http://www.covers.com/includes/articles.aspx?theArt=22424&tid=25&t=2
NBA Wed, Apr 14, 2004
(1) Indiana vs. (8) Boston
Jason Lake
The "Larry Bird" series is all set.
As a player, Bird led the Boston Celtics to three NBA titles. As
a coach, the pride of French Lick took the Indiana Pacers to the
2000 finals. Now the President of Basketball Operations has
Indiana at the top of the overall standings.
When the sixth-seeded Celtics upset the Pacers four games to two
in the first round last year, Bird wasn't involved with either
team. He resigned as Indiana's coach after the 2000 finals to
pursue ownership opportunities. Not finding what he wanted, Bird
joined the Pacers front office last July.
Bird didn't take long to put his stamp on the club, firing coach
Isiah Thomas and hiring his former assistant, Rick Carlisle. That
move proved to be a major upgrade between last season's Pacers and
this year's model.
By preaching defense, Carlisle lowered Indiana's points allowed
from 93.3 per game to 85.5. The improvement paid big dividends,
especially on the road, where Indiana blossomed from 16-25 last
year to a league-best 27-14. Pacers supporters also cashed in big
on the road at 26-15 against the spread.
Still smarting from last year's playoff upset, Indiana will seek
revenge against a Boston team heading in the opposite direction.
In his first season as Director of Basketball Operations, Danny
Ainge has overhauled the Celtics in an effort to convert them from
a middling franchise into a team with some offensive punch and a
brighter future.
Ainge was prepared to sacrifice this season to realize his vision.
His trade of stalwart defenders Eric Williams, Tony Battie and
Kedrick Brown to Cleveland for noted malcontent Ricky Davis and
underachieving Chris Mihm drove coach Jim O'Brien to tender his
resignation.
But a funny thing happened on the way to the lottery. Boston made
the playoffs.
Davis and Mihm played well in reserve roles. Jiri Welsch, a prospect
who was included in the package that sent Antoine Walker to Dallas,
emerged as Boston's starting shooting guard. Mark Blount stepped into
the starting rotation in Battie's absence and became one of the few
good centers in the East. And Paul Pierce managed to fight through
injuries to post 23 points per game in 80 starts.
Most importantly for the Celtics, they were able to back into the
eighth seed while Cleveland, Philadelphia and Toronto folded down
the stretch. The C's have the dubious distinction of being the worst
team to make the playoffs since the NBA went to an 82-game schedule
in 1967.
During the regular season, Indiana won three of four games against
the C's, splitting the cash in the process. But Boston doesn't look
capable of putting up much of a fight against the Pacers in the
postseason.
Indiana is deep at every position and relatively healthy. As for the
Celtics, Pierce rolled his right ankle Apr. 7 against Miami, and was
advised to sit out the last two games of the season in order to rest
for the playoffs.
Desperate for a guard to back up Chucky Atkins, Boston signed
37-year-old Dana Barros to a 10-day contract. The former Celtic
hasn't played in the NBA in two years.
And then there's the revenge factor. Suffering the upset to Boston
has lit a fire under the Pacers, and while just a handful of Celtics
remain from last year's playoffs, Indiana's roster remains largely
intact.
"Losing puts a fire inside you," Jermaine O'Neal told the
Indianapolis Star. "If you're competitive and you want to win,
losing the way we lost last year will make you play the way we're
playing this year."
Covers prediction: Indiana in four
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 218.166.88.219