Game 2: Celtics @ Cavaliers - Mon, May 3, 8:00pm [TNT]

[Rise Against]

No need for a fancy game thread.

* Cleveland continues their fifth straight Eastern Conference Semifinals appearance and 18th overall postseason appearance versus Boston. It is the fifth time the teams have faced each other in the playoffs (1976 Conference Finals, 1985 First Round, 1992 Conference Semifinals and the 2008 Conference Semifinals) with the Celtics leading the all-time series 3-1. Cleveland comes in as the only team to advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals in the last five years. The Cavaliers are one of the most experienced postseason teams in games played since the 2006 NBA Playoffs with a league-high 66 postseason games played in that span leads all NBA teams with the Los Angeles Lakers ranking second. Cleveland is 69-74 (.475) all-time in the playoffs.

* Saturday’s Game 1 101-93 win featured the Cavaliers coming back from an 11-point halftime deficit. It was the team’s 69th playoff win, but the first time that Cleveland had overcome a halftime deficit as large as 11 points in any victory. The team has never lost a playoff series when winning Game 1 and is 10-0, including best-of-five and best-of-seven series, and winners of four of their last five Game 1s. (Elias)

* In the playoffs all-time, the Cavaliers are 47-25 (.653) at home, 27-12 (.692) at Quicken Loans Arena and winners of 13 of their last 14 postseason games at The Q. Since the 2006 postseason, the Cavs are 26-7 (.788) at home, which is tied for the most home wins in the playoffs over that span (Los Angeles Lakers are 26-5). Within the Cavs-Celtics series, the home team has won 18 of the last 20 overall (regular and postseason) games. (STATS, Inc.)

* With winning three of the six playoff games this year by double figures, the Cavaliers possess a +9.0 (105.3-96.3) point differential, which is one of the tops in the playoffs. In the 2010 Playoffs, the Cavaliers also have the largest field goal differential, shooting .490 from the field to .439 (+.051) for their opponents.

* One of the series’ key points will be three-point shooting. The Cavs top three-point field goals made per game and accuracy differential carried over from the regular season to the first round of the playoffs. Cleveland is shooting .397 from behind the arc, which ranks second, while also defending the arc the second-best at .286. In the first round, Boston shot a league-best .439 in three-pointers versus Miami, but was held by Cleveland to 4-16 (.250) in Game 1. Teammates Jamario Moon (8-13, .615) and LeBron James, who shot 3-6 (.500) from behind the arc, and is (16-30, .533) in six games, lead the playoffs in three-point shooting, ranking #1 and #2, respectively.

* In addition to the defensively holding the Celtics down from behind the arc, Cleveland held Boston to 36-81 (.444) shooting for the game, their second worst field goal percentage of this season’s playoffs (.443 in Game 1 vs. MIA). The Celtics were held to 9-21 (.429) shooting and converted five turnovers into eight points in the third period and were held to 14-40 (.350) shooting in the half, including 15 points on 5-19 (.263) shooting in the fourth quarter.

* In Game 1, LeBron James had a game-high 35 points on 12-24 (.500) shooting, seven rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks. James scored 21 of his 35 points in the second half and 12 points in the fourth quarter. James has 34 career postseason 30-point playoff games (24-10, .706) and the Cavaliers are 19-7 (.730) since the 2007 playoffs when he scores 30 points or more. He has also scored at least 30 points in five straight and nine of the last 12 games versus Boston (includes regular season and 2010 Playoffs) and is averaging 33.6 points in those games. In the 2008 playoff series versus Boston, James averaged 26.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and 2.1 steals. This postseason, James is averaging 32.3 points on 67-121 (.554) shooting, 8.8 rebounds, 8.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.3 blocks. (Elias)

* For his postseason career, LeBron James (1,920 points, 542 rebounds, 477 assists in 65 games) is the only player in NBA history to accumulate at least 1,900 points, 525 rebounds and 475 assists in his first 65 career postseason games. James’ overall career average of 29.5 points per playoff game is the highest amongst any player competing in the 2009 NBA Playoffs and second all-time, behind only Allen Iverson (29.7 ppg) and Michael Jordan (33.4 ppg). James has 33 career postseason 30-point playoff games (23-10, .697) and the Cavaliers are 18-7 (.720) since the 2007 playoffs when he scores 30 points or more. For his playoff career, he has averaged 29.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 7.3 assists and no other player in NBA playoff history (min. 20 games) has ever averaged 25.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game.

