The Boston Celtics will be represented by our newest addition, Nick Lamothe! 

Nick is a senior at Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts where he is a few short months away from earning his degree in Communications. He hopes to one day be a respected writer covering just about every sport, and make his way up the ladder to be the voice of the Celtics (move over Mike Gorman.) Although Nick has been a die-hard Boston sports fan since he can remember, he wasn’t so sure he would ever see any of his teams win a title- just look at every season from 1987 (when he was born) until 2001, when the Patriots changed it all. Since then, Nick has cheered the closest thing to a football dynasty this millennium has witnessed, the Red Sox break an 80 year curse, and his beloved green team raised banner 17. Who woulda though? Now about those Bruins…

 In his spare time, Nick watches all the Boston sports he can, and is an avid MMA fan. Training in MMA has become a passion for Nick, and he plays far too much NHL 2009 for Playstation 3. Honestly, Brian Gionta is way too highly rated and KILLS the Bruins….arguing sports brings him more satisfaction than it should, so comment on his articles as much as you want, and feel free to disagree!

We welcome you to our team, Nick.

Benjamin Edwards - Editor, Studyofsports.com

Change has become all the rage these days. And why not? Change can be a breath of fresh air and bring with it a rejuvenated outlook. Well, it has become apparent that the Philadelphia Eagles, supposed Super Bowl contenders, are in line for some change. With six games remaining the Birds look like a beaten team, on and off the
field. Don’t believe me? Here’s telling evidence that the winds of change are indeed blowing.

You might need a change when you accumulate one yard of offense in the first quarter.

You might need a change when your quarterback commits four turnovers.

You might need a change when you commit four costly penalties in overtime.

You might need a change when your top receiver drops two passes.

You might need a change when you call 58 pass plays and score only 13 points.

You might need a change when you call 17 run plays against the 25th ranked rush defense.

You might need a change when your defensive coordinator elects to use his number four cornerback to cover the opponent’s number one wide receiver.

You might need a change when your quarterback and head coach are seen laughing after a third punt in overtime.

You might need a change when you tie the 1-8 Cincinnati Bengals.

You might need a change if your Pro Bowl quarterback has never heard of “ties” in the NFL.

A surly mob is forming in the basements and back alleys of Philadelphia. They are wrapping torches in oily rags and lacing up their walking boots. Once gathered, they will begin a march down Pattison Avenue toward the NovaCare Complex. Andy Reid can turn out the lights and pull down the blinds, but he has nowhere to hide. What the
mob wants, the mob eventually gets. And what they want isn’t an insincere apology or a thin promise to work harder. What they want is the coach’s head. If their chants are loud enough, it might not be long before they get it.

       It was all over.  Dusk had finally given way to dawn.  There was finally a glimmer of light at the end of the darkened tunnel.  Just as the Detroit Lions were pulling themselves out of the pit of despair, it all collapsed.  The darkness reemerged with more hatred than before.  Any flicker of hope had been replaced by an overwhelming sense of futility.   Though the Lions may have taken a few steps forward on Sunday, they find themselves standing even further away from where they want to be.

The first quarter against Carolina, was perhaps the Lions’ finest of the season.  For the first time this season, they scored on their opening drive, becoming the last team to do so.  Daunte Culpepper led Detroit to an inspiring 12-play, 80 yard drive lasting 7:37, ending with an impressive scramble by Culpepper and a decent throw to a wide open Calvin Johnson.  The most notable feat in this drive was the balance of the offense.  The Lions ran twelve plays, six passes and six runs.  The play-calling was excellent and kept the imposing Carolina defense guessing.

Lions’ fans were most likely unconvinced after just an opening drive.  When the defense was on the field, they were bound to show their inadequacies.  But something was different.  Their pass coverage was decent, forcing Jake Delhomme to a dismal 1/4 for four yards in the entire first quarter.  The Lions’ youthful front four put pressure on Delhomme, and the run defense held their own against a powerful running tandem (two rushes for six yards in the first quarter). 

The Lions’ next possession lasted one play.  Daunte forced a bad throw into coverage and it was easily picked off.  Surely, then, reality would set in for Detroit, and they were headed for another blowout.  But, again, the defense forced another 3-and-out, and Detroit had the ball back.  Detroit mustered another impressive drive, bolstered by two outstanding rushes of 18 and 20 yards by rookie Kevin Smith.  This drive went 13-plays and erased 6:46 off the clock.  The Lions were controlling the tempo of the game and found themselves up 10-0 against a 7-2 Carolina team with 12:54 left in the 2nd quarter.

