When are some fans going to learn to not dismiss this team?

[nickagneta]

Ahemmmmmm..

Just thought I would chime in...we just destroyed the Heat when some people thought we couldn't beat a real contender this year.

So in review....

The C's could never make the playoffs, but that's looking like it will almost be a forgone conclusion.

The C's would only be able to finish at best 7th or 8th in the East. They are currentlt 4th.

The C's would never catch Philly, that young, athletic, dominant team, and they have caught them and passed them in the standings.

The C's could never beat a real life contender this year but have beaten the Heat, Pacers, Bulls and Clippers.

Some other predictions by some on this thread:

C's would get swept out and embarrassed in the first round of the playoffs.

C's would never develop any young guys on their roster.

C's would never make the ECF.

C's would never make the Finals.

C's would never win the title this year.

Go ahead people. Line up your predictions and then have the C's knock every one of them down.

NEVER COUNT THIS TEAM OUT!!! NOT THIS TEAM!!!

[Celtics18]

Ahemmmmmm..

Just thought I would chime in...we just destroyed the Heat when some people thought we couldn't beat a real contender this year.

So in review....

The C's could never make the playoffs, but that's looking like it will almost be a forgone conclusion.

The C's would only be able to finish at best 7th or 8th in the East. They are currentlt 4th.

The C's would never catch Philly, that young, athletic, dominant team, and they have caught them and passed them in the standings.

The C's could never beat a real life contender this year but have beaten the Heat, Pacers, Bulls and Clippers.

Some other predictions by some on this thread:

C's would get swept out and embarrassed in the first round of the playoffs.

C's would never develop any young guys on their roster.

C's would never make the ECF.

C's would never make the Finals.

C's would never win the title this year.

Go ahead people. Line up your predictions and then have the C's knock every one of them down.

NEVER COUNT THIS TEAM OUT!!! NOT THIS TEAM!!!

Yes, get fired up, Nick!

Tommy point for some good old fashioned Celtic Pride!

[j804]

Ahemmmmmm..

Just thought I would chime in...we just destroyed the Heat when some people thought we couldn't beat a real contender this year.

So in review....

The C's could never make the playoffs, but that's looking like it will almost be a forgone conclusion.

The C's would only be able to finish at best 7th or 8th in the East. They are currentlt 4th.

The C's would never catch Philly, that young, athletic, dominant team, and they have caught them and passed them in the standings.

The C's could never beat a real life contender this year but have beaten the Heat, Pacers, Bulls and Clippers.

Some other predictions by some on this thread:

C's would get swept out and embarrassed in the first round of the playoffs.

C's would never develop any young guys on their roster.

C's would never make the ECF.

C's would never make the Finals.

C's would never win the title this year.

Go ahead people. Line up your predictions and then have the C's knock every one of them down.

NEVER COUNT THIS TEAM OUT!!! NOT THIS TEAM!!!

Get em Nick this should be in the feel good thread lol

I can't wait to play SA let's keep rollin baby

[RockinRyA]

I agree that we are not a team at a par with those with the worse shot. Got no problem with that. But this site wants me to learn not to dismiss this team this year of having a shot of winning it all. It seems most everybody has been talking of blowing this team up; talking of trading Rondo; talking of trading any number of the big three for younger legs. Almost everybody has seen the writing on the wall. The big three are 4 years older than they were in 2008 and the enemy has gotten stronger and are younger. And we have a lot of physical injuries nagging us constantly. Now Im being told not to dismiss this team cause we can do "something", cause the Red Sox won some years back and the Mavs won it last year without being favorites. Ok. I give up. I agree we can do "something", whatever that "something" you want it it to be, Fine,  EXCEPT....., that "something" being winning it all? Only in anybody's dreams, baby; only in anybody's dreams! I wish it wasnt, but I believe winning our $18,000,000 dollar lottery here next Wednesday is more realistic than winning Número 18 in 2012, and my chances of winning this lottery is about 21,000,000 to 1.

youre probably a seer. mind telling me what will happen tomorrow? it seems you can foresee the future.

i believed we had a great shot at winning it all in 2008, bt i didnt dismiss the possibility that we would be eliminated in the 1st round. in sports anything can happen.

[Bahku]

Ahemmmmmm..

Just thought I would chime in...we just destroyed the Heat when some people thought we couldn't beat a real contender this year.

So in review....

The C's could never make the playoffs, but that's looking like it will almost be a forgone conclusion.

The C's would only be able to finish at best 7th or 8th in the East. They are currentlt 4th.

The C's would never catch Philly, that young, athletic, dominant team, and they have caught them and passed them in the standings.

The C's could never beat a real life contender this year but have beaten the Heat, Pacers, Bulls and Clippers.

Some other predictions by some on this thread:

C's would get swept out and embarrassed in the first round of the playoffs.

C's would never develop any young guys on their roster.

C's would never make the ECF.

C's would never make the Finals.

C's would never win the title this year.

Go ahead people. Line up your predictions and then have the C's knock every one of them down.

NEVER COUNT THIS TEAM OUT!!! NOT THIS TEAM!!!

