Where this playoff campaign was lost

[Yakmanev]

This playoff campaign was lost when the Celtics became the new "bad boys". It's about some marketing brains that have put that story in the media. How could the Celtics have countered that?

KG is talking trash full time, Perkins complains about everything, Sheed hates Stern and the NBA and is public enemy #1, Rondo is dirty and cocky, Pierce is an actor and even cockier than Rajon. Ray may be a class act, but he's an obsessed personality. Really?

There's some truth in every false story, and the marketing brains have fixed in the published and public opinion this image from the Celtics. It's a subtle way to make them look as the bad ones, and we all know that the "good ones" should win in the end. Right?

The average fans, the media, and even the refs are inclined to think the bad guys shouldn't be allowed to get away with their "evil" plans, and even we, as Celtic fans, are looking for some kind of alibi or justification. It's not a conspiracy, its about mental frames. Even we, that love the Celtics, are affected by that.

The Celtics are the bad boys---> they can't win because they are old, they are slow, they can't jump, they are dirty.

Think about that, there is a lot of power in bias and prejudices, and we've been educated in that "good boy vs. bad boy" scheme of things.

A little funny example, found in youtube. Yes, it doesn't prove my point, it's just for fun.

Interesting. It's also the same media that shows a man hugging and kissing on his wife and kids during every halftime and end of game break while forgetting the fact he threw a woman against the wall and ass-raped her in Colorado.

Tell me the wife and kids ain't planted as some marketing scheme to repair his image and to sell his merchandise? It's so fake it makes me want to puke. Do they really think those images with his wife and kids make us believe he's this unbelievably great family man?

[Meadowlark_Scal]

Well, i agree to a point with your side. They did keep saying we are the bad guys....but that is why i expect and or encourage people to think for themselves (most who know me say i expect too much from people)...When you hear phrases like "they", or "the survey"...start questioning, people are always trying to TELL you what to think...heck, the whole country, esp politicians & Gov....!  With the Celtics losing, after their example of real TEAM ball, even scoring, and clean play, no hit man (artest), the NBA made a statement to everyone, that type of play don't pay......! The NBA seems to be heading to the world of Championship wrestling and pro boxing = illegitamacy.

[chelsearules]

at the free throw line and on the boards

[Papatrichs]

Game 3....

at least we could have had 3 chances of closing it out (5,6 and 7)

[PosImpos]

Series was lost in game 6. That was the game they needed to win, but instead it was their worst game of the entire season.

Plus they lost their starting center.

[Andy Jick]

I blame it on BP.  Or like Milli Vanilli, I'd blame it on the rain...

Seriously, it's probably time to put this one to bed.  Losing Perk...  Ray had his head in the fog (personal family issue) and apparently he was hurt in that collision with Artest.  Lack of rebounding...  Rondo playing good but not great.  A large combination of stuff.  Fact is we lost...  The "why" doesn't really matter much.

[jeezem]

when they traded eddie house, real points off the bench, huge part of the '08 title run.

[horse]

I think it was lost in the regular season by not earning home court over LA.

The league may not be flat-out rigged, but I'm convinced the playoffs were "massaged" this year...the conference finals stretched out a couple of games, when it was clear in both series (east/west) which team was better after 2-3 games.

In the Finals, I agree there was no stopping LA at home in game 1.  And game 2 going to us made sense.  I don't think any team has ever won all 3 home games in the 2-3-2 format, so going 2-1 was quite likely, in fact, the most likely outcome, setting up a return to LA with a 3-2 lead.  It was almost by-the-book.  Game 6 to LA was a sure thing, making the most $$ for the league, and setting up the game 7, where the older team ran out of gas with 4 minutes to go.

If we had bothered with the regular season, perhaps that 2-3-2 is in our favor, and we're playing games 6 and 7 at home?  I think that tilts things in our favor and we're hanging #18.  Talent wise, we were pretty close to LA, and I think home court was the deciding factor, and the only thing we could've controlled.

You guys took home court over LA by winning game 2. You simply let us take it back.

Don't forget it was also lost at the FREETHROW LINE in game 7.