Then the dark clouds rushed in.  Detroit’s defense crawled back into the shell it had been living in for nine weeks.  The next three Carolina possessions resulted in 236 yards and three touchdowns.  Lions’ defenders stopped tackling and started pushing.  Linebackers quit pursuing and found themselves out of position, like they had been all season. By the end of the game, once again, the opposing defense put up franchise records.  Carolina, for the first time, had two 100-yard rushers, and put up a franchise-record 264 rushing yards. 

The offense continued to look impressive, but turned into lifeless mess when the game was on the line.  Trailing 24-16 in the 3rd quarter, the Lions’ offense had a golden opportunity.  Leigh Bodden had forced a fumble and Detroit recovered on the Carolina 49-yard line.  The Lions went three-and-out and punted.  But Carolina roughed the kicker and the Lions kept the ball, 1st and 10 on Carolina’s 42-yard line.  Again, the Lions went three-and-out and punted.  The drive went six plays for nine yards (15 of which were on the penalty). 

However, this did not doom the Lions.  Late in the fourth quarter, they found themselves down only two and with the ball.  Again, the offense could not rise to the occasion.  On the first play, Culpepper scrambled out of pressure, but when he should’ve thrown the ball away, he forced a terrible pass directly into the defender’s hands.  Carolina got the ball on Detroit’s four-yard line, and the game was basically over.

It has to be deflating for Detroit players and fans alike to see a glimpse of the potential of this team get swallowed up by the team they’ve seen for the past 8 years.  There were some positive things to take from the game: Kevin Smith’s career day, young talent on the defensive line getting some playing time and Daunte Culpepper’s impressive mobility.  But in the end, this team is still winless and still isn’t getting it done when they need to.  The Lions looked better on Sunday, but they aren’t going to look better to most fans until they are in the win column.  Because potential isn’t the light at the end of the tunnel, wins are.

       Injuries are a part of all sports, and contact sports are no different.  Most fans of most teams will always whine for their home team’s bad luck each year whenever the injury bug inevitably hits mid season.  Having said that, what is the deal with the perpetual state of red alert with the 30 NHL team’s medical staffs? 

 Monday NHL Senior Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell issued a memo warning all NHL players of the leagues stance on head-shots.  At this very moment all NHL players are likely huddled in the corner shivering with fear and likely wanting to quit hockey all together… Can you tell by my heavy sarcasm that NO ONE is buying this memo routine?

 Jim Rutherford called the league out several weeks ago after Brandon Sutter took a nasty, yet legal, shot to the head from former Cane Doug Weight.  Rutherford had some very direct words for the leagues lack of action against the safety of the players.  JR has every right to be upset, while the Weight hit was fairly legal Rutherford has seen upwards of six players out with major head injuries which have combined for only about six games worth of suspensions handed out.  The most notable of issues was Erik Cole’s broken neck at the hands of Brooks Orpik about 2 years ago, resulting in a three game suspension for Orpik and roughly 30+ games lost by Cole (including all but the final two games during the Canes championship run). 

 The NHL’s posturing in regards to keeping the game safe has been increasingly hollow as each year passes.  All too often the league “cracks down” when a top tier player goes down, but when a small market teams 4th liner is on the receiving end of a head-shot the league is MIA, and on a good day a basic statement is released, likely copy and pasted from the “media-release template” in MSWord. 

 We all remember the Bertuzzi/Moore incident a few years ago.  Todd Bertuzzi’s retaliatory hit on Steve Moore left him unable to ever play hockey again.  As disgusted as I and most people were at the lack of respect and professionalism by Todd Bertuzzi, I did find a silver lining to that very dark cloud over the NHL at that time.  The NHL had a golden opportunity for sweeping change around the league regarding safety.   Gary Bettman could have instituted major change throughout hockey to help limit, and even obliterate, excessive hits in the league.  While some old-school fans would find it extreme, a vast majority would understand the merit and even call for such drastic modification. 

 Was that call answered… by anyone?  No!

 I recall a hit several years ago where the then Shark Steve Marchment, charged, left his feet in open ice and leveled Shane Willis at his head. Of Course Willis was down and out, and Marchment was given a stern 3 game suspension.  The intent was obvious, the injury could have been deadly, and the leagues response?  A yawn and a slap on the wrist. 

