Emotions at the Garden

"It was emotional," Garnett said. It was an emotional night for most of the veterans of the Boston Celtics, as they raised their 17th banner last night at the TD Banknorth Garden. Don't mention that they all got some hardware as well. Paul Pierce was the center of last nights season opener,"So many things were going through my head. The memories of the struggling times here in Boston." The night began when Celtics legend John Havlicek, the owner of eight NBA titles, came out prior to the game and passed the Larry O'Brien championship trophy to Pierce. Pierce had tears streaming down his face. Moments later, the entire team received their championship rings, 14-karat white gold ring with 92 diamonds and emeralds.Then it was time to get down to business, The Celtics went on to win in a comeback fashion defeating the Cavaliers 90 to 85. Paul Pierce lead in scoring with 27 points. Lebron James had 22 points to lead the Cavaliers in scoring. LeBron James and the Cavaliers led the Celtics by as many as 11 points in the first half and held a 50-43 halftime advantage at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston last night. The Celtics recovered in the third quarter, outscoring Cleveland, 24-13, to take a 67-63 lead. Ray Allen sealed the victory for Boston by making a pair of foul shots with four seconds left.

Sox in the Offseason

Now after the Red Sox had a disappointing ALCS offensively(hmm,game seven!), Theo and the the Boston organization is looking to rebound with a big off season. There have already been rumors regarding the free agency market. Jason Varitek, who's the biggest concern, only had four hits in the postseason and batted .220 in the regular season. The Tigers have already discussed their interest in Varitek. Short Stop? When Julio went down, I thought, who else could do as bad as Lugo, Jed Lowrie stepped in and registered some big hits for the sox. Though with Lowrie being exposed to some of the Major League drama, it still would be nice to have a well based veteran behind in case anything happens to Lowrie. Jason Bay did what he needed to do when coming to Boston, let's face it, he's no Manny, but he tries his hardest and always gives 100%. He did hit 10 HR's with the Sox. so we need another big bat in the lineup, there has been some talk about getting Teixeira, but the rumor is quickly being stomped into the dirt, here is what the GM had to say about the rumor, "No, not at all. He's good, but we could could get more for the money he wants" Teixeira is known as, "the most desirable hitter available on the open market".Though getting Mark would be great, but...where would you put him, Youkilis had a monster year and has done a pretty good job at first. Mark has recently played with the Angels, the Braves, and the Rangers. Now, my favorite topic in baseball, pitching!!! The Red Sox had a very good pitching staff despite all the injuries. If Dice-K does what he did last season and if Lester has the control like he did then we will have two spots in the rotation checked off. Now we will have to assume that Beckett will come back healthy and be the Beckett he was in the 07 playoffs. Wakefield is old, though he has some good starts, but with every good start he has a terrible start. Bucholz is a very talented pitcher who lost confidence, so once he gets his head under control he'll be the dominating pitcher he is. Jake Peavy has also grabbed the attention of GM Theo Epstein. With the close relationship between the San Diego GM Towers and Theo Epstein, there could definitely be a deal. With the World Series coming to a close, the off season is the time where every team tries to make the moves that will put them in the World Series. Knowing Theo, he has a god given talent of building a squad of great players who work well with each other.