Keys to Game 3

Last night was huge. If the Celtics lost they would have gone down 2-0 and there is no way that the Lakers would blow a 2-0 lead in the Finals. Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo made sure the series will return to Boston tomorrow night tied at 1-1 and they received plenty of help from Rasheed Wallace, Glen Davis, Tony Allen, Kendrick Perkins, and Nate Robinson. Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett also contributed but watching the game gave me the feeling that the C's almost won in spite of two of their biggest (and most important) superstars. Pierce had two horrible offensive games to start the Finals but he has played solid defense and hit the boards. Garnett has been a shell of the player who dominated Cleveland and who made some clutch plays against Orlando. For the Celtics to take control of this series over the three games in the Hub, Pierce and Garnett need to be more assertive on offense. Garnett also needs to become more aggressive on the defensive end to prevent Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum from having a field day inside the paint. A return to the Garden should wake up both players, who see their chances at a second championsip in three years improving after earning a split in L.A... Some other tips for Doc Rivers: use Brian Scalabrine over Shelden "Mrs. Parker" Williams as the fifth big man and try and find minutes for Robinson in order to give Rondo periodic breaks. Scalabrine will be more effective as a shooter who can space the floor and will not make any bonehead plays like the Williams turnover at the end of the first half last night that resulted in a Kobe Bryant three-pointer that swung the momentum to the Lakers. "Nasty" Nate can provide instant offense (7 points in 6 minutes last night) while keeping Rondo from being driven to exhaustion... As a defensive minded basketball coach myself, I could not be happier for Celtics associate head coach Tom Thibodeau, who will take over as head coach of the Chicago Bulls as soon as the Duck Boats roll through the streets of Boston sometime next week... One memo to the referees: let the players - from both teams - play so that the stars decide the game. No one wants to watch Ray Allen (Game 1) and Kobe Bryant (Game 2) sit through key stretches of the game because of ticky-tack fouls. These are the two most talented and physical (not counting Gasol) teams in the world so lose the quick whistles... Speaking of Ray Allen, WOW...