2012 nba playoffs

The Celtics Are Terrifying the Heat

Rajon Rondo #9 of the Boston Celtics gestures on court as LeBron James #6 of the Miami Heat looks on in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals in the 2012 NBA Playoffs on June 3, 2012 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.
The best player on the court this series.

One of the many reasons we’re eager to see Heroball vanish is the assumption that every final possession of a tight NBA game has little to nothing to do with defense whatsoever; a player misses or makes a shot, in a Heroball world, entirely on his own gumption, guile, or grit, and the teams in the other jerseys, in a narrative sense, might as well not be there at all. A reason it’s going to take Heroball a while to go away is because players still believe in it. Witness Dwyane Wade, after missing a three-pointer that would have won Game 4 for Miami last night, who said afterwards it was “a 5o-5o shot.” Smart ESPN reporter Tom Haberstroh cleared his throat and pointed outahem — that it was actually a “29-71 shot.” That’s amusing. Anyway, the Heat and Celtics are now tied 2-2, just like the Western Conference Finals, and the Heat are looking scared again. Chris Bosh might be back for Game 5 on Tuesday, but at this point, none of these supposed superstars look as good as Rajon Rondo anyway. This is getting fun.

The Celtics Are Terrifying the Heat