Amen, Nick, (TP) ... despite the injury problems, age and new rotations, when this team is playing their best ball they just have too much talent, heart and pride, to ever count them out.

Is it likely that they'll make it all the way? Probably not, but when you've got the drive, experience and coaching that these guys do, they can be a serious threat, and an underdog with relentless tenacity.

Less of a chance than winning the lottery? Not even close, and we've been proving that in the last few weeks.

I honestly can't believe people are still so negative and still coming out with "Trade Rondo" threads ... I mean, seriously ... for D-Will?!? Have they been watching this kid at all this year?

There are always remarks made about some of us with our "green-colored glasses", and there is certainly a case for that, but there is at least as large a contingent of the opposite, people who are so intent on blowing it up, that they are blind to how dominant this team has been since the All-Star break.

[mr. dee]

Ahemmmmmm..

Just thought I would chime in...we just destroyed the Heat when some people thought we couldn't beat a real contender this year.

So in review....

The C's could never make the playoffs, but that's looking like it will almost be a forgone conclusion.

The C's would only be able to finish at best 7th or 8th in the East. They are currentlt 4th.

The C's would never catch Philly, that young, athletic, dominant team, and they have caught them and passed them in the standings.

The C's could never beat a real life contender this year but have beaten the Heat, Pacers, Bulls and Clippers.

Some other predictions by some on this thread:

C's would get swept out and embarrassed in the first round of the playoffs.

C's would never develop any young guys on their roster.

C's would never make the ECF.

C's would never make the Finals.

C's would never win the title this year.

Go ahead people. Line up your predictions and then have the C's knock every one of them down.

NEVER COUNT THIS TEAM OUT!!! NOT THIS TEAM!!!

But, but, but they only beat the heat in the regular season. They will beat us in the playoffs!

[mctyson]

All I saying, and this goes for dante too, is if you were a fan writing this team off as a team that could do something, anything, you made a huge mistake. History has showb that with this assembled team, anything is achievable. But so many people wanted to focus on the negative(age, injuries, slow starts, supposed invincibility of theother teams in the league) and write this team off, dismiss their chances at anything.

Every season is a long season and anything is possible. How many people were giving Dallas a chance last year mid season? How many thought when the Celtics went .500 the last half of 2010 that they would come one bad quarter away from winning another title? How many thought the Red Sox could win a title being down 0-3 to the Yankees in 2004? How many thought the Patriots could win a Super Bowl when they were at 5-5 in 2001?

Here is an indisputable fact: In the world of sports inexplicable results happen all the time and the perceived favorite to win a championship before a season often does not. Possibly the favorite doesn't win a championship more often than they do. These are facts.

So to state ahead of time with absolute surety that this team is destined to not do something given their last four seasons and the amount of time they have shown they can do something, is not being realistic, because realistically, in sports, it is shown every season in every sport that anything is possible. And since this is true, whats the purpose of dismissing the chances of this or any team doing anything. I mean, isn't that why we all watch sports in the first place?

This is the most important post I have read on this site this season.

I am firmly in your camp.  I have consistently referenced the 2010 season as an example of how you can never count out the will and desire of a championship squad.

And make no mistake, this is a championship squad.  Four of our starters, and our coach, have been to two NBA finals over the past 4 years.  4 straight Atlantic Division titles.  4 straight 50 win seasons.  Those experiences did not evaporate during the lockout.

People love to talk about the greatness of the Heat - and with good reason.  They love to mention that we lost in five games to them last year in the 2nd round, and that we have only gotten older since then. 

I watched every game of that Heat series last year and I did not come away from that saying the Celtics could not beat that team.  That is a flawed team, like the C's have flaws.  Yesterday's game is a perfect example.

Give me 7 games against the Heat and a healthy squad (particularly Rondo) and I like our chances.

Let's go Celtics.

[CelticsFanNC]

  I had my doubts about this team and will gladly eat crow because I never thought they could compete with the likes of Miami.  Glad I was wrong.....but was I?

  This isn;t the same team that many of us doubted.  That team was starting four guys(JO, PP, KG and RA) who looked to be well past their primes only a couple of months ago.

  Now JO is gone and has been replaced by.....KG.  KG at this point in his career is an inferior athlete playing the 4 spot but is plenty athletic enough to play the 5 spot.  That in and of itself has been a boon for the C's and probably got KG another decent pay day.

  KG was replaced at the 4 spot by Brandon Bass who is not the defender KG is but he is a better suited athlete to play the 4 spot in today's NBA where many of it's best athletes play there.

  Due to injuries Ray Allen has also been at least temporarily replaced by Avery Bradley who isn't as good a player as Ray is but is a far superior defender at a spot where you need a great defender because many of the best scorers in the NBA play the 2 spot.

  So yes I doubted the Celtics but that was a team that was starting 4 inferior athletes on most nights.   They were at an athletic disadvantage at 4 of 5 spots on the floor most nights. That is exactly why I doubted their ability to compete with the best teams in the NBA.

  Things have changed since then and this team now is more suited to compete with the NBA best because we now have better athletes playing the 2, 4 and 5 spots.  This has allowed them to get into the open court and get easy baskets....something they almost never did when they were starting the "old four".  This has also allowed Rajon Rondo to thrive and be a more consistent force night in and night out.

