The Celtics won their 14th straight last night. At 22-2, they’re the best team in the league.
Here’s part of my recap from today’s E-T:
BOSTON — So what if James Posey gives bigger, longer hugs than my mom. Fans at TD Banknorth Garden aren’t afraid to boo, which they did after he hit a 3-pointer in the first quarter.
Like Bill Walton in 1986, Posey was invaluable as a sixth man here. Also like Walton, he only lasted a season. But unlike injury-felled Big Red, Posey won a title and left as a free agent on his own accord.
The question is, do the Celtics a player like Posey?
The answer is no. Not yet at least.
Despite all the love thrown Posey’s way — owner Wyc Grousbeck gave the 6-foot-8 forward his championship ring before the game and Doc Rivers gave him a bear hug during the mini-ceremony — Boston is doing just fine without him.
And while Rivers said the bench has been inconsistent, there hasn’t exactly been much of a drop off in production. The Celtics, after all, are off to the best start in franchise history. They beat Posey and the New Orleans Hornets 94-82 last night, surviving a sloppy first half (11 turnovers).
“Tonight was one of those games you’re really happy because you didn’t play well,” Rivers said. “Foul trouble. Frustration. We had to go with different lineups.”
Last night’s bench performance was excellent. Leon Powe, Eddie House, Glen Davis and Tony Allen joined Paul Pierce on the floor to start the fourth quarter. Except for Powe, who Kevin Garnett replaced at 8:51, the same crew remained on the floor until 5:37, when Ray Allen replaced Tony Allen. Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo returned soon after, restoring order.
All in all, the reserves did yeoman’s work, extending what had been a five-point lead after three quarters to an 82-69 advantage with 6:43 left.
“The second unit was terrific. They just did all the little things,” said Rivers, who watched the Hornets cut the lead to 89-82 with 2:32 left before Boston closed out the game on a 5-0 run. “They didn’t do any one thing that was great. They did a lot of good things. They got all the loose balls. They made all the tough plays.”
House had a big night, finishing with nine points on a trio of 3-pointers. He also made his presence felt on defense, somehow staying with New Orleans point guard Chris Paul (20 points, 14 assists). Paul looked brilliant at times but House kept him from going on a scoring spree.
“Going into the game you would’ve thought (Rajon) Rondo would be the better defender on Chris Paul,” Rivers said. “Tonight, for whatever reason, it was Eddie.”
Bench play, however, is moot when Paul Pierce is rolling. He scored 28 points to lead the Celtics, who improved to a league-best 22-2. The run-and-gun Hornets, which had won seven of their last eight, looked great at times but were pretty kept under wraps by Boston’s tenacious defense. New Orleans shot 35.4 percent for the night.
It wasn’t pretty, but against a title contender, the Celtics will take it.
“This team is mentally tough,” Pierce said. “We’ve shown, we’ve proved it and we don’t make excuses. The good thing about it is we just try to find ways to win.”
Posey’s absence may not have changed the Celtics’ aggressive approach, but Rivers didn’t like seeing him in a teal uniform last night.
“He was up to those same tricks,” Rivers said. “Last year I liked what he did. Flops, charges, grabbing, holding, getting away with hitting on the arm. Today I complained about Pos the entire game.”
“When he took that charge on me,” Tony Allen said, “I said, ‘There goes James Posey again.’ Then he got another charge on Leon, and I was just like, ‘There goes James Posey again.’ ”
There’s clearly not much friction between Posey and his former teammates. A few months ago, he began text messaging well wishes.
“I jokingly said — well I wasn’t joking — but I said, ‘I’ll see you all in late June,’ ” Posey said.
By then, both the Hornets and Celtics should know just how important Posey’s presence is.
