Game 3 NBA Finals Instant Analysis: Why the Celtics Lost!

Pretty ugly game tonight so I'll keep it brief.

1) Props to Ray Allen for carrying the team for the first three quarters. Where would they have been without him? Probably losing by 25.

2) All the Pierce detractors will have plenty of ammo after this game as he did what he does when he drives people nuts namely out of control drives, forcing bad passes, fouling a lot, shooting a poor percentage, and turning the ball over.

3) Paging KG? Still not buying that Ben Wallace comparison?

4) Here's the deal. For the most part the Celtics played like garbage. Despite that they were in the game until more or less the end. The same thing happened in Game 3 in Detroit and in hindsight, despite the loss in that game and in this one the very fact that they could play poorly and still have a chance to win at the apex of competition is a great omen. Why? Because we all know the mark of greatness in sports is having the ability to give yourself a chance to win when you may not have your A Game. The C's showed that in Game 3 and even better their "bad" game in this series was better than their bad one against Detroit. They weren't going to sweep the Lakers and they most likely really weren't going to win Game 3. I actually thought it would be a blowout, but instead it went to the wire. These are good things in my book. There is no such thing as a good loss, but you certainly cannot call Game 3 a bad one.

5) Kobe Bryant. Wow. He would have had his 40 if not for some uncharacteristic shoddy free throw shooting in the early stages of the game. Still, he finished with 36 and proved once again that he is far and away the best player in the NBA. I know this is not news but the guy is a sight to behold on the basketball court.

See you Thursday. And here is the rest of it.