Are the Heat scared of the Celtics?

[kgainez]

Seems to be a hot topic...one that I've said.

We give the Heat probably their most competition. We have PP and KG...now we have a Jeff Green.

Are they scared of us?

I'd like to say yes, but at the same time, they've booted us out the playoffs twice (even though we've won the regular season). We given them 40+ point performances and still lost.

What do you think? Why?

[Lucky17]

No. No team in the NBA is scared of any other team.

[Donoghus]

I'd say they respect the Celtics but they sure as heck aren't afraid of them.

[Lightskinsmurf]

The heat being scared of us would be like a guy being scared of someone who he already beat up twice lol.

[wdleehi]

No. 



Teams that should make the Heat the most worried are the larger teams out west (and maybe the Pacers)




But none of those teams will the Heat fear.





The best thing that could happen to the Heat is if the Celtics and the Pacers meet in the playoffs before they run into the Heat.

[Lightskinsmurf]

The heat being scared of us would be like a guy being scared of someone who he already beat up twice lol.

Actually I take this back. The heat beat the celtics the last two years but they haven't been this current team in a 7 game series yet. *Terry, Green, Lee, Bradley* But I still don't think they're scared, no way.

[gpap]

I wouldn't say scared, but I am willing to bet the Celts are the last team in the East that Miami wants to face, especially in the playoffs.

Especially, when it comes to playing in Boston. For some reason, it just seems like the Heat are miserable when they are in the Gaaden (unfortunately that didn't stop Lebron from scoring 45 vs us in the ECF.)

[dmopower]

I think they are. I believe that the Celtics are the last team Miami want to deal with in the East in the playoffs.

 I think our backcourt defense finally gets the credit they have been deserving.

 We should have won that game and without KG there it was a moral victory for us and an eye opener for several.

[kgainez]

The heat being scared of us would be like a guy being scared of someone who he already beat up twice lol.

Actually I take this back. The heat beat the celtics the last two years but they haven't been this current team in a 7 game series yet. *Terry, Green, Lee, Bradley* But I still don't think they're scared, no way.

my next question is this (and this is open to anyone)
do the Heat have another level to go to in the playoffs?

i mean...could they be peaking too early? and with the exception of the starters who had a bad game for the Heat last night?
your two stars had great games. Bosh didn't do poorly. Mario had 21 points.

I mean...I think our bench is much better than theirs. and if Ray is going to play the way he did yesterday (and has all season), when/if we slip JG back to the bench, who's stopping him?

and you HAVE to believe Paul has another level to go to. JET has another level.  Maybe even Kevin. Maybe even a guy like Courtney Lee (and I recall Bass having a 20+ pt night in the playoffs once).

So...what about that?

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

I wrote this as a FanPost, but it's relevant here too:

They played great. They were missing not only their out-for-the-season All-Star point guard, but also their emotional leader and defensive anchor, and they still gave Miami all it could handle. It’s an effort to be proud of.

And none of that matters.

In thinking about this season’s Celtics team, the word that shines through for me is maddening. This team … wow. This team had a lot of growing pains to go through during the first part of the season, sure; I think we all realized that would be the case—lots of new guys, plus Avery Bradley was out for a while and then had to be reincorporated. I, and you, expected lots of hiccups, lots of road bumps and detours and ugly performances while guys were learning defensive rotations and offensive sets.

Yet we knew, you and I, what this team was capable of: championship-level play, or close to it. And even while these guys were struggling, we saw flashes of that promise: a win over OKC, a win over the trendy-pick Knicks in New York, even a win over Miami, a game during which we all learned that our aforementioned floor general was done for the season, and maybe for a good part of next as well. These guys—KG, Pierce, & Co.—were gritty, grinding along, and we expected them to turn the corner at any moment.

And they did, for the most part. Even with Rondo out, and then Sully, and then the Blur. Guys were settling into their roles, getting comfortable, gaining confidence, and the team went on some winning streaks.

But the streak-breakers were sometimes (read: too often) among the league’s cellar dwellers, such as New Orleans on Jan. 16 to halt a 6-game streak, or Charlotte on Feb. 11—with KG and Pierce—to end a 7-game streak.

“But it was a classic trap game,” some Boston fans said. “Cs will get ’em next time.” Or: “No problem. It was the second night of a back-to-back after that triple-OT win over Denver.” OK. Fine. I can maintain the positivity.

But then the Cs lost to Charlotte—again—this time by nearly 30 points.

“But Pierce sat out.”

Doesn’t matter. This is the Bobkitties we’re talking about. The Washington Generals of the NBA. The Cs should soundly thump them, even without Pierce. And have you noticed that there’s always some excuse for these guys from certain quarters? Always some at-the-ready defense to explain away the inevitable letdowns and the consistent inconsistency? Always some “legitimate defense” for their underperformance?

