is easy to see why LeBron James decided he needed more help.
His 45 points in the seventh game against Boston in 2008 were not enough to win. Nor was his triple-double in the last game of the 2010 round. Largely motivated by those defeats, the star of the NBA decided to go to Cleveland to play with Dwyane Wade in Miami. James
will encounter the Celtics in the semifinals of the Eastern Conference, starting on Sunday.
"It's personal," said James on Saturday at the end of a workout. "It is, that is absolutely right. Do not want to keep losing to the same computer, the same team will continue to send on vacation. So it's personal."
The Celtics are prepared to receive a James super motivated.
"It would be personal to me," said Boston forward Paul Pierce. "I'm sure he takes it personal and we must expect the best from him."
probably unwittingly, the Celtics played an important role in aligning the cards for this season. Boston gave James a good reason to go to Miami to find more talented fellow who was with the Cavaliers.
On paper, James, Wade and Chris Bosh should have a better chance to beat Boston, but that theory will be tested. The three gave up a total of 51 million dollars to play together, and a win in the series against the Celtics could be the first dividend from that transaction.
"I think there are two very good teams, two teams eager, two teams with great pride," said Celtics general manager Danny Ainge. "And I think it will be a great series."
The Celtics have 17 NBA titles, about the same number of frames for this match.
Shaquille O'Neal wants to recover from an injury and play against Miami, the team that won a championship Wade in the NBA. Udonis Haslem is in cotton for the Heat, he expects Wade to wake up from lethargy exhibited against Boston in the regular season.
Boston wants to take the advantage that the point guard position with Rajon Rondo against Mike Bibby and Mario Chalmers.
Furthermore, the reality is that there are two teams that just do not like them.
"The playoffs are a new season," said Boston's power forward, Kevin Garnett. "There are new scenarios, new scenarios. So all we have done so far is a thing of the past."
For Miami, this is a past for olvid9o.
eliminated Boston and James Wade in the first two rounds of the playoffs last year, and the Celtics have won 18 of their last 21 games against Miami. The Heat won only once to the Celtics this season.
Nine of the 15 players on the campus of Miami have been eliminated from playoff series for the Celtics, including James and Zydrunas Ilgauskas in 2008 and 2010 while with Cleveland.
"I'm ready for the challenge," said Wade. "I know I have not played well against this team, that's not a secret."
Despite all the attention on Wade and James, the Celtics believe that the key to the series could be Bosh.
"LeBron and Wade are LeBron and Wade," said Boston coach Doc Rivers. "It's always great. What they were before this series, it will be during this series and will be fabulous after this series, and in the summer when they talk about they will say 'LeBron and Wade are great players." That will not change. But when Bosh plays well, then your team is great. Therefore, it is the key. "
Boston takes a week without playing after eliminating New York Knicks in the first round and dispatched the Heat in five games to Philadelphia.
The other series that starts Sunday is a showdown between two teams on the rise trying to seize the Western Conference.
The Memphis Grizzlies defeated the San Antonio Spurs, who had the best record of the NBA regular season and now face an Oklahoma City Thunder is shaping up as one of the league powers.
The Thunder and the Grizzlies were the two youngest teams at the start of the season, then had the biggest improvement in terms of wins in the entire NBA.
now encounter in the second round of the playoffs with a mission to find a way to stop their superstars. Zach Randolph had averages of 26.5 points and 13 rebounds against the Thunder in the regular season and was crucial to eliminate San Antonio.
Kevin Durant, the NBA's leading scorer, got 40 points in Oklahoma City only victory over Memphis in their four encounters in the regular season.
The other two series starts on Monday, when the Chicago Bulls welcome the Atlanta Hawks and the Lakers in Los Angeles to Dallas.
0 comments:
Post a Comment