One giant leap!
My esteemed colleague Karl D, not to be confused with Karl M, the Mailman, (who you probably saw during commercial breaks from yesterdays W over the H, advertising, well, mustaches, as far as I could tell), has written a lovely little article here about the game. He does a great job breaking it down and talking about individual efforts, though his headline overshadows his content: "It's Just One Game." To the head mathematician at the NBA in charge of adding wins and losses, this is the case. However, it may be a misleading statement.
The fact is that the Celtics, who were supposed to be 2nd fiddle to the Heat, not only beat them, but were clearly the better team for the majority of the game. This wasn't a fluke win, this was the Celtics orchestrating the game for the first 35 or 40 minutes. Are they going to play this well every single game? No, but stop telling me the Heat lost the game. The Celtics just won it (much to the chagrin of the NBA who had their announcers in full apology mode for the Heat the entire game. Oh no! our big story!).
Let's talk about this game and win giving the rookies confidence and the veterans energy.
Let's talk about the extra support the fans will give after this victory.
Let's talk about Doc Rivers gaining the trust of his new players.
Let's talk about the hype of the super team being silenced in the first game of the season.
How about the rest of the league no longer seeing the Heat as "unbeatable?"
The point is, yes, their record is 1-0, it was one game, but could this win spark a winning streak? Absolutely, just as a loss could also affect the upcoming games. That influence has to be magnified by the grandiose nature of this game (Every time I heard "Playoff atmosphere" I wanted to rip Marv Albert's dumb hairpiece off and slap him with it). This victory is going to boost this team's performance, ultimately, which may well lead to more than just one win.
The fact is that the Celtics, who were supposed to be 2nd fiddle to the Heat, not only beat them, but were clearly the better team for the majority of the game. This wasn't a fluke win, this was the Celtics orchestrating the game for the first 35 or 40 minutes. Are they going to play this well every single game? No, but stop telling me the Heat lost the game. The Celtics just won it (much to the chagrin of the NBA who had their announcers in full apology mode for the Heat the entire game. Oh no! our big story!).
Let's talk about this game and win giving the rookies confidence and the veterans energy.
Let's talk about the extra support the fans will give after this victory.
Let's talk about Doc Rivers gaining the trust of his new players.
Let's talk about the hype of the super team being silenced in the first game of the season.
How about the rest of the league no longer seeing the Heat as "unbeatable?"
The point is, yes, their record is 1-0, it was one game, but could this win spark a winning streak? Absolutely, just as a loss could also affect the upcoming games. That influence has to be magnified by the grandiose nature of this game (Every time I heard "Playoff atmosphere" I wanted to rip Marv Albert's dumb hairpiece off and slap him with it). This victory is going to boost this team's performance, ultimately, which may well lead to more than just one win.