Charles Klein
After celebrating The Fall of LeBron James with the populaces of Boston, Chicago and New York I watched the Boston Celtics take apart another young superstar: Dwight Howard. The game was not close until the Celtics almost blew it in the fourth quarter, but the final score of 92-88 should not lead one into believing that these two teams were on the same court Sunday afternoon.
My two favorite Boston Celtics, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, scored over 20 points and in conjunction with Kevin Garnett proved that Boston's 'Big Three' were better than Orlando's. Pierce and Allen combined for 47 of Boston's 92 points and were 4-7 from beyond the arc.
What's more, Kendrick Perkins, Rasheed Wallace and Glen 'Big Baby/Uno-Uno' Davis managed to frustrate the living crap out of Dwight Howard, forcing him into foul trouble and seven turnovers. 'Superman' combined poor discipline with a poor night by his standards, scoring 13 points and grabbing 12 boards. If he wants to be thought of as one of the best players in the league, Howard needs to stop being an immature seven foot tall baby and just play the physical game we all know he can.
When Vince Carter, the man Howard has referred to as 'Half man, half retired' easily outscores the Magic center, the team has problems. Carter scored 23, Jameer Nelson had 20, but Rashard Lewis only scored six points and generally appeared lost on the floor.
While the Magic were lauded for their depth during the season, their bench play was not enough to overtake the 'old, past their prime' Celtics. Rajon Rondo, MVP of the first two rounds of the playoffs for the Celtics, had an off game and yet the Magic could not take advantage.
As much as Bill Simmons slagged off Rasheed Wallace during the season, 'Sheed has been really cutting the check lately in Boston. The former Jail Blazer and Piston scored 13 points yesterday and was 2-5 from three. And it is his in-your-face demeanor that has usually dogged Wallace throughout his NBA career that has proven to be a major weapon in the Celtics arsenal against Howard.
The Celtics do not really have a player to match up with Howard. And I thought that would be a major advantage for the Magic in this series (as most people thought before Game 1). But until Dwight Howard 'gets it' the Celtics will be more than happy to advance to another NBA Finals.
At least yesterday, as Lazlo Bane sings, Dwight Howard aka 'foul on me' aka 'Superman', was nothing resembling that red caped crusader.
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