Celtics - Getting Inside

Mike Bibby got the Boston crowd riled when he called the Celtic fans bandwagon jumpers. But it couldn’t have pleased him much to see so many Green People at Game 3 in Atlanta, with the promise of another healthy Celt following at Game 4 Monday.

Really, however, it’s nothing new in Atlanta.

“We had just as much green in our building as we had red, and I was mad as hell about that,” said Dominique Wilkins of the 1980s rivalry days. “Oh, I was mad as hell. I took it personally. We all took it personal. But that’s what made the rivalry so great.”

Doc Rivers, now the Celtics coach but then the Atlanta point guard, nodded.

“Yeah, it used to (expletive) us off,” he said. “But, honestly, it wasn’t just the Celtics. The Sixers and the Lakers had followings, too. Those were the three teams when I played that you’d be at home, look into the crowd and say, ‘Damn, there’s more of them than us.’

“They had a history and we didn’t, so that’s who you would follow growing up.”

Wilkins admits to being one of the followers.

“I lived and breathed basketball,” he said. “I grew up in Georgia, but Boston, Philadelphia and L.A. were my favorite teams growing up. All the good teams. They were the ones who were always on national TV. You didn’t have games on cable every night like you do now. You couldn’t help but love those guys.

“And it’s not just that. The Celtics come from such great tradition. Who wouldn’t want to follow them? Who wouldn’t? I mean, growing up, I loved the Celtics. I loved Jo Jo White, (Cedric) Maxwell … a lot of guys.”

As for the rest of the green in his building, Wilkins said, “I think a lot of people in Georgia are from the New England area. There’s so many people who live in Atlanta who are from the north. It’s amazing how big a transient city it is, and it’s even more so now.”

Hawks 102, Celtics 93: The Hawks waited until Game 3 to put together a concerted and aggressive effort, and the Celtics did not respond to it well.

Josh Smith had 27 points and Joe Johnson added 23 as Atlanta moved to within 2-1 in the first-round series with a fairly comfortable win Saturday night at home.

The game was even at the half, and it remained that way when Kevin Garnett hit two free throws with 6:31 left in the third quarter. But the Hawks finished that period with a 16-6 run and never trailed again.

The Celtics fell away from their team concepts when things got tough.

“That’s just not our character,” said coach Doc Rivers. “We haven’t done it. But this is our first playoffs as a team. I told the guys after the game I thought each guy wanted to win the game by themselves, which you can’t do.

“I like the fact that they wanted to win the game, but the only way you’re going to do that is as a team. Even to the end, you saw Rajon (Rondo) try to back (Mike) Bibby down. That’s not what we do—but that’s what they all did. Rajon wanted to win the game for us. Ray (Allen) wanted to win the game for us. Paul (Pierce) wanted to win the game for us. But we have to do it as a group.”

Notes, Quotes

• Paul Pierce was OK after taking a hard hit to his back in Game 2. Josh Smith came in late and finished Pierce off after he’d already been fouled on a drive.

With some rest and help from therapist Vladimir Shulman, Pierce was ready to go in Atlanta.

“I’m feeling pretty good, actually,” said Pierce. “You want to see where you are as far as injuries go, but I didn’t feel any complications from it. I was a little stiff after it happened. I had trouble moving. But it’s all part of the game.”

• Tony Allen is making his first playoff appearance since his rookie year, 2005, against Indiana.

“Reggie Miller—that’s all I can remember,” Allen said. “Reggie Miller. I was talking trash to him, and he didn’t play good, and then in the next game, he scored 34 points. He told me, ‘It backfired on you, didn’t it?’

“He was a great trash-talker, but I learned my lesson back then. No trash talk.”

Quote To Note: “It’s disappointing, but that’s the nature of the beast.”—Kevin Garnett after Game 3.

Roster Report

Rotation: Point guard Rajon Rondo; Shooting guard Ray Allen; Small forward Paul Pierce; Power forward Kevin Garnett; Center Kendrick Perkins. Bench—Guard Eddie House, Forward James Posey, Guard Tony Allen, Guard Sam Cassell, Forward Leon Powe, Forward Brian Scalabrine, Forward Glen Davis, Forward P.J. Brown, Guard Gabe Pruitt.

Player Notes:

• C Kendrick Perkins sustained a hit to his face in the first quarter and had to leave to stop the bleeding from his nose. He finished with 10 points in 19 minutes.

• F-C Leon Powe played just 6:04, with Glen Davis (16 minutes) getting most of his time.

• G Eddie House is now set as the third point guard, but he did play two minutes as the shooting guard at the end when the Celts were looking for 3-pointers. He never got one off.

• G Ray Allen tried to get the Celts back in the game from beyond the arc, but he went 1 for 6 on treys.