 Now imagine today, a player makes the same run at Sidney Crosby.  The league would expel the player for life and likely have that player banished to European leagues for the rest of his career. Of course, THEN you’d actually see some real change.   Is it going to take that caliber of injury, even potential critical injury for the league to wake up?

 The consensus has always maintained that hockey is physical sport and hitting, and fights, are just part of the game.  The idea is just that we’re to accept that, obey, and move on.  It seems to me, that the NHL has always been behind the eight-ball.  While Football, Basketball, and Baseball have evolved to include a modern approach, the NHL relied on the old standby “…it’s always been this way…,” everyone mindlessly agrees and says that the players should police themselves.  

 Does that argument even make sense? 

 If we were to say “Let’s let the public police themselves…,” there would be bedlam.   Police are there for a reason, for a form of authority and to enforce rules set forth.   On-ice officials are there to keep the game in order and moving, and most of all keep the players safe by enforcing the rules of the game.  

 If you go through the history of all sports, rough play, cheap-shots and even fighting were common.   The difference is that all those other sports put rules in place and eliminated dirty play, but kept the essence of the game.   Football today includes some of the most bone-shattering hits ever, but they are constantly evolving to include the safety of kickers, quarterbacks and any player in a position to incur injury due to executing their arrangement on the field.   Baseball used to follow this code lead by goons, pitching at rookies to send them a message.  Basketball, without pads, saw elbows and arms swing back and forth with no regard for anybody around the net.  All of the major sports evolve, and decide do they want to keep the same rules from 1920, or adapt to 2008. 

 The NHL is constantly ignoring the evolution of the sport that could see it as one of the top sports markets in the world.  It took a lockout merely three years ago to install the shootout as part of the game.  That same lockout finally yielded a limiting of the most boring concept of all sports, clutching and grabbing that stunted the offensive superstars.  Why did it take the NHL so long to find its slam-dunk or homerun?

 Some would argue that fighting is a draw for the sport, that it is exciting and can change the game.  I won’t argue the excitement factor, however ask yourself… In the top sport in North America, football, how many fights do they have?  I personally cannot recall one.  The NFL is very strict on fighting and you rarely see anything more than a few pushes and heated words.  Why is that?  Could it be because there is already so much speed and hitting during the game play that it distracts from the greatest factor, the scoreboard?  Isn’t it a cheap way to win by luring the other team’s playmakers into their own penalty box?  As a fan I feel cheated when a player making millions is sitting in the penalty box with under 5minutes to go in a close game.  What’s more most all fans feel cheated when the star player or even favorite player is in the press box due to a potentially avoidable injury. 

 Wake up NHL.  You are 5^th in the top four major sports in North America… Behind the surging NASCAR.  While I personally am not a NASCAR fan, I am a huge fan of their progressive fan based marketing.  You could learn a lot from the other sports and institute progressive and revolutionizing change to bump the fastest team sport from 5^th to #1.  I truly believe that. 

 A good start?  Eliminate ALL headshots.

       How else can you sum up the allure of this Trailblazer team except to say that you cannot sum it up? Like Inigo Montoya said in cult classic, The Princess Bride, “Let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.” The story is all about the subplots - the subplots are the meat of the story. But there are so many of them it is difficult to follow. It’s like a Dickens novel where the whole is more than the sum of its parts - not less. But the parts, oh man, the parts are the story. So I give to you a sampling of the sub-plots in the story, enough to begin to understand the greater meaning. The story is titled “How the Blazers built a Championship team in 3-5 years.”

And in the beginning there was Roy, and Roy became ROY. And Roy begat Aldridge, and Aldridge begat … Anyway, just try to follow me.

SUBPLOT #1
People want to talk about Greg Oden all day long. Is he ready? Is he too fragile? Is this Sam Bowie all over again? And now as he comes back from his injury and puts up very solid numbers in limited minutes, the angle is a bit different. “He’s a force.” “Big fella will be fine.” “Oden is the defensive presence this team has lacked.” I agree with that last one wholeheartedly - but I’ll touch on that later.

