Herald Home cooking again suits Celtics Rajon Rondos all grown up FL's Take: Rondo was incredible last night. I am glad Doc left him in for the whole 2nd half and didn't put Cassell back in. That was a good decision on Doc's part. I would rather see House replace Rondo in game 6. Cassell has really hurt the team more than helped them in the last 3 games. Glen Davis fills a Big role FL's Take: Big Baby did a good job but also made some mistakes. I think Leon Powe would have done just as well. I don't know why Doc has buried Leon after how well he has played.  read more »

Herald Paul Pierce, Celtics get last word on LeBron James, Cavaliers Paul Pierce, LeBron James stir memories of 88 FL's Take: I watched that '88 game 7 this morning and what a game. Truly a classic as was last night's game. P.J. Brown provides blast from past in 4th FL's Take: Who would have thought that PJ Brown would be the hero of the game. The difference between Pierce's performance and LeBron's was that when it mattered, Pierce's teammates showed up and LeBron's didn't.  read more »

Herald Paul Pierce gets pumped to share King James court Keys to the Celtics-Cavaliers series Round 2: How Celtics match up with Cavaliers Celtics make pressure point FL's Take: Defense will once again be the key to the Celtics winning this series. If they play the great team defense that got them here, they will win. James Posey has guard up FL's Take: Posey is a key. His defense off the bench on players like Varejao and LeBron will be huge. Let's not forget that the Cavs very much wanted Posey before he signed with the Celtics and made him an offer. I am very glad he came to Boston. Will Hawks coach return after leading Atlanta to playoffs?  read more »

Herald Celtics crush Hawks to advance An explosive situation FL's Take: I was proud of the way the Celtics handled themselves in this game. When Williams threw Rondo to the floor with that hard foul, Ray rushed over and instead of going at Williams as some players would have, he bent to see how Rondo was. And when ZaZa went after KG after his pick flattened him, KG stood with his arms across his chest and didn't take the bait. Watch out, big brother: Younger Eastern Conference teams growing up Silent Paul Pierce proves deadly to Hawks Doc Rivers finally passes postseason exam FL's Take: But he did it with a lot of help from Tom Thibodeau. It is the defense that makes this team so good.  read more »

Herald Celtics guard concerns Celtics Garden dominance even more critical now FL's Take: The Pistons have proved they can win on the road in both series. The Celtics have struggled on the road and so need to take care of home court even more in this series. Balls bounce a very different way FL's Take: It is so nice not having to watch the lottery with fingers crossed and hoping for that high draft pick. I haven't given the lottery or draft a second thought this season and it feels good.  read more »

This is the continuation of an interview Chris Wallace gave exclusively to 3 Shades of Blue. The first part of the interview began with his Blue Ribbon Basketball Digest up to the point he made his first real pick in the draft.

As in the Michael Heisley interview in April, we are presenting the interview in it's entirety and not taking excerpts out to forward any agenda or point of view. We at 3 Shades of Blue hope everyone enjoys the interview and trust our readers to draw whatever conclusions they want from it.  read more »

Herald Garden party for Celtics Sam Cassells time to shine Paul Pierces big night speaks volumes FL's Take: Pierce is going to have to keep this same aggressive mindset for the Celtics to win game 6 in Atlanta. He can't play timidly and will have to be aggressive just as he was in game 5. Big Papis a big fan of Hawks Horford Celtics make it look simple Joe Johnson: It aint over yet' FL's Take: The Celtics have given the Hawks confidence by playing so poorly in games 3 and 4 and letting them back in the series. They will need to play very well to take game 6 as the Hawks are going to come at them with a lot of confidence that they can win in their own house.  read more »

Herald Celtics lose homecourt, series lead Pistons steal home Light finally on for Ray FL's Take: I was so happy to see Ray finally hit some jumpers and you could just see the confidence surging back after that first one. Hopefully he will bring that confidence to Detroit. They will need him to score in those games. Defense rests in defeat FL's Take: The defense completely broke down for stretches, especially in the 4th quarter. The Celtics have to keep up their defensive intensity because the Pistons sure will. Big Baby Glen Davis grows up in first postseason Chauncey Billups, Rodney Stuckey stand guard over Pistons Dave Cowens: Big Red is Green no more Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups: A special twosome Garnett scores TV commercial deal with Verizon Celtics shoot to raise ticket costs FL's Take: Ahhhhh the price of success.  read more »

Herald Celtics start loud, quiet crowd, silence Pistons in Detroit FL's Take: I have said from the beginning that if they Celtics play their game they6 are tough to beat. In all of their losses, the Celtics didn't play defense like they are capable of and last night they showed just how tough they are when they bring their A game. Whats up with Chauncey Billups?  read more »