ORLANDO, Fla. – For 48 hours, the Boston Celtics studied the flickering images of Dwight Howard(notes) and that pitiful playoff footage left them as restless as it did resolved. For a frontline with such a nasty disposition, these sessions bordered on insulting. No one touched Howard – let alone hit him. No one met his blunt force with the brutality of Boston’s big, burly bodies.

“They let him do what he wanted to do to them,” Rasheed Wallace(notes) grumbled.
Those days are done for Howard in these Eastern Conference playoffs and that reality set a rugged tone for this best-of-seven series on Sunday. Together, these Celtics had come for Howard with downright dour dispositions. As Howard delighted himself with an embarrassing pregame dance and shake on the Magic bench, the Celtics had a good sweat going down the floor, a frontline of fighters waiting to go to work on the heavy bag.

This won’t be a Celtics series for the flash of Rajon Rondo(notes), but the ferocity of a frontline desperate to pound that pearly smile off Howard’s face. All together, Kendrick Perkins(notes), Big Baby Davis and Wallace took turns hitting Howard. They flustered him. They had him rushing his moves, missing makeable shots and causing such tumult in a 92-88 Game 1 victory over the Magic.

Ray Allen(notes) had 25 points. Paul Pierce(notes) had 22 points and a telltale nine rebounds. The Big Three is rolling again, Rajon Rondo is the MVP of these East playoffs, but the core identity of the 2008 championship Celtics has barreled back into these playoffs. Boston has restored its identity as one ferocious, physical team.

After dispatching the Cleveland Cavaliers in six games, the validation of Danny Ainge’s and Doc Rivers’ vision is simple to see. With an endless bench of physical big men, the Celtics were constructed to overtake the Magic in the East. This was the plan, and they watched it unfold perfectly in Game 1.

 

Once more, the Celtics inspire fear and loathing on the floor.

Once more, they’re championship contenders again.

“They’re relentless,” Orlando’s Vince Carter(notes) allowed.

So, Wallace had two big blue bottles of Bud Light in the upper corner of his locker on Sunday and a snarky greeting for Boston reporters about his hometown Philadelphia Flyers making a historic comeback on the Bruins. He didn’t come to Boston for political correctness, to make nice with the fans there. “The Broad Street Bullies,” he snarled, and then laughed and laughed and laughed.

 

Wallace came to Boston out of shape and out of line, and spent most of the season making the Celtics mostly regret they had ever signed him as a free agent. Yet, ’Sheed has responded in these playoffs with inspired play on both ends of the floor. He’s done it his way and everyone will just have to accept it. He takes such glee in frustrating one of the chosen young stars like Howard, because, well, that’s just him.

“What they’re trying to do is frustrate me and get into my head,” Howard said. “They want me to wrestle and fight with them. That takes me off my game.”

Howard had 13 points while missing seven of 10 shots. They kept him off the boards, allowing him just 12 rebounds. He turned the ball over seven times, from losing the ball in the post to throwing it away on kick-outs. Howard was a mess and the Magic never recovered to complete a frantic, late comeback in the fourth quarter.

The Celtics’ frontline beat on Howard, yes, but they don’t let him get angles and they don’t require the guards to come and double Howard for them. They just keep their chests into him and challenge Howard to beat them with a back-to-the-basket game he doesn’t have down nearly as well as his dance steps. This allows the Celtics to stay out on the perimeter and protect the 3-point line. Orlando missed 17 of 22 3-pointers and they’ll never beat the Celtics unless those shots start to drop for them.

“A lot of them jump shots, the buttholes get tight,” Wallace declared.

He was talking about the playoffs, about the time of year that he lives for at his advanced age of 35. He doesn’t take particularly good care of his body, but his mind is forever sound for the playoffs. When the Celtics were constructing a 20-point lead in the third quarter, Wallace had Howard so flustered that he completely lost his composure, his mind.

 

Within 2½ minutes left in the third quarter, Wallace inspired Howard to get a double technical foul for tangling with him. Howard got a three seconds call because he was trying so hard to get into low-post position. Howard also tried to rush an offensive move on Wallace and got called for a travel. And, for good measure, Wallace completely crushed Howard across the arms when he had to give a foul.

“He did some old tricks that were just terrific,” Rivers said.

For months, Rivers’ faith was tested with Wallace. He piled up technical fouls and embarrassing performance after performance. People wanted Rivers to exile him, bury him, but the Celtics coach has that deft touch of walking the line between hard-line discipline and the understanding of player’s peculiarities.

“He said throughout, ‘Doesn’t matter what I do during the regular season, I will be judged for what I do in the playoffs,’ ” Rivers said. Doc Rivers had to laugh on Sunday night, and finally said, “I didn’t want him to take that literally throughout the season.”

