BOSTON - The air is electric here at TD Garden in anticipation of the return of Jeremy Lin as the New York Knicks make their second and final regular season trek to Boston to take on the Boston Celtics at 1:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday (ABC).
OK, maybe it isn't electric, per se, but people are excited. They should be, because Jeremy Lin has become an international sensation in about one month's time. The funny thing is, Lin's last game played in anonymity came right here in Boston on Feb. 3. In the Knicks' narrow loss to Boston, Lin had only two points in seven minutes off the bench.
My, how things have changed. Immediately after that game, Lin's stock took off with a huge game against the New Jersey Nets. Since then, all he's done is Lin (sorry, I just had to). Now in his second go-around at TD Garden (at least as a member of the Knicks. Remember, he did play his college ball in Harvard), we'll get another look at Lin.
Can the Celtics contain him? That will be the question of the hour, or three hours I suppose, and it's likely the key to winning the game. History is on Boston's side, as the Celtics have won 10 straight against New York here in Boston. As for the season series, the two teams have split two games.
Also, don't discount the Celtics, who have been playing much better basketball recently. The Celts dropped five straight heading into the All-Star break, but have won their first three contests of the second half. Counting them out simply because New York has Lin is silly.
All in all, we should be in for a fun game. Here's hoping the Celtics can pull out a win.
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