Yes, I am stealing this from Alex. I enjoyed the his pieces on the AFC East, so I decided to do a Finals version.
1. Rajon Rondo is now the best player on the Celtics. BUY. The 2010 play-offs has been the coming out party for Rondo. Some would argue that he is not only the best Celtic, but the best point guard in basketball. This team still belongs to Pierce because of tenure, but who was it picking up the slack during Pierce's disappearance in the Semi-Finals against the heavily favored Cavaliers? Rondo is the nucleus of the 2010 Celtics championship campaign. His superior athleticism and court vision creates scoring opportunities for his teammates. On the defensive side of the ball, Rondo was the regular season leader in steals per game and total steals, and is the play-off leader in total steals. He is the Celtics best player on both sides of the ball, and if the Celtics win, Rondo will hoist the Bill Russell Finals MVP Trophy
2. Kevin Garnett has been revived this post-season. SELL. As I pointed out in my NBA Finals Preview there are major discrepancies between his play-off numbers now and his numbers in the past (especially if you go as far back as his Minnesota years) Do I expect him to have another 25+ 15+ and 5 play-off run like he used to? Of course not he's doing just as well as I expected him to do, but he is not playing as well as most think. Other than the second round where he put up a solid 18-8 this is the same Garnett we saw in the regular season. During the first round he averaged 15 and 8, just one point and one rebound above his regular season average. He was less effective in the Conference Finals averaging a pedestrian 10-8. His overall play-off averages are 14 and 8. I'm still waiting for his resurrection.
3. Paul Pierce and/or Ray Allen leave the Celtics this season. SELL. The true resurgence these play-offs has been Ray Allen. Other than Rondo, Allen has been the most consistent player for Boston. If Rondo has replaced anyone in the Big 3, it has been Garnett, not Allen. The Celtics are 9-1 when Allen scores over 18. Perhaps he is trying to prove himself after the Celtics put him on the market back in February. Allen is an unrestricted free agent on July 1st. I think he will agree to a short-term deal and stay. Pierce has and early termination option, I doubt he takes it. Pierce has played for the Celtics his entire career and been the face of the franchise for over a decade. He has already won a championship, and is adored by the people of Boston for sticking with them through thick and thin. Why would he leave now?
4. Rasheed Wallace has stepped up and always has in the play-offs. SELLLLLL. I'll acknowledge the 5 double digit point games he has had this post season, one of them over 20. Out of 17 games, I am hardly impressed. Can we get rid of this notion of 'Sheed stepping up when it counts. The Pistons made it to 6 straight conference, but they lost four of those series. They won an improbable championship in 2004, but he was the third at best maybe even fourth best player on that team. When he was the best player on his team in Portland, he lead his team all the way to the 2000 Western Conference Finals, then blew a 15 point lead in the fourth quarter of game 7 against L.A, capped off by getting an alley oop to the face by Shaq. These play-offs have mirrored Sheed's career, inconsistent.
5. Paul Pierce is one of the greatest Celtics ever. BUY. Pierce recently said that he wanted to win another championship in order to be mentioned amongst the great Celtics. I think he is top 10 anyway, I'd put him at around 7. Pierce is probably one of the most underrated players ever. He might be the best one on one scorer in Celtic history. He may not have multiple championships, but he never had the support. One could argue he was one of the top 5 players in the league during the 2002, 2003 seasons. When he finally got the support in 2007 it brought immediate success. Pierce was the heart and sole of one of the top 3 single-season teams in Celtics history, and one of the 50 greatest players ever.
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