The Celtics of today could be the Knicks two years from now.
And Earl “The Pearl” Monroe doesn’t give these Celtics much of a chance against the Knicks in their first-round playoff matchup. The Knicks are thus far proving their former star right, pulling away in the second half of the first two games at the Garden as the series shifts to Boston tonight.
“They don’t really have a go-to guy anymore. Paul Pierce is not that guy that he was a year or two ago and [Jeff] Green doesn’t have the heart in it to where he can carry a team on his back,” said Monroe, who is working as an MSG Network analyst for some postseason games.
“Other than that, they don’t have any real scoring. The things that have happened to them the past couple of games is that they started out well, but in the second half their offense really has been lacking. And the Knicks defense has been solid in the second half of both games.”
It was just two years ago these teams were in the opposite place — the Celtics up 2-0, headed to New York on their way to a sweep, but a lot has changed in that time. Pierce and Kevin Garnett are two years older and star point guard Rajon Rondo is out for the season with a torn ACL. The drop off is one the Knicks should note, as they too have a veteran-laden team desperate to win now.
“This team for the most part wasn’t built to win a year or two years down the line,” said the Knicks Hall of Famer, who recently penned a book: “Earl the Pearl: My Story.”
“With the veteran guys this team has, it’s built to win right now and I think Mike Woodson has done a great job in facilitating that and they are right on the verge. When you look out and you see all the teams, you see there’s no team they can’t beat. As long as they stay focused, who knows? They could go all the way.”
Monroe noted the regular-season success the Knicks enjoyed against the Heat, taking three of four from the defending champs. But the first step for Carmelo Anthony and company is finishing off the rival Celtics, who will be relying on a raucous home crowd in the first basketball game played in Boston since last week’s marathon bombings. The Knicks would love to finish the series off in four games and begin resting for a potential Eastern Conference semifinal with the Pacers, who are up 2-0 on the Hawks.
“To put them away, be rested and making sure your guys are healthy for the next series is very important,” Monroe said. “Putting them away early on would be great, then you could get [Tyson] Chandler back in and he’ll be much more rested and healed a little bit better. That has to be a big plus for them.”
Chandler is one of the Knicks who has been struggling through the first two games. A bulging disk in his neck has limited the Knicks’ defensive leader, and they have had to depend on Kenyon Martin late in games.
“Fortunately for them, they got K-Mart here and he’s been doing a yeoman’s job rebounding, scoring, as well, and he gives you a tough attitude that maybe the team didn’t have before. But at the same time you need Chandler in the mix,” Monroe said.