My Guess...umm, Prediction...for Cleveland vs. Boston...and Yours

Tough, both teams faced spunky playoff teams but nothing to prepared them for the second round. This is going to be a very angry and blood drenched series.

Cleveland in 5. Much respect to Boston but the talent on Cleveland is too much for a very old team, especially when the once feared warrior Kevin Garnett looks to be about 60 percent of the monster he usually is.

I like how you used a ship’s orientation in a basketball setting to tie it up with your name. Good job, old fart sailor who despises sleeping on the concrete of his balcony.

I must say, I have to agree with you. Cleveland in 6, most likely 7. Nothing like proven vets out to show the world their 15 minutes isn’t up. But they should be wary of the 6’10, 260 lb. elephant in the room/arena. And we all know, an elephant never forgets (1. KG was flapping his gums at the end of the last regular season meeting. 2. I would have gone with a 6’10, 250 lb. great white shark, or bull, but I don’t know if they are as mentally gifted as an elephant, but I friggin’ digress.)

therefore I hope I am right again. I say 6 games. Cavs will win it in the Garden. Boom!

Well i really do wish for a thriller game 7.. but im guessing Cavs in 6??

Hate to keep coming back to play off basketball but the match-ups are pretty intriguing.
Rondo?- We have no one to match his speed. Help defense is the only answer. If the series is close rondo is the reason.

KG?- I like Jamison on the defense for this one.

Perkins? Shaq/ Varejao? It is difficult to keep Perkins out of the paint but Shaq is to big for him.

Allen? I expect Ray to step it up but Parker’s defense has been excellent on him all year.

Pierce? LBJ? Pierce did not play well vs. Miami. This is the match-up that puts the Cavs over the top in 6.

Cavs have it. Celtics not so much. Pound them down low when Shaq is in the game and run their asses off by going small when he is not. Cavs in 5 or 6

For my heart’s sake, I pray to the basketball gods this doesn’t go seven games. I get far too worked up to survive that.

Realistically, I can’t see this series going any fewer than six games. Ray Allen is going to absolutely murder us at least on game. My best guess is that Boston will take one in Cleveland, most likely tonight. We’ll all panic. But we’ll take games 2 and 3, drop 4 in Boston, then take 5 and 6. On the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the series go exactly as it did in ’08, with the home team winning every game and the series going all 7.

Just popping over from CelticsBlog and have to say this was a great read, love the respect and dignity your giving the Celtics in your writing. Anyway here’s my opinion on the second round series this year between the Cetlics and the Cavaliers. The fan in me says Celtics will take this in 7 Games. The analyst in me says the Cavaliers will take this in 6. But for now, I’ll keep the faith and say Celtics in 7 because I think the majority of the match ups favor us.

Match Ups:

1. Rondo/Mo Williams
Rondo and Mo is a match up that favors us. Rondo can blow by Mo on offense and draw help side defense and then pass out or alternatively just finish at the rim. But defensively Rondo needs to play conservative defense: sticking close, but not gambling. Mo flourishes when playing against a non-prudent defender. A crucial part of this match up is insuring Rondo plays 48 minutes (or more) of efficient and concentrated basketball; he has proved this is an issue many times in the regular season. Advantage goes to the Celtics.

2. Ray Allen/Anthony Parker, Delonte West
If Ray Allen can handle Dwyane Wade, I suspect Ray Allen can get going against AP and Delonte. I think one of the big factor of the series for the Celtics will be Ray Allen and his shot. If Jesus has his touches and they fall. Celtics will win that game, if he doesn’t – granted someone else doesn’t step up in a big way – Celtics will fall. To begin the season Ray’s shot was not falling, but since the All Star break and trade deadline, Ray’s shots and percentages have improved drastically. 51 Games before the All-Star game Ray had a 3 pointer shooting percentage of 33.8% and 45% field goal percentage while averaging 16 ppg. Post All-star game he shot 44.2 percent from 3 point land and 57.7 percent field goal percentage. If he can maintain his shot and Doc gives him his looks Celtics have the advantage.

3. Paul Pierce/ Lebron James
Bad. Bad. Bad. This is not my favorite match up. While PP seems to be getting a little more spring in his step, speed as well as lateral agility in the post-season Mr. Pierce can not handle Lebron James. No one can stop Lebron James. He can try and slow him down and hack Lebron and hope his free throw touch is off. But the key to this match up is making sure the rest of the Cavs do not get their touches and shut them down. As we saw in the first round; one superstar cannot win a series. And offensively in terms of Pierce… Let’s not talk about that. Advantage goes to the Cavaliers.

4. Kevin Garnett/Antawn Jamison
KG and Antawn is a decent match up. Both have a similar skill set in terms of their range and ability to stretch defense. KG will be another exponentially important factor in this series. In my humble opinion if KG is not his dominant self. Celtics cannot win this series. KG has some of his lateral quickness, ferocity and power back – but not all of it – he still seems a little hesitant at times; settling for layups instead of dunks, passing up on blocking shots. Defensively KG can shut Antawn Jamison down. KG is still a very, very good post and help side defender. Advantage goes to the Celtics

5. Kendrick Perkins/Shaquille O’Neil
I truly hope that Perk does not get Shaq in foul trouble because the Cavaliers dominate the Celtics with Varejao and Hickson on the floor. Shaq will be detrimental to the Cavs in this series. Perk has enough of a body to slow Shaq down, offensively we need to see Perk throw up less bricks and allow the game to come more fluidly to him instead of forcing shots. Shaq slows the Cavs down enough so that the Celtics can handle them. Not to say we can’t win with Varejao and Hickson on the floor – Big Baby can counteract their energy to an extent – but it will be more difficult then with Shaq on the floor. Advantage is tied.

I’m not going to go into the Bench right now as this post is long enough, but to add few quick comments about it. If Sheed can step up in a big way. We’ve won the series :-) wishful thinking. I know.

In conclusion: if all the nuances required for success are met, then the Celtics will win. But I find myself doubting these C’s on more than one occasion. Good luck. And I know this will be one good series rest assured

Another C-bloger here to say hi. Enjoyed the article AM-good read. Tonights game has me nervous as hell, as I see this as the Championship.

Most interesting and well written all the time.

He is an asset to this glorious blog.

Cavs in 7

I know this is late since the series already started (with a Cavs win yay!) but my prediction was/is Cavs in 6, and I only think one game turns into a blowout (+15) in our favor … maybe Game 5 here at home. The rest will be hard fought games.