Random Thoughts (November 4, 2010)

Congratulations are in order for Paul Pierce, who joined John Havlicek and Larry Bird as the only Celtics to score at least 20,000 points in last nights 105-102 overtime win over the Bucks. Pierce hit two critical free throws with 13 seconds left in overtime to reach the 20,000 point plateau and give his team some breating room. He would hit four more, finishing the night with 20,005 career points. For the game, Pierce tallied 28 points. The Celtics are now off to a 4-1 start. They host Derrick Rose and the Bulls tomorrow night before heading to the Midwest to face Kevin Durant's Thunder and Dirk Nowitzki's Mavericks on Sunday and Monday. The early schedule has been tough but the veteran C's have made the point early in the season that the road to the Eastern Conference title runs through Boston... Three other Celtic thoughts:

1. The Kevin Garnett-Charlie Villanueva "feud" should never have been the business of the public. Even if KG said what Villanueva claims he said, the Pistons forward should not have made it national news by posting the details on Twitter. Garnett can help this go away by writing a nice check for cancer research.
2. The age of the Celtics is becoming an issue just a few games into the season. 38-year-old center Shaquille O'Neal has already missed two games after suffering from a leg injury sustained against the Knicks last week and 32-year-old center Jermaine O'Neal is still playing himself into shape after pulling his hamstring muscle in the preseason. The strength of the Celtics is their depth and experience and Doc Rivers will have to be careful not to overplay his older stars too much in the regular season in order to make sure they are healthy for the playoffs.
3. There is not enough praise to shower on Rajon Rondo. I take pride in my belief that Rondo is the Larry Bird for this generation of Boston fans for his ability to use his multiple talents to find a way to lead the Celtics to victory and his rare ability to make one or two plays each night that make you stand up and unleash a roar of "OOOHHHH" and "AAAHHHH" noises. Rondo also has now earned a comparison with the legandary Magic Johnson because with his 15 assists last night, Rondo has broken Magic's NBA record of 81 assists through the season's first five games. Rondo has 82 assists for an average of 16.4 per game.

The Bruins continue to roll behind the MVP-caliber goaltending of Tim Thomas and a potent offense that has multiple players contributing points on a nightly basis.

Last night's 5-2 victory in Buffalo was led by Thomas' 33 saves and five different B's found the back of the net. The win pushed the Bruins record to 7-2-0 (14 points) which is good for fifth in the Eastern Conference but it is important to note that the Bruins have played less games because of starting their season in Europe.

This is a solid team that should contend to win the club's first Stanley Cup since 1972...

While many people were closely watching where Randy Moss would land after he was placed on waivers by the Vikings yesterday - he ended up with the Titans if you weren't paying any attention - I was keeping an eye on the destination of Shawne Merriman, who was let go by the Chargers.

Merriman has been a dominant pass rusher early in his career (39.5 sacks in his first three years) but injuries have slowed down the production of the 26-year-old product of the University of Maryland.

I was hoping that the Patriots would have had an opportunity to take a chance on Merriman but their AFC East rivals in Buffalo claimed him. The Bills are taking a worthwile shot that Merriman can regain his former All-Pro status and get after the likes of Tom Brady and Mark Sanchez...

Enjoy the return of Tom Thibodeau tomorrow night...