The Three Point Play 05.05.08: Beatdown in Boston, East and West Semi-Finals Begin, and Rick Carlisle

Posted by Blake Lovell on 05.05.2008

So I guess the Celtics finally decided that they would like to be a part of the Semi-Final Round? Meanwhile the Pistons, Hornets, and Lakers all pick up victories in Game 1. And is Rick Carlisle the soon-to-be head coach of the Dallas Mavericks?

Hello basketball fans, and welcome to another playoff edition of The Three Point Play. It was a good weekend of action in the Association, although most of the games were blowouts. That's kind of hard to believe given that we are down to the Semis. There will be those types of games early on in series, but once the teams get use to each other, we should be in for some great games. Hopefully we won't see any like that Celtics-Hawks Game 7 though. I would also like to advise you to check out 411's Second Round Roundtable, which is now up in the Sports section of the site. There you will find predictions from the sporting staff on the second round matchups. It's an interesting read without question, so be sure to check that out in the near future. But with tons of NBA action going on, let's jump into the big stories of the weekend that was in the National Basketball Association.

1. It's Not a Sprint, It's a Marathon

So the Celtics finally knocked out the stingy Hawks. If you picked this series to go seven games, you are either A) a Hawks fan or B) a liar. Record-wise, the Hawks were the worst team heading into the playoffs, but made a strong statement against that. Game 7 provided a blowout, as the Celtics took control early and never looked back. Quite frankly, the Celtics could have beat the Hawks by 60 if they wanted to. Atlanta's youth showed from the very beginning, as guys like Josh Smith and Al Horford looked completely out of whack. Joe Johnson had a decent shooting performance, but wasn't particularly the same Joe Johnson we've seen in recent games. The Hawks just didn't have the depth to compete with this loaded Celtics team.

Now the Celtics face some tough questions. Why haven't they won a road playoff game yet? These guys were unstoppable at times on the road in the regular season, yet they lost three games in Atlanta. If they can't win in Atlanta, how are they going to win in Cleveland? Or Detroit? Or San Antonio? The Big Three aren't playing bad on the road, but the younger guys are struggling. Rajon Rondo hasn't played at the level that he played at during the regular season. If the Celtics are going to make a deep run in the playoffs, Rondo has to handle himself better on the road. The Celtics could always turn to Cassell full-time, but at this point in his career, Cassell isn't going to play 40 minutes a game.

There's also another important question. Will this series have a carry-over effect? While the length of this series was certainly a surprise, does it really matter in the overall scheme of things? The Celtics could go two ways here. They could continue to struggle on the road, and let Cleveland possibly eliminate them. Or they could start playing like they are capable of playing on the road, and eliminate Cleveland in a hurry. The Celtics are too talented, and have too much leadership to let the struggles in the series with the Hawks carry over. They need to forget about this series as a whole (except for maybe the second half of Game 7, in which they were absolutely unstoppable), and focus on stopping Lebron. If they thought facing Joe Johnson for seven games was tough, then they better get ready for a battle when King James comes to town.

2. One Game at a Time

The home teams certainly made statements this past weekend, as all three won their semi-final opener. In what was a snooze fest of a game in Detroit, the Pistons easily handled the Magic in Game 1 of their series. The thumb injury to Dwight Howard didn't help matters at all for the Magic, as they didn't seem to have much energy or spark to them after midway through the third quarter. Howard at less than 100% is not good news at all, and my prediction of the Magic in six may be going down the drain. The Magic are going to need more production out of their bench if they want to advance. Maybe the Magic will catch the Pistons with the switched turned off in the next game, and tie it up heading to Orlando.

As for the Hornets, they continue to make me and many others look ridiculous, as they took down the Spurs in Game 1. While the Spurs did have leads at points during the game, the Hornets used the home-court advantage and took over the game in the second half. David West was a beast as usual, and Tim Duncan was not a beast at all. It just seemed like Duncan never got any rhythm going at all, which was very surprising to say the least. Tony Parker was brilliant as usual, but without Duncan's production, the Spurs just couldn't get it done. I wouldn't expect Duncan to play that bad again though. Look for him to have a big game in Game 2.

In the third semi-final game of the weekend, the Lakers and Jazz battled it out, with hard fouls a plenty. Even though the Lakers eventually won, the Jazz put up a good fight in my opinion. That kind of play from the Jazz is why I expect this series to be a lengthy one, perhaps going to a 7th game. Ronnie Brewer and Paul Millsap are going to play a huge role in this series for the Jazz, as they had good contribution in Game 1. However, the Jazz have to find some outside shooting somewhere if they want to win. Also, will someone on Utah decide to guard Sasha Vujacic? The guy just kept hitting shots, and Jazz defenders just kept getting farther and farther away. It was like he had some type of illness, and they didn't want to get near him. He's going to play a huge role for the Lakers in this series, as he is an excellent shooter. As for Kobe, he looked like Kobe until the fourth quarter. His biggest challenge was hitting the rim at times in the fourth, but the Lakers still got it done.

3. Rick C to the Big D?

Numerous reports have indicated that former Pistons/Pacers coach Rick Carlisle is set to become the new head man in Dallas. With the current choices that are available on the coaching free agent market, this seems like a good pickup by Mark Cuban and the front office staff. Carlisle did take the Pistons and the Pacers to the Eastern Conference Finals, although his overall playoff record is 30-32. While Carlisle's overall record may not indicate it, his trips to the conference finals prove that he can win come playoff time.

Carlisle seems to have the kind of coaching style that can mesh well with Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki. One of the problems that seemed to continually pop up during Avery Johnson's reign in Dallas was that he was extremely strict, and his point-guard style mentality didn't go well with point guard Kidd. Carlisle, at least on the outside, seems to be more of the laid back type, though he will surely need to bring some discipline to some of the guys in the Mavs locker room. If Carlisle could control some of the teams he had in Detroit and Indiana, he should have no trouble in Dallas. I mean, surely you all remember the brawl in Detroit, in which Carlisle's visiting Pacers took matters into their own hands, and decided to start punching random fans. Carlisle has had to put up with Ron Artest, so he will find any disciplinary problems in Dallas to be a cakewalk.

But ultimately, Carlisle's success (if he in fact is named the coach, which all signs to seem to point towards him right now) will depend on the players. It will certainly be interesting to see what type of roster moves are made in the off-season. As I've stated in a previous column, lots of moves need to be made in order to ensure success come playoff time. The current roster can definitely win in the regular season. But Cuban is no longer satisfied with winning in the regular season. The fans in Dallas are no longer satisfied with winning in the regular season. It's championship or bust in the Big D.

The Bonus

- And the Most Likely to Sign a WWE Contract After Retirement Award goes to the Hawks' Marvin Williams for his running clothesline on Rajon Rondo in Game 7. That may have been the jumpstart the Celtics needed. Not to defend what Williams did, but he was trying to catch Rondo. However, if you're gonna do something like that, you better catch him, or it looks really, really bad.

- And the Most Likely to Sign a NHL Contract After Retirement Award goes to Kevin Garnett for his body check on Zaza Pachulia in the third quarter of Game 7. Pachulia looked like he ran into a wall. It looked like a legal screen to me.

- Speaking of fouls, when is the last time someone actually committed a foul in the NBA? Every time someone gets called for a foul, they pull out the innocent card, and start going crazy. Some of the guys need to get over it, and realize that fouls actually do occur. Oh, and sorry Kobe, just because someone touches you doesn't mean it's a foul.

That's it for this edition of The Three Point Play. Tune in next time for more news and notes from around the NBA. Happy Cinco de Mayo!