BOSTON — Questions have surrounded Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo all season long, and the newest question came prior to last night's Game 1 of the NBA finals.
"What's your message to Rondo," asked a reporter to Celtics head coach Doc Rivers during the pregame press conference.
Rivers' response was simple.
"Play, just play," he said.
The second-year point guard from Kentucky took the advice of his coach and treated the game like it was any other en route to a 15-point, seven-assist performance. More importantly, his Celtics picked up a 98-88 victory to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Not bad at all for a 22-year-old playing in his first NBA finals. Especially considering he was giving a great deal in terms of experience to the man he was covering all game, Derek Fisher, the owner of three championship rings.
"Y'all worrying about the wrong person when you're worrying about Rajon," said Celtics backup point guard Sam Cassell, who was a spark off the bench with 8 points in 13 minutes. "He's been prepared all year, he's our leader and he's our starting point guard."
Rondo added five rebounds in his 35 minutes of play, while his defense was terrific. He held Fisher to just two second half points, after the Lakers point guard erupted for 13 in the first half, helping L.A. to a 51-46 lead at the break.
According to Rondo, he received some simple advice before the game.
"The veterans just tell me to do what I've been doing the entire year," said Rondo. "Don't go out there and try to do too much. Run the team and execute."
Cassell, who won two championships with the Houston Rockets in the 1990s, is not among the teammates giving advice.
"Rondo is fine, I don't need to say anything," Cassell said.
Green own the glass
The Lakers, who are known for their finesse and potent offense, were massively outrebounded by the Celtics, 46-33.
Led by the tireless work of All-Star forward Kevin Garnett (13 rebounds, four offensive), the Celtics banged around the Lakers down low and owned the glass. Even shooting guard Ray Allen chipped in eight rebounds, matching the Lakers' high-rebounder, Pau Gasol.
"Our goal was to control the boards," said reserve forward Leon Powe, who grabbed four rebounds in nine minutes. "Controlling the boards in every series is key. If you win the boards, you most likely win the game."
Rebounding was especially important because the shooting numbers weren't pretty. The Lakers shot 41.6 percent from the floor, while the Celtics shot 42.1 percent.
The Lakers are well-aware of the consequences if this rebounding trend continues.
"There is always a disadvantage when you get outrebounded," said forward Luke Walton, who was badly outmuscled on one play by P.J. Brown. "Obviously the goal is to always control the glass, and they just did a better job of that."
Doc embraces the mystique
According to Doc Rivers, many friends and colleagues questioned why he would want to coach in Boston, where he would be surrounded by mystique and pressure to contend.
But Rivers said he enjoyed the idea of facing the challenge when he took over the struggling franchise on April 29, 2004.
"When I took the job, a lot of coaches called me and asked why I would go to Boston and have to deal with Bird and Cousy and everyone else," said Rivers. "I actually thought that was an odd question. I thought it was good and I've always embraced it.
"I think it's something you can use as an asset, not something that should drag you down. It's been great. Just for me personally getting to know some of the legends. I had never met John Havlicek until I became the coach of the Celtics, and he's always been one of my favorite players."
The importance of Game 1
Since the current NBA playoff format was established in 1984, the Game 1 winner has won the Finals 17 times and lost seven.
In the 11 Game 1s in the Celtics-Lakers Finals history, the Green have won seven. The Game 1 winner has won six of the 10 Finals between the teams.
Red Sox not forgotten
There was also a baseball game played in Boston last night and many of the 18,624 fans in attendance at the TD Banknorth Garden had a rooting interest.
During a time-out in the first quarter, the sellout crowd erupted as they were treated to highlights from the Red Sox' 7-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park.
The crowd also went crazy when they saw the replay of a bench-clearing brawl that started after Boston outfielder Coco Crisp was drilled in the leg by a James Shields fastball. Crisp then charged the Tampa Bay righty and chaos ensued.
Doctor is in the house
Julius Erving, aka "Dr. J," was pulled aside after talking about the Celtics-Lakers rivalry with several members of the media.
He was asked a question he apparently was waiting for.
Is this Celts-Lakers "rivalry" bigger than the Celts-Sixers rivalry of the 1980s.
"Are you kidding me? Of course, not," shot back Dr. J. "What we played was a rivalry. We played the Celtics six times during the regular season and then six or seven more times in the post-season. That was a rivalry.
"The Celtics-Lakers is a big deal because it's for a championship," said Dr. J. "But what we had with the Celtics was special. Boston and Philadelphia, this cities didn't like each other. And it was kind of the same thing with the players. It was nasty. We were not friends on the court."
Dr. J said the Boston-Philly thing started with Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell, then continued on with Billy Cunningham and John Havlicek and then, of course, with Dr. J and Larry Bird.
"They were best games I ever played," said the UMass alum. "That was great basketball. There was great history between the cities and franchises. There was anger. ... It was fun."
The Hall of Famer said two players in the series were of particular interest.
Boston fans "hated" Andrew Toney. Philly fans felt the same about Kevin McHale.
"McHale had those big square shoulders and he was always bumping into somebody. The Sixers fans couldn't stand him," he said. "And we all know Andrew was the 'Boston Strangler.' "
Erving said one of his fondest memories about playing in the old Boston Garden was seeing his red jersey draped on a rafter on the first balcony.
"I know I had one fan here," said the former slam dunk king. "I think it was a guy who was connected to UMass."
Another doctor in the house
During a first quarter intermission last night, the in-house cameras caught several Patriots in attendance. The fans cheered loudly when receiver Randy Moss was shown sitting next to running back Kevin Faulk on the Jumbotron.
With Moss trying to remain incognito, a fan sitting next to Moss pointed at him.
It was North Andover's Dr. John Niceforo.
Having fun, Moss looked up at the Jumbotron and pointed back at Dr. Niceforo as the crowd cheered.
Lakers-Mets fans in the house
There was a smattering of Lakers fans in attendance last night, including an engaged couple from New York City, Jim Battista and Kendra Miller, who both wore adorned in bright yellow Lakers garb.
Miller is from Laguna, Calif., and moved to Manhattan for a job, meeting her future husband, a life-long Knicks fan.
When the Lakers made the playoffs, the pair bought tickets for the NBA finals, not sure where they would be or if the Lakers would be in the championship.
"The way this turned out couldn't be any better," said Miller.
Battista, a native of Staten Island, says he is supporting his fiance in this venture by making a deal when they have children.
"They have to be Mets fans," he said. "They can follow the Lakers, but they are going to be Mets fans. It's a little strange combo, but I could live with that."
First half tendencies
The Lakers had an astounding 14 assists in the first half compared to eight for the Celtics. Both teams shot well, with the Lakers making 19 of 38 shots compared to 18 for 40 for the Celtics ... Celtics backup point guard Sam Cassell earned some extra playing time, making three of five shots ... The MVP of the first half was Lakers point guard Derek Fisher, who had 13 points and three assists. He had 12 of those points in the second quarter when the Lakers outscored the Celtics, 30-23 ... Kevin Garnett had 16 points and six rebounds before intermission.