He did, but so it goes. These Celtics are a joy to watch on the defensive end and Rivers deserves such praise for bringing everything together for the playoffs. In the regular season, Rivers was the target of criticism inside and outside the organization for practicing these Celtics so little. He never let bad games dictate his desire to get on the practice floor because he understood he had to keep these old legs as fresh as possible. However bad it looked some nights – and it did – Rivers had the discipline to see the longer picture, even if it meant watching a poorly prepared team on so many nights.

“We’re old,” Rivers said. “It’s tough to work on your defense when you don’t have a lot of practice. …[But] so far in the playoffs with the days off and the rest … it’s allowed us to prepare defensively. We had it in us. We were terrific out of the gates defensively [this season], but then we got away from it. We lost ourselves and now we’re finding ourselves again.”

Now, the Celtics’ defensive rotations are crisp and precise. They beat the Cavs to loose balls and long rebounds, and they did it to the well-rested Magic, too. So much of assistant coach Tom Thibodeau’s defensive system is playing out perfectly for the Celtics, and this is hell for everyone left in these playoffs. From Kobe Bryant(notes) to LeBron James(notes) to Dwight Howard, this has been one of the league’s most lethal weapons these past two years. Now, the Big Three is back again, Rondo is a star and maybe most of all, these Celtics have restored a toughness and tenacity that they lost along the way.

All together, these Celtics watched all that tape of Dwight Howard and they couldn’t wait for Game 1 because they were going hit him harder and harder and hardest. Some of the Celtics watched his little dance before introductions and they knew one thing on Sunday: This beating was going to feel good.

 

Here was Kevin Garnett(notes), who spent 12 seasons going from prep phenom to NBA star without lifting the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves to a championship. And there was LeBron James(notes), seven years into the same journey with the Cleveland Cavaliers, now on the brink of free agency.

”Loyalty is something that hurts you at times because you can’t get youth back,” Garnett said after his Celtics dismissed the Cavs from the playoffs Thursday night. Garnett would know. He lost his youth in Minnesota only to finally find that elusive championship in Boston two years ago. He was telling LeBron to take care of himself, not the franchise that drafted him.

Garnett isn’t wrong, but he’s forgetting something in the equation, too.

As sure as you can’t get youth back, you also can’t get loyalty back.

LeBron James can, and will, do whatever he pleases over the next couple months in deciding his future. There are no wrong choices when you’re being courted with multimillion-dollar contracts and fawning fans and various levels of power and control.

Everyone is going to offer something. The promise of a championship. A supporting cast. Perhaps LeBron’s choice in coach, general manager, free-agent signings and draft picks. If LeBron’s cadre of advisors can dream it up, they’ll ask for it.

It’s only in Cleveland, though, that the ultimate intangible remains. This is home. This is northeast Ohio. This is unfinished business, unfulfilled promise. This is where all the sporting pain and disappointment that LeBron grew up with exists – no championships in any sport since 1964. None.

”I understand the burden of the Cleveland sports fan,” he said.

Since he developed into a high school star in Akron, LeBron spoke of pleasing his people, putting his hometown on the map. Even as a 16-year-old he reveled in national media coming to his town. After the Cavs drafted him, he spoke endlessly about delivering that long-sought championship parade. He said it would be a celebration like no other. He isn’t wrong about that.

So now, with the times getting tough, with other cities batting their eyes, he’s just going to walk away?

This decision will say a lot about James. And if he’s off to Chicago or New York it will disappoint many who have known him the longest, in a way that goes beyond the selfishness of fandom.

If he walks, he walks on what a lot of people believe he is about – substance behind all that on-court sizzle.

There’s no reason to go. The Cavs can pay him more salary. Nike and Gatorade will honor the same contracts. At 25 and in his prime (two MVP trophies), there’s no need to panic.

In the short run, there may be advantages elsewhere. The Bulls offer young talents Derrick Rose(notes) and Joakim Noah(notes). Miami has Dwyane Wade(notes) and the elite coach the others lack in Pat Riley, who could immediately return to the bench.

Everything else is just smoke and mirrors and promises that may be impossible to fulfill. The Knicks and the Clippers are selling hype and stars, probably to cover the pathetic ownership records of James Dolan and Donald Sterling. The Nets have Jay-Z, a Russian billionaire and a possible new arena in Brooklyn, a lot of moving parts with no track record.

Cleveland has the heart. Cleveland has the story. Cleveland has the people. LeBron has always expressed a deep understanding of what all of that means.

The supporting cast needs to get better, but that can happen. Besides, James himself signed off on nearly every roster move of the last seven years. He’s at least part to blame. If he wants coach Mike Brown gone, he’ll be gone. If he wants Kentucky coach John Calipari installed on the bench, then a Brink’s truck will be dispatched to Lexington.