* In Game 1, Mo Williams finished with 20 points on 8-14 (.571) shooting, five rebounds, six assists and one steal. He scored 14 of his 20 points in the third quarter, including a stretch where he scored 10 straight Cavs points (5:16 - 3:12 mark). This postseason, Williams has scored in double figures in five of the six games and at least 19 points in four games. He is averaging 16.3 points to go along with 3.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists.

* In Game 1, Shaquille O’Neal tallied 11 points and four rebounds in 20 minutes. Over his last two playoff games, O’Neal is averaging 12.5 points on .524 shooting and 6.0 rebounds in 23.0 minutes per game. O’Neal has 16 postseason appearances (tied for 3rd-most in NBA history) and has played in 209 playoff games, which is first among active players.

Go Cavs! Remember to listen to LeBron's speech before the game.

[TheOUTLAW]

Will the whining continue?

[RRT]

Will the whining continue?

Yes

[beantownski]

yes it will....i can hear it now.
how come we couldn't slow down rondo?
ray allen got too many open looks from 3.
kg ate jamison alive on the block.

you know...stuff like that. hahaha, i kid. the celtics need this game or it's all done for them. i expect a good close game. i think it will get a little chippy tonight too.

[kenneth9265]

The bulls and now the celtics better be glad the Lebron's elbow have been flairing up or they would be blow out by 25. The Bulls would of been swept easily...

[beantownski]

The bulls and now the celtics better be glad the Lebron's elbow have been flairing up or they would be blow out by 25. The Bulls would of been swept easily...

yes the cavs are a very good team, but don't get ahead of yourself. teams that are still playing right now are all pretty good. you've been drinking too much koolaid.

[RRT]

The bulls and now the celtics better be glad the Lebron's elbow have been flairing up or they would be blow out by 25. The Bulls would of been swept easily...

yes the cavs are a very good team, but don't get ahead of yourself. teams that are still playing right now are all pretty good. you've been drinking too much koolaid.

we swept very good atlanta team last year...

[heathmalc]

A few things to expect from game 2:

Physical play: I expect the Celtics to be more physical in game 2. They (the Celtics) seemed to be more passive in game 1 than I've seen them be in any game versus the Cavaliers since 2008. The hard fouls that the Cavaliers dished out against Rondo and Perkins seemed to be game-changers for those two players. Perkins played tentatively after returning from the locker-room after getting his lip busted open. I expect him and KG to be a lot more physical in this game. Rondo completely fell off the map after the hard foul in the third quarter. From that point on, he had only 3 points and 2 assists on 1of 5 shooting.

Aggressiveness: I expect the ball to go through Paul Pierce more often in this game, and for him to drive the ball a lot more. On the defensive side, I would be surprised if PP and his team-mates didn't take a few swipes at LeBron's elbow. Watch for Tony Allen, as he is a physical defender in the mold of DWest... perhaps not as good, but he is physical, and I wouldn't be surprised if he took a cheap shot or two at LeBron, Jamison, West, or Mo. I expect the Cavaliers to try to get Jamison going early, as he was off offensively in game 1. However, Jamison got physical with Garnett in the second half of game one, picking up 2 of his fouls this way. Jamison will likely be aggressive defensively again, as he is a tough guy...even if his defense isn't always great. A lot of people don't know this about Jamison, but he was a state champion at wrestling, and I doubt that he is intimidated (at any level) by Garnett.

