SB Nation Boston - Banner 18 Deferred: Celtics Fall To Heat In Five Games

LeBron James Apologizes For 'The Decision' After Game 5

2011-05-12T20:53:54Z

Immediately after finishing off the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on Wednesday night, Miami Heat guard LeBron James took to the podium to discuss the game, and also 'The Decision.'

James, who used an hour-long special on ESPN over the summer to announce that he was dumping his former team -- the Cleveland Cavaliers, told reporters that he was sorry for the ugly way his tenure in Cleveland ended.

"I went through a lot with deciding to be here and the way it panned out with all my friends and family and the fans back home. I apologize for the way it happened, but I knew that this opportunity was once in a lifetime to be able to come out here and to pair with two guys and to pair with this organization," James said. "In order for me to move on in my career, I though that team that we just defeated, I had to go through them at some point." (via SB Nation Cleveland)

James averaged 28 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists in the five-game playoff series against the Celtics. In the 2010 regular season, his first in Miami, James averaged 26.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7 assists.

VIDEO: LeBron James Scores Final 10 Points To Eliminate Celtics

2011-05-12T15:32:44Z

The Boston Celtics at one point led the Miami Heat by 10 points in Wednesday night's Game 5. But that quickly disappeared and with just 2:17 left in the fourth quarter, the game was tied, 87-87. With their season on the line and in need of a win to stay alive for one more night, the Celtics needed someone to takeover the game. And someone did -- unfortunately for them, it was LeBron James.

James -- who has been labeled as a player who's "not clutch" and can't get it done when then game is on the line -- completely dominated the final few minutes of Game 5, leading the Heat on a 16-0 run to end the game, a streak during which LeBron scored the final 10 points.

Unfortunately, there is video of it all:

The Celtics were (very) injured -- Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Shaquille O'Neal, Jermaine O'Neal, etc. -- and maybe that's a reason they lost in five games. Another reason: LeBron James is really, really good at basketball.

(video via @blazersedge)

Celtics Vs. Heat, Game 5: C's Run Out Of Gas Late Again, Fall To Heat In Five Games

2011-05-12T01:56:19Z

In the end, they just didn't have enough, and they bowed out quickly and completely.

Despite leading for much of the game, the Celtics disintegrated down the stretch, absorbing a 16-0 run by the Miami Heat to close out a 97-87 loss in Game 5 of the two teams Eastern Conference semifinal series on Wednesday night. Nenad Krstic's 18-foot jumper at the 4:28 mark of the fourth quarter represented the last points the Celtics would score in the 2010-2011 season.

The Heat would end up outscoring the Celtics 26-14 in the fourth quarter, as another game went up in a haze of missed opportunities, bad turnovers and unconscionable mental errors for the C's. Kevin Garnett, who scored a dominant 12 points in the first quarter, managed only three more for the rest of the game, repeatedly passing up post chances against the likes of Miami's Chris Bosh and Joel Anthony in the second half. Paul Pierce, in foul trouble all night long, finished with just 12 points on 5-of-12 shooting and Rajon Rondo was largely ineffective due to his dislocated elbow and a back injury that flared up in the first half, ending his season with six points and three assists. Only Ray Allen, who scored 18 points and hit five 3-pointers, showed any consistency on offense for the C's.

LeBron James scored 33 points for the Heat, including their final 10, on 11-of-20 shooting. His 3-pointer with 2:10 left to play put the Heat up for good. Dwyane Wade put up another dominating performance, particularly in the first half, when he scored 23 of his 34 points on 9-of-12 shooting, almost single-handedly keeping Miami in the game in the process, while Bosh aded 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat, who reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since their championship run in 2006 and will face the winner of the Chicago Bulls/Atlanta Hawks series, currently led 3-2 by the Bulls.

The Celtics, who put up a gallant fight until the final minutes, played much of the fourth without Rondo or Jermaine O'Neal, and were undone by mistakes. Delonte West, who had another solid game with 10 points, committed a couple of costly turnovers, as did Jeff Green, who had nine points off the bench. It was the second straight game in which the Celts finished with more turnovers than assists.

With their season now over, the Celtics will face a variety of uncertainties headed into the offseason, starting with the future status of head coach Doc Rivers. Rivers does not have a contract for next season and has turned down several extension offers from the team.

Celtics Need Better Late-Game Execution Against Heat In Game 5

2011-05-11T21:18:19Z

The Boston Celtics lost Game 4, in large part because they just fell apart in the fourth quarter and overtime. What adjustments do they need to make if they want to extend their Eastern Conference semifinals series with the Miami Heat and get a win in Game 5? SB Nation's Sebastian Pruiti has your answers, including "Execute Better Late" on offense (/Celtics fans everywhere nod their heads).

If you think of Doc Rivers and the Boston Celtics in terms of execution, you think about a coach who can draw up phenomenal plays and a team that usually executes what is drawn up. In game four, the Celtics had a chance to win the game in regulation after a huge LeBron James turnover (where he basically dribbled the basketball out of bounds). After some confusion, Paul Pierce missed a jump shot as the Celtics failed to execute properly:

Read the rest of Pruti's Game 5 adjustments for the Celtics in his complete breakdown at SB Nation, and visit CelticsBlog for all things Celtics.

Celtics Vs. Heat, Game 5: Celts Try To Stay Alive In South Beach

2011-05-11T19:21:51Z

Win or go home.