Cavs owner Dan Gilbert knows his franchise hangs in the balance. He made part of his fortune selling subprime loans that often went bust. He knows what depreciating property is all about – especially when there’s no one willing to sell a credit default swap on the Cavs.

This is high-stakes stuff. If LeBron leaves, Gilbert’s investment loses tens of millions, if not a hundred million in value. Pro hoops will be decimated in Ohio. So Gilbert will spare no expense. What choice does he have?

James can try to command power from the Bulls’ Jerry Reinsdorf or the Heat’s Micky Arison, but he won’t get it like he will from Gilbert. Having a 25-year-old run everything may not be for the best, but right now LeBron doesn’t seem all that certain he realizes what the best is.

 

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LeBron spoke Thursday night of ”his team” and he wasn’t talking about the Cavs. He meant his army of enablers who ”have a plan” on how to handle the summer.

It’s where the problem begins and ends. The Summer of LeBron is as much about them as it is him – although he’s clearly thrilled at the wining and dining to come. LeBron loves being the center of attention and his free agency will overshadow even the NBA Finals. He doesn’t call himself the King for nothing.

The crew of hangers-on that surround LeBron have spent the past few years living off this moment, selling power, the perception of power and even power they don’t have to boost their own careers and make their own fortunes and reputations.

This is LeBron’s agent. This is LeBron’s cousin. This is LeBron’s Nike guy. The world opens just that quickly. Next thing you know they’re demanding video of LeBron getting dunked on in a pick-up game.

LeBron has let them take over his life. He wants yes men and he’s got ‘em. And together they’ve created this free-agent hysteria. It is, perhaps, why James didn’t even seem himself in these playoffs – distant, detached and emotionless in defeat. When the Cavs lost to the Orlando Magic in last season’s Eastern Conference finals, James stood brooding in front of his locker before walking out in anger at what had transpired. He left the court without shaking the Magic players’ hands and then bolted the arena without addressing the media.

He got ripped for it. At least he looked like he cared. Thursday? Not so much. He looked like a guy who might give up on the whole project, just like that.

If it’s a different LeBron James, if all the quotes and stories and loyalty to Ohio he used to display are now gone under a sea of advisors and the tantalizing emotion of being wanted, then Cleveland fans should really be nervous.

LeBron never went to college. He was so good he was never recruited. At one of his St. Vincent-St. Mary games during his sophomore year of high school I sat next to former West Virginia assistant coach Drew Catlett who had come to take a look at this young star everyone was buzzing about. After a half of LeBron domination, Catlett aware that snow was piling up outside, decided to pack up and head back to Morgantown. LeBron James, he said, was too good to waste time on.

”He’s never playing college ball,” Catlett said. By James’ junior year, no college was really bothering.

So now here comes the recruitment LeBron never had. Here comes the ego gratification. If LeBron had been forced to go to college by the NBA’s since-implemented age minimum, the derby to sign him would’ve been the wildest of all time. It never materialized until now. And this is bigger. Everything is above board: huge cities, professional fan bases and breathless media – New York, L.A., Chicago, Miami … and Cleveland.

What LeBron wants is anyone’s guess. He mentions winning, which isn’t saying much. He wants money; that’s always been clear. He isn’t going broke in any of these places.

He’s also long discussed legacy and in a way that made you believe he understood what that really meant. In this case, not following Michael Jordan’s path in Chicago, but blazing his own in Cleveland.

LeBron once told me that if he had gone to college he would’ve signed with the University of Akron, the hometown mid-major. The reasons, he said, were numerous. He loved Akron. Some of his high school teammates were going there. The clincher was that his first high school coach, Keith Dambrot, who had helped teach him the game, had become Akron’s head coach.

”Why not?” LeBron said, smiling.

It’s a quaint story. To this day Dambrot thinks he would’ve gotten him. Of course, LeBron has also said at other times he would’ve gone to a half-dozen different schools, so it probably wouldn’t have happened.

But that he even imagined the possibility was rare. Elite recruits aren’t aware enough to know their biggest impact could be at home, not at some far-off hoops factory, that their old coach and old teammates mean more than some smooth recruiting pitch, that turning the basketball world on its ear by doing something so daring and unique can be the coolest idea of them all.

They don’t get that the Dukes and UCLAs need them more than they need the Dukes and UCLAs.

The Akron story said something about LeBron James.

Or maybe it didn’t.

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It’s the Celtics who are still in the chase for an NBA title.

Kevin Garnett(notes) scored 22 points and added 12 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo(notes) had 21 points and 12 assists to beat Cleveland 94-85 in Game 6 on Thursday night and advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Boston will play the Orlando Magic, who are undefeated in the playoffs.