SUBPLOT #2
There is the subplot of Rudy Fernandez, one of four Blazer rookies who could make an impact this year (probably three, unless Jerryd Bayless ever gets off the bench - which he will, I suspect, when an injury necessitates it). Fernandez combines ridiculously high energy with very solid fundamentals and a flair for the flash. In other words, he is flash AND substance. The stats say is averaging 13 pts, 3 rebs, 2 apg, along with 45% shooting from the arc and the field. The stats do not matter. The stats don’t tell the story of what Rudy means to this team. He adds, just as Oden does, a new component to the whole. He complements the whole to make a greater whole. His energy, his fundamentals, his flash - there is no one like him on the roster. To subtract his contributions at this point would severely affect the team.

SUBPLOT #3
Nicolas Batum is a rookie. He is 19. He is from France. When I saw him play this summer I surmised that he would, at best, spend most of the season in the D-league getting used to the American game, much less the NBA game. I know I was not alone in my assessment. We were all wrong. The young franc with the 7″4 wingspan has worked his way into a rotation role, even starting at times. He brings young legs, unexpected maturity, and a Scottie Pippin-like body to the defensive end of the floor. His smooth jumper will keep defenders honest on the other end. He is so much more than management, his teammates, and the fans expected. An “ace in the hole”.

Continued tomorrow …

A while back, we had an interesting question from “Path”, a member from Texas who writes:

“Is it harder to get a hit off a 98mph fastball or return a 140mph serve back over the net in tennis? I say tennis. Can you convince me otherwise?”

Well Path, I think there are three or four essential elements to this question.

One, you are asking a person to not only hit the ball, but to hit the ball into fair territory and arrive safely on base in one instance, and only to return the tennis ball over the net in the other (I’m assuming you mean in-bounds here also).

Secondly, you are hitting the ball with a much larger surface area when playing tennis.

One important factor that works against my argument is that most baseball players have seen a 98 mph fastball many times in their careers, whereas very, very few tennis players can serve at 140 mph.

Finally, I think the most important question is:

What percentage of the time can a tennis player hit the ball at least once back over the net when it is served at 140 mph?

If the opponent could return even 50% of the serves, he would have a higher average than any baseball player could hope to have against a consistent 98 mph pitcher. Ty Cobb is the best baseball has to offer as far as averages and he could only hit safely 36% of the time.

Andy Roddick holds the record for fastest clocked serve at 155 mph. The fastest pitch in history was 104.8 mph by Joel Zumaya in 2006. Here is what a Roddick serve looks like.

Those are my thoughts. What do you think? I’d like to hear the writers weigh in on this.

Nolan Ryan Memorabilia

 
The Tigers have been tough on miracle workers.
 
After the 1995 season, Randy Smith became the general manager whose job it would be to clean up the mess left over from the Tom Monaghan era. Buddy Bell would be his field manager. They would
lead the Tigers back to respectability.
 
Randy Smith. Born on trading deadline day, June 15, 1963. Son of Houston Astros’ GM Tal Smith. Became the San Diego Padres’ GM at age 29. Assembled the team that played the Yankees in the 1998 World Series. Labeled by more enthusiastic sports writers as the boy wonder of baseball.
 
Miracle Worker #1 acquired Bip Roberts, who had his own ideas on how the game should be played but not the stats to back them up. Ruben Sierra, Vince Coleman, Billy Ripken, and Pete Incaviglia, all fading veterans, also came, stayed briefly, and left. The path between Detroit and Houston became well-worn. . Randy Smith is the first GM to trade the same player (Brad Ausmus) to his father twice, receiving the second time Mitch Melusky, who played a total of eight games in the Olde English “D.”
 
While the Padres were World Series bound in 1998, Buddy Bell came to work early that September 1, the Tigers buried in fifth place, for a talk with his boss. He left the office without a job. The beat writers found him loading things into his SUV parked at a Cochrane Avenue gate to Tiger Stadium, behind the home team’s clubhouse.
 
Buddy Bell was one of the nicest people in baseball. Anyone who couldn’t get along with Buddy Bell had issues.
 
In 2000 the Tigers moved into Comerica Park. Its left field power alley was then baseball’s deepest, at 398 feet. The team felt the need for a marquee player to go with their new home. Six players went to the Texas Rangers for right-handed hitting slugger Juan Gonzalez, in his free-agent year. Juan Gone took one look at the 398 posted on the left field wall and knew his stay in Motown would be brief. Tigers fans sensed Randy Smith wasn’t the guy.
 