“But the Cs almost beat the Heat last night, without KG! Doesn’t that say something about this team?”

Yes, it does. It says, to me, that this team gets up only for “big games,” that this team doesn’t show up night in and night out, that this team focuses only when it feels like it. All of which is the opposite of how a championship-caliber team plays.

Yes, it’s great, and pretty impressive, that they could almost beat the champs without KG and without Rondo and without Sully, just like it was great and impressive that they almost knocked them out of last season’s playoffs without Bradley and without Green and without Wilcox and O’Neal.

Pretty interesting, though, how a team can, on one hand, overcome so much adversity, so many big hurdles, but then ultimately is brought down by such small things, by things that are so … basic … so fundamental. Things that high school kids are drilled on ad nauseum but that these professionals seem to lose sight of. It’s like a guy who has all the tools to conquer Mount Everest, and is nearly at the top, but then slips and falls because he forgot to tie his bootlaces.

Paul Pierce might’ve put it best:

“There’s always positives from every game, but you've got to look at negative things when you play against the best team in the NBA right now. It’s always going to come down to the little things, and those things really add up at the end of the game when you have a two-point loss.”

First, Paul, let me say thank you to you. Thank you for saying what I’ve been saying all season, and thank you for pointing out what many Cs fans have been ignoring all season: The little things matter. It’s not that these guys simply miss a free throw here and commit the occasional turnover there; they usually don’t lose because they botch a play at the end of a game, or because the refs make a bad call in crunch time; it’s the accumulated weight of numerous mistakes, all the straws that lead to the straw that breaks the camel’s back, it’s 9 (NINE!) missed free throws and 20 turnovers (that’s 40–60 possible points) when you have very little margin for error.

So they nearly beat the Miami Heat last night.

Big. Freakin. Deal. The reality is this: The Boston Celtics might be the biggest speed bump these Miami Heat will face this postseason, but they’re still nothing more than a speed bump. And that’s not going to change unless they get their heads in the game from tip-off to final whistle.

[Lightskinsmurf]

The heat being scared of us would be like a guy being scared of someone who he already beat up twice lol.

Actually I take this back. The heat beat the celtics the last two years but they haven't been this current team in a 7 game series yet. *Terry, Green, Lee, Bradley* But I still don't think they're scared, no way.

my next question is this (and this is open to anyone)
do the Heat have another level to go to in the playoffs?

i mean...could they be peaking too early? and with the exception of the starters who had a bad game for the Heat last night?
your two stars had great games. Bosh didn't do poorly. Mario had 21 points.

I mean...I think our bench is much better than theirs. and if Ray is going to play the way he did yesterday (and has all season), when/if we slip JG back to the bench, who's stopping him?

and you HAVE to believe Paul has another level to go to. JET has another level.  Maybe even Kevin. Maybe even a guy like Courtney Lee (and I recall Bass having a 20+ pt night in the playoffs once).

So...what about that?

I think almost everyone has another level they can go too. Green was at his max level last night tho. I think if we play our best and the heat play their best, they win.

I give us a fighters chance tho. If we can just keep the game close then anything can happen. I trust JET will come up BiG in the playoffs. All that said, I just don't see us beating them 4 times in a series.

Keep in mind the last two close games we had with them were at HOME. The last two years we started off the series 0-2 with the heat. That can't happen again if we're gonna win.

[scaryjerry]

Uhh no

[NoraG1]

Wh8chever player the Heat are most afraid of they just have Thug Wade take them out. Rondo comes to mind

[aporel#18]

No, they aren't, they were celebrating last night like they finally took the monster off their heads.

Fine, now they feel confident no team can stop them. Let them grow into that sense of invulnerability and kill them in the playoffs. The good thing is Jeff Green feels like 90% health wise, Playoff Terry is another animal, rest can do wonders for lingering Pierce and KG is still the best defensive player in the League. Worth noting Avery is still recovering, so is Wilcox, and Lee is still improving into our system. Even if you don't count Bass and the new guys, the Celtics have a lot of room to grow as a team.

Please Doc, pull a Popovich and bench the Old 3 in Miami for the final RS game.

The Heat are not scared, neither are the Celtics. Can't wait for the Playoffs. Go Celtics!

[Fafnir]

I'd say they respect the Celtics but they sure as heck aren't afraid of them.

Yeah exactly. They've beaten us two years in the playoffs in a row. They don't fear the C's, just respect them as the team that's given them the hardest time overall.

Especially because prior to the current Heat team's formation the C's also beat Wade/LeBron's team's separately. (twice for LeBron)