“Winning is gratifying,” Garnett said. “You’re playing the best team in basketball; the challenge is there; you don’t have to dress it up. One thing we don’t lack is confidence. We’re a veteran team and we understand when it’s time to lock in as a group. I think we did just that. I think the experience is taking over.”

Despite his sixth career playoff triple-double, James is headed for another early offseason after winning a second MVP award and leading the Cavs to an NBA-best 61 wins and a home-court advantage they never got to use.

“The fact that it’s over right now is definitely a surprise to me,” James said. “A friend of mine told me, ‘I guess you’ve got to go through a lot of nightmares before you realize your dream.’ That’s what’s going on for me individually right now.”

This offseason is destined to define the future of the franchise—and the rest of the NBA, too.

The LeBron watch began at 10:53 p.m., when Rondo dribbled out the last 14 seconds and the Celtics began celebrating their 4-2 victory in the best-of-seven series. James is eligible to opt out of his contract this summer, a move that would make the two-time MVP—and zero-time NBA champion—a free agent and set off a scramble for his services from New York to Miami to Los Angeles and, of course, back in Cleveland.

“I want to win. That’s my only thing, my only concern,” James said. “I’ve always prided myself—it’s all about winning for me and I think the Cavs are committed to doing that. But at the same time, I’ve given myself options to this point. Me and my team, we have a game plan that we’ll execute and we’ll see where we’re at.”

James scored 27 points with 10 assists, and his 19 rebounds matched a career-high and were the most he’s ever had in a playoff game. But he also had nine turnovers, and he may have been hobbled by an elbow injury that limited him to dunks and short jumpers, going 8 for 21 from the floor overall.

“I just told him, ‘Keep your head up, man. I’ve been there,”’ said Garnett, who was a star without a title in Minnesota for more than a decade before joining the Celtics and leading them to their NBA-record 17th championship in 2008. “‘You have a very, very, very bright future. Continue to work and make decisions based on you and your family.”’

Mo Williams(notes) scored 20 of his 22 points in the first half for the Cavaliers.

Boston’s Paul Pierce(notes) scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half after playing just nine minutes—and shooting 1-for-5—in the first with foul trouble. The Celtics had missed their first eight 3-point attempts when Pierce hit a 3 that gave them a 65-58 lead with 4:06 left in the third.

It was 67-61 when Rasheed Wallace(notes) hit a 3-pointer, and then Ray Allen(notes) stole James’ pass and got the ball to Pierce for another 3 that completed a 16-4 run.

James hadn’t made an outside shot before hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to cut it to four points, 78-74, early in the fourth quarter and force the Celtics to call a timeout. But Rondo drove for a layup, then set Pierce up for another 3. Pierce found Wallace for a 3-pointer and then Tony Allen’s(notes) steal led to a Garnett dunk at the other end that sent the Cavaliers into a timeout to regroup, down 88-74 with 5:53 left in their season.

“You knew it was coming at some point with LeBron,” said Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who reminded his players that they weren’t good enough to take over the game. “That’s what that timeout was about: to remind them that we can’t do that, what LeBron was doing.”

It was the second straight year Cleveland has finished the regular-season with the No. 1 overall seed, and the second in a row that they have failed to get out of the East. Last year, they lost to Orlando in the conference finals, an exit that left James so shaken he skulked off the court without shaking hands.

This year, he might not stop until he finds himself in a new city.

James seemed like he couldn’t wait to slip off his Cavaliers jersey, pulling it off as soon as he reached the tunnel to the locker room. He casually flipped it to an attendant moments after he walked into the dressing room.

Brown said he wasn’t ready to think about the future yet.

“Obviously, he’s a heck of a talent and a great guy,” he said. “But right now we just lost the series. I’m not thinking of that. It wouldn’t be fair to everyone in that locker room to think beyond tonight.”

Brown’s future with the Cavs, too, appears uncertain. After a second straight postseason flameout, there’s no guarantee management will bring him back for a sixth season.

Same goes for the hired guns brought in to help James. Shaquille O’Neal(notes) finished his first—and maybe last—season with the Cavaliers with 11 points against the Celtics. Antawn Jamison(notes), acquired at the trade deadline from Washington, had just five points.

The sold-out Boston crowd taunted James’ every free throw with a chant of “New York Knicks!” and fans wore Knicks jerseys with his name on them. The only “M-V-P!” cheers were not for James, who was the league’s best player in the regular season, but for Rondo, who was the best player in this series.

NOTES: The hottest T-shirt in the stands was a takeoff of the famous Barack Obama campaign poster with James’ image and the caption, “Nope.” … Wallace was called for a technical foul in the second quarter. He had 14 in the regular season, but it was his first of the playoffs.

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