And the men in green sure didn't put them there it was the boys in grey.

The "men in green" sure as hell put them there. That Allen foul later in the game was a clear foul, and it was a VERY foolish thing to do.

Ok so thats one foul. what about the other 19 fouls? How did all these Laker fans make bail already?

The celtics are a physical team, thats no secret. Then people wonder why the celts give so many free throws? By the way, that foul by Ray was a pretty critical foul. Those 3 points were pretty game changing. If anyone on any team does something like that at such a critical point, then that team deserves to lose.

[Yakmanev]

I think it was lost in the regular season by not earning home court over LA.

The league may not be flat-out rigged, but I'm convinced the playoffs were "massaged" this year...the conference finals stretched out a couple of games, when it was clear in both series (east/west) which team was better after 2-3 games.

In the Finals, I agree there was no stopping LA at home in game 1.  And game 2 going to us made sense.  I don't think any team has ever won all 3 home games in the 2-3-2 format, so going 2-1 was quite likely, in fact, the most likely outcome, setting up a return to LA with a 3-2 lead.  It was almost by-the-book.  Game 6 to LA was a sure thing, making the most $$ for the league, and setting up the game 7, where the older team ran out of gas with 4 minutes to go.

If we had bothered with the regular season, perhaps that 2-3-2 is in our favor, and we're playing games 6 and 7 at home?  I think that tilts things in our favor and we're hanging #18.  Talent wise, we were pretty close to LA, and I think home court was the deciding factor, and the only thing we could've controlled.

You guys took home court over LA by winning game 2. You simply let us take it back.

Don't forget it was also lost at the FREETHROW LINE in game 7.

And the men in green sure didn't put them there it was the boys in grey.

The "men in green" sure as hell put them there. That Allen foul later in the game was a clear foul, and it was a VERY foolish thing to do.

Ok so thats one foul. what about the other 19 fouls? How did all these Laker fans make bail already?

The celtics are a physical team, thats no secret. Then people wonder why the celts give so many free throws?

That's not the point. The point is the fouls were being called on one end and not the other.
You can't let one team play physical and not the other. The Lakers were hacking away, throwing elbows going over the back camping in the lane and everything else and the whistles were swallowed.

[guava_wrench]

I think it was lost in the regular season by not earning home court over LA.

The league may not be flat-out rigged, but I'm convinced the playoffs were "massaged" this year...the conference finals stretched out a couple of games, when it was clear in both series (east/west) which team was better after 2-3 games.

In the Finals, I agree there was no stopping LA at home in game 1.  And game 2 going to us made sense.  I don't think any team has ever won all 3 home games in the 2-3-2 format, so going 2-1 was quite likely, in fact, the most likely outcome, setting up a return to LA with a 3-2 lead.  It was almost by-the-book.  Game 6 to LA was a sure thing, making the most $$ for the league, and setting up the game 7, where the older team ran out of gas with 4 minutes to go.

If we had bothered with the regular season, perhaps that 2-3-2 is in our favor, and we're playing games 6 and 7 at home?  I think that tilts things in our favor and we're hanging #18.  Talent wise, we were pretty close to LA, and I think home court was the deciding factor, and the only thing we could've controlled.

You guys took home court over LA by winning game 2. You simply let us take it back.

Don't forget it was also lost at the FREETHROW LINE in game 7.

And the men in green sure didn't put them there it was the boys in grey.

The "men in green" sure as hell put them there. That Allen foul later in the game was a clear foul, and it was a VERY foolish thing to do.

Ok so thats one foul. what about the other 19 fouls? How did all these Laker fans make bail already?

The celtics are a physical team, thats no secret. Then people wonder why the celts give so many free throws?

That's not the point. The point is the fouls were being called on one end and not the other.
You can't let one team play physical and not the other. The Lakers were hacking away, throwing elbows going over the back camping in the lane and everything else and the whistles were swallowed.

Our big problem was we had no strong moves like Gasol in the post. When it is obvious to everyone watching that the C's can't handle Gasol down low, it becomes easy for the refs to see and call the fouls.

When our offense is inept, the opposite is true.

Btw, both teams were allowed to play physical.