Allen: Celtics can't win
This week on sports radio has been one of the most aggravating in recent memory. The hosts of the various programs have spent their entire shows telling us how the Celtics cannot win. They tell us the fact that the Atlanta Hawks took the Celtics to seven games means that they can't win it all. They tell us that the fact that the Celtics lost three road games in the first series is a sure sign of doom.
It's the same stuff over and over and over. For some reason I listened. I've turned it off, finally, after I realized I had listened to the same garbage nonstop for two days.
Why do I listen even though it annoys the hell out of me? I think I clearly have a problem.
On Monday morning, with much ceremony, a a particular host noted for his long-winded, unctuous rants pulled out a list which he proceeded to read on the air. The list was all the times the Celtics had scored a huge win in the postseason and what the result was the following game. In the list he read, the Celtics won big in one game, and then proceeded to lose the next. He presented this as ironclad evidence that the Celtics will suffer a letdown in game one against the Cavaliers and lose.
Of course, all the scenarios he read off were from the 1980's. What that has to do with the current team, I really don't know. Also, in all of those blowouts, the next game was against the same team. When this was pointed out to Dennis, he claimed it didn't make any difference and that in tonight's case, the Celtics are coming off the blowout win and playing a better team than they did on Sunday, so logically they should lose by even more.
Does anyone else see the sheer stupidity in this contrived argument?
In the scenarios he read off, wouldn't the opposing team have been embarrassed and come back the next game determined for some payback? The Cavs tonight aren't coming in looking to avenge a blowout loss on Sunday. They might win the game, but not because the Celtics had a blowout win on Sunday.
The radio talking heads have been harping, whining and worrying about the Celtics based on the small sample size of seven games. The 82 games of the regular season have been dismissed, and the Celtics are in deep trouble according to their expertise. One alleged NBA historian and expert spouted off Monday about the fact that no team who went to seven games in the first round has ever made it past the Conference finals. Pretty impressive sounding stat.
Until you realize that the first round has only been seven games since 2003.
On another frequency, you can tune in and listen to endless talk about Kevin Garnett not being able to get it done in the postseason. The claim is that he shies away from the ball in the fourth quarter of big games, and won't take the big shots. This is being stated as though it is an established fact. I hope the two hoops in the closing seconds of game one against the Cavs start to put this mistaken notion to rest.
It sure seems like sports radio is itching for some pre-2004 talk. Back then they could fret and worry over the Red Sox and their streak of futility. They haven't been able to nag for days on end about "worrying signs" - the Celtics have given this annoying format new life in recent days, my sincere hope is that they put an end to such talk very soon.
Bruce Allen is the creator of Boston Sports Media Watch, which has recently been recognized by SI.com as one of the best non-corporate sports web site's on the Internet.
