Flopping in the NBA takes a good amount of acting. Paul Pierce and Rasheed Wallace aren’t known to flop on the court, but after a recent trip to the Ellis Memorial After School Program in Roxbury, they both showed they indeed have acting skills.

Pierce and ‘Sheed were part of an act based on the children’s book “The Clever Boy and the Terrible, Dangerous Animal” by Idries Shah, as part of the team’s Read to Achieve program.

After seeing a portion of it during ABC’s coverage Sunday’s game against the Magic, I felt it necessary to share with you, the reader. I found a pretty good version on NESN.com. Check it out below: Continue reading Video: Paul Pierce, Rasheed Wallace Star in School Play »

It appears Paul Pierce has gotten his wish. He will participate in the three-point contest at the NBA All-Star Game a week from today in Dallas. No Boston player has won since Larry Bird, who won the initial competition in 1986.

Pierce has fired with tremendous accuracy from long distance this season, as he has hit 47% of his three-point attempts, good for third in the league.

The Celtics captain will be competing with Chauncey Billups (Denver), Stephen Curry (Golden State), Danilo Gallinari (New York), Channing Frye (Phoenix), and last year’s winner, Daequon Cook (Miami).

We all know that captain Paul Pierce is clearly the team’s leader, but who knew that without him the Celtics would have trouble with one of the worst teams in NBA history? Believe it or not, the Nets led the Celtics at the half and after three quarters before the Celtics survived the scare and beat the Nets 96-87.

Ray Allen stepped up without his teammate, putting up a game-high 26 points (3-7 from beyond the arc) with seven rebounds. Rajon Rondo again looked like the best player on the floor at times, as he finished with 17 points, 11 assists, and three steals. Both players, for most of the game, were the only productive Celtics against a Nets team that has just four wins all season (4-45). Continue reading Celtics Survive Scare, Surge Ahead to Beat Nets »

This was the type of game the Celtics need to play. There wasn’t a blowout at any point, the Celtics didn’t make desperate shots to interrupt momentum, and they kept beating down their opponent to defeat the Heat, 107-102. Last time against the Heat, Dwayne Wade mustered 44 points in a Celtics victory, and this time, he managed 30 points as the Celtics completed the season sweep.

The Celtics kept it close, with no team leading by more than seven until the middle of the 4th quarter, when the Celtics took a 10-point lead. Until then, it was a close match all the way, with each team trading shots and rebounds the whole game. The Celtics really stepped up their game early by not forcing too many long shots. Out of 27 1st quarter points, 26 were in the paint and one was from the foul line. Continue reading Celtics Control The Tempo For Another Win »

There’s been some movement over the past week, particularly in the lower seeds of the Western Conference, where the Grizzlies have faded back out of the race, 1.5 games behind the Blazers. The lower East seeds have kept playoff spots, but have shuffled the first round match-ups around.

Also, remember when the Celtics lost only one home game in the 1985-1986 season? The Nets could easily win only one road game this season; they’re on pace to win seven games overall, which I would love to see. With only 2.0 games separating the East’s #8 and #9, and 1.5 separating the West’s counterparts, let’s look at what would happen if the playoffs started as of Thursday, February 4 at 12:35am (sans the late games):

West:

#1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. #8 Portland Trailblazers

Portland has been slipping a tad lately, but then again, the Lakers have been slightly iffy themselves. By all rights, they could have beaten Boston much more easily, and were barely holding off the Bobcats late. If they can be forced to seven games by last year’s Rockets, this year’s Trailblazers can do the same, though an upset is still highly unlikely. Continue reading If the Playoffs Started Today – NBA Week 14 »