Paul Pierce did not play his best in the first round against the Miami Heat, averaging only 19.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 3.2 assists while hitting 46% of his shots.  In round two against the Cleveland Cavaliers he was even worse, putting up only 13.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game, while shooting only 35% from the field.  Thanks to Rajon Rondo’s great overall play in the first two rounds, along with Ray Allen’s shooting, the Celtics were able to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals against an Orlando Magic team that had not even been challenged yet in the playoffs.  Pierce and the Celtics knew coming into this series that it would take more than Rondo filling up the stat sheet for the Celtics to knock off the defending Eastern Conference Champions.  The Celtics needed Pierce to step up his play in this series, and so far so good.  In the first two games (both Boston wins), Pierce is averaging 25.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and is hitting 58% of his shots on a very efficient 14-24 shooting.  He is also doing a good job of drawing fouls and getting to the free throw line, where he has hit 17-21 (81%) in the two games.  Pierce and the Celtics have a commanding 2-0 lead in the series, but that doesn’t mean they can let up.  Dwight Howard the rest of the Magic are hungry to get back to the NBA Finals, so Pierce and company need to continue to play like they have in the first two games and finish off the Magic in as few games as possible.

In Rajon Rondo’s short career with the Boston Celtics so far, he seems to always step up when it matters most.  Rondo, who has to be considered one of the top point guards in the game, brings out his best game every postseason.  He was a key reason the Celtics won the 2008 NBA Championship, although the “Big 3″ get most of the credit.  Remember, however, that many doubted the Celtics could win a title with the then inexperienced Rondo running the point.  He shut his critics up then, and he has continued to do so since.  He already puts up some great numbers in the regular season, but in each of the last three year’s Rondo has significantly improved his numbers in the playoffs.  This year he is having a monster postseason, averaging 17.7 points, 11.0 assists, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.8 steals.  He is shooting 48% from the field and has added the three-pointer to his arsenal by hitting 43% (6/14) behind the arc.  During the regular season Rondo only averaged 13.7 points, 9.8 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.3 steals.  Rondo’s 29 points, 18 rebounds, 13 assists, ans 2 steals in game four against the Cavaliers was one of the best postseason performances by a point guard ever.  It helped the Celtics tie the series 2-2 and it gave them the momentum leading into their game five blowout win over the Cavs on Tuesday night.  Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen may still be the “Big 3″, but if the Celtics make it back to the NBA Finals this season Rondo deserves most of the credit.

Veteran shooting guard Ray Allen heard the whispers that the Celtics were trying to trade him. Allen has played in 77 games (all starts) for the Celtics so far this season and he is averaging 35.3 minutes, 16.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He still is a solid shooter too hitting 47.5% from the floor, 36.2% from three point range and 91.1% from the free throw line. Allen will be motivated to finish the season strongly as he will be a free agent this summer.

25-year old Kendrick Perkins has really stepped up for the Celtics this season. He has played in 52 games (all starts) for the Celtics this season and he is averaging 28.6 minutes, 11.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.9 blocked shots per game. Perkins is shooting an outstanding 61% from the floor this season. Perkins has now played in 416 games (302 starts) in his seven years with the Celtics and he is averaging 22.0 minutes, 6.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.4 blocked shots per game. The Celtics will gradually give Perkins more responsibility as the rest of the team continues to get older.

Rajon Rondo has been getting a lot of credit ever since the Boston Celtics won the 2008 NBA Championship.  A lot of it was deserved, with Rondo putting up some great stat lines as the starting point guard for an NBA championship team, along with his continued improvement since 2008.  The only problem I have is that Rondo has been doing this with three future Hall-of-Famers in Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen.  Now with Paul Pierce not at 100% and missing some games recently, an ailing KG, and an aging Allen, will Rondo continue to put up his near triple-double stat lines?  I’m not so sure he will, and I’m also not so sure that is what the Celtics need out of him.  Without Pierce and KG scoring like they used to, Rondo needs to put some more points on the board.  He is young and healthy, and the Celtics really need a boost when it comes to scoring, especially without Pierce.  Rondo is averaging a career-high 14.4 points this season, but in his last 5 games he is averaging 18.8 points.   He deserves a lot of credit for this, as he still has been dishing the ball well.  He has even been extending his shooting range a bit, going 2-3 from three against Miami last Wednesday and 2-2 last night against Orlando.  The Celtics need him to continue to score like this until Pierce and KG get back to their old form (if they can).  If Rondo can not continue to score at this pace, the Celtics may be in big trouble.

A month ago it seemed like the Celtics were going to run away with the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. But they have only won 3 of their last 10 games and don’t look now but the Raptors are only 4.5 games behind them. They have also fallen to fourth in the Eastern Conference. Part of the problem is the Celtics have been playing poorly at home as they are 13-8 there this season. The good news is that they are 16-8 on the road this year. They need a little more out of the offense as they are averaging 99.1 points per game but they are still tough on D allowing only 93.8 points per game. I think the Celtics will need to monitor the minutes that Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnestt get in the second half of the season because these guys are getting a little long in tooth.

The Boston Celtics have hit the low point of their season after losing to the Detroit Pistons (15-26) last night, making it their 5th loss in 7 games.  However, you cannot blame Paul Pierce for the Celtics current losing ways.  Pierce is playing hard, leading the team in scoring, and shooting a great percentage (especially from three).  Pierce is shooting 47% from the field and 47% from three, while averaging 18.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.3 steals.  With Kevin Garnett out, the Celtics have really struggled.  He is expected to return tomorrow, but it will take some time for KG to get back into form.  In the meantime, perhaps Pierce should get some more shots since he is shooting the ball so well.  He is only averaging 12.4 shots per game and has not shot more than 19 shots in one game all season.  The Celtics’ point totals have been hovering in the 80′s and 90′s lately, so maybe it is time for Pierce to put up some more shots and take on more of the scoring load, especially with the way he has been shooting the ball this season.

Kendrick Perkins is having by far his best season with the Boston Celtics this year. He has played in 39 games (all starts) for the Celtics this season and he is averaging 29.3 minutes, 12.4 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 2.1 blocked shots per game. His shooting range seems to be expanding a little bit every game as he is hitting 63.9% of his shots from the floor this season. Perkins’ next trick should be improving his free throw shooting as he is only hitting 59.6% from the charity stripe. Perkins is looking like he and Rajon Rondo will be the major players for the Celtics down the road in the future.

Rajon Rondo is playing very well for the Celtics this season. He has played in 20 games (all starts) this season and he is averaging 33.3 minutes, 11.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 9.0 assists and 2.6 steals per game. Rondo is shooting very well from the floor hitting 54.5% from the floor but he is having serious issues at the free throw line as he is only making 40.6% of them. Rondo is the man who makes it all go for the Celtics as his defense and passing often get the break going resulting in easy points.

Starting center Kendrick Perkins is playing the best basketball of his NBA career right now for the Celtics. He has played in 15 games (all starts) for the Celtics this season and he is averaging 26.4 minutes, 10.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 2.0 blocked shots per game. The Celtics just require Perkins to play defense and rebound but he has developed a decent mid-range shot which is making him very hard to defend because of his size. The Celtics hope that Perkins can keep up the good work because the team is really benefitting from it.