The last Tigers fans saw of Miracle Worker #1 was a rear view, as he and manager Phil Garner trudged down a Comerica corridor, both fired six games into the 2002 season, the team winless. Two characters from a Western movie, walking into the sunset for different seasons.
 
Enter Miracle Worker #2. Dave Dombrowski put together the 1997 out-of-nowhere world champion Florida Marlins. It became his task to make something of a team with one star-pitcher Jeff Weaver-twenty-four other guys no one wanted, and a barren farm system.
 
In 2003, only a hot final weekend kept the Tigers from setting a major league record for losses in a season and out of Jay Leno’s monologue. But Double D unloaded Ugueth Urbina on the Phillies for Placido Polanco, and one at a time, the pieces began to fall into place.
 
The Tigers made it to the Series three seasons later. Backed in; blew a big lead in August and settled for the wild card after a sweep on the final weekend at home by the mighty Kansas City Royals. But go to the big October dance they did, and they turned in a decent 2007 after another August fade. It looked like Miracle Worker #2 might again have his day.
 
Dombrowski rolled the dice for 2008. He acquired shortstop Edgar Renteria from the Braves for pitcher Jair Jurrjens, who in a late 2007 season trial sparkled. From the Yankees came Gary Sheffield, with more baggage than LaGuardia at Christmas. Miguel Cabrera arrived from the Marlins, at the cost of more prospects, and was installed
at third. Carlos Guillen moved from short to first. Both had the range of statues. From one to nine, however, the lineup was loaded. And Dontrelle Willis was the pitcher who would complete the starting rotation.
 
The results: last place. Dead last. Dontrelle Willis ended up in class A ball. Carlos Guillen was moved to left field, where his glove would do less damage, and then to third where the ball immediately found him. Cabrera hit, but not until after the season was lost. Sheffield whined. (So what else was new?) Hitters forgot what baseball bats were for; relievers assumed the strike zone was high and outside.
 
Edgar Renteria is gone. Jair Jurrjens won 13 games, but not for the pitching-starved Tigers. Next year’s shortstop may be Julio Lugo, the Red Sox’ forgotten man, the least objectionable solution. There are also question marks at third, the outfield corners, and all over the pitching staff.
 
Dave Dombrowski remains the resident miracle worker for the forseeable future, other candidates having opted for gigs with possibilities, like Somalia.. If he can indeed unload Dontrelle Willis on the Red Sox for anything more than a bag of BP balls, it will be his greatest miracle ever.

       Aviles and Soria Receive Royals Top Team Awards

 The Kansas City Royals have announced their player and pitcher of the year awards and the results are no surprise.  Members of the Kansas City Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America have chosen Mike Aviles and Joakim Soria for the Royals top honors.

 2008 Player of the Year Aviles didn’t make his first appearance with the major league club this past season until May 29.  He took over the every day shortstop job on June 6 and quickly made up for lost time. He hit .325 the rest of the way to lead American League rookies in that stat and added 10 home runs and 52 RBI.  He did most of the damage from the number two hole in the order in addition to a handful of games in the lead-off spot.  The twenty-seven year old infielder had been labeled a marginal prospect with the glove due to limited range.  But Aviles proved he could make all the plays and demonstrated more than adequate defensive skills.  His performance was good enough to earn him fourth in AL Rookie of the Year voting.  He was a unanimous choice for the Royals award and any knowledgeable KC fan should have no argument with the choice.

 With his effective play Aviles has assured that he will be a frontrunner for a starting gig in 2009.  The question yet to be answered is which middle infield position he will man.  There has been some speculation that the Royals might pursue a shortstop in free agency and move Aviles to second.  But premier free agent shortstop Rafael Furcal of the Dodgers seems to be out of the team’s price range.  Other options are limited and, as of now, general manager Dayton Moore appears ready to go to spring training with Aviles as his shortstop. After watching the youngster for more than a half-season, I’m good with that decision and prefer to see free agent cash spent elsewhere.  What would the armchair GMs our there do with the Royals middle infield situation?

 Soria earned the Royals top pitching honor by posting 42 saves in 45 opportunities bested only by the Angels’ Francisco Rodriguez.  In the 63 games in which he appeared he allowed runs in only eight.  He was the Royals’ All-Star representative and, not just a token addition, but deserving of the choice.  During the team’s exceptional September the young reliever had 9 saves and a win in 10 appearances.  There were stretches during the 2008 season in which the right-hander from Mexico was virtually un-hittable.  His excellent command of a late-moving low-90s fastball and devastating slow curve left puzzled hitters shaking their heads as they headed for the dugout.