Offense: The Celtics will use Rondo similarly to the way he was used in game one, but he'll defer to Pierce and KG more often. KG, I expect, will try to live in the post more, as he has an advantage there over Jamison. Pierce, as noted earlier, will be more aggressive on offense, driving more often, and trying to get Cavs into foul trouble. Ray allen will run the P&R more often, and the screen/roll for 3's. Delonte and Parker (and Mo too if he's switched again) will have to be aware of this. Drive & kicks by Allen will also be utilized when possible.
The Cavaliers will likely change their game plan a little bit for game 2. I expect to see LeBron more active in the first quarter, so the Cavs can try to put the Celtics on their heel, where they'll have to play from behind. This will allow LeBron to still kick, and get team-mates involved, but I expect their to be more room for 3pt kicks to Jamison & Mo, as LeBron becomes more aggressive in the 1st. Mo Williams and Parker will likely try to shorten the Celtic shot-clock by pressuring him at the half-court; where Rondo will try to either utilize a Pierce screen, or pass the ball to Pierce so he can try to become more of a threat (as mentioned earlier). The Cavaliers will again try to be more aggressive with Shaq; and will likely start the game off with passes to the post, to see if the Celtics try to crowd him or let Perkins take him one on one. A line-up that wont surprise me to see is: West/LeBron/Antawn/JJ/ Shaq or Andy. This gives the Cavs huge advantages on both sides of the ball, but can only be utilized for short stretches, as Mo has to be in the game as he is the most dangerous shooter on the team.

Defense: I think I covered this in the "aggressive" part. However, I'll add that the Celtics will try to keep Mo in-check. A hard foul or 4 is not out of the question, and I'd be surprised if Paul wasn't the one dishing out at-least one of those hard fouls to Mo...sort of a "pay-back" for dunking on him in game one. Perkins, Pierce and Garnett will be as physical as possible with LeBron, because they feel that LeBron is the only one that can stop them from winning. They have no respect for the other Cavs...which may play into the Cavaliers' game-plan.

Twists & turns: Expect the trash talk to pick up where the teams left off on Easter. Trash talk is part of KG's game, and when he does it, the rest follow suit. Mo and LeBron are not shy about running their respective mouths either, so I definitely expect there to be some trash-talking going around...especially due to the belief that I have that the teams will be even more physical. I wouldn't be surprised to see an ejection or double ejection in this game. Particularly since the Celtics actually played better after the Miami incident...they may feel that it'll give them a boost.

Ending: I do expect the Cavaliers to win this game... but a Celtic win is not out of the question. A blow out by one of the teams isn't out of the question either. I do think that the Celtics may have lost some of their mojo....and if the Cavaliers come out hard, and aggressive, and take a large early lead, then the Cavaliers will likely win in a blow-out. However, if the Cavs come out soft and let the Celtics get a large lead early again...Boton may feel they are better, and regain their mojo, and ride it to a victory. The 1st quarter is the most important in this game. Cavs win 97-88

[L&H_05]

The Cavs have to put Ray Allen down IMO... He will get one or two drives per game and he has to be taken out IMO on his drives... If the C's want to get physical, than one of their big 3 who usually gets away with just flying off screens and playing free & lose needs to feel the physicality on one of his rare drives...

Rondo knows how to fall and will always pretty much get up after he flops around on the floor...
Pierce will fall down and act like he was just shot with horse tranquilizers until he gets up....
KG will just get up and proclaim he's an F'N solider and a "G" and start yelling about F-THIS AND F-THAT....
Sugar Ray however could be rattled... Shake his cookies...

[wickerhd]

The Cavs have to put Ray Allen down IMO... He will get one or two drives per game and he has to be taken out IMO on his drives... If the C's want to get physical, than one of their big 3 who usually gets away with just flying off screens and playing free & lose needs to feel the physicality on one of his rare drives...

Rondo knows how to fall and will always pretty much get up after he flops around on the floor...
Pierce will fall down and act like he was just shot with horse tranquilizers until he gets up....
KG will just get up and proclaim he's an F'N solider and a "G" and start yelling about F-THIS AND F-THAT....
Sugar Ray however could be rattled... Shake his cookies...

