In the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the second seed Boston Celtics will meet the third seed Orlando Magic. Boston went the full run against the Chicago Bulls, the seventh seed, finally beating them in the seventh game. The Magic met and were victorious over the Philadelphia 76ers, taking their series four games to two.
In their series versus the Bulls, the team from Beantown played in seven overtime periods over their first six games. Plus the Celtics, who are the defending NBA champs, had just one day to rest for their series versus the Magic. Boston will be tired and will have to try to win this series, as they did the last, without the ailing Kevin Garnett.
These two clubs split their regular season series. Even without Garnett, the Celtics offer a solid lineup. The backcourt is made up of shooting guard Ray Allen and point guard Rajon Rondo. Both performed well in the firsts series with Allen leading all scorers with 23.1 PPG and Rondo, who put up an average of 19.4 PPG, leading the club in steals (2.7 PG) and assists (11.6 PG). The frontcourt includes Celtic veteran Paul Pierce and his 23.1 PPG. Power forward Glen Davis, who has replaced Garnett, has put up 18.1 PPG and grabbed 6.7 RPG. Kendrick Perkins at center has been massive, blocking an average of 3 SPG and taking down 11.6 RPG.
For the Magic, center Dwight Howard has been a dominant presence. In the series against the 76ers, Howard led the team in scoring (24.0 PPG, rebounding (15.8 RPG) and blocks (2.8 BPG). The six-foot-eleven Howard is a force that must be dealt with if Boston has any chance of getting to the Eastern Conference Finals. At power forward, Rashard Lewis, who averaged 19.2 PPG in the first round, really cranked it up against the 76ers in Games 5 and 6, putting in 24 and 29 points respectively. A few big performances by him could really turn this series in favor of Orlando. Despite the fact that Hedo Turkoglu managed to hit key fourth quarter shots in round one, he was overall cold from the floor, connecting on just 36 percent of his throws. He needs to crank it up a notch. The point spot is manned by Rafer Alston, who proved to be reliable against Philadelphia. The question is who will play the shooting spot for the Magic with Courtney Lee listed as being day-to-day? J.J. Redick could get the nod for the first few games with Lee coming back sometime around game three.
This is a difficult series to call. If Kevin Garnett were available to play, I’d give the nod to Boston. But with Garnett out, the Magic should control the frontcourt. Plus, Orlando has been one of the best road teams in the NBA this season and their defense is better than the Bulls. In order for the Celtics to win, they will have to shoot a lot and hit a high percentage of their attempts while playing “D” every single second. The Magic will take this one in six.
