneth-over version of the story is that the Celtics now have a Big Four, and that Rondo will lead them back to the promised land.

2. The cup-half-full version is that while the Celtics have some issues to solve, they are still a very potent team just 15 months removed from winning it all. Sure, Celtics president Danny Ainge shopped Rondo and criticized him, and it emerged that Doc Rivers found him hard to coach. Sure, the C's need a healthy Kevin Garnett. Sure, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen have trouble bringing it every night the way they used to. But add it all up, and factor in a bench bolstered by the acquisition of Rasheed Wallace and Marquis Daniels, and the Celtics are ready to rock the East again, just as they did when they started 41-9 last season.

3. The leaky-cup version of the story is that, as dynamic as Rondo might be, it's all too telling that Boston needed him to play out of his mind to squeak past the 41-41 Chicago Bulls in the first round of the playoffs. In this version, KG is a 33-year-old with a bad knee, Allen is a 34-year-old shooting guard (a species not known for longevity) and Pierce is soon to be 32. What's more, Sheed will be 35 this month and isn't known for his commitment to conditioning or fitting in quietly.

For 25 percent of our panel, the Celtics' cup runneth over. The other 75 percent disagree.

[liam]

I'm not worried about the Cavs as long as Mike Brown is there coach. They also lost there offense assistant didn't they?

[tb727]

I'm not worried about the Cavs as long as Mike Brown is there coach. They also lost there offense assistant didn't they?

They did, John Kuester, and I really have a feeling this will hurt them...

[BudweiserCeltic]

I like the underdog role.

[guava_wrench]

Why would this be surprising? Seems to match the general view on the Celtics this year.

[Mike-Dub]

Why would this be surprising? Seems to match the general view on the Celtics this year.

Because 13 people at ESPN actually thought they will win the East... And were picked ahead of the Magic!  It's surpising because ESPN gave even a little recognition to the Celtics which they never do!

[CelticG1]

I'm not worried about the Cavs as long as Mike Brown is there coach. They also lost there offense assistant didn't they?

They did, John Kuester, and I really have a feeling this will hurt them...

Yeah but realistically i think any new coach will be able to tell Lebron to dribble at the top of the key and do whatever he wants 

[jambr380]

Lebron really does need to be even more spectacular than ever for the Cavs to move on. I mean, Shaq is a nice addition and all, but I would rather have Perk. Moon should help, too, but nothing they did this off-season 'amazed' me- and when they lose, Lebron is going to leave and that franchise will have no identity.

I just feel like we have so many other options if something is not going right w/ KG, Pierce, Allen, Rondo, and Sheed. They have the best player, but we have arguably the next best five.

I get the love from ESPN for the Cavs- Lebron is the next savior of this league (and he really is awesome), I just don't have much faith in his supporting case.

[guava_wrench]

Why would this be surprising? Seems to match the general view on the Celtics this year.

Because 13 people at ESPN actually thought they will win the East... And were picked ahead of the Magic!  It's surpising because ESPN gave even a little recognition to the Celtics which they never do!

Maybe it just shows that the insecure fans who complain about conspiracies against their teams of choice are off their rocker?

[greenhead85]

Evidently, their judgment on the Celts was based heavily on the issue on age.

I guess this should keep Doc and Ainge busy over the summer on giving more playing time for the younger Celts. The younger ones (except for Rondo and Perk)like Walker, Hudson, S. Williams and Giddens will need to see action on the floor because they need to develop experience and provide athleticism.

[Fafnir]

Why would this be surprising? Seems to match the general view on the Celtics this year.

Because 13 people at ESPN actually thought they will win the East... And were picked ahead of the Magic!  It's surpising because ESPN gave even a little recognition to the Celtics which they never do!

Maybe it just shows that the insecure fans who complain about conspiracies against their teams of choice are off their rocker?

Meh, people get too emotionally involved with their sports teams and their children playing sports. More of a temporary pyschosis than anything. One that flairs up every pre-season....

I don't think there is anything strange about pundits picking the team with the best record last year, and the far an away MVP of the leauge, to go to the Finals!

[Birdbrain]

Not surprising just dumb.

LJ
Pierce
KG
Allen
Rondo

The best 5 on both teams. 

They do have Po though so maybe that's what they see. Or maybe they are still praying for LJ vs Kobe finals...  I guess a few months ago when they were proven to be a 1 man team was quickly forgotten.  I'm not big on forgetting reality.

[Schupac]

I don't mind it really, because I think it's not so ridiculous to think Cleveland will win it all this year.  But apparently 75% of ESPN's analysts thought so.  75% is a LOT.  You would think it would be a dead heat with Celtics, Magic, and Cavaliers, but then I remembered it is ESPN.

ESPN says "Lebron" more than Rudy Giulianni says "nine eleven" and Emeril says "Bamm" combined.

[Jon]

The only improvement of any sort I see on the Cavs is at the 2 spot, where they picked up Parker and Moon.  However, with Delonte around, there's really only going to be room for one of them in the playoff rotation, so to count both of them as improvements is somewhat shortsighted. 

As for Shaq, for all the slack the C's get about their aging core, this guy is older, bigger, and has much more of a history of breaking down.  Furthermore, his statistics were horribly deceiving last year.  In Phoenix's system, he got easy shots and had more opportunities for rebounds (given the pace they chucked it up).  If he played as well as his stats made him look, the Suns would've made the playoffs.

Moreover, if we're comparing what Shaq and Sheed mean to each team, Shaq is supposed to elevate the Cavs from pretenders to contenders.  Sheed is supposed to replace what PJ Brown did.  Shaq likely won't meet that expectation.  Sheed on the other hand, even if he does slip some, will likely exceed what PJ did.