I assume you're kidding. Ray Allen has been in the league a long time and has taken many hits, clean and dirty. If those things bothered him, he would have been out of the league 10 years ago. And if you do decide to foul him away from the basket, better make sure you don't do it when you're in the penalty as its like giving away 2 points.

I think you're going to see a very physical game, but thats not news in the eastern conference. I expect a Cav win tonight, but I must admit I was surprised by Celtic play on Saturday. If Pierce had made some open shots, it would have been a nailbiter.

[mcfly1204]

I hope Brown leaves Parker on Rondo. I also want to see more of Varejao on Garnett if Jamison is not scoring. More Hickson, less Shaq, and no Ilgauskas would round things out nicely.

[heathmalc]

I hope Brown leaves Parker on Rondo. I also want to see more of Varejao on Garnett if Jamison is not scoring. More Hickson, less Shaq, and no Ilgauskas would round things out nicely.

Parker will likely get time on Rondo only if Rondo is killing Mo, like game-1. The Cavs would prefer to have Parker on Ray, to keep Ray from being able to shoot 3's & drive. You did notice that while Mo was on Ray, he was 2 for 2 from 3-pt land... while he was 0 for 4 while AP was on him? The other advantage of having AP on Ray is that he is the helpside defender for Pierce. Mo had to switch onto PP twice and Paul just blew by him both times. As for Shaq... he will play as long as he isn't in foul trouble. We need him ready for the ECF, and sitting on the bench wont do it. JJ is allotted 7-10 minutes... if he is playing well, then he may stay on the floor longer...if he misses assignments (like game-1), then he may lose PT to Ilgauskas, or Andy or possibly Powe...who may be activated as opposed to Jawad or Gibson.

Side note: When Ray Allen does well, the Celtics do well (See Miami series). If Ray gets it going, then that opens things up for the entire Celtic team, as he is the only dangerous threat from long distance. Giving him hard fouls doesn't work with him...he's a roughneck...it'll just make him shoot more (think LeBron in the same situation).

[Benedict_Boozer]

I hope we see less crying about the refs from BOS fans than we saw in the first round with CHI fans....

[B Mac]

It wasnt so much about Rondo killing Mo or Parker shutting him down, it was about the help defense finally showing up in the second half. Mo and Delonte both looked bad against Rondo in the first half, but that was because there was just no help D. Once they made the adjustments Parker looked great on Rondo, but thats because the bigs were finally helping.

[heathmalc]

It wasnt so much about Rondo killing Mo or Parker shutting him down, it was about the help defense finally showing up in the second half. Mo and Delonte both looked bad against Rondo in the first half, but that was because there was just no help D. Once they made the adjustments Parker looked great on Rondo, but thats because the bigs were finally helping.

That's partially true. I wouldn't go so far as to say that Parker looked "great" on Rondo...he didn't. Remember when Rondo drove through the lane about 5 times on him, treating Parker like a parking-cone? The difference was Parker's length; as he was able to disrupt 2 passes in the 3rd and when Rondo got by him, the help-side(as you pointed out) gave hard fouls. Rondo only made it to the hole one time without either turning the ball over, getting a hard foul, or being forced to kick the ball back for a re-set, or to someone the Cavs weren't playing hard (like Wallace, who was 1 for 5).

Also, I wouldn't put Delonte into the same category as Mo while defending Rondo. There was a big difference, as Mo was often left in the dust (on the perimeter) when defending Rondo, while West may have got beat a few times, but he stayed with rondo, and forced him to kick the ball (mostly to KG)... you'll note that of Rondo's 19 1st half points, only 4 were against Delonte.

[prekazi]

I hope we see less crying about the refs from BOS fans than we saw in the first round with CHI fans....

They've already exceeded the Bulls.

[JO7]

Not that the Cavs need it, but hopefully the MVP presentation provides an extra bit of motivation.

[Rise Against]

Alright, going to need more than just LeBron and Mo to step it up.

[Benedict_Boozer]

Game time!

[Rise Against]

Cavs missed some gimmies... And are looking lazy out there.