Celtics fade away with weak effort
HOWARD ULMAN,THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, Cape Cod Times
Indiana won three times in Boston, capped off by a Game 7 rout. BOSTON — Larry Bird left the arena with 31/2 minutes left and his Indiana Pacers showing the same combination of passion and composure …
https://www.gannett-cdn.com/sites/capecodtimes/images/favicon.png
Cape Cod Times
Indiana won three times in Boston, capped off by a Game 7 rout. BOSTON — Larry Bird left the arena with 31/2 minutes left and his Indiana Pacers showing the same combination of passion and composure that made him one of the NBA's greatest players.

His former team, the Boston Celtics, showed neither of those qualities.

"All of us can improve," Boston coach Doc Rivers said after one of the worst playoff losses in the history of a team that has won 16 NBA championships. "I told our guys that. I said 'Nobody is above improvement in this locker room, ever."'

The Celtics were eliminated by Indiana in the first round for the second straight year, losing their third game at home of the best-of-seven series 97-70 on Saturday night and dropping the series 4-3.

They showed their passion the wrong way with six technical fouls in Game 7 - with veterans Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker getting one each - and 13 individual technicals in the series. Their promising youngsters showed the inconsistencies of youth.

Throughout the series, the Celtics shooting, defense and ball movement were inconsistent and they had little low-post scoring.

Bird, now Indiana's president for basketball operations, has been away from the Celtics as long as he was with them, 13 years. Since then, they've won just three playoff series. In their last seventh game in Boston 17 years ago, they won 118-116 as Bird scored 20 points in a fourth quarter shootout with Atlanta's Dominique Wilkins.

Al Jefferson was just — years old then, but the power forward is the key to the Celtics future just one year out of high school. He and fellow rookies Delonte West, Tony Allen and Justin Reed exceeded expectations. So did second-year pros Marcus Banks and Kendrick Perkins.

Their development was significant since free agent veterans Walker and Gary Payton may not return.

"The number one thing that they are going to take from this is how much it hurts," Rivers said of the 27-point loss. "That will drive you."

Rivers became coach on April 29, 2004 and soon was faced with a tough task - trying to win while rebuilding and installing an uptempo offense. The results showed in the last third of the season when the Celtics went 18-9 after Walker was obtained from Atlanta and their passion and composure brought success.

The team Rivers finished the season with had six players who weren't there when it began. But center Raef LaFrentz stayed healthy after missing most of last season, Payton was a steady hand at point guard and the rookies did well.

"There were a lot of question marks going into the season," Pierce said. "There are a lot of positive things."

If Payton leaves, the experience Banks and West got at point guard will be more valuable. If Walker leaves, Boston's major inside presence will be the 20-year-old Jefferson and that's not bad.

In the seven playoff games against the Pacers, he averaged 6.1 points and 6.4 rebounds in 19 minutes per game. In the regular season, he averaged 6.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 14.8 minutes.

On the court, Jefferson was mature and focused beyond his years - even pulling Ricky Davis away when the swingman started jawing with one of the Pacers in Game 7. But after that game, he and the other young players cried in the locker room.

"Al walked into my office after that and he was still crying," Rivers said. "I love their passion. That is something that our young guys gave our older guys."

The biggest disappointment was center Mark Blount, more of a shooter than an inside player. Last July he signed a six-year, $42 million contract but he played only 43 minutes in four games against Indiana.

He lost his starting job when the Celtics acquired Walker on Feb. 24 when Boston was 27-28.

"I like the nucleus that we have in place," Walker said. "Being in Boston is my number one priority."

His return depends on how much the Celtics are willing to pa how much he wants. Payton, who preferred to be on the West Coast where his family lives, may be tougher to keep.

Most of the players should be back, and the Pacers showed the Celtics how important continuity is. Beset by suspensions and injuries during the season, Indiana had an experienced group of nine players who were on the team last season plus two key veterans - Stephen Jackson and Dale Davis.

The 6-foot-10, 265-pound Jefferson lacks that experience but has good hands, low-post moves and a tenacity that allows him to grab rebounds seemingly out of his range.

"We were depending on a 20-year-old player to give us low-post scoring," Rivers said, "but Al will improve."

For now, the emotions of the end of his first pro season linger.

"It's my rookie year," Jefferson said. "I had a good year but I'm walking off the court in defeat. Going home."

(Published: May 9, 2005)