  So yes I doubted them but that was a completely different team in my eyes.  I have been hoping for a better mix of young athletic legs to go with our experience veterans and due to injuries we got that.  It is no coincidence that our best player(Rondo) has all of the sudden become the consistent floor general we have all hoped he could become just as soon as he had guys who could get out into the open court with him and we stopped playing in quick sand.

  SO IMO I was wrong but I was also right.

  On a side note.  This team is 10-1 when Ray Allen is out of the line up and 20-21 when he plays.  That is looking more and more like a trend and less and less like a fluke.   We all love and respect Ray but Bradley might be a better fit in the starting line up alongside of Rondo.

[Celtics4ever]

This is not the same team as earlier in the year though.  Bradley offers more D than Ray Allen and KG is the best Center we have had since the chief and PP is not hurt anymore.  That being said it will be a long haul to the championship.    We are an injury on a big away from disaster at any point.

[jarufu]

This is not the same team as earlier in the year though.  Bradley offers more D than Ray Allen and KG is the best Center we have had since the chief and PP is not hurt anymore.  That being said it will be a long haul to the championship.    We are an injury on a big away from disaster at any point.

The current roster is a "band-aid" or maybe a "duct-tape" one so I can see where you're coming from .. but isn't every contending team an injury away from a big disaster?  Chicago with no Rose, Heat without James or Wade, OKC without Durant etc?

[CelticsFanNC]

  We wouldn't be playing this well if we were still starting:

  5. Jermaine O'Neal  
  4. Kevin Garnett
  3. Paul Pierce
  2. Ray Allen
  1. Rajon Rondo

  IMO it is playing better because adding Bradley to the mix along with moving KG to the center spot and inserting Bass in KG's spot has made us a lot more athletic.   While still possessing championship experience and a champions pedigree, we have now mixed in more youthful energy.

  We now get a lot of easy baskets.  Earlier in the season we didn't get easy baskets and had to work for every point.  We get to more loose balls, previously if Rondo didn't get to a loose ball the Celtics normally didn't.

  While our defense was always very good, even great at times now it seems to be more consistently great because it is putting more pressure on the ball, KG is a huge improvement at the 5 spot over (JO who had lead feet) and Bradley is a huge improvement over Ray at staying in front of opposing guards and pressuring the ball.

  

[RyNye]

   On a side note.  This team is 10-1 when Ray Allen is out of the line up and 20-21 when he plays.  That is looking more and more like a trend and less and less like a fluke.   We all love and respect Ray but Bradley might be a better fit in the starting line up alongside of Rondo.

Okay, but how many of those 20-21 were when we had OTHER major players out? As in, when we had no Pierce, or no Rondo. And how do we count the games early in the season, when Ray Allen was the only one not playing like crap? We lost those games, but not because of Ray.

I think it's a bit unfair of us to put all the blame for the 5 game losing streaks early in the year on Ray-Ray.

[angryguy77]

I don't want to get too jacked about the win...but it does feel real good

Does this team make the finals? I'd say no, but I do believe they have a better chance than some seem to think.

If Rondo can play in the playoffs like he did yesterday , or like he did in the 2010 playoffs, then I'd say we have an above average shot.

I'm going to watch them in the playoffs not expecting anything. Anything they do will be a bonus as far as I'm concerned.

[nickagneta]

 We wouldn't be playing this well if we were still starting:

  5. Jermaine O'Neal  
  4. Kevin Garnett
  3. Paul Pierce
  2. Ray Allen
  1. Rajon Rondo

  IMO it is playing better because adding Bradley to the mix along with moving KG to the center spot and inserting Bass in KG's spot has made us a lot more athletic.   While still possessing championship experience and a champions pedigree, we have now mixed in more youthful energy.

  We now get a lot of easy baskets.  Earlier in the season we didn't get easy baskets and had to work for every point.  We get to more loose balls, previously if Rondo didn't get to a loose ball the Celtics normally didn't.

  While our defense was always very good, even great at times now it seems to be more consistently great because it is putting more pressure on the ball, KG is a huge improvement at the 5 spot over (JO who had lead feet) and Bradley is a huge improvement over Ray at staying in front of opposing guards and pressuring the ball.

  

Aren't you the same guy that was saying Avery Bradley at the beginning of the season looked like a high school player? Now you want to say you weren't wrong about this team because they replaced Ray(a player you called indispensable to this team's offense) with Bradley, a player you thought couldn't play NBA basketball?

Kinda convenient

[OsirusCeltics]

I'm not saying this Celtics team is a bonafide championship contendor, but what makes them different than the Spurs?
The media and writers all say the Spurs are on of the best team in the west and most likely come out the east, but they are similar to the Celtics

Both have star PF/Cs, Duncan and KG
Both have young point guards, Parker and Rondo
Both have talented wing players/closers, Ginobili and Pierce
                                         Ray and Stephen Jackson

I really dont see the difference. And both have star players who are over 30
If Spurs have a chance, then Celtics have a chance