Hardball Heaven

That's the deal for KG and the Celtics, who are playing the Hawks in a shocking Game 7 today at the Gahden. Atlanta has won all three games in their frenzied arena, and the Celts now need to win all 4 in their gym. I guess home court is pretty important.

Boston's inability to put the final nail in the coffin on the road has been both frustrating and concerning at the same time. I mean, this is a 37-win Atlanta team who snuck its way into the playoffs. What's gonna happen when the C's are playing at Detroit? But credit to the Hawks, whose athleticism is what's been getting in the way of that final nail. Josh Smith, Joe Johnson (thanks Ricky P), and Al Horford are incredible talents. When he's on, Mike Bibby scares you. Josh Childress showed some things in Game 6. They've got a team on the rise.

In my humble opinion, and you may think I'm nuts, I think this particular Boston team really needed to go through some adversity like this as a big gelling, maturity step. I know that sounds like psycho-babble, but if you think about it, this team - and all of its new personalities - was never truly tested during the regular season as they cruised to the best record in the league and made history for the biggest one-year turnaround. Now they've put themselves in a position to erase a season's worth of good with one more loss. I think they win, and learn some valuable things about themselves as they head into a second-round matchup against Cleveland.

Oh, and note to Doc: let Rajon play dammit. Even though his airball three at the end Friday night was painful, the kid shouldn't sit in favor of Cassell.