The NBA has used the phrase to market the playoffs in the past, but its meaning is a lot deeper for the Celtics as the prepare for Wednesday night's Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Miami Heat (7 p.m. EDT, on TNT). Down 3-1 after handing over Monday night's Game 4 down the stretch and in overtime, the Celts must win on Wednesday or see their season come to an end.

It's not going to be easy. Boston must win the game in Miami, where the Heat handled things easily in Games 1 and 2. Kevin Garnett, after an all-time performance in the C's Game 3 win on Saturday, had about as extreme a reversal as possible in Game 4, managing just seven points o 1-of-10 shooting while also contributing giant lapses away from the ball (hello, last play of regulation!) and on defense. Garnett isn't the only one who needs to tighten things up if the C's want to see their season continue at least through a Game 6 on Friday. The entire team needs to clean up its act following a whopping 18 turnovers that resulted in 28 Miami points in Game 4.

The Celts will also have to find within themselves the same kind of defensive intensity that got them through Game 3 holding Miami's star trio of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh to just 44 points. The three combined for 83 of the Heat's 98 points on Monday and although the C's played exceptionally well on the defensive end for a majority of the game, they couldn't slow down James, Wade and Bosh enough to prevent all three from providing at least one dagger in the waning minutes of regulation and in OT.

For the Celts, everyone will be available except Shaquille O'Neal, who has played about 12 minutes over the course of the past two games and simply can't go anymore. The Shaq experiment seemed swell over the first three months of the season, but it is clearly over now and probably has been ever since he big man's aborted, five-plus minute stint against the Detroit Pistons on April 3. Rajon Rondo, who was slightly limited by his elbow injury in Game 4 but not overwhelmingly so, said, "I'll be fine, I'm playing," when asked about his status at Tuesday's shootaround. And Delonte West, who shook off his shoulder injury to have another impressive showing in Game 4. West is averaging roughly 10 points and a couple 3-pointers per game in just under 25 minutes per game in the series. His play is as important as ever now, especially if Rondo's elbow renders him at all ineffective.

This is it. Win or go home. The Celtics, proud champions that they are, aren't likely to let that scenario unfold without a fight.

Has Shaq Played His Last NBA Game?

2011-05-11T18:55:45Z

Shaquille O'Neal is doubtful for tonight's Game 5 in the Eastern Conference semifinals, a must-win for the Celtics, who trail the Heat 3-1 in their best-of-seven series. And considering he only played a little more than three minutes in Game 4 because of his nagging Achilles injury that has basically kept him sidelined since late January, that "doubtful" is probably a bit optimistic.

Head coach Doc Rivers has already said the only reason Shaq didn't play more in Game 4 was because of health -- "It was physical." -- which probably means he won't be able to go should the Celtics force a Game 5 (or Game 6 ... or Game 7). So: has Shaq, who is 39 years old with a player option for 2011-12, played his last game? Not just his last game with the Celtics, but his final game in the NBA?

On that, Doc's not ready to speculate just yet, but he didn't exactly paint a rosy picture.

"It's nothing he can do. It's not like he's not trying," Rivers said. "He's done everything you possibly can do to get healthy. Unfortunately for him, he just hasn't been able to do it. When he originally got injured no one thought it was that serious. It just never healed and it still hasn't, and now every time he plays it gets worse."

Shaquille O'Neal 'Doubtful' For Celtics-Heat Game 5

2011-05-11T18:18:26Z

If the Boston Celtics are going to keep their season alive with a win in Wednesday night's Game 5 in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Miami Heat, they'll likely have to do so without Shaquille O'Neal. The center is "doubtful" for the contest, but after playing just under four minutes in Game 4, that may be a generous assessment.

O'Neal did not play at all in the second half or overtime against the Heat Monday night, and Doc Rivers said it was because of health.

"It was physical," Rivers said at the team's shootaround prior to Game 5. "Don't know yet today. I will say I doubt it. That little stretch of the game it got worse."

Shaq, bothered by an Achilles injury, has appeared in just three games since Feb. 4, and has only seen 12 minutes of action in the Celtics' eight playoff games.

The Celtics, down 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, face the Heat in a must-win Game 5 Wednesday night in Miami.

Celtics Vs.Heat, Game 5: Boston Must Win To Keep NBA Playoff Hopes Alive

2011-05-11T18:17:00Z

The Boston Celtics are currently trailing the Miami Heat three games to one in their second round series of the 2011 NBA Playoffs, making Wednesday night’s Game 5 a must-win to keep any sort of championship hopes alive.

The veteran Celtics still believe they can pull it off, too, despite the odds not exactly leaning in their favor.

“It’s not going to get any easier,” Ray Allen told NBA.com’s John Schuhmann, “but that’s what makes it that much more special if you can pull it off.”

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers, not surprisingly, agrees with Allen’s assessment.

“In our minds, there’s a lot of basketball to be played,” Rivers said after Game 4. “It’s going to be extremely hard, and if we’re not up for that then we’ll lose. But if we’re up for that, I think we can win three games.”

If the Celtics are able to correct what seem to be some pretty correctable mistakes — and execute in late-game situations — there’s certainly no doubt that Boston could force a Game 7 and go from there. Best yet, it seems even Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is worried about Wednesday night’s game.

“What we’re going to face on Wednesday will be our greatest challenge of this season,” Spoelstra told NBA.com. “It will be the toughest thing we have to do up to this point is to put away a champion.”

Be sure and tune in to TNT at 7 p.m. to watch the game as well as cheer on the Celtics so this season doesn’t end in Miami.