 Soria was plucked from the Padre’s organization in the Rule 5 draft in 2007 and has turned out to be a bargain.  And speaking of bargains, last May the Royals signed him to a three-year contract extension of $8.75 million with additional team options through 2014 that could result in an additional $24 million.  With a long-term deal in place and coming off a season of such high level performance it would be assumed that Soria’s role in the upcoming season would be set in stone.  However, there has been regular talk during his two year tenure with KC of casting him in a starting role.  The feeling of most fans and the public stance of the front office is an “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” approach.  But for my money, I would like to see Soria get a shot as a starter next spring.  He has an assortment of plus pitches and looks to have the stuff to be a top-of-the-rotation hurler.  Set-up man Ramon Ramirez appears to me to have the ability and demeanor to close.  His mid-90’s fastball and power change make him an ideal fit to pitch the ninth.  Throw Soria into the Royals rotation behind Meche and Grienke and you’ve got a 1-2-3 to rival most any in Major League Baseball.  How would you prefer to use Soria if you were making decisions for the Royals?

 Young players like Aviles and Soria provide hope for Royals fans starved for a winning season and dreaming of the day when baseball will be played in October in Kansas City.  

Please help us welcome our newest writer to the team, Mike Polo. Mike will be covering the Kansas City Royals.

Mike lives with his wife of 35 years, Pat, in the Kansas City area where he has pastored churches in rural Missouri for over 30 years.  The only thing that has sustained his attention longer is a passion for baseball.  A childhood fan of the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, Mike transferred loyalities to the Royals upon moving near KC after graduating college.  That allegiance has survived the last two decades of futility.
Mike has written regular columns for fantasy sports and Christian websites and denominational publications.  In his spare time he enjoys dominating (well, occasionally) at fantasy baseball and football, reading vintage sports fiction, working crosswords, and passing his love for sports onto his grandchildren.

Welcome to Studyofsports.com, Mike!

Benjamin Edwards - Editor, Studyofsports.com

      There’s a new name climbing the gold-trimmed pages of the Celtics record book. Okay, the name isn’t new; it’s been in town for 10 years now. But for the first time since being drafted by Pitino in 1998, Paul Pierce’s talents are finally being noticed outside of New England, with milestones to back it up. Celtics fans have had more than their share of years they felt Pierce was snubbed from All-Star games and All-NBA Teams. For some reason, their hero of the hardwood couldn’t climb out of the cellar his underachieving teams were stuck in.

The 2008-2009 Celtics title defense is but a few weeks old, and “The Truth” has already leap-frogged some of the most prominent names in Beantown basketball in the “all-time leaders” lists. On opening night against Cleveland , Pierce finally cracked the top five in points scored as a Celtic; and don’t look now, but there is a real chance he will finish the season in the top three, behind only Havlicek and Bird. For the old-school guys who think today’s players just wouldn’t cut it in Red’s NBA, look up and down the rest of the leader boards; barring any major, unforeseeable drops in his production, the captain should finish out his current contract in the top five of every major statistical category in Celtics history, with the exception of rebounds, no thanks to KG stealing 10 of those a game (somehow I get the feeling Pierce doesn’t mind).

The fact is this: after winning banner number 17 in June, Pierce said he considers himself the best player in the world. Now that the league and fans across the country see him chasing down every record on the best franchise in NBA history to accompany his new ring, who can argue? Maybe he won’t win the league MVP, and he might not be the league leader in any single category, but Paul Pierce is finally getting his due. He is now considered a premier offensive talent, able to score and create offense. He is a part of the best defensive unit in the league. In addition, Mr. Clutch hasn’t lost his knack for big moments; already this season Pierce has carried his team to victories with a 22-point fourth-quarter effort to rally against Toronto, and a buzzer-beating dagger to bury the Hawks.

So as Red Auerbach hunches over the Celtics record book in basketball heaven, lighting another cigar with each Paul Pierce achievement, it is hard to argue that there is another player in the NBA that is more important to his teammates, franchise, and fans.

Paul, you’ve always had Boston on your side; now you’ve got the rest of the world watching. Show them what you’ve got.